For Your Own Protection(7)

Matt felt strangely guilty as he returned her kindly smile. This wasn’t going to plan at all. He decided to park the idea of breaking up and instead come clean about what was top of his worry list. ‘It’s about Beth and Charlie. Beth wants to move to Australia with James.’ He dragged a hand across his face. ‘And of course, that means Charlie too.’ He was met with sympathetic eyes. ‘She says it’s for two years, but you just don’t know, do you? Once you make that move, if it goes well, the likelihood is that temporary becomes permanent. Charlie is at the age where he’ll feel it’s his home: he’ll be settled in a school, have friends. I’ll hardly see him.’

Catherine reached out to take his hand. ‘I’m so sorry, Matt. Can she just do that?’

‘With my permission. Which is what she asked for.’

‘And what did you say?’

‘I said no way.’

Catherine didn’t say anything.

‘Do you think I should agree to it?’

‘I don’t know. It’s very difficult. I’m not sure what I’d do if I was in your position. I know how much you love Charlie.’

‘I didn’t handle it well,’ Matt admitted. ‘I guess it took me by surprise.’

Matt gazed at her. Suddenly, the idea that she was some kind of stalker, or a woman going under a false name, seemed absurd. Maybe the real issue wasn’t Catherine at all. Maybe it was him. He was looking for an excuse to end the fledgling but promising relationship, because he didn’t want to admit the truth – that he still loved and wanted Beth.

She seemed to read his thoughts. ‘This isn’t just about losing Charlie, is it?’

Matt shook his head. ‘I still love her. And I want her back. I’m pretty sure she doesn’t want me, but I need to try.’

‘I understand.’

‘I’m sorry, Catherine. I really don’t want to mess you around.’

But she was no longer listening. She was looking towards the exit and the man standing at the doorway – the man from the toilets, who was looking back at her, smirking. As he left the pub, Catherine continued to gaze at the spot where he’d been, as if lost in thought.

‘Catherine?’

She snapped out of her reverie, but she was clearly rattled. She tried a smile. ‘Sorry, what was it you were saying?’

Her face seemed drained of colour, and although she was doing her best to look interested, Matt could see she was still processing something.

The man was not a stranger to her, and Matt had to ask the question. ‘The man at the door, who is he?’

‘Sorry?’

‘The man – you know him.’

‘I don’t know who you mean. Someone in here?’ Her eyes swept the room, but it was just an act.

‘He approached me in the toilets,’ Matt revealed, trying his best not to sound confrontational. ‘He said you knew one another.’

Catherine stayed silent and placed a hand on her downturned phone, as if readying herself for an exit.

‘I dismissed him. He was drunk. But you do know him, don’t you? You recognised him just then.’

She shrugged it off. ‘He seemed familiar, but I couldn’t place him.’ Now her cheeks were reddening. ‘I think he may have been a client a few years back.’

Matt wondered whether to stop there. It seemed they had almost reached the desired destination – breaking up – so he could just walk away and get on with trying to win Beth back. But he felt an irresistible urge now to find out whether Catherine was who she said she was, and if not, why she had lied. ‘Is your name really Catherine?’

She tried to hide her reaction. But the micro-expression, a flash of guilt, told Matt what he wanted to know.

‘Why?’ he asked. ‘Why lie about your name?’ And then suddenly everything made sense. ‘You’re already married. This is an affair, right?’

She didn’t deny it, instead keeping her head down. ‘I’d better go, Matt. I’m sorry.’

She made to stand, so Matt stood with her. He kept his voice even, determined not to make a scene. ‘Am I right? You’re already married? That man, have you had an affair with him in the past? Is that how you know one another?’ He tried to read her. Now he had vocalised it, that explanation didn’t seem to fit somehow. She hadn’t denied his accusation. But somehow it didn’t seem right.

‘I should go,’ she said. Matt allowed her to pass by and head out of the door. But he followed her out on to the pavement, turning left towards Westminster. She’d set off at a quick pace, determined to outwalk his questioning, and he struggled to keep up.

‘Catherine, please.’

‘Matt, just leave it.’ Her speed increased. He stumbled slightly, and she took the opportunity to scoot across the road through a gap in the traffic. By the time Matt tried to follow, he was left stranded, only able to watch as the woman he knew as Catherine jogged off down the street.





CHAPTER SIX


Rachel Martin took a sip of tepid water and found herself gagging. She managed to limit the damage to several stifled coughs, but it was still enough to draw a number of inquisitive looks from those crowded into the front room.

Wakes were, by their very nature, strange events. The idea of burying her boyfriend one minute and eating finger food the next struck her as repugnant. She would have avoided the wake altogether, but for the fact that Hilary, Alex’s mother, had specifically asked her to be there. Rachel hadn’t felt able to refuse.