Holly entered the building, managing to straighten her face as she stepped into the foyer.
David slid open the internal glass hatch, through which he usually handed customers their parking authorisation tickets.
‘Morning, Holly,’ he said, his glowing cheeks belying his casual tone. ‘How are you? How is Mrs Barrett? How are you settling in here?’
She pressed an index finger to her pursed lips and assumed a puzzled look.
‘Which question should I answer first?’
‘I’m sorry. I didn’t mean…’ He took a breath. ‘How are you?’
‘I’m fine, thanks.’ She smiled and reached for the door handle to enter the store, but then let her hand drop again. It wouldn’t hurt to pass the time of day with him. Instead of thinking of cunning ways to get to the bottom of what had happened to affect David so badly, maybe she ought to wait for the right moment and then just ask him herself.
She turned towards him. ‘I’ve had a really good first couple of weeks here, thanks, and I’m feeling quite at home at Cora’s. How are you, David?’
‘OK, I suppose. At least I was…’ A muscle flexed in his jaw as if he was trying to fight saying something. ‘It’s just that… well, Brian has moved in with us now.’
‘Brian is your…’
‘He’s Mother’s friend,’ he said morosely.
‘I see.’ She recalled the ruddy-faced bald man she’d seen in the garden.
She glanced at David’s mouth, which was set in a grim line. ‘Aren’t you very happy about it then, Brian moving in?’
‘He can be quite a difficult man,’ David said slowly, tapping his pen on the counter. ‘You know the sort.’
‘Oh yes,’ Holly said meaningfully as she spotted Emily’s black Z4 enter the car park. ‘I know exactly the sort of person you mean.’
David followed her eyes and nodded.
Something caught Holly’s eye on the desk.
‘Oh, you’re reading Rear Window. That’s one of my favourite films.’ She beamed.
When she’d first arrived at Geraldine’s, she’d loved nothing more than running a nice, relaxing bubble bath in her private en suite bathroom and taking an hour for herself with a good book. She’d loved the film and this was one of the titles she’d read.
‘Yes, they made the film in 1954, you know. It’s on at the Broadway cinema the week after next; they show a classic film matinee now every weekend,’ David said matter-of-factly, breaking into her reverie.
‘Is it? Nice. Are you going to see it?’
‘No, no.’ He began to tidy his already pristine desk. ‘I don’t generally go out at the weekends.’
‘Is that because of… something that happened to you?’
He looked at her, frowning, and she felt her face heat up.
‘Something that happened?’ he repeated sharply.
‘It was just something Cora said, when she first told me you lived next door… just that…’ She was babbling. Why on earth had she chosen to tackle the subject now? ‘Sorry. Forget I said anything.’
‘I don’t go out a lot because I have other work to do,’ David said frostily. ‘When I’m not here, that is.’
In a moment of placatory madness, Holly said, ‘Well that’s a shame, because I’d love to see the film again but I’ve nobody to go with.’
David stared at her, his face blank.
The outer door flew open and Emily stomped into the small foyer. David glanced out of his window at the car park and coughed.
‘Miss Beech…’
‘Don’t start this morning, David,’ Emily snapped, glaring first at Holly and then back at him. ‘The car park is practically empty at this time, so save your whining for somebody else.’
‘But you see, Mr Kellington likes designated spots for staff and customers, and you’ve just parked in a customer space.’
‘I simply parked where there was an empty space. There’s no sign telling me I can’t park there, so you needn’t bother complaining to Mr Kellington again.’ She stormed past Holly and pulled open the door into the store before glaring back at her pointedly. ‘Frankly, that’s all I need, another jobsworth grassing me up.’
‘Oh dear,’ David said once she’d gone. ‘Miss Beech seemed rather upset.’
‘I wouldn’t worry, David, she’s prickly at the best of times.’ Holly reached for the door handle herself. ‘Right, I’d best be off. Have a nice day.’
‘You too,’ he called after her. ‘See you soon, Holly… I hope.’
Holly walked straight upstairs into the staff office to lock her handbag away. Some of the other staff were already in there and murmured their good mornings. Martyn pulled the corners of his mouth down behind Emily’s back to indicate to Holly that their colleague was in a bad mood.
It wouldn’t have taken much to guess, even if Holly had not already witnessed it in the foyer. Emily tossed her flat driving shoes into her locker and then pushed her stockinged feet aggressively into a pair of heels that she plucked forcibly from its depths.
Holly watched her surreptitiously from behind.
Today Emily had styled her hair into a sleek swept-back style, held firmly in place with a dramatic gold clasp. She wore wide black culottes and a fitted black jacket with shiny brass buttons over a neat white blouse. She always seemed to be able to make sartorial elegance look effortless.
Holly brushed the slight creases out of her own cheap navy skirt and glanced into the small mirror on the wall while she straightened the collar on her tired cream-coloured blouse.
She’d made a bit of an effort with her own hair and make-up before leaving the house this morning.
Her hair was desperate for a cut, so she’d tucked it back behind her ear on one side and fastened it there with a pretty diamanté hairgrip. Her roots were starting to show through from her last cheap and cheerful home colour session, but a professional retouch was going to have to wait until her first payday.
She barely owned any make-up but had dusted on a little of Cora’s blusher, which she’d found in the bathroom cupboard, and some old mascara that frankly had smelled a bit off but still managed to accentuate her dark eyes. Unfortunately she’d no concealer to help with the shadows under her eyes.
Finally she’d applied a lick of her own raspberry-coloured lip gloss, though amateur that she was, she realised she’d forgotten to bring it with her for a reapplication at lunchtime.
Sadly, next to Emily’s skilfully made-up face, Holly looked like she’d just fallen out of bed without making any effort. She might as well not have bothered in the first place.
Behind her, Emily cleared her throat.
‘Sorry!’ Holly stepped aside. ‘I didn’t realise you were waiting for the mirror.’
‘No. Seems you don’t realise a lot of things, doesn’t it, Holly? Like not realising you’d dropped me in it with Mr Kellington.’
Holly opened her mouth and closed it again. Martyn raised an eyebrow as he and the other staff filed silently out of the office, leaving the two women alone.
‘Look, Emily, I’m sorry if—’
‘Save it, why don’t you?’ Emily smoothed the sides of her already immaculate hair with flat palms and turned around to face her. ‘You knew I’d dealt with those customers first. You knew the sale belonged to me.’
‘But you weren’t interested in them,’ Holly protested. ‘You tried to send them to another shop!’
Emily took a step towards her and glared down from her towering heels. She jutted her chin out, pressing her face closer to Holly’s to complete the intimidation.
‘If I hear you say that once more, I swear I’ll rip your tongue out.’
Holly gasped, recoiling from her colleague’s vitriolic words and the unpleasant strong smell of coffee on Emily’s breath.
‘You can’t threaten me like that.’
‘I can say exactly what I like, because this time, you have no witnesses.’ Emily smiled sweetly. ‘I got rid of the last silly cow who came here thinking she could snap at my heels, and I’ll have no problem getting rid of you too. Just give me time.’
Chapter Thirty-Eight
David
Holly seems so different to anyone else I know… perhaps have ever known.