Ralph glanced sideways at his wife.
‘What do you mean?’
‘You must have noticed! She’s all over that man like a rash.’
‘Yes,’ Ralph agreed. ‘Very odd. And inappropriate.’
‘Inappropriate?’ Edie repeated, with a hiss. ‘Outrageous more like! I wouldn’t have believed it if I hadn’t been there. I don’t know what’s come over her. Maybe she’s having a nervous breakdown or a midlife crisis or something. I’ve never seen her like this before.’
‘I have.’
Edie stopped in her tracks and stared at her husband, open-mouthed. ‘What do you mean?’
‘I’ve seen her flirting at parties sometimes.’
Edie made a scoffing sound. ‘What? When she was a student? That doesn’t count.’
Ralph rubbed his nose as if he had an itch. ‘No, much more recently.’
‘Really?’ Edie’s eyebrows shot up. ‘When?’
‘I can’t remember exactly, but I know I’ve seen her coming on to people – quite subtly, but it was obvious what she was up to. Mac mentioned it to me once. He said it happened quite a lot and it made him feel humiliated. He said he thought it was something to do with her wanting validation, but he didn’t know why she felt the need. She got plenty of praise and reassurance from him.’
He resumed walking and Edie had to hurry to keep up. She was silent for a few moments, processing what she’d just heard, before coming to the conclusion Mac’s word couldn’t be trusted.
‘Well, I never noticed Hannah doing anything to embarrass him,’ she replied dismissively. ‘I do know the slightest thing made him jealous. She only had to look at a man and he’d freak out. She probably feels like letting her hair down now after years of being under his thumb, and I don’t blame her. The way he acted the other night was appalling.
‘I just think, with Jessica missing, she should stay away from Jean-Luc for the time being. He’s a bit of a creep anyway, in my view. But if she’s planning on taking it any further, it’s because Mac’s driven her to it. The blame is all on him.’
A young, dark-haired girl walked by in a pink and white spotted dress, holding two enormous, fat, fluffy black dogs on leashes. She could only have been about eight years old and was such a skinny little thing, the dogs could easily pull her over. They looked quite docile, however, ambling obediently on either side of their mistress, only stopping every now and again to sniff something.
Edie remembered April saying she had two big Bernese dogs and guessed these must be them. The girl was probably Meaty’s sister.
Sure enough, the animals paused outside the supermarket entrance and waited for her to lead the way inside.
When Ralph stopped again, Edie watched the dogs plod one by one through the open door. The very last things to disappear were the tips of their furry tails.
The idea of living in a small flat with two such enormous creatures made her shudder. But reflecting on the dreadful prospect didn’t distract her enough to make her lose her previous train of thought entirely.
‘How come you never told me about Hannah’s flirting before?’ she asked, picking up the threads of their conversation.
Ralph pretended not to hear. ‘We should probably get some food for tomorrow,’ he said, gazing in the supermarket window, with his fists perched nonchalantly on his hips. Edie wasn’t so easily fooled. Pushing forwards, she wedged herself between him and the shop window, jutting her chin.
‘Don’t try and avoid the question. Why didn’t you tell me?’
Ralph rubbed his stubbly cheek and shifted slowly from one foot to another, as if playing for time.
‘She’s your friend,’ he replied at last. ‘I didn’t want to badmouth her. Anyway, flirting’s not a crime. I just felt a bit sorry for Mac, that’s all.’
If Edie had a shred of doubt about whether any part of Mac’s story was true, she wasn’t going to admit it. Hannah – and the sisterhood – would always come first.
‘Well, I don’t feel sorry for him,’ she said with a snort. ‘Not one little bit. I hope Hannah dumps him the minute we get home.’
* * *
Naturally, April was thrilled to see the couple as it gave her the chance to do some digging.
She was standing behind the shop counter, flicking through a magazine, but looked up the moment they entered.
