Liam lifts an earphone. He looks distraught. This whole week has been stressful. No wonder he’s showing signs of wear and tear.
‘Are you okay?’ I mouth.
He shakes his head sadly. ‘No.’
‘Everything will be fine,’ I promise, reaching over Ged to give his fingers a squeeze.
‘It won’t,’ he says with a huge sigh. ‘It won’t.’
‘It will.’ I must stay positive and strong for him. ‘We’ll find a way.’
‘You’re wasting your time,’ says Ged, lifting an earphone to intercept our conversation. ‘He’s talking aboutBridgerton.’
I frown, perplexed.
‘I simply can’t fancy Colin,’ Liam says. ‘Lord knows I’ve tried, but I can’t. I just can’t.’ His eyes are glassy. ‘How many more brothers are there?’
Ah.I shrug sympathetically because we’ve all been there. When you’ve had a taste of what I’ve had – Matteo the Magnificent (I promise I will stop calling him that as soon as it wears off) – then the Colins of this world are all rendered wet blankets. That reminds me. The unrequited love triangle inBridgertonis not dissimilar to my own. At the thought of Luke, my heart sinks that he might sabotage my romantic trip to see Matteo. I should put a stop to it. And even though I haven’t got a spontaneous bone in my body, it’s time to put on my big girl pants and take action.
I take a stealthy look around. Everyone seems to be asleep or watching their screens. I quietly unbuckle my seat belt and get up.
A hand lands heavily on my shoulder.
‘Not so fast.’ It’s Big Sue, acting like one of those undercover air marshals you see in films. ‘Where do you think you’re off to?’
‘The toilet,’ I say hesitantly.
Big Sue sees right through me. She lifts her hand to hide her lips and leans down. ‘You’re off to see if Luke has boarded this flight.’ She regards me for a moment. ‘I’ll come too. You need a distraction. I’ll run interference while you enter first class.’ She glances down at the complex bit of kit on her wrist. ‘Rendezvous back here at fifteen hundred hours. Capeesh?’
The outfit has possessed Big Sue. That’s the only justification I can give for her talking Italian slang and acting like a mobster. And yet…
‘Capeesh.’ I nod back. Who am I to burst her bubble?
2
While the cabin crew are busy doing the first trolley service of free drinks in economy, we stealthily make our way to the curtained-off area hiding the haves from the have-nots. There are two cabin crew busying themselves, restocking little bottles of Prosecco and bags of nuts.
‘Excuse me,’ says Big Sue. ‘I think I dropped my phone down here when I was boarding. Have you seen it?’
While they immediately help her search the floor for it, I nip behind the curtain into first class. But as I start looking down each row, a sixth sense crawls up my spine, stopping me in my tracks. He’s here. I can feel it. I slip into an empty seat and ask myself if this confrontation is really what I need right now. What do I say to Luke? I can hardly ask him to get off the plane. Perhaps ignoring him is actually the better course of action. It might send a more confident signal that I am not interested in him. I am en route to Las Vegas to fall into the forgiving arms of my new lover Matteo the Magnificent.
‘Excuse me, madam,’ says an irate cabin crew member towering over me. ‘You’re not allowed in here.’ He points to the curtain and watches while I do the walk of shame, head hanging, back down the aisle to economy.
When I reach my seat, Big Sue is quick to ascertain whether the mission was a success. ‘Mission status?’
‘Negative,’ I say glumly. ‘Well, and positive, I suppose.’
‘Did you have eyes on the target?’ Big Sue presses me. ‘Did you get burned?’
‘No,’ I say. ‘I didn’t touch anything hot.’
‘Were. You. Com. Pro. Mised?’ she explains slowly, while Liberty sniggers at my ignorance.
‘It was a huge flop, was it?’ asks Liberty. She hasn’t been fully on board with any of our covert operations to confirm the Luke situation.
‘Well, excuse me for not being a former FBI agent. How am I supposed to know the language?’
Fortunately, Big Sue, who works high up in social care, is patient. ‘Did you see him?’
