‘Heather was so desperate for a drinks waiter, she rang the pub to ask if anyone would be able to work on Christmas Day. I was happy not to spend it with Mum and Dad, to be honest.’
‘I thought you hated the Ashworths.’
‘I do, but I’d do just about anything for a hundred bucks an hour. Anyway, someone gave them DNA kits. The same as that one you bought for me.’ Georgie told her about the gift bag addressed to the three Ashworth siblings and the awkward conversation that had followed. ‘No one knew who put them there. They were all weirded out by it.’ She popped a piece of gum in her mouth. ‘I thought it might have been you.’
‘Me? No. How would I have got them there?’
Georgie shrugged.
Meg frowned, thinking. ‘Someone must know something. Do you think it could be to do with me and Mum?’
‘Maybe. They’re total pricks, though. If I were you, I’d run a freaking mile.’
‘Even with all that money?’ Meg said.
Georgie stirred the melting ice in her glass. ‘I wouldn’t be one of them for all the money in the world.’ Her eyes widened and she leaned in. ‘Speaking of the Ashworths …’
Meg turned to see Isobel walking towards the bar.
Chapter 36
‘She’s on a break,’ the ponytailed bartender said, when Issy asked for Georgie at the bar.
After the realisation had struck her—thatGeorge Mobilewas Georgie-the-waitress—Issy had called her mother to ask her about the lovely waitress who’d looked after them on Christmas Day. She’d made something up about wanting to contact her regarding an upcoming event she was organising for the staff (‘You know how it is, Mum! It’s impossible to find good people!’) and Heather had told her she would find Georgie at the Red Lion Hotel.
So here she was. Issy wasn’t sure what she was planning to say when she came face to face with Georgie, but she strongly suspected Hugh was cheating with her, so she wanted to suss her out.
She followed the bartender’s pointed finger and saw Georgie sitting at a high table in the corner with Meg, the academic. It struck her as an unlikely pairing.
‘Issy! Hi!’ Meg said, frowning, when Issy reached the table. ‘Ah, this is—’
‘Georgie. Yes, hello.’ Issy gave Georgie a tight-lipped smile, then turned to Meg. ‘We met on Christmas Day.’
‘Hi,’ Georgie said, flipping her long, tousled hair from one side to the other. Issy shuddered, picturing Hugh’s hands in that hair.
There was an awkward silence. ‘Do you want to have a seat?’ Meg offered.
‘Thanks.’ Issy sat down. ‘How was your Christmas, Meg?’
‘It was …—’ she searched for a word, ‘—eventful.’
Issy let out a little laugh, thinking of her own eventful Christmas Day. Meg and Georgie looked at Issy as though they were waiting for her to explain what she was doing there.
She cleared her throat, wishing she’d given more thought to how she would approach the conversation. ‘Thanks for helping out the other day,’ she said to Georgie.
‘All good,’ Georgie said, chewing gum.
‘I didn’t know you knew my fiancé, Hugh.’
Georgie frowned. ‘Hugh?’
‘Yes. You were talking to him after lunch.’
‘Oh, he just came looking for another beer. I just know him from around here, you know,’ Georgie said vaguely.
‘So you grew up around here, then?’ Issy asked.
Georgie nodded.
