Seph:Has anyone seen Sophie since we were in the pool last night? She left with Liam and never returned.
Seph:Seriously, people, she could’ve been buried under a glacier or something. How do we know she’s okay?
Maxwell:Have you knocked on her door? Phoned her? Woke her the fuck up instead of the rest of us?
Victoria:To be fair, Max, you were already awake…
Payton:Getting it out there right now: we don’t need to know details of why you were awake. Save my innocent brain cells.
Owen:Really not that innocent.
Seph:Can we come back to the issue?
Ava:Remind me. I forgot while I was trying to rinse my brain with the random images of why Max might be awake. Wonder if Vic was awake at the same time…
Claire:I have taught you well.
Maxwell:Jesus. And Sophie’s back. She has the room next to ours and I heard her door go and something that sounded like a frustrated yowl at about midnight. Joseph, you need to learn to solve your own problems.
Seph:I was trying to. By asking you lot. And I didn’t want to bang on her door in case Liam was in there with her and they were getting their freak on.
Ava:Seph, you need a girlfriend.
Claire:Or to change your career and start writing books. Your imagination is far too vivid for a lawyer.
Maxwell:Not sure you’re the right person to give that advice, C, given how many ways you invented to kill us as kids.
Claire:True. Did we have plans today? Because if we did, I’ve changed my mind.
Killian:Spa day.
Seph:Does anyone know if Liam got back okay? Sophie could’ve left his body somewhere. It’s a desolated country…
Seph:Anyone?
Seph:Am I being ignored again?
Seph:Fuckers.
I laughed and passed Vanessa her phone back. “Bless him for worrying.” It was typical Seph. As much as he had a different girl go home with him every Friday night, he fussed over people he was close to, and that included me.
“No, don’t bless Seph for anything.” Vanessa opened the blinds. Her window overlooked part of the lagoon. My building – because I was sure it would be mine – could also be seen.
“He was concerned.”
“He was. But he’s also the biggest gossip this side of the equator. Where were you last night?”
“Who says Seph’s the biggest gossip now?” I wagged my finger at her. “Seems to be you asking the questions.”
She rolled her eyes. “I heard about the pool. And this fake engagement. Seriously, Sophie…”
I looked away from her. Vanessa had been on the observing side of some of my wilder schemes, the ones where business wasn’t generally the focus.
“This is madness. You can’t pretend to be engaged to someone just because of a building.”
“We’d probably have to get married too.” I’d received the details outlining what Ms Egalldottir required from the agent. It was ridiculous and financially crazy – she could get a much better price if she dropped her restrictions – but there it was. And I was too stubborn to let this go.
“You aren’t being serious, Soph?”
