‘So was I,’ she admitted, her voice softer with resignation. ‘But we need to sort a few things out, and I needed space after what you did, Curtis.’ As she spoke, sadness began mixing with her resolve while she listened to his heavy breaths, unsure if he was getting upset or angry.
‘I’ve thought about everything and I think it’s best .?.?.’
‘Zola, look, don’t do this .?.?.’ he said. ‘You have no idea how sorry I am. You have no idea how much I regret everything that happened. That’s why I told you. That’s why I called .?.?.’
‘Curtis,’ Zola interrupted. ‘It’s not about the girl at the gym. Yeah, she upset me, she bruised my ego, I suppose, and she probably sped this up, but we haven’t been great for a long time.’ Zola felt her voice croak. She knew what she was saying was the truth, but even so, she didn’t want Curtis to be hurt. ‘I don’t want to be together anymore. I want to take my name off the lease, you can have the flat or whatever, but I’m not going to live there when I come home.’
‘Please, Zo. No. I’m sorry, look, I’ll do whatever you want,’ Curtis begged. ‘I’ll change, babes, truly I will.’
Holding the phone away, Zola took a breath, then spoke steadily. ‘I know you would. But I deserve better. You do too. Fuck, we need to go and be happy, Curtis. We’ve had our shot at this, but we’re different people now.’
She thought back to them as teenagers, hopelessly in love. He was cool, stylish, laid-back, and she loved how close they were. But slowly, as the years progressed, he seemed to stay in the same place, with no get-up-and-go, while she soared into an ambitious woman who wanted to build a great life.
‘Can I change your mind?’ he asked. ‘Because I was happy, Zo. With you.’
Zola puffed. ‘You maybe thought you were, Curtis. But you wouldn’t have done that to me if you were, babe.’
She continued the call for another twenty minutes. Curtis sobbed, full of regret and emotion, but eventually accepted Zola’s decision, although he was still promising to one day win her back. Eventually, she hung up and flopped back on her bed, sobbing into the duvet. She felt a weight being lifted from her shoulders that she hadn’t known she was carrying, but also an overwhelming sadness for Curtis, knowing he’d never find anyone else like her.
After an hour of getting herself together, Zola walked into the living room wearing pyjamas and her hair scraped back from her face. She spotted Katy and Ethan, who were still working hard on the laptop.
‘Are you OK? Ella’s just gone for a shower,’ Katy asked, having only just realised how long Zola had been missing for.
She smiled, not wanting to chat about her messed-up life in front of Ethan. ‘Yeah, just got a bit of a headache. How’s it going?’
‘Still the same,’ Katy shrugged. ‘We’re completely clueless.’
‘I’ve hacked into the bank account, but there is no name on the account, just a bunch of codes,’ Ethan said, still firing away on the laptop.
‘That’s something,’ Zola said positively.
Katy grinned. ‘You’re amazing at this, Ethan, you should work for the FBI or something.’
Ethan tilted his head. ‘They did ask, but I said no. They didn’t pay enough.’
Katy erupted into laughter, clapping her hands as if he was joking. She turned her head and whispered to Zola, ‘Fuck, I think I love him.’
Zola’s brows raised as she watched the pair interact. Ethan was always kind to Katy, as if he saw how innocent she was. He’d never said a bad word about her involvement in the Travis Mason scandal; he just showed up to help. Was this a mutual connection? Zola wondered. But sadness swelled inside her. Was it the call with Curtis, or something else? Her brain was a scramble. It had been a tough twenty-four hours.
Zola opened the fridge and lifted out a carton of orange juice. ‘I’m going to try and get a few hours’ sleep, wake me up if you find anything,’ she said.
‘We will!’ Katy bopped happily on the sofa at the side of Ethan. ‘Night!’
Chapter Forty-Four
Ella
It was Sunday afternoon. I was pacing the living room while Ethan worked on taking down the snake at Flirtify. I didn’t know how long he’d slept, if at all. He was working when I went to sleep and was still hard at it when I woke up at seven. Katy was zonked beside him on the sofa when I got up, a fleecy blanket draped over her. Maybe he’d gotten up early for some peace from Katy’s endless questions. I wouldn’t blame him. When she had a man in her sights, that girl would stop at nothing to impress him. But now, we were all up, anxiety thick in the air. It was less than twenty-four hours until Jimmy was set to be fired from Flirtify. Philip had tried to call several times and sent a simpleI’m sorrytext, which made my bones rage. I still couldn’t believe he’d done this to me, to my friends. There was no way I’d ever speak to that disgusting dickhead of a man again.
*
Around two, Katy’s phone beeped from the side of her; she was with Ethan, who remained stern-faced and slightly sweaty at the laptop. She lifted her phone, then turned to Zola and me, and her contented expression completely disappeared.
‘The stalker?’ Zola asked, suddenly tense.
Katy shook her head, eyes flicking to Ethan as he worked. She nudged her head towards the breakfast bar and slowly got up to meet us there.
‘Travis Mason has just messaged,’ she gulped, keeping her voice low.
