Perfect Strangers: an unputdownable read full of gripping secrets and twists. Erin Knight

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СКАЧАТЬ her hair this morning.

      ‘Sorry, I didn’t mean to gatecrash.’

      ‘Not at all!’ beamed Cleo. ‘We were just saying, not nearly enough interesting women in this town any more, they’re all obsessed with finding new ways to innovate their skincare regimes and smothering, sorry, mothering, their children.’

      ‘You were saying that, Cle. I was just thinking I need a new wrinkle cream.’ Sarah shared a smile with Isobel. Cleo missed it.

      ‘Sarah teaches at the town primary. Knows all the horror-parents.’

      ‘Can we not talk about Juliette and co, Cle?’

      ‘Sorry, you’re absolutely right. I’ve already had one of that lot dent my morning. Isobel, you’re still standing? Take a seat. Dig in.’ Isobel obediently slipped into a rattan chair.

      ‘I’m sure Rachel didn’t mean to upset you,’ tried Sarah.

      Cleo swished her butter knife. ‘She shouldn’t have gone power-waddling all over my morning. Today started so well, too. Did I mention I was jogging when Rachel and her daft grin showed up?’

      ‘Only twice.’ Sarah’s eyes creased at the edges when she smiled. Some women were just blessed with that universally approved beauty. Blonde – check. Good bone structure – check. Others had to work towards it the way Isobel had the night she’d borrowed Sophie’s red cocktail dress to blow Nathan’s socks off. She’d been aiming for beautiful, but she hadn’t made it past pig. Pig by popular consensus. Ugly pig. Pig on heat. Fat pig. Skinny Pig. Horny pig. Several variations of pig peppering the hundreds of comments left beneath the footage of her in that beautiful dress. In their kitchen. Maybe they’d have gone easier if she’d been more aesthetically pleasing. Like Sarah.

      Stop it.

      ‘Let me boast! I can hardly walk, my buttocks are aching so diabolically. Do you work out, Isobel? Clearly you do, there’s nothing to you. Why do I always make friends with gorgeous women? It’s a bloody bad habit. Coffee?’ Cleo was already poised with the cafetiere. ‘Sorry, forgot . . . headaches. Tea then? Milk or lemon?’

      Cleo talked so fast that listening was a bit like a workout. ‘Lemon, thanks.’

      ‘Have a muffin. Have two! I’m already eyeing up a third.’ Cleo started loading a plate.

      Sarah tapped her cup. ‘You’re a fox, Cleo. Sam still makes cow eyes at you after how many years of marriage?’

      ‘Twenty-three.’

      ‘Twenty-three?’ marvelled Isobel. ‘Wow.’ She and Nathan hadn’t even made it to an engagement ring.

      ‘Sam tells Cleo she’s beautiful all the time, Isobel. It’s that hair. Women would kill for that natural curl.’

      ‘Ha! Tell Evie that, she detests hers.’ Cleo’s smile faded. Isobel stirred her tea and tried to blend in.

      ‘So, what’s wrong with Evie?’ asked Sarah, around a delicate mouthful of something.

      Cleo sighed. ‘My antennae are twitching.’

      Sarah bit into another forkful and held her hand over her mouth. A diamond glinted in the sunlight. ‘Go on.’

      ‘She’s having stick off some little shits at school. It’s not cyber-bullying, not yet, just . . .’ Cleo batted a hand. ‘Childish stuff. Name-calling. Crappy comments about her looks. Unimaginative little weasels.’ Isobel sipped quietly from her teacup. ‘I was stunned she was so upset at first. You know Evie, perfectly capable of fighting her corner. So now I’m wondering . . . is something else going on?’

      Isobel’s voice came from nowhere. ‘Something else?’ Cleo might be missing something catastrophic on her daughter’s horizon. The internet was good at delivering catastrophic.

      ‘Well, she has these emotional outbursts, usually when she catches me and Sam arguing. Which admittedly is probably too often. I feel like we’re setting her off, which is awful, but it’s also the only time she actually tells us if something’s bothering her.’

      Sarah’s fork hovered at the edge of her plate. ‘Don’t beat yourself up, Cleo. I’d hate to be a teenager today, everything documented and up for public viewing. Plus it’s GCSE season. Evie probably just needs an outlet.’

      ‘I know. And I am making an effort, to get along better with Sam, I mean. I sent him an uncharacteristically nice text just this morning so I’m not all bad.’

      ‘A nice text?’ winked Sarah. ‘I see.’

      ‘We don’t sext each other, Sarah. Good God, could you imagine? I’d need a panoramic lens just to get everything in.’

      ‘Evie and Harry brought that letter home too then? My mother read Will’s out. He was mortified.’

      Cleo looked at Isobel. ‘The high school are concerned our children are moronic enough to photograph their genitals. Honestly, they think we’re dragging them up. No, I just texted Sam to suggest we make an effort, for Evie really. Put on a united front. We’re going to the cinema. We’ll argue.’

      ‘Everyone argues, Cle.’

      ‘You two never argue! Honestly, Isobel, Sarah and Jon never argue. They’re disgusting.’

      ‘Only because he has his space and I have mine. I like it when he goes running every night. Is that bad? Am I ungrateful?’ Sarah stabbed at a blueberry and popped it between her teeth. ‘Do you have children, Isobel?’

      ‘Just a niece. Ella. She’s five.’

      ‘Very wise,’ piped Cleo. ‘Kids are trouble. Especially teens. Although you haven’t had a peep out of Will yet, have you Sar?’

      ‘Nope,’ sighed Sarah.

      ‘Still no sign of a girlfriend then?’

      ‘Not yet. Although he did shout at Max last month after he opened Will’s text message without needing the code.’

      ‘Girlfriend alert! Don’t you think, Isobel?’ Isobel smiled and sipped her tea.

      ‘Not unless her name’s Edward. Does Harry know him, Cle? I think he’s new. Will’s always dashing off to meet him.’

      Cleo frowned. ‘H hasn’t mentioned an Edward, but then he’s all loved up with the lovely Ingred from Copenhagen. I keep catching him taking selfies with puppy-dog eyes. Dread to think what it’s costing us getting them to her inbox. Anyway, I’m counting my blessings. The way I see it, if Harry’s busy fantasising about a girl all the way over there, he can’t be getting himself into much trouble with girls over here, can he? I don’t want to have to do the condom talk, and Sam’s useless.’

      ‘You’re putting me off my pancake, Cle.’

      ‘Sorry. I can’t believe how fast our little boys are growing into men.’

      ‘I know, it’s scary,’ agreed Sarah. ‘Doesn’t СКАЧАТЬ