his heart wasn’t somersaulting sickeningly around in his chest at the sight of her, and it cost him nothing to lean forward, still grasping both drinks, to kiss her cheek.
‘I haven’t seen you for ages!’ he said, and then his eyes fell on Will and his face hardened. ‘Oh,’ he said flatly. ‘You’re back, are you?’
Will was rather taken aback by his tone. ‘Back?’
‘According to Bella, you were single-handedly saving the global economy in Hong Kong while the rest of us mere mortals were at Kate’s wedding.’
‘I wouldn’t say that,’ said Will modestly, ‘but we did manage to brush through that particular crisis.’
‘When did you get back?’ Josh’s tone was unfriendly, and he was eyeing Will like a dog with its hackles up.
‘Some time ago—’
‘I’m sorry we haven’t been in touch—’ Bella interrupted, putting her arm around Will’s waist and leaning winsomely into him ‘—but you know what it’s like when one of you has been away.’ She gave him a meaningful squeeze. ‘We haven’t seen anybody really, have we, darling?’
Will’s expression flickered, but he rose to the occasion wonderfully and put his arm around her and agreed that they hadn’t felt like being very social.
‘I’m glad everything’s going well for you,’ said Josh, not looking in the slightest bit glad, and not sounding it either.
‘Oh, yes, everything’s perfect,’ cooed Bella. ‘Isn’t it, Will?’
‘Perfect,’ he echoed, somewhat woodenly.
‘Anyway, enough about us! How are things with you two?’ Bella asked brightly.
Josh handed Aisling her drink so that he could put his free arm around her in imitation of the way Will and Bella were standing. ‘We’re great,’ he said.
Did Bella imagine it, or was that a defensive edge to his voice?
‘It’s not like you to come to the theatre, Bella,’ Aisling put in. ‘Josh was just saying that you’ve always been too much of a drama queen yourself to ever want to watch anyone else getting all the attention on stage!’
Bella could imagine Josh saying that, but not in the way Aisling made it sound. ‘No, well, I’m rather surprised to see you two here as well,’ she countered sweetly. ‘I thought you preferred being outdoors, competing as to who has the muddiest boots or the dirtiest towel.’
‘We like being active,’ Aisling agreed, her smile every bit as fixed as Bella’s. ‘But we enjoy culture too.’
Josh didn’t look as if he was enjoying himself. Bella raised her brows, but before she could retort, Will had tugged at her. ‘If you want that drink, Bella, we’d better get going.’
‘Of course.’ Bella smiled sweetly at Josh and Aisling. ‘See you later!’
‘Culture!’ she exploded the moment they were out of earshot. ‘It’s only a musical! And Josh will hate it!’
‘So, do you want to tell me what that was all about?’ said Will when he had caught the barmaid’s attention and could hand Bella a gin and tonic.
Bella didn’t pretend not to know what he was talking about. ‘I didn’t want Josh to know that we’ve split up.’
‘I gathered that,’ he said dryly.
‘Thanks for playing along,’ she told him.
Will looked at her curiously. ‘I thought Josh was your big buddy?’ he said. ‘I assumed he’d be the first person you would tell if you split up.’
‘Normally he would be,’ admitted Bella, ‘but he was so unpleasant about you at Kate’s wedding that it made me cross, and besides—’
‘Besides what?’ asked Will when she stopped.
‘Nothing.’ She couldn’t explain why it had seemed such a good idea at the time to let Josh believe that she was still madly in love with Will.
Will raised his brows. ‘It must be six weeks since Kate got married. Do you mean to say that he still doesn’t know?’
‘I just haven’t had an opportunity to tell him,’ said Bella, swirling her gin defensively.
‘You did more than not tell him just now,’ he pointed out. ‘You went out of your way to make him think that we were still very much together!’
‘I know,’ she said guiltily. ‘I just can’t stand the thought of Aisling feeling sorry for me. You saw what she was like. She’d be all warm and sympathetic and oh-so-slightly smug because she and Josh are so cosy together.’ Bella grimaced at the thought and took a slug of gin. ‘You know they’re living together now?’
‘Ah,’ said Will.
Bella lowered her glass suspiciously. ‘What’s that supposed to mean?’
‘It explains why you’re so upset.’
‘I’m not upset,’ she said with something of a snap. ‘I just don’t like Aisling. Josh and I were fine until she came along.’
‘But it’s not Aisling who’s the problem, is it? It’s you.’
‘Me?’
‘You’re in love with Josh.’
Bella opened her mouth to deny it vehemently. She was fully intending to tell Will that he didn’t know what he was talking about, and that there was no question of being in love with Josh, who was just her dear friend and absolutely nothing else.
But somehow the words wouldn’t come out. Instead she felt a peculiar sinking sensation, as if she were teetering at edge of a cliff, not daring to look down at what lay in the abyss below. Closing her mouth, she swallowed hard.
‘I’m right, aren’t I?’ said Will, as the bell warning the audience to take their seats sounded.
Smiling ruefully, he took Bella’s glass from her nerveless hand and set it on a nearby table. Then he took her arm and propelled her towards the stairs. ‘Poor Bella. You look like you’ve been hit by a truck!’
That was exactly how Bella felt. Numbly, she let Will guide her up the stairs and into her seat. Having resisted it for so long, now the truth was staring her in the face, she couldn’t avoid it and she felt suddenly, horribly afraid.
How could it have happened? She had never loved Josh before, or at least not in this new, scary way, and there was no reason for her to start falling in love with him now.
Bella didn’t want to be in love with him. She wanted to go back to the way they had been before, but the certainty that she could never do that now was cold around her heart. As long as she had refused to acknowledge it, things were OK, but Will’s careless words had been all that were needed to let the genie out of the bottle, and now she could never get it back.
The
