The Perfect Match (18 page)

Nevil shrugged. ‘Shit happens.’

‘No! Not to me! I check things, Nevil. I don’t show people round houses that are not for sale.’

He put his head on one side. ‘Well, you do sometimes, Bells.’

‘It’s not funny! I’m not going to let you get away with this. I know you’re the boss, but you put me in a horrible position.’

‘I know I did, but there wasn’t time to warn you.’

Bella put her hand on her hip and scratched her head. ‘Why wasn’t there? I mean, house sales usually take a few days even if everything is being rushed. With Badger Cottage it was for sale in the early afternoon and off the market before teatime! Fastest sale ever!’

‘It was quick,’ he acknowledged. ‘And obviously we haven’t gone through all the processes, but the deal was done.’ He glared up at her.

Bella sighed with frustration. ‘For goodness’ sake!’

Nevil shrugged. ‘I am the head of this firm. I’m allowed to sell property too, you know.’

‘Don’t pull rank, Nevil.’

Their eyes locked for several seconds. Bella contemplated walking out now, forever. She was so angry. He’d behaved completely unprofessionally and he didn’t even care. He treated her with less respect than the office wastepaper basket. What the hell had she ever seen in him?

Nevil blinked first. ‘Let’s do dinner. Let me take you out and—’

‘Explain what the hell is going on?’

He nodded. ‘Something like that.’ He paused. ‘It’s all good news, Bells. Really it is.’ He gave her his best winning smile. ‘Pax?’

Bella relented, mostly because if she didn’t, she might never find out what was happening.

Dinner with him was not an enticing prospect but she needed to find out what he was up to, and if possible discover what on earth he was doing digging a hole with A. N. Other in the middle of the night. He needed to keep her in the picture, tell her things, not let her try and sell houses that had been sold already. As far as he was concerned they were engaged, and yet he didn’t seem to trust her with quite basic information. They had to sort things out.

BELLA DECIDED TO
dress up for her dinner with Nevil. She wanted to look in control and professional, so he wouldn’t be tempted to ruffle her hair and treat her with amused contempt. This was serious.

She hadn’t yet decided how to deal with the matter of the video – it was hard when she didn’t know what it really revealed. Although there was nothing she could think of that wasn’t dodgy in some way. Or why do it at the dead of night? If only she could ask someone for advice. But until she knew a bit more she didn’t really know
what
to ask anyone. She didn’t want to go off at half-cock and look an idiot.

Really she just needed to find out about Badger Cottage, and not warn Nevil she knew he was up to something until she knew exactly what he was up to.

It was while she was in the shower that she remembered a half-heard conversation between Tina and one of the others in the office about a sale Peter had been about to close, only to find the property was no longer for sale.

Bella had been deeply involved in something at the time and had just put it down to Peter not checking out the situation properly, but now she wondered if in fact the same thing had happened to him. The trouble was, she couldn’t ask him now, about a month later, without him asking why she wanted to know. She didn’t want to involve anyone else until she knew more. The whole thing was like a jigsaw puzzle with too many pieces unconnected. She needed a few more bits so she could see the picture.

She put on her new pencil skirt with the high, tight waistband that made her look slim and elegant and feel like Audrey Hepburn. She added a chiffon blouse and pearls round her neck and in her ears. By the time she’d battled her curls into a chignon – only possible because her hair needed washing and even then it required a lot of product – she felt different: a force to be reckoned with and not Nevil’s tubby little curly top. She almost wore dark glasses to go with the ‘early James Bond spy’ style, but restrained herself. It wasn’t the expected look for a cosy dinner with her fiancé, but this was different. She walked to the car, carrying her stilt heels, wearing her loafers. She’d left a note for Alice telling her she’d be out for the evening.

As she drove, she contemplated breaking off her strange engagement – she could use the awful house as the reason – but again dismissed the idea. If she left Nevil she’d have to leave the agency, and her curiosity wouldn’t let her do that until she’d found out what he was up to.

‘Darling! You look amazing!’ said Nevil, sounding surprised and kissing her ear. ‘Loving the new look! A lot more sophisticated. Though maybe you should have run the straighteners over your hair before you put it up?’

Bella didn’t actually own any straighteners, and wasn’t going to get any to please Nevil. How did he even know about straighteners anyway?

‘Glad you approve,’ she said, ignoring his caveat. She moved past him into the sitting room. If she’d really loved him she’d have been hurt that he seemed to prefer her looking like this to her more natural, everyday self.

He seemed to sense something more had changed about her than just her clothes.

‘Drink? I’ve got a bottle of fizz.’

‘No thank you. I’d rather have something soft.’

‘Aren’t you staying, then?’ He looked surprised and hurt and Bella felt a pang. If he’d been a different sort of person she probably could have broken up with him and stayed in the job she loved. But if he’d been a different sort of person maybe she wouldn’t have stopped loving him.

She forced a smile and shook her head. ‘Better not. I’ve got so much to do tomorrow. And aren’t we going out to eat? I’ll drive if you want to drink?’ Although socially it would be much easier for her if they went to a restaurant, she realised it would also be much harder for her to get him to explain about Badger Cottage.

‘I’ve cooked,’ said Nevil. ‘I thought it would be easier. We need to talk.’

Just for a moment Bella wondered if he was going to break up with her. How perfect would that be? He would say, ‘It’s not you, it’s me,’ in a firm but kindly way and then add, ‘Of course you can stay on at Rutherfords. I’d hate to lose you. But I’m not ready to commit just yet.’ She could be hurt and upset but not storm out of the firm, because she was professional. She could carry on with the job, burying her supposedly broken heart behind a brave smile. But she knew this was just a fantasy. Nevil would never question a decision, and if he’d decided he wanted to marry her that was that. No, she would have to be the one to break it off; she just had to wait for the time to be right.

‘Sounds a bit ominous.’ She was preparing the ground so it didn’t look too suspicious if she burst into tears later.

Nevil held up a protesting hand. ‘Nothing bad, I promise you. In fact, I put the champers in the fridge so we could celebrate. Are you sure you won’t have a glass?’

Bella pushed aside her disappointment. It had been a bit of a vain hope anyway. If Nevil was planning to break up with her, he wouldn’t have invited her to dinner. Why waste the money on a woman you had no use for? ‘OK then.’ But she wasn’t going to be talked into more and have to stay the night. ‘In a minute you must tell me what we’re celebrating, but first, I do want to talk to you about Badger Cottage. You put me in a very embarrassing situation today.’ He didn’t know exactly how he’d done this, but he did know he’d sold Badger Cottage under her nose.

‘Oh, sweets, I absolutely want to tell you about that. Totally.’ He took a little while taking the wire and foil off the bottle and then eased out the cork. ‘There – a perfect “angel’s fart”,’ he said, referring to the sound of the cork leaving the bottle. He poured wine into two glasses he had ready.

He was trying to distract her, and her suspicion was growing. He was up to something and he wanted her approval otherwise why the champagne? Was it something to do with their wedding? Or was the celebration for a business reason?

‘Here’s to you, darling,’ he said, clinking his glass against hers.

‘Cheers!’ she said in reply. She took a sip. ‘So, about Badger Cottage?’

He laughed and Bella knew he was embarrassed. ‘Can’t you wait until we’ve eaten for the business chat?’

Bella shrugged. ‘I don’t know. It depends how long it will take to explain. It is very odd, you know, taking a house off the market without even telling the owners.’

‘It’s not all quite as it seems, babycakes.’

‘Babycakes? When have you ever called me babycakes!’

‘Just now.’ A glimmer of the humour she had once liked about him appeared for a second. Then something suppressed it – nerves, she thought.

‘So? What’s going on?’ she said firmly. She perched on the arm of the sofa.

Nevil adjusted the framed photograph of himself in cricket whites receiving a cup.

‘I’d sold it to someone else while you were showing it to the Agnews.’

She inclined her head. ‘Oh? And did you get a good price?’

‘Price isn’t everything.’

‘It is to the vendors. They usually want the highest price unless there are other things to take into consideration.’

‘Absolutely – other things to take into consideration.’ He was definitely a bit on edge. ‘Look, I’ve got to go and look in the oven. You watch the news or something.’ He left the room before she could reply.

She couldn’t face watching television so she picked up a copy of
Cotswold Life
. She ignored the property pages and went to the column at the back. It was a quirky slant on life by a very funny writer and it always made her laugh. She needed light relief just now. Every word Nevil said made her more and more certain he was up to something dreadful. She wondered how he’d gift-wrap what he told her so she wouldn’t just walk out on him halfway through the pie and mash that was his signature dish.

It seemed to take for ever before she and Nevil were sitting opposite each other at his dining table, a large meat pie between them. Nevil took a spoon and dug into the pastry. He handed Bella a rugby player’s portion.

‘Help yourself to veg, darling.’

‘That’s a big helping for someone who’s supposedly watching her weight,’ she said, ladling on some peas, wishing she could have just held her tongue and not prolonged the agony.

‘Everyone’s allowed a treat sometimes,’ said Nevil with an indulgent smile. ‘And we’re celebrating.’

‘Are we?’

‘Oh yes. Yes, definitely.’

He might have been certain all was going well, but he was being very unspecific. Surely the words ‘we’re celebrating’ should be followed with the reason? Would he never get to the point?

There then followed more of Nevil’s delaying tactics. They involved more discussion about wine, and whether she could stay, and why not. To end it Bella had eventually allowed him to put wine into her glass just to stop the argument.

When she could bear it no longer she said, ‘OK, tell me all. Why are we celebrating? And what’s going on with Badger Cottage?’

He didn’t speak for a bit. ‘It’s not straightforward.’

‘I had got that. And I didn’t think it would be.’ He seemed to find her gaze disconcerting and couldn’t look her in the eye. It was looking worse and worse. If it was something simple he’d have told her by now. Was it so bad that the whole firm could be implicated? She took a sip of her wine.

‘OK, Bells, I’ll be frank with you. I want something better out of life. You know? I don’t want to just be an ordinary guy with a two-bed semi, maybe upgrading to a three-bed when the kids come along. I don’t want it for me and I don’t want it for you.’

Bella nodded, not in agreement but to encourage him to get to the point.

‘And I have a colleague who can help. He helps me; I help him.’

Was that the man in the film, she wondered, digging the hole with Nevil? ‘Who is he?’

Nevil shook his head. ‘Can’t tell you, highly confidential.’

Frustrated and irritated, Bella was tempted to press him for the name but managed to restrain herself. She didn’t want to sidetrack Nevil into an argument about ‘needing to know’. He might do that tapping-the-side-of-his-nose thing and then she might throw something. ‘OK, so how does he help you?’

‘He shares information and – other things – in exchange for . . . what I can do for him.’

‘Which is?’

‘Bella! I’m a bloody estate agent! How do you think I help him?’

‘You get him properties at below the market value?’ This was an educated guess but she felt she might be right.

He shrugged. ‘In a way.’

She couldn’t believe he’d actually admitted it. He must only be telling her because he thought they were engaged and he could depend on her discretion. Was he really admitting to taking backhanders? Surely she must have got it wrong. Not even Nevil, at his worst, would be that unscrupulous.

‘But that’s cheating the vendors out of their money.’ She spoke mildly, but inside she was horrified.

‘No! No I don’t! The vendors actually get more money!’

Bella knew he must be lying but she wanted to hear Nevil’s argument. ‘How?’

‘It would all be totally over your head, sweetie, and I don’t want to bore you to death.’ He added some more wine to her almost untouched glass. ‘Suffice it to say that it’s because of all this that we can afford that amazing house. I know you had some doubts about the fine detail but you know that was the show home. We don’t need to have crystal-studded taps if you don’t like them.’

‘No.’

‘But you “lurved” the cooker, right? What’s not to love, eh? Huge! With every add-on you can think of.’

She thought about the huge black cooker, the size of a small car, and suppressed a shudder. She knew Nevil was deliberately trying to divert her attention so she’d forget what they were supposed to be discussing. But then she began to wonder if it wasn’t better if she didn’t know the details until she was in a position to do something about it. The more she thought about it the worse it became and she couldn’t risk being implicated.

She took a sip from her very full wine glass. ‘Nevil—’

‘Babes, I know you’re very straight. You like to play things by the book, right down the line, but we’re never going to move on if we’re not a bit flexible with the rules.’