Chapter 151 THE WRONG CONCLUSIONS - 34

Chapter 151 THE WRONG CONCLUSIONS - 34

VIVIENNE

Maya mentioned the cabin on a Wednesday in exactly the way Maya mentions anything she's already decided is happening.

She doesn't ask.

She drops the information into another conversation like it's been settled for weeks, then keeps talking until you've accidentally agreed without noticing.

We were on the phone while I was making dinner.

She was telling me about someone at work who'd managed to cc the wrong director into an email chain and I was trying to stop pasta from boiling over, so neither of us was giving the conversation our full attention.

"...and then he tried to pretend he'd done it on purpose," she said.

"I almost respect the confidence."

"It wasn't confidence. It was panic wearing a tie."

I laughed.

"My turn," I said. "Langston finally approved the revised timeline."

"Oh, thank God. Does that mean you'll stop living at the office?"

"I don't live there."

"You practically do."

"I come home."

"To sleep."

"Sometimes."

"You sound so proud of that."

"I'm really not."

There was a pause while I reached over to stir the pasta.

"Oh, by the way," Maya said, as casually as if she were reminding me to buy milk, "Dev's sorting out a cabin weekend in a couple of weeks. Nothing fancy, just a few days away. Priya's going. Should be nice."

"It does sound nice."

"I'll tell him you're in."

"I didn't say that."

"You basically did."

"I said it sounded nice."

"Which normal people interpret as yes."

"I am not responsible for what normal people do."

"I've noticed."

I smiled to myself.

"The pasta's about to become one solid object."

"So that's a yes?"

"That is absolutely not what I said."

"Hm."

I knew that hm.

It meant she'd filed the conversation away somewhere and would almost certainly return to it later.

Unfortunately, I was more interested in saving dinner than interrogating whatever she'd just decided on my behalf.

Two days later Priya appeared in my office doorway balancing a mug of tea that had almost certainly gone cold.

"You coming to the cabin?"

I looked up.

"The cabin?"

"The one Dev's organising."

"Oh."

I put my pen down.

"When is it?"

"This weekend."

"I don’t know if I can make that."

"You can my love."

She took a sip of her tea and immediately made the face people make when they forget hot drinks don't stay hot forever.

"I'll let Dev know."

"You all seem very confident I'll say yes before anyone's actually asked me."

"You've never said no to a weekend away."

"I've said no before."

"You've wanted to."

"I have absolutely said..."

I stopped.

"...Actually, don't answer that."

"I wasn't going to."

She smiled into her mug.

"I'll leave you to your paperwork."

She disappeared before I could ask anything else.

I looked back at the file in front of me.

Read the same sentence three times.

Then picked up my phone.

"I can't do the cabin weekend," I told Maya as soon as she answered.

"You absolutely can."

"I have things."

"What things?"

"...Work things."

"It's a weekend."

"I sometimes work on weekends."

"You alphabetised your spice rack last Saturday."

"That was productive."

"It was coriander."

"It was organised coriander."

She laughed.

"Viv."

I sighed.

"I don't know if I feel like being social."

There. That was closer to the truth.

There was a pause, not a dramatic one. Just enough for her voice to soften.

"You've been working nonstop for months."

"I know."

"You've barely seen anyone."

"I've seen you."

"Against your will."

"Frequently."

"Exactly."

I smiled despite myself.

"It'll be good for you."

"I hate it when you sound reasonable."

"I work very hard at it."

I leaned against the kitchen counter and looked at the saucepan I'd forgotten to turn on.

"I'm not promising anything."

"You literally already did."

"I don't remember doing that."

"I have the messages."

"Oh no."

"Oh yes."

"You kept evidence?"

"I always keep evidence. You've rubbed off on me."

I closed my eyes.

"This feels like entrapment."

"It isn't entrapment if you willingly send the thumbs-up emoji."

"I was barely paying attention."

"You still sent it."

"That emoji has far too much legal weight."

"It really does."

I laughed.

"Fine."

"I knew you'd come around."

"I didn't come around."

"You absolutely did."

"I'm coming for the fresh air."

"Of course."

"And because Priya will never let this go if I cancel."

"Also true."

"This doesn't mean you were right."

"It never has to."

I ended the call before she could sound any more pleased with herself.

The thing was...

She wasn't wrong.

I'd spent months going from the office to my flat and back again until both places had started feeling exactly the same. A weekend somewhere quiet with people I actually liked sounded nice.

Maybe nice was enough.

\~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I packed my bag on Friday morning, convinced myself this was simply a weekend away with friends, and started the three-hour drive telling myself I wasn't overthinking it for once.

For the first hour, I actually believed it.

The drive took a little over three hours.

I spent the first hour telling myself this was exactly what I needed, the second promising I wasn't going to check my work emails all weekend, and somewhere during the third I caught myself wondering whether I'd packed enough jumpers for the weather before deciding that was probably a healthier thing to obsess over than depositions.

The sat nav eventually told me to turn onto a narrow gravel road lined with trees.

"This feels mildly like straight out of a horror film," I muttered.

A second later it cheerfully announced I'd reached my destination.

Helpful.

The house was much bigger than I'd expected. Calling it a cabin felt generous to the word cabin. It looked more like the sort of place people escaped to after writing bestselling novels about escaping to cabins.

Dev was already outside unloading bags from the boot of his car.

"There she is!" he called.

"I appreciate the enthusiasm," I laughed, climbing out, "but I was reasonably confident I'd found the right place."

"You'd be surprised."

He pulled me into a quick hug before grabbing my overnight bag.

"You hungry?"

"Always."

"Excellent. Come inside before Jordan eats everything."

"I heard that!" Jordan shouted from somewhere inside the house.

"I wanted you to."

The second I stepped through the front door Maya wrapped me in a hug.

"You made it."

"I was beginning to think I didn't have much choice."

"You really didn't."

"I suspected as much."

Priya wandered in from the kitchen holding a wooden spoon.

"Perfect timing. Settle an argument."

"I've been here twelve seconds."

"Butter or olive oil?"

"For what?"

"Roast potatoes."

"Olive oil."

She pointed triumphantly at Maya.

"See?"

Maya rolled her eyes.

"Congratulations on recruiting legal counsel."

"I'll put it on my CV," I said.

The house already had that comfortable sort of chaos that only happens when everyone's known each other long enough to stop apologising for opening cupboards that aren't theirs.

Marcus was unpacking groceries while arguing with Jordan about whether three packets of crisps counted as "planning ahead."

"They were on offer," Jordan defended.

"You bought nine."

"I panicked."

"You panic in bulk."

"I like options."

I laughed, shaking my head.

Maybe Maya had been right.

Getting away for a couple of days suddenly felt like a very good idea.

Just as I was reaching for a mug, the sound of tyres crunching over gravel drifted in from outside.

Maya looked up towards the window.

"Ooh," she said with a grin. "Cole is here."

WHAT THE FUCK??!!!!