Page 2 of The House Swap

I don’t know if you’ve seen what Simon Daley is saying about you, but you need to be aware. He’s making some pretty nasty accusations.

Rebecca was one of the good ones. Poppy had always liked her.

Now her stomach dropped. The name Simon Daley immediately set alarm bells ringing and she closed Messenger, instead opening Facebook, dreading what she was going to find.

Simon didn’t just have readers. He had people who listened.

The notifications were already piling up faster than she could read. Names she recognised and hundreds she didn’t. There were mentions, tags and message requests too.

She swiped her finger across the damp glass, her newsfeed refreshing with a jolt.

At the top of the screen was Simon’s face in a paused frame of a video. He looked as he always did: softly lit, a bookshelf behind him and his favourite mug in his hand. His blue eyes were crinkled at the corners, and he wore a sombre expression.

Beneath the recording, carefully worded text read: I didn’t want to do this, but I’ve been left with no choice.

Didn’t want to do what?

She hadn’t spoken to Simon in weeks. Not since their last email exchange about the invoices he had been ignoring.

The video had been recorded just eight minutes ago.

Dreading what she was going to see, Poppy hit play. Her wet hair dripped onto her shoulders, and she was coiled as tightly as a spring as she waited for him to speak.

He took his time, never one to be rushed, his wedding ring catching the light as he raised his hand to wave at his adoring fanbase.

‘Hi, everyone. I’m sorry to bring this to you, but I know you deserve honesty.’

His deep voice, warm and calm, filled her bathroom as he leant closer to the screen. His expression was careful, even slightly sorrowful. It was almost as if he was confiding in a close friend.

‘I’ve been keeping quiet about something for a while. Partly because I didn’t want to create drama… and partly because I believed it would sort itself out.’

The sigh he gave was rehearsed, at least to Poppy’s ears. As if he had been practising in front of a mirror until it carried the right amount of regret.

Her phone vibrated again – another message – and she started to feel nauseous, having a horrible inkling where this was going.

‘The truth is, I’ve had a lot of you asking questions about my new book.’ Simon pressed his hands together, his expression turning grave. ‘Wanting to know about… how can I put it delicately? Certain changes.’

Poppy’s throat was dry. She could already hear it, the implication buried under the gentleness of his tone.

‘I hired a new editor,’ Simon continued. ‘Someone I thought I could trust.’ He smiled regretfully. Again, it looked rehearsed. ‘I won’t pretend I’m perfect. You all know me. I’ll always hold my hands up when I’m wrong. But I know my voice. I know what I wrote.’

Poppy’s fingers were numb around the phone. She had only just got out of the shower, but she was too hot. Sweat beaded on her top lip and trickled down the nape of her neck.

‘I’m not naming her to be cruel,’ Simon said to his audience. ‘I’m naming her because she has continued to contact me, threatening me and demanding payment for work.’ He paused, eyebrows drawing together in pained disbelief. ‘Not only has she ruined my book, she wants me to pay her for changes she made without my consent.’

That was a lie. She hadn’t contacted him in weeks, having already accepted that she was wasting her time.

Poppy’s vision narrowed, her heart thumping as he spoke his next words, after having the audacity to look down for a moment, as if the revelation was going to hurt him physically.

‘Some of you may know her. Her name is Poppy Taylor.’

It was strange hearing him say her name aloud and it sounded smaller than it should, though the effect was devastating.

For a second, she didn’t move. She couldn’t.

Simon continued to speak, but she no longer heard the words, her own world holding itself very still around her. And as the video ended, the silence was suffocating.

Battling hurt, anger and shock, Poppy struggled to breathe. Then her phone vibrated again.