Page 76 of The Jealous Girl

I bristled. He’d betrayed me. Reported me to her.

‘It’s what a couple does.’

Her words landed hard.

A couple.

I shook my head, still unwilling to believe that’s really what they were.

‘Sitting in the gym car park. Watching. Waiting.’ Charlotte’s gaze sharpened. ‘And whatever else you’ve been up to.’

She let her words hang.

Bile rose in my throat.

I swallowed, forcing myself to hold her gaze. Not to look away. There was still a chance she hadn’t seen me at Corfe Castle. That she didn’t know. As long as I didn’t crack.

‘There are better ways to find things out about people,’ she said, a smug smile spreading across her lips. ‘If you’re smart enough.’ Her eyes sparkled with mischief.

‘What does that mean?’ I asked tentatively, not sure I really wanted to know.

‘You’ve been digging into my life,’ she said. ‘Surely you didn’t expect me not to do the same?’

I didn’t respond. How could I? She had a point.

‘You know, it never made sense to me what Ryan ever saw in you,’ she said casually. ‘I mean, you’ve got nothing in common. He’s confident, outgoing, adventurous…’ She scrunched her nose. ‘And you’re just… not.’

She let her observation linger for a moment, as though allowing it to really sink in.

‘But now,’ she continued, ‘it makes sense.’

‘Oh?’ I said, unable to silence my curiosity.

‘Ryan’s always had a soft spot for wounded animals. The helpless ones. The weak ones.’

My body stiffened.

‘I guess it makes sense that that applies to people too,’ Charlotte continued. ‘Especially someone so lonely. Someone who has no one.’

I wasn’t sure where she was going with this but I didn’t like it. I needed to do something, shift the focus.

‘Is that why you got rid of Ben?’ I asked.

Charlotte froze. For once, I’d stunned her.

‘He was my friend. The only one I had at Blackwater. Without him, I was completely alone. Besides Ryan.’ I gave a small shrug. ‘And you were already whispering in his ear, pulling him away from me.’

Charlotte’s eyes lit up with pride. ‘So, you figured it out, did you?’ she said, almost impressed.

‘How did you do it?’ I asked quietly. Demanding answers wasn’t the way to deal with her. A confrontation wouldn’t get me anywhere. But letting her think she had beaten me…

She laughed. ‘It wasn’t hard.’

I waited. Letting her gloat in her victory.

‘The two of you were so friendly.’ She emphasised the word as though it meant something more. ‘I merely pointed that out to Ryan.’

I gritted my teeth. ‘You made him think there was something going on between us?’