Page 12 of Summer at Rachel’s Pudding Pantry

‘Night then, Mum.’

‘Night, love.’

Rachel headed over and gave her mum a kiss on the cheek and a warm hug. ‘I’m glad you’re here with us.’

‘Me too. Sleep tight, pet. Hope the bed bugs …’

‘… don’t bite,’ they chanted together, with a shared smile. A saying from Rachel’s childhood.

It was all dark in the room that Rachel and Eve were sharing. Rachel decided not to blast the light on, as Eve should be all tucked up in bed, but strangely things just didn’t feel right as Rachel entered.

‘Eve?’

‘Ah … huh,’ the answer didn’t seem to be coming from the bed.

Rachel moved forward cautiously and fumbled for the bedside lamp. She clicked the switch. ‘Oh, Eve … are you okay?’ Her maid of honour was splayed out, still fully clothed, propped on the floor at the foot of the bed. ‘What are you doing down there, hun?’ Rachel started to sober up amazingly quickly.

‘I … I don’t know …’ Eve looked about her, seemingly as surprised as Rachel was to see herself at floor level.

‘Okay then, hun. Let’s get you up and into bed.’ Rachel helped hoist her friend up onto the mattress and proceeded to help her off with her clothes, leaving her with bra and knickers on, then tucked her in under the duvet. She seemed extremely tipsy, which wasn’t like Eve at all, as she could usually hold her drink better than Rachel.

‘Right, I think I’ll fetch us both a big glass of water. Help clear our heads a bit,’ said Rachel, hoping to stave off the hangover from hell the next morning. ‘Stay there then, hun.’ To be fair, Eve didn’t look as if she was going anywhere.

‘Hmm,’ was all her friend could utter, whilst clinging on to the duvet cover as if it were a life raft.

Rachel hoped Eve wasn’t about to be sick. Thinking quickly, she moved the waste-paper bin across to Eve’s side of the bed – better safe than sorry. She headed for the kitchen and was soon back with two large glasses of water, making her friend take a few big sips before glugging down her own. Soon in her PJs, Rachel slipped into bed, turned off the lamp and then whispered, ‘Night, Eve.’

‘Nigh … Rach …’ There was a pause and then a whisper sounded in the darkness. ‘Rach?’

‘Yes, hun?’

‘I can tell you anything, right? You … you can keep a secret?’

‘Yeah, of course. Eve, I’m your best friend.’ Rachel waited for her friend’s voice again, holding her breath. Silence. Well, except for a little puffing, snoring sound.

Rachel sighed. She was sound asleep, bless her. But what ‘secret’ did Eve want to share? And, Rachel reflected again, she had behaved a little out of character that night. It was also unusual for Eve to have drunk so much. Still, Rachel mused, we could all have our moments and let our hair down just a little too much. Oh yes, Eve had looked after her more than a few times as a teenager, she remembered fondly.

But Rachel felt a bit unsettled. She vowed to keep an ear out through the night, and make sure her friend was all right.

5

EVE

A full-blown marching band was thumping away inside Eve’s head the next morning.

Bloody hell, how had she let herself get so damned tipsy? Oh God, there was a vague memory lurking in her car-crash of a brain … of T-shirt Man. Oh yes … she might just have told him she’d been very impressed by his gorgeous bare chest. She gave a groan from beneath the duvet. She really didn’t want to spoil the last full day of Rachel’s hen do. Nope, she ought to try and get herself up and out of bed right now. But, trying to shift up from the pillow was proving extremely difficult, every movement producing a hammer blow inside her skull.

There was a knock on the door and, peeking through one squint eye, Eve saw Jill appearing with two large mugs of tea. ‘Morning, girls.’

Oh, so Rachel was still there in bed too.

‘Hi, Jill.’ Eve could hardly recognise her own voice, which came out as a rasp, but at least she had managed to speak.

‘Morning, Mum.’ Rachel sounded slightly fresher.

‘No rush, but I thought you might need these … and these …’ She placed down a packet of paracetamol beside the two mugs.

‘Thanks, Mum. How’re you doing there, Eve?’ Rachel asked sympathetically.