Tell That to My Heart Read online

  Ideas? What ideas? What a load of bollocks! And that bloody voice! Mim could feel her blood start to boil. What right did Honey have to try and undermine her in front of Caspar? Or anyone, for that matter.

  ‘I can assure you, I have every faith in Mim’s abilities to get an ad campaign right; her track record is proof of that. And, furthermore, if I’d wanted you to be present while Mim and I discuss it, I would’ve asked you to join us. But I didn’t as I couldn’t see the point in dragging both of you away from your desks. So you might as well go and get on with what you were doing while we finish off here.’

  Honey stood there as if willing him to change his mind. ‘But Mim hasn’t given me anything to do.’ She flashed puppy-dog eyes at him.

  Jeez, the bloody bare-faced cheek of the girl! And since when exactly did I have to hold her hand? ‘If you look at the to-do list on my desk, just do the next thing that hasn’t been crossed off; I think it’s some Twitter posts, they’re fairly straightforward, if you just start drafting one of those.’

  Honey mustered up her now familiar death-stare, directing it at Mim before flouncing out of the room.

  Caspar pinched the bridge of his nose between his finger and thumb. ‘How on earth can you be around that girl?’

  ‘Trust me, it’s not easy.’

  ‘I can believe that; she behaves like a spoilt, moody teenager, especially when she uses that irritating bloody voice.’

  ‘You’re not the first person to have said that.’

  ‘Hmm. Quite the passion killer, though, isn’t she?’

  Mim nodded, any last remnants of lust draining away. ‘Just a bit.’

  For appearance’s sake, the pair ran over a few ideas for a new advertising campaign that could be linked in to a feature on the magazine’s blog. If Mim was honest with herself, Caspar’s suggestions weren’t that ground-breaking, and Aidey’s work was far superior and professional-looking. But she bit her tongue and scribbled his ideas down, using words of enthusiasm to massage his ego. She’d discreetly run them by Aidey and see if he’d help her. On second thoughts, would that be like rubbing his nose in it? Hmm, it probably would. She pushed that idea away; there was no way she was going to hurt Aidey’s feelings or make him feel crap for the sake of Yorkshire Portions.

  ‘You reek of Caspar’s cologne.’ Honey pinned Mim with a piercing glare when she returned to their office. ‘And what were you doing before I came into his office? You both looked really shifty.’

  ‘We weren’t doing anything; we hadn’t had time to do anything. Caspar had just started explaining his idea when you knocked at the door.’

  ‘Yeah, well it was all quiet before I knocked; I couldn’t hear anything being discussed.’

  Oh, why don’t you just bugger off, you evil little cowpat! ‘That’s because Caspar was gathering the papers together and thinking about things before he spoke, I was just waiting until he was ready.’

  ‘Yeah, yeah, a likely story.’

  Aidey shook his head. ‘Will you let it drop, Honey? I’m trying to concentrate on this.’

  ‘Yeah, can’t you just give it a sodding rest instead of always having to make out there’s something dodgy going on, or trying to stir up trouble. It’s like being back in the playground! You’d be better off getting stuck into some work for a change, that’d keep your mind occupied and stop you from behaving like a spiteful child.’ Anna-Lisa glared at her.

  ‘What? I do not behave like a spiteful child! You’ve got no right to talk to me like that, I’m going to speak to my Auntie Catherine, see what she has to say about how you lot have been treating me.’ Honey stood up and flounced out of the room.

  ‘I can honestly say I’ve never known anyone make my blood boil as much as she does!’ Anna-Lisa sounded exasperated.

  Mim rested her elbows on her desk and put her face in her hands. ‘I know exactly how you feel but I don’t have the energy nor the inclination to argue with her. No matter what you say, she always seems to have to turn it into an argument; she never backs down and it’s draining. Isn’t it amazing how just one person can totally change the atmosphere of a place?’

  ‘Make that two people,’ said Aidey.

  ‘Too right. I know it’s only Monday, but roll on the weekend,’ said Anna-Lisa, eliciting half-hearted laughs from her friends. ‘And, don’t worry about Honey, she won’t have chance to speak to Catherine, she’s in meetings all morning.’

  13

  Mim glanced up at the clock, and was relieved to find that it was almost lunch time; the morning had passed surprisingly quickly since her almost “moment” with Caspar. It had helped that Catherine had left them alone for the bulk of the time except for when she’d blustered through the door demanding if anyone knew of the whereabouts of her diamond ring. Thankfully, Clarissa had found it on the windowsill in the kitchen, where her mother had left it when she’d taken it off to wash her hands. It was a scenario that happened on a regular basis – if it wasn’t her ring that was missing it was her Tiffany pen, or her purse or her car keys – so no one was too alarmed; the woman was just too lazy to look for things herself, and making a hoo-ha about it meant that it would send her minions off, scuttling about looking for whatever it was she’d misplaced.

  Honey hadn’t returned to their room for a good hour after she’d flounced off in a huff, though Aidey said he’d seen her leaving Simon’s room looking smug but slightly dishevelled, which explained why Simon had left them alone, too. The fact that they’d been joined by a new unsuspecting intern called Tamsin had meant Mim hadn’t been called upon to make teas and coffees. And there’d been no sign of Kenneth since he wasn’t expected to arrive until early afternoon owing to a dental appointment. Even so, it still hadn’t stopped a feeling of unease pervading the air at Yorkshire Portions.

  Though Mim had relished being able to get stuck into her to-do list without the usual interruptions, her concentration had been broken on several occasions by the uncomfortable feeling that something amiss was creeping up on her. Honey’s presence didn’t help, and much as she was thrilled by the attention from Caspar, the unease she felt about him hadn’t gone away. Instead, it quietly thrummed away in the background, jumping out whenever Mim’s mind skirted too close to it, each time sending a prickle of worry racing up her spine and making her stomach clench. It reminded her of her childhood, of sitting engrossed in lessons at school when a nasty little reminder of the unpleasant things going on at home would spring into life, snatching her enjoyment away. Mim would feel her stomach go into freefall as a feeling of nausea washed over her. She was always glad when classroom distractions eventually helped push her worries back into the shadows, but they would never completely disappear, returning with a vengeance on the long walk home as she wondered what she’d be greeted with when she got there. It was fair to say, she’d spent her childhood as a tightly furled little ball of anxiety; it was no wonder she was plagued by psoriasis.

  Sensing Aidey’s eyes on her, Mim looked up and smiled at him. The one he returned was a mere glimmer, offering a barely discernible lift to the corners of his mouth. She couldn’t help but notice his eyes didn’t have their usual happy glint, instead they were clouded by a shadow brought down by his furrowed brow, and dark semi-circles hung beneath. She popped a Dolly Mixture into her mouth and glanced across at Anna-Lisa to see her friend engrossed in her work, gnawing on the inside of her cheek as she read. Honey gave a theatrical sigh from her desk; she was making hard work of her latest task, making no secret of her lack of enthusiasm. If she’d hoped to get the others’ attention with all her huffing and puffing, she was to be disappointed; everyone continued with their work as if she wasn’t there. The spoilt teenager act was already beginning to wear thin.

  Anna-Lisa, Aidey and Mim shared the growing suspicion that Honey was working as some kind of spy for the Pallister-Biggs, which meant the desire to punctuate their work with a bit of occasional friendly banter had deserted them. They didn’t want to give her the opportunity to repo
rt back that they sat chatting rather than getting on with their work. Instead, they’d spent the morning working in virtual silence; it was a case of heads down and let’s crack on with it. Well, all except for Honey who was wearing a petulant expression that said she’d rather be anywhere than there. Mim had to stop herself from asking her how she was getting on, and if she’d finished designing the new social media headers – a job Mim had suggested to her as it was one of the most enjoyable tasks on the to-do list. The words were poised, ready to be delivered, but the look Honey shot her told her she’d be throwing herself into very choppy waters. Instead, she bit her tongue; she couldn’t be bothered with the grief that would ensue. It was far easier to let Honey complete her half-hearted attempts at whatever she’d been tasked with, then check over them herself when the other girl wasn’t around. It was better than confronting her, or worse, just handing the work straight over to Catherine to approve; she’d only go ballistic with Mim for not instructing Honey properly.

  She looked over at Honey who was gazing at the computer screen, the familiar petulant expression on her face as she chomped on a mouthful of Mim’s Dolly Mixtures. The only time she’d spoken since she came back into the room was to ask Mim if Caspar had given her a lift to work that morning, and to see if anyone knew what he’d been up to over the weekend, and then to announce that she’d bumped into him on the landing and he’d looked at her as though he was undressing her with his eyes. ‘He’s got the hots for me, it’s just so obvious; a man doesn’t look at you like that for no reason,’ she’d said. Anna-Lisa had glanced across at Mim and rolled her eyes. And though Mim hadn’t believed Honey’s boast for a second, it hadn’t stopped a bolt of intense jealousy from tearing through her.

  The only other interruption had come when the new intern, Tamsin, brought hot drinks in for everyone. She had a sweet face and wore an air of optimistic enthusiasm. Such a shame that won’t last long, thought Mim, taking pity on the girl straightaway. It would be knocked out of her within the week, and by the time she went home on Friday – if she lasted that long, of course – she’d be feeling absolutely crap and totally useless, and would spend the weekend sobbing into her duvet. Certainly, after what had happened to Sara and her predecessors, it didn’t bode well.

  Mim had only seen Caspar once since their earlier meeting. She’d nipped along the landing to go to the loo and bumped into him coming out of Clarissa’s office, wearing his familiar self-assured smile and a glint in his eye. Mim had dismissed the flicker of surprise followed by the expression of being caught out that had crossed his face when he’d spotted her, telling herself it was just her imagination running riot.

  ‘Hi,’ she’d said, her husky voice laden with hints of their little secret. She’d gone to reach for his hand but he’d pulled it away.

  ‘Hello, Mim.’ His reply had been cool and there’d been no sneaking into his office for a furtive snog to pick up where they’d left off like she’d hoped they might. Instead, he’d turned away from her, swaggered his way down the creaking floorboards of the landing and disappeared into his office, closing the door firmly behind him. Within seconds she could hear his voice on the phone, loud and confident.

  His reaction had wrong-footed her, had hurt even, being so very different from their earlier encounter. A ripple of anxiety had run through her as she’d tried to ignore the little voice that told her Caspar had been flirting with Clarissa, discussing more than work with her or, worse, that their relationship was something more than that of simply work colleagues. After all, Mim had seen that look in his eyes earlier that morning, and she knew exactly what it meant. Her stomach had squeezed as the unpalatable feeling of déjà vu crept up her spine. Did he think that it was okay to play mind games with her? Be cruelly dismissive with her, and keep her dangling until he was ready for her. Keep her waiting for any tiny nugget of affection or acknowledgement that they were an item he was minded to throw her way. Well, she’d been there before – more times than she cared to remember – and she was damn sure she wasn’t going to go there again. She hoped with all her heart that Caspar wasn’t going to prove to be no better than her previous boyfriends.

  Her mind had been charging all over the place when a little voice of reason whispered in her ear. Don’t be ridiculous, you’re both at work! Of course, that was it, and they’d been right outside Clarissa’s door; it would’ve been too risky for him to respond in an affectionate way, after all, Clarissa might have heard. She’d quickly batted her worries away and continued along that preferable line of thought. Outwardly, he was trying to behave in a professional manner, speaking to her in the same way he spoke to other staff, not wanting to draw any unwelcome attention to them. He was being considerate and conscious of her worries about Catherine and her job security, that’s all. She should be thankful that he was behaving in this way. And, in truth, she certainly didn’t want to attract any more negative attention from Catherine, nor Honey for that matter. He was just being totally professional.

  The door to Clarissa’s office had opened and the woman herself had stepped out looking business-like in her neat fitted black suit, showing off her trim figure. She’d pressed her hand to her chest. ‘Ooh! Mim, you made me jump! Are you okay, you look worried? Is something the matter?’

  ‘Oh, er, no, nothing’s the matter I’m fine, thanks. Just nipping to the loo.’

  ‘Well, don’t let me stop you.’ Clarissa had flashed her usual friendly smile. ‘Oh, and by the way, I love the latest Instagram advert you’ve done; very eye-catching and I like the humour in there. I’ll be interested to see what the interactions are like.’

  ‘Thanks, I was really hoping you’d like it, and they’re already up quite a bit on average.’ Mim hadn’t been able to help but smile at the praise. It was impossible for her to have a negative thought about Clarissa; she was so incredibly decent and likeable.

  ‘Great! I’ll see you later.’ Clarissa had smiled again before heading off downstairs.

  ‘Yeah, see you later.’ Mim had remained rooted to the spot for a few moments. There’d been nothing at all in Clarissa’s business-like appearance to suggest that there was anything going on between her and Caspar. I really need to calm myself down; it’s just my crappy relationship history that makes me so suspicious and paranoid. There’s nothing going on between Caspar and Clarissa; it’s all in my daft head. I seriously need to chill.

  As Mim had headed off to the office’s grimy little bathroom, she’d tried her hardest to ignore the annoying voice that had suddenly piped up and was telling her that Clarissa and Caspar would make a beautiful couple and were far better suited than herself and the man in question. ‘Oh, just bugger off!’ she’d hissed at it.

  ‘Right, now that’s done, I’m going to have a break for lunch, anyone care to join me for a bite to eat at the Nutmeg Tree? Aidey, Mim? Surely you’re going to have a lunch break this week, Mimbo?’ Anna-Lisa popped her pen into the jar on her desk and straightened her paperwork.

  ‘I’m nearly done here; I could do with some fresh air actually, so count me in,’ said Aidey.

  ‘Yep, same here. I’ve got quite a lot done but I just need to finish this last little bit. If you two want to go ahead and get a table, I shouldn’t be too long.’

  ‘Good plan,’ said Anna-Lisa. ‘If the waiter comes before you arrive, shall we order your usual chai tea latte?’

  ‘That’d be great, thanks.’

  ‘Well, I’m afraid I won’t be able to join you, I’m meeting a friend,’ said Honey. She didn’t see Anna-Lisa mime wiping sweat from her brow behind her computer terminal, nor Aidey pressing his lips together as he tried not to laugh.

  14

  Mim burst through the door at the Nutmeg Tree, her favourite eatery in the city. She was instantly accosted by a wall of warmth and the mouth-watering aroma of sautéed onions and freshly baked bread. She took a deep breath and pressed a hand to her stomach which had started growling noisily in response. It gladdened her heart to see a roaring fire
dancing in the wood-burner that nestled in the vast inglenook fireplace, especially since mist still curled around the city, making it chilly and damp.

  The coffee bar – the term really didn’t do the place justice – in its current incarnation had opened its doors just over a year ago and had already gained itself a loyal following of fans, its plates of food regularly featuring on the blogs and Instagram pages of foodie bloggers. Like Yorkshire Portions, it was housed in a double-fronted, mediaeval timber-framed building which afforded it masses of character. The owners had cleverly married its ancient oak panelling and wonky wattle and daub walls with industrial furnishings; there were tables made of reclaimed floorboards set on heavy steel legs, while seating featured aesthetically worn leather sofas, squishy chairs, metal seats and a row of leather-upholstered booths that ran along the walls at the back. Lighting was courtesy of clusters of exposed vintage lightbulbs suspended from the low, heavily-beamed ceilings by cord-covered cables and vintage candlesticks on the tables. There were shelves made of reclaimed oak on the walls, housing battered hardback copies of classics such as Wuthering Heights, as well as old bottles and pewter tankards that had been found buried in the ground at the rear of the property, betraying its history as a coaching inn. During this refurbishment a piece of hand-painted Tudor graffiti in an age-worn shade of ochre stating the name “Willyam Merywether” and the date “1532” had been uncovered on one of the walls. It was now on display for diners to admire, protected by a sheet of glass and surrounded by a rustic wooden frame. The well-chosen playlist of laid-back music added a happy vibe to proceedings.