The Boleyn Effect (The Boorman Ending) (27 page)

'I don't know what to
say?'

Which is true. George has
been on radio silence for near on a week and I'd just figured he
and Clair were busy with each other. But know it's over makes me
uneasy, because he would normally be sniffing round.

'There's no need. I won't
be second best for anyone. I just hope that Harry is true to
you.'

'There is no reason why he
shouldn't be, because I am number one.' I say with fake
confidence.

'Look are you going to be
okay for a while, there is something I need to do.'

She gives me a nod and I
grab my coat and leave her alone. This can't go on. I need to stand
up for what I believe in and that woman is seriously pissing me
off. I make my way towards Katherine's office and push past her
secretary.

'I'm sorry, Mrs Cobain,'
she flusters.

'It's alright, Connie. She
won't be staying long.'

The door closes and
Katherine from her chair looks at me in amusement.

'What can I do for you
Miss Boorman?' she asks.

'You know damn well.
Fucking with me is one thing, but my business is another
thing.'

'I have no idea what you
are talking about,' she smiles. 'I merely gave my opinion on the
quality of your work when asked.'

She nods to the corner of
her office and I resist the urge to physically react. There in the
corner are the canvas' that I did for her, slashed and destroyed.
This woman is seriously unhinged.

'What do you want from
me?' I ask. 'You want me to say sorry. Ok, I'm sorry for falling
for your husband.'

'We are far off apologies
here. You betrayed my trust, stole my husband and ruined my life.
So I ask you what on earth did I ever do to you?'

I am not sure can cope
with such calmness coming from her. I'd be much more comfortable if
she took a swing for me again.

'This isn't about you,' I
say.

'What will it take for you
to leave him alone?' she asks typing something into her
laptop.

'I don't want your
money.'

She scrutinizes me for a
moment and I feel uneasy under her stare.

'Sure you do. I will make
the transfer now. I still have your details from our last
transaction. Look at it this way, he's far too old for you and he
may give you what you want now, but it won't be long before nothing
works like it should,' she says. 'Get out now, while its fun and
why not make some money from it.'

I know what she's trying
to do. She's been nasty and now she's going for the nice. The good
ole god cop bad cop routine.

'I've already said no,' I
snap.

'Why won't you leave him?
You saw that girl. How pretty and easy to please she is. That's
what you've got to compete with. That's the kind of girl that he
really chases after.'

'You sent her to me?' I
ask in disbelief.

'Look, I can give you
enough to make sure you can start again. He's not worth losing
everything over. Unless you've got some other hold over
him?'

'I told you. I love
him.'

'Oh sweetheart, you have
no idea.'

I bristle at her
patronising attitude, but remain silent, because there is an
element truth to what she's said. The offer is a tempting one. I
could just leave this mess behind and start again. Move away. But
then another idea hits me.

'How much is on the
table,' I ask.

Katherine's smile
broadens. 'If Harry comes back home to me tonight and you cease all
contact then I will offer you £250,000.'

'Make it £500,000 and I
will make him leave tonight,' I say.

'Done, as soon as I know
you've held you part of the bargain I will put the money into your
account.'

I start to walk away and
Katherine stops me.

'I am trying to understand
why he would leave me for the likes of you,' she answers. 'What
makes you so special out of all the others?'

'Maybe it's a blessing in
disguise,' I offer. 'But then you've got to ask yourself why you
stay with a man like him?'

'It's because we are soul
mates, Miss Boorman and nothing you do will ever change that fact.
He will always come back to me. One way or another. I'm his true
love.'

'But not his first?' I
snap back and Katherine's face freezes.

I storm out of the office
with a grin. One point to me I think. Making my way outside I grasp
at the fresh air urgently. I just hope Harry understands why I've
done what I have. This started off so innocently. A flirtation and
sexual attraction. Now I feel like I am playing a very different
game all together. One where I am not on an equal playing field. My
competitors are all smarter, richer and better than me. Grabbing my
phone I dial. I need to know whether I still have George on my side
if I'm going to take on Katherine, but my heart starts to sink as I
get his voice mail. I never ever get his voice mail. I try again
and again, but still the same.

Deciding that I have no
option, I return to the studio where Clair waits.

'I've closed the page down
and I'm trying some damage control with some of our old clients,'
she says.

'You're a star. I've been
trying to get hold of George, but he's not answering,' I
say.

'I'm not surprised,' she
answers. 'He flew out with his dad for some family bonding time in
Greece this morning.'

'With his dad? Bonding
time in Greece?'

'Yeah I know, a bit of
turn up, but after I told him about how you and Harry seem to be in
it for the long haul he went strange. That's when we called it
quits. Maybe he's decided to move on and grow up.'

I know this isn't good.
George just walking away from me like that without any sort of
comeback isn't a good thing. Clair may have inadvertedly put a
spanner in my attempt to play him, because if he knows that I'm not
leaving Harry then there's nothing to play for and George is a sore
loser.

CHAPTER
THIRTY FIVE

It's late when I walk into
the flat and I'm startled by the sight of Harry sitting in
darkness. I didn't even see him come in and usually he waits for me
at the studio and when he didn't I assumed he was working late.
Uneasiness fills me as I move further into the room. It feels
almost hostile.

'Why are you sitting in
the dark?' I ask.

'Where have you
been?'

The sudden role reversal
stuns me and it takes a while for me to answer.

'I went to see Katherine.
She's pulled all my business contacts,' I answer.

'And did you leave with
everything you need?'

I walk towards where he's
sitting and that's when I see a large brown envelope on the counter
in front of him.

'I don't get
you?'

'Oh I think you do. How
much is a man's heart worth nowadays?' he hisses.

Of course she's contacted
him. Told him that I took the money. She will have needed to make
sure that I didn't fault on my end of the bargain.

'I took her money, but all
you have to do is go back to her tonight and then once I have it in
my account, it's yours. I did it to try and get some of what is
yours.'

'So you made a deal with
my wife for me?' he asks.

'Yes.'

His hand is tapping that
damn envelope and it's making me nervous. He's really pissed at me
and I am no wiser to what I've done.

'Get changed,' he suddenly
commands.

'What?' I exclaim in
surprise.

'Get changed.'

'I'm not really in the
mood...'

'When I ask you do
something you damn well do it. Now get changed.'

'Into what?' I
ask.

'Go into your room and
take your pick.'

His voice holds a chilly
edge to it and without question I turn towards my bedroom door and
open it. My breath catches as there on my bed is every outfit that
I wore to seduce him. The red Grecian number, The Red Riding Hood
costume, the punky school girl, the lace dress with matching
hotpants and finally my dungaree dress. Even the underwear I wore
and the shoes. He really must have paid attention when we were
together.

I want desperately for
this to be just a game we are playing, but I know there is
something darker going on. I look down at the outfits and realised
the extent of my seduction. A whores wardrobe.

'Don't make me wait
Leigh-Anne,' Harry shouts.

Deciding on the dungaree
dress, because it's the closest thing that I normally wear compared
to the others, I quickly change into it and return to where Harry
waits. Nervously, I stand while he looks me over. My mouth is now
so dry I can't even form any words to find out what I've
done.

'Good choice, now
come!'

I do what he asks, unsure
if I can read his face. It's as though all emotion has gone. He's
probably angry and he's just trying to exert some control. I go to
his side and he grabs me and turns me to face him.

'I want to fuck you,' he
says.

It should be seductive and
have me melting, but I just feel uneasy.

'Do you want me to?' he
asks.

I nod slowly.

'Say it then.'

'I want you to fuck me,' I
manage.

He pushes me over the
counter and it seems to take moments between the sound of him
unzipping and being thrust inside me.

'Harry, you need to make
me....'

I cry out, before
finishing, but I don't make to fight him. It's not like I've never
had angry sex before and sometimes it can be hot, but this feels
wrong and different. It's like Harry is no longer here or more to
the point it's not me he's seeing. I could be anything or anyone. I
try and move to gain some comfort at least.

'Stay still,' he hiss in
my ear.

He pounds into me so hard
I have no choice but to give in and let it happen. Just let him get
it out of his system and then everything will be
alright.

With a growling groan it's
over and he withdraws sharply, which hurts even more. I feel like I
am burning and not in a good way. For some reason, I daren't move
as I hear him putting himself straight and then a flurry of paper
notes fall on the counter beside me. With a hand on my back he
holds me still in position.

'Consider this my own
contribution,' he hisses.

Then with the other hand,
he nudges the envelope towards me. I struggle to stand up as he
slams his way out of the flat. Piles of fifties are scattered
everywhere.

I grab the envelope and
ripping it open I collapse on to the floor. It's the contract
signed with George. He'd shredded a copy and lied to me about it in
order to gain my trust. I've been betrayed by the one person I
trusted. Why would George do this to me? Unless he knew. He fucking
knew I was playing him and just because I dared to take him on, he
dealt his winning hand just to put me in my place.

What have I done for him
to hate me so much? I let him into my bed for crying out loud. What
more did he want? Me as his wife? That is not going to happen,
because the man I truly want is walking out of my life right now
and that's what I need to salvage.

Suddenly, grabbing my
shoes, I run out into the street, just in time as Harry pulls out.
I throw myself on the bonnet and wait for him to either run me down
or get out. Throwing the door open, he gets out and drags me away
from the bonnet. I'm stunned to see his face damp.

'Get the fuck out of my
way,' he shouts.

'Not until we talk about
this. George has set me up. He's jealous of you and me,' I say,
lies over spilling.

'Well it sure looked like
your signature to me.'

'Harry, we've been friends
for years, he could easily forge it. It doesn't take a
genius.'

Harry looks at me for a
moment and then sighs.

'You know what, I don't
really blame you. I would have done exactly the same thing if it
got me what I needed. You're a clever woman, but I think you've a
hell of a lot to learn about the real world. Take my wife's money
and do what you want with it. Just leave me alone.'

'Please Harry, I don't
want it. I want you. Don't let them do this to us. We are good
together. You said yourself.'

I am aware that I am
desperately pleading and it's not the most attractive thing in the
world.

'Go home Leigh-Anne. Go
find someone your own age to play games with,' he says.

He turns away from me and
starts to get into the car. Desperation is not the word. I have
only one possible card to play. The biggest lie I have to hand and
while it's the one thing I thought I'd never say, I have no choice.
I have to make him stay and it's the only thing that I'm sure will
buy me time.