Chapter 1
Maya
Maya breathed a sigh of relief as she closed her laptop and grabbed her coat. Her boss had generously let her go at midday. Excellent news for her. It was her last day of work before setting off on her skiing trip with boyfriend, Stu. Now she would have plenty of time to pack for their early morning flight the next day. She had high expectations for this holiday. Hopes that he would finally propose to her. He’d been acting very mysteriously recently and had a secret smile on his face.
She elected to head over to his flat to surprise him, and with any luck, get a little loving too. After parking up, she grabbed his spare key out of her bag and headed upstairs to the first floor. A grin spread across her face at the surprise she’d see when he saw her. As quietly as she could, she let herself in.
After taking off her shoes and coat, she headed for the lounge. The TV was on, but no one was in there, or in the kitchen either. There were two wine glasses and a bottle of red on the kitchen counter. Maybe he’d guessed she’d be leaving work early. A noise from his bedroom distracted her. Perhaps he was already packing. Then she heard a distinctly feminine giggle.
“Oh God, Janie. That is so good.”
Maya stopped dead in her tracks. Janie? What was his business partner doing in her guy’s bedroom? Fury rushed through her a mile a minute and she saw red. She burst through his bedroom door just in time to get slapped in the face with a pair of black lacy panties. The naked couple faced her, shock registering in their expressions. Janie hid under the duvet and Stu cupped his junk. Watching him do that would have been comical at any other time. Hell, she’d seen it on countless occasions.
“Stupid question, I know. But what the hell is going on here?” Maya demanded.
“It’s not what you think,” he moaned, grabbing for his boxers.
“Oh, really? It looks like you’re having sexy time with that bitch cowering under the sheets. What is it if not that then, huh? Doctors and nurses? Mummies and daddies?” She threw her hands up in the air. “You know what? I’m done.”
She stormed out of the room, trying to control the fast-flowing tide of tears springing from her eyes. He ran after her and grabbed her arm. Maya shoved him away.
“Don’t. You. Dare. Touch. Me, asshole!”
“Be reasonable!”
She laughed at his audacity. “Really? Me be reasonable? Are you saying I should just pretend I didn’t see you screwing your business partner?”
“What about our holiday? You’ll still go, won’t you?”
Her body shook with rage and shock at his question. “NO! I will NOT go with you!”
Stu moved towards her, and for the first time, she wondered why she’d ever thought he’d be a perfect boyfriend, or even husband, material. She realised she still had her handbag clutched tightly. On instinct, she pulled back the arm holding it and then swung it at him, hitting him square in the nose, which poured with blood. He crumpled to the floor, clutching at his nose.
“Ow, that hurt,” he whined. “I bet it’s broken.”
“Tell someone who gives a shit. Get Janie to wipe it better with her smelly panties. Happy fucking Christmas!”
Fetching her coat and shoes, she headed for the front door. She remembered the key to his flat and turned to throw it, where he still sat on the floor, clutching at his nose. Janie, the cowardly bitch, had yet to emerge from his bedroom.
“Here,” she said, throwing the key back at him. “I won’t be needing this again. Give it to the slapper hiding in your bed.”
Maya slammed the front door shut; the sound echoed loudly in the hallway.
Maya
When she got home, she flung herself down on her sofa and sobbed until she gave herself a headache. At thirty-two, she thought her life was all planned out. Stu had put paid to that. She headed for the freezer, fishing out a tub of pralines and cream ice cream. With her free hand, she grabbed a half empty bottle of wine from the fridge. After she’d eaten most of the frozen dessert and emptied the wine bottle, her thoughts turned to how she’d spend her holiday what did she do now?
They were due to go to the Alps until the end of December, and she’d booked two weeks off. It hit her that she’d be alone for Christmas. It was usually her favourite time of year, and that deceitful ass had ruined everything. Her sister, brother-in-law, and their kids had gone to his brother’s family in Florida. Her parents were spending the time at their villa in Spain. Maybe she could stay with her mum and dad. She decided to contact them on Skype. Even her best friend wasn’t contactable, off on some hiking holiday with her boyfriend somewhere in the back of beyond in South America.
“Oh, Maya,” her mum said as she related the incident to her parents. “We never liked that man. But I’m so sorry it ended this way. And at Christmastime, too.”
Maya had an inkling they’d never taken to him but had tolerated him for her sake.
“Do you think I could come and stay with you? I have two weeks off,” she asked.
Her dad gifted her with a smile. “Of course, love. Let us know when you’ve booked your flight, and we’ll come get you from the airport.”
After several hours of searching for flights to Spain, she realised it was going to be too late to book anything before Christmas. She’d even tried looking at flights to other countries, thinking she could hire a car and drive through Europe. No luck. Nada. Slamming the lid of her laptop down with frustration, she resigned herself to the fact she’d be like the song by Mud, Lonely This Christmas.
“Guess it’ll be turkey dinner for one then.” She sighed.
Maya
The sound of her phone beeping woke her. Her neck ached and she realised she must have fallen asleep on the sofa sometime after delivering the disappointing news to her parents. Grabbing her phone, she stared at the screen through gritty eyelids. Numerous missed calls and voice messages from Stu. She deleted everything without looking and blocked his number.
After a shower and copious amounts of black coffee, she headed into town. She didn’t have anything in the fridge because she wasn’t going to be home. It was the twenty-first of December, so still time to get perishables. And several bottles of wine to numb the pain of being cheated on.
Before going to the supermarket, she visited her favourite coffee shop for a gingerbread latte and a mince pie with cream. Nothing like junk food to soothe the soul. The shop was full of groups of people with bulging shopping bags. Couples, families, friends, all chatting excitedly about the forthcoming festive holiday. Her spirits sank lower. She couldn’t help but be jealous. Thoughts turned to Stu. God, if she hadn’t turned up unannounced, how much longer would their sham of a relationship have continued? A shudder ran through her as she tried not to contemplate how long the affair had been going on.
Tears swam in her eyes, more out of anger than anything else. She brushed them away with the back of her hand and went to get up.
“Hey, careful!”
Too late, she heard the deep male voice call out in warning. The next thing she knew, she’d knocked a large mug of coffee out of a hand. It made a loud clatter as it smashed on the tiled floor. The shop went silent. All eyes on her. Could her life get much worse?