Julia recognised all the faces from the Cedar Lane WhatsApp group. Practically the whole street was there, except for a few undesirables who had never been invited to join the group. And then dotted around were some of Lexi’s friends who Julia didn’t know.
Charlie was standing by himself with his beer. In his white polo shirt he did look like a lost schoolboy.
Lexi, Julia, Nicky and Alicia walked towards him, in the direction of the hot tub, and as they passed, Lexi said, ‘Fancy a dip, Charlie?’
Charlie winced. ‘Nah, I’m OK thanks.’
‘Oh come on,’ Lexi cajoled, grabbing his hand and dragging him a few steps.
Hamish came to join them, yanking his shirt off over his head to reveal the washboard abs that had featured so heavily in Julia’s dreams. ‘Don’t know about you, but I am ready to get wet!’ he laughed.
Lexi giggled.
Julia had to look away. She could feel heat rising up her neck making it go a blotchy red. She was torn between the prestige of being a part of Lexi’s elusive inner-circle and the awkwardness of having to sit rigidly aware next to Hamish, in her swimsuit.
Alicia stepped out of her denim shorts. Nicky wriggled her white bodycon dress over her head.
Julia was next to Charlie. Both of them standing watching. ‘Shall we just get in, Charlie?’ she said, hovering on the cusp of indecision.
‘No,’ Charlie flatly refused. ‘I told you, I have no interest in hot tubs.’
Hamish looked over. ‘Come on, Charlie, old boy, everyone loves a hot tub.’
Charlie shook his head. ‘Not me.’
Alicia had peeled off her top and was climbing into the frothy water, yelping as the bubbles touched her skin. Nicky splashed her. ‘You bitch,’ Alicia laughed.
‘Hamish, honey, can you just unzip my dress,’ Lexi called, holding her hair up from her back to reveal the zip.
‘Come on, Charlie,’ Lexi ordered, tying her hair into a big bun on top of her head, ‘don’t be a spoilsport.’
Charlie made a face. ‘I don’t mind being a spoilsport.’
Julia found herself being drawn to the water, to the fun. ‘Come on,’ she said, inching closer.
‘Why?’ asked Charlie, expression bemused.
Something about Charlie’s refusal was egging Julia on. ‘To get you out of your comfort zone,’ she suggested.
Charlie made a face. ‘I like my comfort zone. It’s comfortable,’ he said. ‘Why would I want to be uncomfortable?’
Julia stared at him for a second, then back at the water where everyone was frolicking with giggling abandon. Getting into the hot tub felt suddenly like a statement against being trapped by convention, it felt like it stuck two fingers up to their spreadsheet and Meryl’s diagnosis of Julia’s bored brain. It felt like living in the moment.
Julia took a step towards the pool, unzipping her dress. And while she hated standing in just swimwear in front of all the lithe Body Pump-toned figures of Lexi, Nicky and Alicia, she was quite proud of her pale-yellow and white striped bikini that was a near identical copy of one she’d seen in Lululemon. Understated but flattering. She’d never even stepped into a Lululemon before she’d heard Lexi and Alicia talking about how it was the only viable place to buy gym leggings.
‘Oh my God, we have the same bikini,’ said Lexi as she let her white sequins pool to the floor to reveal a two-piece in almost the same pale-yellow deckchair stripes as Julia’s. Hers however was clearly the expensive version. ‘Twins!’ Lexi clapped, bounding over to stand next to Julia. It looked much better on pocket-sized Lexi and Julia immediately curled in on herself, loath to be compared.
Alicia leant over the hot tub, resting her chin on her crossed arms, and drawled, ‘Well look at that,’ in a tone that implied Julia had purposely tried to copy Lexi.
Thankfully Lexi didn’t hear because she was too busy vaulting into the frothy tub in a move that made everyone whistle and clap, while Julia climbed in via the steps, head down to avoid meeting Alicia’s watchful eye.
Hamish, who had no interest in swimming costume chat, stood in the centre of the tub and shouted, ‘Charlie, get involved or see that off,’ gesturing to the full pint in Charlie’s hand.
All eyes were on Charlie. He looked like the small ounce of enjoyment he’d summoned up for this party had just been successfully squeezed out of him.
Julia was willing him to agree to Hamish’s challenge, to just get over it and get in the pool.
Hamish started chanting, ‘Down it, down it.’
Alicia, Nicky and Lexi joined in, clapping with glee. Another couple, strangers to Julia and Charlie, who were already lounging in the tub sat up to join. A group of grinning dads who lived up the street chipped in as the chant spread, as Hamish raised his hands high like a conductor and the bow-tied waiters over by the big trees paused to grin and whistle.
Julia sank down into the warm water, wincing in sympathy as Charlie looked momentarily startled by the onslaught. She hated herself for wanting to see him pushed out of his comfort zone. For craving any reaction outside of apathy. Anything to disrupt the status quo.
When she saw him start to raise his glass to see off Hamish’s challenge, she sat up a little straighter. Then almost as quickly he stopped. Julia watched as an expression of pity crossed his face and with a narrow-eyed glance aimed at Julia specifically for being complicit, Charlie turned on the spot and walked away.
There was a collective, disapproving sigh.
‘Spoilsport,’ Lexi catcalled, semi-joking.
Hamish looked completely agog that someone could defy the rules of a challenge. ‘He can’t walk away. That’s cheating. Julia,’ Hamish said, nudging her on the bare arm, ‘sort your husband out.’
The touch of Hamish’s skin on her own made Julia almost flinch in fright. Immediately hyperaware of their contact, images from her dreams flashing before her eyes, his big hands roaming over her rain-soaked clothes, the crush of his mouth hot on hers. His smell. His taste. Julia had to press her fingers momentarily over her eyes to make the memories go away. And then, just to divert Hamish’s attention from her, she shouted, ‘Come on, Charlie, it’s a game. Come back.’ But she knew he wouldn’t come back. He kept going towards the house without so much as a backwards glance.
‘Shame on him,’ muttered Hamish, lolling back so his honey-tanned shoulders were mere inches from Julia’s.
She shrugged as if her husband were a lost cause, while gearing up to apologise to him later in private. Her skin alive at the proximity to Hamish. Her guilty heart thumping.
Chapter Three
In the end, no one stayed in the hot tub for long, there was too much to do and see. The suckling pig was charring over the firepit in the centre of the lawn, the flames licking high up to a sky so blue it was almost white. The DJ was trying to corral people onto the dance floor with some thumping tunes that shook the garden. The surf-dude waiters were showing off their mixology skills with a Tom-Cruise-in-Cocktail inspired routine while a crowd whooped and clapped.
It being her party, Lexi was too flighty to be pinned in one place. When some new guests arrived, she jumped out of the hot tub to greet them with a squeal and stood chatting in just her bikini, freshly poured flute of champagne in hand. The couple Julia hadn’t known got out as well after their polite small talk with her fizzled out quite quickly. Nicky was beckoned to the chill-out zone by her husband to delight in the fact that by chance he’d bumped into an old pal from boarding school.