“I can just imagine her tone, too.”
I’d always connected to Margot the most, but we’d drifted since my mum died, which was mainly my fault. We were similar. Perhaps too much at times. She’d always been the fun aunt who let me stay up late and watch inappropriate movies. But that relationship felt tainted now, scorched around the edges by everything that was happening.
“I can’t quite decide what I believe. Sage seems genuine, and she won’t take my money. She’s got no skin in the game.” I turned to Eliza. “Do you think it’s possible we get visited from beyond the grave?”
Eliza licked her lips. “It’s not that I don’t believe. I just trust myself more, I suppose. I’d rather look forward than back, you know? Though I can see why it brings people comfort. Sage is providing a service. But it’s not for Margot.”
“She was always my favourite,” I said. “It’s why I don’t want this business to ruin that.”
“It doesn’t have to.” Eliza’s voice was gentle. “When she’s not having sex too loudly with my dad, I like her. She’s good for him. But I’ve watched Dad go through women since he and Mum split. I don’t want him to do the same thing to Margot.”
“Margot can look after herself.”
“A bit like her niece?”
The way she said it, the way she looked at me made something hot flare inside me. “Something like that.”
We stared at each other for what seemed like many long moments, before I checked my watch, and jolted. Sitting in the sun and staring at Eliza was not going to get any deal done, was it?
When we arrivedat the VIP courtyard, Roka was smoking what looked like a joint with another woman who had a buzzcut and striking green eyes. Roka’s hair was freshly shaved at the sides, and sculpted upwards on top.
When she saw us, she waved, then walked over with a sure swagger, embracing us with both arms. The end of her joint snagged on my arm, but I didn’t flinch. If Roka wanted to brand me with her joint, she could. Anything to get this deal over the line.
“You made it! I was just going to send out a search party. How are my two favourite totally-not-together humans?”
I stuttered, and Eliza cleared her throat.
But before either of us could reply, Roka jumped in. “I gave you one of the best glamping tents with a nice big king-size bed. If you’re together, it works. If you’re not, you can easily avoid touching each other.”
She winked, and I wanted to die on the spot. Heat flooded my cheeks and my stomach dropped to somewhere around my ankles. I didn’t dare risk a look over at Eliza, terrified of what I might see in her face.
Horror, embarrassment, or worse, nothing at all.
One of Roka’s staff, a girl with intricate braids called Amber, led us through a break in the trees to a gorgeous space with around ten glamping tents, each with their own wooden deck, easy chairs, fairy lights, and hot tub.
“Wow,” was all I could say, though my voice came out slightly strangled.
“Exactly my thoughts,” Eliza replied.
“You’re in tent six,” Amber told us, a hand planted firmly in her jean pocket. “I’ll leave you to get acquainted, but come back and join us in the courtyard when you’re ready. We’ll have some drinks and I’ll give you your backstage passes. Roka wants you to have a night to remember.”
The words ‘get acquainted’ seemed to echo in the space between us as we followed the wooden pathway through the trees. I was suddenly very thirsty, and also hyper-aware of each step Eliza took, the way her arm occasionally brushed mine as we walked.
When we got into the tent, our luggage was there already, along with a bottle of champagne on ice, a tube of Pringles, and some expensive-looking chocolates.
The space was beautiful: rich fabrics draped everywhere, soft lighting, the kind of romantic setup that would have been perfect if we’d actually been the couple everyone seemed to think we were.
Also looking back at us was our king-size bed, its crisp white sheets housing far too many implications.
“I forgot she thinks we’re together.” A blatant lie, but I had tried to forget.
“I had, too.”
We stood there for a moment, the weight of everything unsaid hanging between us like a physical presence. The air felt thick, charged with something that made my skin prickle.
“But we can cope for one weekend, right?” Eliza’s question was rhetorical, but there was something underneath it, a tremor that made me look at her properly. She normally looked assured. Here, she looked anything but.
“We don’t want to rock the boat until she’s signed the contract.”
