'I'm going to ask you again!' I say, my heart pounding. 'What were you doing in Scotland?'
There's silence. As I meet Jack's eyes, I know he's not going to tell me. He knows this is important to me and he's still not going to tell me.
'Fine,' I say, my voice lurching slightly. 'That's fine. I'm obviously not as important as you. I'm just some amusing girl who provides you with entertainment on flights and gives you ideas for your business.'
'Emma—'
'The thing is, Jack, that's not a real relationship. A real relationship is two-way. A real relationship is based on equality. And trust.' I swallow the lump in my throat. 'So why don't you just go and be with someone on your level, who you can share your precious secrets with? Because you obviously can't share them with me.'
I turn sharply before he can say anything else, and stalk away, two tears rolling down my cheeks, trampling the lucky heather underfoot.
I don't get home until much later that evening. But I'm still smarting from our argument. I have a throbbing headache, and I feel on the verge of tears.
I open the door of the flat to find Lissy and Jemima in a full-scale argument about animal rights.
'The mink like being made into coats—' Jemima is saying as I push open the door to the living room. She breaks off and looks up. 'Emma! Are you all right?'
'No.' I sink down onto the sofa and wrap myself up in the chenille throw which Lissy's mum gave her for Christmas. 'I had a huge row with Jack.'
'With Jack?'
'You saw him?'
'He came to … well, to apologize, I guess.'
Lissy and Jemima exchange looks.
'What happened?' says Lissy, hugging her knees. 'What did he say?'
I'm silent for a few seconds, trying to remember exactly what he did say. It's all a bit jumbled up in my head now.
'He said … he didn't ever mean to use me,' I say at last. 'He said I got in his thoughts. He said he'd fire everyone in the company who teased me.' I can't help giving a half-giggle.
'Really?' says Lissy. 'Gosh. That's quite romant—' She coughs, and pulls an apologetic face. 'Sorry.'
'He said he was really sorry for what happened, and he didn't mean to say all that stuff on the TV, and that our romance was … Anyway. He said a lot of things. But then he said …' My heart beats with fresh indignation. 'He said his secrets were more important than mine.'
There's a huge gasp of outrage.
'No!' says Lissy.
'Bastard!' says Jemima. 'What secrets?'
'I asked him about Scotland. And rushing off from the date.' I meet Lissy's eyes. 'And all those things he would never talk to me about.'
'And what did he say?' says Lissy.
'He wouldn't tell me.' I feel another sting of humiliation. 'He said it was too "sensitive and complicated".'
'Sensitive and complicated?' Jemima is staring at me, galvanized. 'Jack has a sensitive and complicated secret? You never mentioned this before! Emma, this is totally perfect. You find out what it is — and then you expose it!'
I stare at her, my heart beating hard. God, she's right. I could do it. I could get back at Jack. I could make him hurt like I've been hurt.
'But I have no idea what it is,' I say at last.
'You can find out!' says Jemima. 'That's easy enough. The point is, you know he's hiding something.'
'There's definitely some kind of mystery,' says Lissy thoughtfully. 'He has all these phone calls he won't talk about, he rushes off mysteriously from your date—'
'He rushed off mysteriously?' says Jemima avidly. 'Where? Did he say anything? Did you overhear anything?'
'No!' I say, flushing slightly. 'Of course not. I don't … I would never eavesdrop on people!'
Jemima gives me a close look.
'Don't give me that. Yes you did. You did hear something. Come on, Emma. What was it?'
My mind flashes back to that evening. Sitting on the bench, sipping the pink cocktail. The breeze is blowing on my face, Jack and Sven are talking behind me in low voices …
'It was nothing much,' I say reluctantly. 'I just heard him say something about having to transfer something … and Plan B … and something being urgent …'
'Transfer what?' says Lissy suspiciously. 'Funds?'
'I dunno. And they said something about flying back up to Glasgow.'
Jemima looks beside herself.
'Emma, I do not believe this. You've had this information all this time? This has to be something juicy. It has to be. If only we knew more.' She exhales in frustration. 'You didn't have a Dictaphone or anything with you?'
'Of course I didn't!' I say with a little laugh. 'It was a date! Do you normally take a Dictaphone on a …' I tail off incredulously at her expression. 'Jemima. You don't.'
'Not always,' she says, with a defensive shrug. 'Just if I think it might come in … Anyway. That's irrelevant. The point is, you have information, Emma. You have power. You find out what this is all about — and then you expose him. That'll show Jack Harper who's boss. That'll get your revenge!'
I stare back at her determined face, and for a moment I feel a sheer, powerful exhilaration bubbling through me. That would pay Jack back. That would show him. Then he'd be sorry! Then he'd see I'm not just some nothing, nobody girl. Then he'd see. Then he'd see.
'So …' I lick my lips. 'So how would I do it?'
'First we try to work out as much as we can ourselves,' says Jemima. 'Then, I've got access to various … people who can help get more information.' She gives me a tiny wink. 'Discreetly.'
'Private detectives?' says Lissy in disbelief. 'Are you for real?'
'And then we expose him! Mummy's got contacts at all the papers …'
My head is thumping. Am I really talking about doing this? Am I really talking about getting revenge on Jack?
'A very good place to start is rubbish bins,' adds Jemima knowledgeably. 'You can find all sorts of things just by looking through somebody's trash.'