CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
This holiday had been about us healing from Dan’s affair, about us finally coming back together, but had Dan had his head turned once more? And if he had, we couldn’t come back from this. I couldn’t get Ella’s words out of my mind: he said he’d love to see me naked, and he only stays for the kids, you’d have to be blind or pathetic not to realise that. Was that me, blind and pathetic, a stupid wife who’d bought into a big lie? Had I been wrong to forgive him – twice? Or was this just another of Ella’s twisted games?
Either way, I was at the mercy of this bloody woman – she knew far too much about me, and she was using it to control me. Perhaps it was time I started getting a grip on things.
I couldn’t physically stop her from telling Dan and the rest of the family about me and Jamie, but I could perhaps distract her for now and put her on pause. Thank God for my part-time stint on Taylor’s social media, where I’d learned how easy it was to create a whole new world of one’s own. So, late afternoon, while the kids played in the garden and Ella and the others lay around the pool, I sent the first message to @EverythingElla123 on Instagram from my newly created account @StarsTV. Where the Instagram stars of today are the TV stars of tomorrow.
Heyyy Ella!
I’m just making contact because we TOTALLY love your Insta here at StarsTV! My name’s Summer, I’m a talent scout for a brand new, super exciting, but SUPER SECRET, TV show. We’re currently slipping into the DMs of our fave Insta crushes to ask if they’d be interested in starring in a BRAND NEW reality show. It’s kinda a cross between Love Island and The Bachelor, and that’s all I can say just now #supersecret. But there is huge prize money at stake – we’re talking SEVEN figures. For now, we’re obvs saving all our Insta posts for launch day, and our website is still on lockdown!
All I can say is filming starts in just a couple of weeks, we need you to be single, sizzling hot, with no commitments, and good to leave the UK if needed. If you’re feeling this, DM me and I’ll get right back to ya with all the deets about channel, prize money and likely exposure for your brand!
Have a great day
Summer xxx
I was wearing my sunglasses and hat, and discreetly glanced over at Ella as she posed around the pool. She might be ‘just married’ but I’d seen how fickle she could be, moving online from one persona to another – single girl to mummy within a week of being here.
I hoped she’d take the bait, because that would prove everything I thought about Ella, that this was just a bit of fun for the summer. She’d stepped in and caused conflict and upset, and now she’d skip off to what she thought was a moneymaking future filled with red carpets and beautiful people.
I couldn’t take the constant threat hanging over me, and this was a last effort to tempt her away – I just hoped she found it irresistible. I pressed send – it felt good to be taking back control.
From my vantage point, I could see her at the other side of the pool. She and Jamie now seemed to sit as far away from me and Dan as they could, but I could tell by the body language that she’d read the message. She seemed more animated, there was much laughter and snuggling into Jamie and I wondered for a moment if she might be conflicted over such an amazing offer.
I kept checking @StarsTV to see if she’d responded, but no luck – mind you, she was now busy applying fresh lipstick, oiling up and taking a stack of selfies. After about 100 clicks, she had to ask Jamie to step in as official photographer – presumably her selfie stick couldn’t quite capture every little inch. Next thing, she’s standing thigh-deep in the far end of the pool, top off, covering her breasts with both hands. It wasn’t really appropriate on a family holiday, but I consoled myself that at least they were keeping it up their end of the pool. No one else would have noticed if she hadn’t started shouting, ‘Jamie, take it from above’， ‘Do I look skinny if I stand like this?’ and ‘Does the water make my eyes bluer?’
‘You look great, babe. Yeah, yeah, your eyes are awesome.’
God, I thought, he’s even starting to sound like her.
I kept my sunglasses on and pretended not to notice, but I saw Violet glance over, and the shock on her face was almost comical. It was one thing showing your buttocks, but even my nine-year-old wannabe would draw the line at taking off her top – at least I hoped so.
This awful narcissism continued into the afternoon, and I was beginning to wonder if she’d even read the message when up she popped in my DMs.