Megan Cole - Riches - Snog, Steal and Burn

It was the same with her father. Jhumpa knew she should feel scared and upset, but it was like the whole thing was happening to someone else. The few occasions she’d wanted to cry, Jhumpa had dug her precious nails into her palm until she’d drawn blood. Crying was not going to help her father. She hadn’t cried since she was nine years old. She had to think practically, and find her dad.

Anything Jhumpa put her mind to, she achieved. Her father’s rescue would be no different.

They ate in the formal dining room, round a long, polished mahogany table that sat thirty. Dinner was delicious, pâté to start, Cook’s world-famous shepherd’s pie and a dense chocolate mousse to finish. Each girl wolfed her food down, suddenly ravenous. Stephenson hovered unintrusively in the background on hand to refill their cut-crystal wine glasses when they ran dry. They weren’t massive measures, Celine noticed. The butler was probably under orders to make sure they behaved themselves.

While Celine was wearing harems and a designer T-shirt, Jhumpa had come looking down like she was going to the Oscars. Hair freshly blow-dried and make up immaculate, she was wearing a long, low-cut red dress that draped seductively over her curves. Celine thought it was a bit OTT but she had to admit it went well with the Indian gold piled on at Jhumpa’s wrists and ears. She’d maybe punk it up a bit, if it was her: wear those earrings with a denim jacket instead. Think outside the box a bit, darling. Jhumpa was far too conservative.

Maybe it was the wine, or the fact that they had food in their bellies, but this time the girls were more relaxed with each other. As Stephenson cleared away the cheese plates and retired for the evening, Celine’s eyes fell on the drinks cabinet. The wine had been really nice at dinner but she fancied something stronger.

‘Can I have a look?’

Luci was curled up barefoot in the chair at the head of the table. ‘Help yourself. Be warned though, my dad has really random things in there.’

‘Like Peruvian brandy?’ Celine took the top off and sniffed. ‘Woah!’

Luci laughed at the expression on her face. ‘You want one?’

‘Why not? A few shots always get the party going.’

‘Not for me.’ Jhumpa said snootily. ‘I only drink good wine.’

‘Come on, live a little.’ Celine poured them all a measure out and bought it back to the table.

‘We need a toast.’ She pushed the glass towards Jhumpa. ‘C’mon. To finding our parents.’

Luci picked her glass up, ‘To our parents.’

They both looked at Jhumpa. ‘All right,’ she sighed. ‘If it makes you happy. But just the one.’

‘Famous last words,’ Celine said. She held her glass aloft and the others followed.

‘ To finding our parents! ’

They started to work their way through the spirits; Spanish liqueur, a French whiskey, German schnapps. By the time they were on this lemon-tasting thing from Turkey even Jhumpa had loosened up and was giggling at a funny story Luci had just told them. The thought of what lay ahead was ever near but all of three were determined to enjoy themselves. Like warriors on the eve of battle, Luci thought, looking round the table. Their last night of freedom.

Pretty soon the subject of guys came up. ‘Have you got a boyfriend?’ Celine asked her.

‘I did have. Adam. We met at Uni.’

‘What happened?’

‘He was nice.’ Luci grinned; ‘A bit too nice. How about you, Celine?’

‘Nothing serious.’ Her eyes flashed mischievously. ‘Although I did meet a guy on the plane over. Remy. He was a fashion buyer for Selfridges.’

‘Wow,’ Luci said. ‘Are you going to see him again?’

Celine shrugged. ‘He lives over here, so it would be pretty difficult. I got the feeling he was a bit of a player, anyway.’ She grinned again. ‘He was a seriously good kisser. Things got pretty full on.’

Luci laughed. ‘You could have joined the mile-high club.’

Celine gave a wink. ‘How do you know I haven’t already?’

‘Listen to you pair of old fishwives,’ Jhumpa said. ‘Gossiping about your wares for anyone to hear!’

The other two exchanged amused glances. ‘How about you, Jhumpa?’ Celine said. ‘Got any hot man-action going on at the moment?’

‘As if I’d tell you,’ came the tart reply.

Celine refilled their glasses. ‘Chill out, it’s not like we’re not going to tell anyone.’

‘It doesn’t mean we have to talk like whores.’

‘God, Jhumpa!’ Celine exclaimed. ‘It’s just girls talk.’ She raised an eyebrow. ‘Very prim and proper, aren’t you?’

‘Not at all.’ Jhumpa folded her napkin and put it on the table. ‘I just don’t feel the need to share every detail of my love life with everyone.’

‘Are you seeing someone then?’ Luci asked.

‘I might be.’

Celine rolled her eyes. ‘Cut the mystery, when did you last have sex?’

Jhumpa looked between the pair of them. ‘Last night, actually.’

They hadn’t expected that. ‘With who?!’ Luci said. ‘You only flew in yesterday.’

Jhumpa took a tiny sip of her shot. ‘Like I say, it’s my business.’

Celine started laughing. ‘You had a one-night stand. Jhumpa, you tramp!’

‘I am no such thing!’ she said indignantly. ‘I liked him; he liked me. We took precautions. I knew exactly what I was doing.’

‘Are you going to see him again?’ Luci asked.

Jhumpa did the hair toss thing again. ‘Maybe. He’s texted me but I haven’t replied yet.’

‘Playing hard to get, are we?’ Celine told her. Her speech was starting to slur. ‘Has anyone got any drugs?’

‘Celine!’ Jhumpa was shocked. ‘You don’t use them do you?’

‘I’m not talking about heroin! I mean something to smoke - just a joint. Luci?’

‘Sorry, no. The nearest thing to getting trashed is over there, in daddy’s drinks cupboard.’

‘Beggars can’t be choosers,’ Celine said getting up. She swayed across the room, bumping into Jhumpa’s chair on the way. ‘Right, bitches, what can I get you?’

Chapter Seven Chapter Seven Chapter Eight Chapter Nine Chapter Ten Chapter Eleven Chapter Twelve Chapter Thirteen Chapter Fourteen Chapter Fifteen Chapter Sixteen Chapter Seventeen Chapter Eighteen Chapter Nineteen Chapter Twenty Chapter Twenty-one Chapter Twenty-two Chapter Twenty-three Chapter Twenty-four Chapter Twenty-five Chapter Twenty-six Chapter Twenty-seven Chapter Twenty-eight Chapter Twenty-nine Chapter Thrity Epilogue Credits Previously by Megan Cole About the Publisher

Celine was having another weird dream. This time her parents were marching across the front lawn at St Winifred’s, playing in a steel band. The instruments clashed and clanged like a giant nightmare alarm clock. ‘Shut up already,’ she moaned. As she started to come to, the noise didn’t stop. Celine opened one eye. The noise was coming from right underneath her.

Boing boing boing.

WTF? Celine sat up in the lumpy bed, last night’s eye make-up halfway down her face. Her head felt like someone had jumped on it. What had she drunk last night? Downstairs, it sounded like Big Ben was going off. Celine fell out of bed on to the clothes she’d left in a pile last night. Pulling them back on, Celine went to investigate.

She met a bleary-eyed Jhumpa and Luci in the corridor, both still in their night clothes. ‘What’s that noise?’ Celine asked, covering her ears with her hands. She felt bad enough as it was.

‘It’s Stephenson, ringing the gong,’ Luci said. ‘It means we’ve got a visitor.’ She looked at her watch. ‘Shit, it’s eleven o’clock!’