I didn’t know what to make of Kim, but I decided to take her at face value until I had reason to think otherwise. I chose to ignore all the red flags and put aside my jealousy. Even though I felt like Harry and Kim had betrayed me somehow, I needed her, and she was a means to an end. If my paranoia was proven true down the line, then I would deal with it then.

“Hi, this is Harry. I can’t come to the phone right now. Please leave a message,” my phone played and beeped.

“Harry, what were you playing at?” I whispered.

V

WHEEL OF FORTUNE

HARRY - BEFORE

It’s just not possible. There was no way we could afford it, but what was I supposed to tell her? Weeks and weeks spent on house hunting, only for her to find something wrong with every single one. Our budget, constantly being stretched to breaking point, was way higher than we ever agreed on. Money aside, I had to agree with Amelia. The place was absolutely astounding. It was the one. I could almost see the little Harrys or Amelias standing on little stools, brushing their teeth in the mirror. Or running around the hallways laughing. Maybe, just maybe, if I’d looked at my bank balance long enough, it would have magically grown another zero. I’d worked the hardest I had ever done in my life just to cobble enough money together for a deposit, but this was way outside of our budget.

Amelia wasn’t in the know. She’d just gleefully arranged the viewings with almost no regard for the price tag, although she couldn’t be blamed for it. If I had the courage to sit her down and explain our financial situation, surely, she would have understood, eventually. But I didn’t have the stomach for it. I’d built up this perception with her that I was this amazing provider and exemplary husband, but it was mostly bravado. I didn’t wish to shatter her illusions of me and deeply upset her, and I desperately wanted to live up to the image she had of me in her head.

But this house. It had everything we ever wanted, even down to Amelia’s obsession with bi-fold doors in the kitchen and blackened chrome plug sockets. There was also plenty of space for children, and if I’d had my way, we would have filled the house with them. I couldn’t let her down, and I needed to find the money somewhere. I was due to start my new job at the investment firm a few weeks later. If I asked for an advance, would that be too cheeky? Probably. The only thing I knew for sure was that if I told her that we couldn’t afford it, she would be distraught, and I hated making her upset.

“Are you all right in there, Harry? The estate agent has another viewing to get to,” Amelia shouted through the bathroom door.

“Yeah, coming,” I replied.

I flushed the toilet and ran the taps. When I opened the door, Amelia was standing there with an accusatory grin on her face.

“Don’t tell me. I don’t want to know,” she laughed.

“I wasn’t doing anything! I’m just nervous, Ames, it’s an awful lot of money. I just needed a minute.”

“Oh my God, Harry. I’m in love with this house, it’s incredible. Are you sure we have enough to cover it?”

“Yes, I think we can do it. All I need is to move some money around, before we sign on the dotted line,” I insisted.

“I love you,” Amelia said, leaning in with a kiss.

“I love you, too,” I replied.

We made our way down the stairs, and the estate agent was waiting for us at the bottom with a huge smile on her face. She clearly knew she was about to make a sale. I awkwardly reciprocated the smile, but there was a lump in my throat the size of an overpriced house brick. This was the single biggest purchase I’d ever made, and I knew the bank wouldn’t stretch the mortgage to accommodate it.

“It’s a marvellous house, isn’t it?” The estate agent beamed.

“Just beautiful, Sally. We think we’re ready to make an offer right now!” Amelia responded.

“Well, we’ve had some other offers, so it’ll have to be over asking, I’m afraid. But it’s so worth it!” Sally replied.

“Over the asking price, you mean?” I quivered, the lump in my throat doubling in size by the second.

“Yes, she means over the asking price, Harry. Don’t be stupid,” Amelia interrupted.

“Yes, but the sellers aren’t in a chain, so you’ll be in before you know it!” Sally enthused.

“A chain is when the sellers are waiting for their house purchase to go through,” Amelia explained to me.

“I do know what a chain is, Ames,” I said.

Sally tapped the form lightly on the table in the hallway and clicked her pen, handing it to me. I looked at Amelia, and she was radiating glee. If there was a way that we could afford this, I had to find it by hook or by crook. Amelia grabbed my free hand; I could feel her fingernails digging into my hand in anticipation. She was urging me to write the offer. Screw it. I hastily wrote down £480,000 in the offer box, and Amelia’s eyes widened. I handed the pen back to Sally, who received it with a fawning smile.

“I think the sellers will be more than accommodating for that offer, congratulations! I’ll let you know as soon as I hear anything,” Sally beamed.

“Thank you so much!” Amelia effused.

“Thanks,” I uttered half-heartedly.

Amelia’s grasp loosened on my hand as Sally led us out of the house. Our house. If only I were able to scrape together the funds to make it happen. I hadn’t realised I’d been sweating so much, but the cool Mancunian breeze dried the mist on my forehead. We both turned, and Amelia put her arm around me tightly. It truly was an amazing house, one that we could fill with cherished memories, but it didn’t stop me from feeling sick at the thought of actually handing the money over. Sally shook both of our hands and returned to her hatchback to complete some paperwork.

“We did it, Harry!” Amelia said excitedly.

“We did!” I responded insincerely.

“Do you think they’ll accept the offer? Or should we have gone higher?”

“I hope so. We can’t really go any higher, Ames.”

“Of course we can. Just look at the place. It’s beautiful. And nothing needs to be done to it; it’s perfect.”

I got back behind the wheel, and my hands were shaking l. Amelia didn’t seem to notice; she was so caught up in the adrenaline of buying her dream home. But in reality, it wasn’t ours until I’d shifted heaven and earth to come up with some more money. The mortgage offer we had wouldn’t even cover half of that, and by the time my new salary kicked in, this house would be snapped up by someone else. I needed to borrow some money from somewhere, anywhere, just for the short term.

“Listen, when we get back to the flat, I need to take care of a few things. Are you going to be all right on your own for a while?” I asked.

“What things?” Amelia asked.

“I just have to drop some paperwork off at my new office. I won’t be too long,” I fibbed.

“What paperwork?”

“Just some contracts and other bits and pieces.”

“I thought we could get lunch together. You know I don’t like being without my husband.”

“I know, but we can celebrate later! I’ll be looking forward to it.”

“I just wish you’d said sooner. I’ll miss you.”

“I’ll miss you, but it’s important.”

For the rest of the journey home, I could barely stop quaking with trepidation. I put on a brave face for Amelia, and she seemed like she was none the wiser, which made me feel awful. I needed to speak to Steve. He always knew where to get a few quid when he was feeling the pinch. He’d managed to raise enough to buy that caravan park, and he must have been doing well for himself. It would only be for a month or two, a quick remortgage, and we’d be back on track.

I dropped Amelia off on the street outside our flat. It was a huge block with hundreds of flats inside. You could smell whatever was cooking from the floor below, and the walls were paper-thin. Our neighbour must have had allergies because she spent most of the day sneezing and it sounded like it was right in your ear.