Chapter 3

After dropping Elizabeth home Matt drove around for a while, lost in thought. After about an hour of this he decided that he should probably go home, after all it was 11:30pm. A few minutes later, Matt parked his BMW in the driveway of their little flat, got out and walked inside to find his girlfriend sitting at the table with a glass of red wine.

Heidi looked at her watch then up at Matt. "So where have you been?" she asked. Matt could tell she was more than a little pissed off.

"I went out for a drink with Leon and... Elizabeth." He paused before continuing. "Then we had dinner," he told her honestly, having made a snap decision. Heidi looked into her half empty glass before finishing it in one go.

"What gives you the right to walk out of here and go drinking with your friends hmmm? And when I have cooked a nice dinner too!" Her voice began to shake and tears pooled at her eyes but Matt knew it wouldn't stay like that for very long.

"I am not a child Heidi. And I will do whatever I want when I want!" he stated, his voice rising slightly.

"So you can go drinking while I sit here alone with no one and now with a cold dinner? Matt how is that fair?" Matt watched as her jaw clenched considerably and took a deep breath before answering.

"Heidi why do you need to be near me all the time? It is highly annoying and embarrassing. I need my personal space!Why can't you understand that?!" And before she could yell at him, Matt left the room for the safety of his study. "I have work to do so please leave me in peace," he called back to her before slamming the door behind him. Sighing he threw his wallet, phone and keys on his desk before collapsing in his chair and rubbing his temples with his hand. Then he heard a knock at the door.

"Did you not hear me? I have work now so leave me alone!" Barging in, Heidi stormed over to him.

"YOU KNOW WHAT MATT? NO I WON'T BECAUSE I AM YOU GIRLFRIEND AND YOU'RE MY BOYFRIEND AND WE ARE MEANT TO SPEND OUR DAYS TOGETHER, NOT YOU WITH SOME BITCHTILL 11:30!" she screeched.

"NO WE ARE NOT AND HER NAME IS ELIZABETH!" Matt spat back, being able to contain his temper any longer. "I am sick to death of this Heidi. This incessant clinging from you on me. Get it? You're walking on thin ice, very thin ice!"

Shell shocked, Heidi took a shuddering breath and forced herself to calm down. She had never seen Matt look so angry."Okay this is silly. I don't even know what we are fighting about," she laughed nervously before continuing. "Right so this is what we are going to do. I will go clean the kitchen while you have a shower then we will go to bed and it will all be fine. How does that sound Matty?"

"You know what?... No." Not bothering to expand, Matt grabbed his keys, phone and wallet. Walking past her he made his way into the hallway to the front door, slamming it shutleaving a very upset and confused Heidi in his wake.

Matt got into his car, backed out the drive way and throwing the gear forward, he pressed his foot hard on the accelerator. He drove until he was satisfied with the distance now betweenhim and Heidi. Seeing a hotel sign just up the road that didn't look very expensive and high class or one that was cheap and run down, he pulled in and made straight for the reception. Booking in for five nights since he didn't know how long he was going to be there, Matt payed the lady at the counter, took the key and made his way to room 107.

Matt showered quickly before keeling into bed wearily, a mini bottle of vodka he found in the fridge on the bedside table. Hoping to induce sleep quickly, he drank the entire contents before slumber finally overtook him.

The next morning Matt woke up with a pounding headache. He got up slowly looked at the digital clock. 1:36pm. Sighing, he remembered the events of the previous night and started making his way to the bathroom but something caught his eye under the table. Curious, he went over and picked it up, asmall piece of paper. He was about to throw it away until he saw some writing through it on the underside. Matt opened it and found himself looking at Elizabeth's number.

07154 487336

Elizabeth

Matt felt his heart nearly explode and quickly located his phone and sat himself down on the bed. He keyed his phoneinto the messages screen, entered her number and starting typing eagerly.

Hey Elizabeth! Had a great night last night. Hope you did just wondering what you were doing today? Matt

He reread what he had written with satisfaction but it soonfaded. How stupid could he be? She was most likely going towonder why he would ask such a thing so soon afterwards. She knew he was with someone. Feeling deflated, he threw his phone across the room and ordered some more alcohol up to his room instead. Once it arrived he spent the night drinking and wallowing in his self-induced depression.

Matt woke to the sound of his phone ringing. Slowly sittingup, he rubbed his eyes and looked around for it. He go out of bed and made his way to where it now lay beside the comfy chair, picking it up and squinting to see who was calling. As soon as he saw Heidi's name flash up he cut it off. Scrolling through his phone, Matt was stunned to see he had 34 missed calls and 18 messages. Looking through them all, he found that most were from Heidi and there were a few from Leontoo. He was about to put his phone down when one message caught his attention. Not recognising the number, he opened it and his stomach did several flips in quick succession.

Hey Matt. I had a nice time last night, thank you. I hope I'll see you around but I have a lot on with work Leon has piledme with which is great but hardly any spare time. I might have a couple of hours on Saturday though I hope. Elizabeth.

Feeling his sprits soar he reread the message again. Vaguely wondering how she had gotten his number when he hadn't given it to her, he suddenly realized just what the text was a subtle invitation to see him on Saturday. Two days away. Damn I have no clothes. Looking at his phone againand seeing it was only 9:30am he decided to have a shower tofreshen up, get dressed and go home to get some was just one snag: Heidi. Nevertheless, he was soon sitting in his BMW a few doors down the street, watching the front of his flat through the rear view mirror, waiting for Heidi to leave for work. 1O minutes after he had arrived, Heidiappeared, locking the door and getting into her car. She pulled away in the opposite direction to where Matt had parked.

Waiting another couple of minutes just to be sure, Matt did a U-turn and pulled into the drive way, exiting the car quickly and slipping inside the house. He wasted no time getting his suitcase out and throwing about half of his clothes from his chest of drawers into the suitcase. Zipping it up he emerged in the hallway and walked around the corner back towards the front door, only briefly diverting to pick up a couple of books and his briefcase from his study. Just as he was about to leave, his conscience unexpectedly reared up. Grabbing a pad and pen, he scribbled a quick note for Heidi.

I'm staying at a hotel for a few days to get my thoughts together. Please don't try to contact me for now. Matt.

Now that he had all that he would need for a few days, Matt felt considerably lighter. He had successfully avoided a confrontation with Heidi and could now focus his energy on figuring out what he really wanted. He cruised back to the hotel room and once back, took the opportunity to change into a fresh shirt. Deciding to catch the midday news, he settled himself in the comfy chair in front of the small TV but his thoughts were wondering elsewhere. Images of Elizabeth and Heidi swirled around in his head. He wasn't sure if he should break up with Heidi or not. He freely admitted to himself that he had handled the situation badly thus far. He had been unfair but it was justified. Wasn't it? And he wasn't sure he should meet Elizabeth on Saturday either with his headspace where it was. Then an entirely different idea struck him like lightening. Why couldn't he have met Elizabeth beforemeeting Heidi? Life's not fair,he thought. Perhaps he should just stop moping and break up with Heidi after all? But how would he do it? She was an animal when mad or upset and he had scarcely avoided it when he had walked out. Staying at the hotel should make it clear to her that I'm really unhappy. Perhaps after a week, I could go back and tell her it's over? Get her to move out? His musings were broken as a news item flashed up on the news. Confirmation of a world leader having an affair and that his wife had asked for a divorce. Matt knew he was a good man but he was also someone who listened to his instincts. And his instincts told him that if he stayed with Heidi he would probably pursue Elizabeth anyway. The pain inflicted on everyone just wouldn't be worth it. It was time to end things with Heidi. His decision made, he pulled his phone out of his pocket and found Elizabeth's text from earlier.

Hi Elizabeth. I hope you enjoy your time off on Saturday. I'll be working that day unfortunately. I would like to see you again though. How does the end of next week suit you? Matt.

Stabbing the 'send' button before he could change his mind, he watched as the message disappeared from the screen. Hardly daring to believe he had just turned her down, he put his head in his hands. He didn't actually have work on Saturday but he had neglected it so much this week already it would do as a valid enough excuse until his business with Heidi was settled. Business. Is that all it is this is to me now?He wondered. How a man's psychology could change in the space of a few days.

'Hey guys, 'settees-under-siege' here! Thanks so much to everyone who has shown interest to this story so far. It means a lot to us and gives us lots of encouragement and energy to bring more to you. Rest assured this won't be so angsty most of the time but this is Heidi we are dealing with here... lol poor woman. The humour will return though - soon. In the meantime, thanks again to all who have read and reviewed so far!'