"It did seem strange." Nodding, Amelia agreed, though she wasn't sure that Ella's adjectives were fair. And she wished she had the nerve to just say things like that.
"What? Her waterworks?"
Amelia nodded again. "I guess so. Well, according to Jack she cried." She shrugged. "I didn't see her crying."
"Sneaky. Definitely scheming again." Ella poked her tongue in her cheek before saying, "If I were you, I'd steer clear of Jane De Mello on this trip." Ella's brain worked through Amelia's statements. "Sounds like she's setting you up."
"Me? Why?"
"Does she need a reason?" Ella looked over at Amelia and rolled her eyes. "Honestly Ames!" Ella gave Amelia a speaking look. Then Ella's brow furrowed as she responded quickly as she thought about that witch, Jane. "She is plotting something!"
Amelia huffed, "Jack thinks I'm mean to Jane because I think she fancies Ben!" Ella choked as Amelia carried on, "Apparently I am jealous!" Ella blinked for several seconds as Amelia's words sunk in. "About Ben. You know, about her and Ben." She narrowed her gaze and hoped that Ella understood her predicament.
Eventually Ella stopped spluttering, dab at her mouth and said, "A, there is no Ben and her, and B, if there was something between them, we would puked! And we would tell him he is an idiot!" Ben and Amelia were friends for a long time. Platonic friends, but close. Ella couldn't understand it, but for some reason Amelia and Ben's friendship worked despite the fact that Ben dated like it was going out of style whereas Amelia had only started dating seriously in the last couple of years.
"Well, Jack thinks there is 'a thing' between Ben and Jane! And that I am jealous about that. I mean, honestly, Ben is like a brother to me. That would be incest. I wouldn't be jealous. Well, ok, if was her, I wouldn't be happy. But not because I am jealous. If there was a thing between Ben and Jane I would be worried." Everything that came out of her mouth, in a rush. From Amelia's position, Jack had casted her as the devil, but actually, Jane was the villain.
"Yes. Poor Ben." Ella retorted dryly. Ben was a good-looking man of charm, property and wealth. But, Amelia and Ben were practicality siblings. "Jack's radar is skewed." Ella murmured. That statement reminded her about David. That was the trouble; she was on his radar, but for the wrong reasons. Ever since she had arrived at this town she had an urge to return back to her old town, all because she had one major unsettled issue, with David. Of course he had clocked her on his radar, but probably clocked her as the cool bitch in the town. She knew, she had acquired strategies at avoid him. Her best strategy was to turn around before he spotted her. She was pretty good at strolling past him without even acknowledging his presence. Her heart did not sprint. Her brain had not fried and she was amazing at insouciance! And she loved it when she saw him frown. It took her a tense few seconds to remember that she was meant to listen to Amelia. Obviously she had missed something, so she tried to piece the fragments and caught up with Amelia's train of thought.
Amelia explained in her usual quiet manner, "I was going to try to explain things to Jack. That's why I thought we'd buy the stuff today. No know, just, well, I was just hoping to catch him at the store." She took a deep breath as she reached for composure.
"What's to explain?" Ella looked over and said haughtily, with that supreme quiet confidence that Amelia expected from Ella, "He thinks you are jealous of that sly bitch." Amelia ignored Ella's raised eyebrow. "Of course you could tell him that he is a gullible fool and Jane is a calculating witch!" That brought Ella back to David, as he obviously thought the same about her, that he was gullible and she was a witch. She was not good at forgiving, and she ignored his attempts to make up when she first arrived at this town. She started this: She basically ignored him. And he picked up the gauntlet. Of course, she didn't want his attention. Their issue was embossed on her brain. And she was pretty sure that he had not forgotten it. And she was certain that he had not forgiven her either. How they had managed for the last two years, how they lived in the same town without starting a war was beyond Ella's comprehension.
Eventually Amelia's voice filtered through Ella's haze. "Ella? Ella?"
Ella blinked, "Yes. Sorry. I missed that."
"That wouldn't help!" Amelia interrupted irritably. She looked over at Ella. Obviously Ella's mind was elsewhere. Amelia huffed, and then said with a fair amount of restraint, as she brought Ella back to the point, "Jack. Remember him!" Ella rolled her eyes at Amelia's reminder. "He thinks I told Jane, she couldn't come on the trip." The quiet statement was barely heard.
"What?" Ella quirked a brow.
"You are not listening to me!" Amelia grumbled.
"I am!" Ella said calmly and firmly moved her thoughts from her issue with David to Amelia's issue with Jack. "I heard you. You said he thinks you told Jane, she couldn't come on the trip. Utter nonsense. If he thinks that, he is a fool!" Ella said bluntly. "Honestly, Amelia, do you really want to go after a fool!" They had been friends for only two years but were so in tune. Their natures were poles apart but they got on so well. "You would not tell Jane anything, let alone, she couldn't come on the trip. Utter rubbish."
Again, Amelia huffed, and then said, "Exactly! I didn't! But he thinks I told her she couldn't come on the trip." Amelia repeated quietly. "I thought we were getting on well before this Jane-debacle." She pinched the bridge of her nose to stop her from crying. She wasn't the type to cry. But this situation was so wrong: everything was falling apart, all because of one catty woman. Amelia knew that Ella would not let Jane get away with this rubbish.
Ella snorted. "He must be a real fool!" She rolled her eyes and then looked at Amelia for several seconds. "Why would anyone think you could do that?" Ella shook her head. Ella questioned bluntly. "He must know you wouldn't do that, unless he was determined to be a fool." Men! They look intelligent, know the score, but in reality they are gullible suckers. Her brain conjured up David's image. Typical, she thought. "Is he really stupid?" She asked while thinking about David.
"Jack? No!" Amelia said immediately, "He's lovely. You know that, Ella! Jack is lovely and kind and just perfect!" Ella nearly smiled at Amelia's adolescent response. Amelia smiled as she remembered, "Whenever he spoke to me, he had a smile in his voice." She added in a whisper, "Well, until that moment at the last meeting." Her new friendship with Jack vanished in that meeting, all because Jane lied. Amelia huffed and continued, "Anyway, he is lovely, I mean, he's very kind to everyone. Courteous. And he is really thoughtful. Charming. He is so caring. Humble. And..."
Ella interrupted with a laugh. Jack, humble? Ella said with a smile, "I think you meant, gullible." Amelia huffed. Ella carried on, "Definitely gullible. He was just an easy target." The quiet reserve in her voice was loud and clear as she considered Jane's activities. "Especially with catty women on the make. Actually, let me amend. Jealous-catty women."
"What?" Amelia blinked in growing confusion. "You didn't mean me..."
"No! Jane." Ella corrected and huffed out a sigh as she said more vehemently, her eyes conveying her growing concerns, "Plain envy. Green-eyed bitch."
"You think she's interested in Jack?" Her romantic dreams vanished. The cogs in her mind turned. She contemplated Ella's conclusion, "Really? You think Jane is interested in Jack? I thought she was interested in Ben!"
"I think she is interested in anyone in trousers!"
A few seconds later, Ella looked over at Amelia, "Actually, I have changed my mind about Jane's prey. Why did she tell Jack you'd been unkind to her?" Ella muttered as her irritation escalated. "Why not tell Ben? If she wanted to score points, she would have approached Ben and, acted the poor woman, poured out her concerns to Ben, hoped to get sympathy. Instead she told Jack. Put on the waterworks. Make up whatever. Pretend to be interested in Ben so that she can accused you of being jealous of her. Or at least, give Jack the impression that you are jealous. That way, she can get you off the trip and can have Jack." Ella frowned, that meant that Jane had seen through Amelia, had noticed her interest in Jack, otherwise why would Jane have bothered to denigrate Amelia? Obviously she thought Amelia was competition. Which suggested that Jack was interest in Amelia.
"Oh, right." The corner of her lips turned down. "Yeah that makes sense." Then Amelia winced, and said quietly, "Ben's going to be devastated."
Ella laughed. "Nope! I doubt it! Unless he is a fool too! In any case, once he gets to know the real bitch, he will thank you! And Ben has a harem!" Ella corrected without any hesitation.
"Ella!" Amelia giggled then put the key into the ignition and started the car.
"And, Amelia," Ella's lips curved, "she thinks you are her competition! She is jealous of you."
"Why?"
"Because, Jack fancies you!" Ella said bluntly and Amelia squeaked. "That is why she targeted you! She obviously noted that Jack was interested in you. He probably spent a lot of time with you."
"True. But he was helping me. He was just supportive. It is in his nature. Considerate. Thoughtful." Until that last meeting.
Ella grinned with sheer unadulterated amusement. "Honestly Ames! We are going to work on your radar, to make sure that you don't miss his signals!" What Amelia saw in Ella's eyes, banished Amelia's despair and made her grin too.