The Little Matchmaker | What Happens Next | Book 2

Chapter Six: Blackmail

Chloe and Candi-Rose stared at Ryan. This was bad. This was really bad. 

Candi-Rose gulped. There was a moment of utter silence. It must have been no longer than ten seconds, but to Candi-Rose and Chloe, it felt like a lifetime.

"What on earth do you mean Ryan?" Chloe spluttered, fidgeting with her hands.

"I heard you," he said. "What's going on with Jody and Tyler?"

Chloe looked at Candi-Rose. 

"Nothing's going on," she said. "It's just, Jody and Tyler are..... helping me to..." She looked at Candi-Rose.

"They're helping Chloe to find her....." Candi-Rose looked around the room for an excuse. "Shoes," she said at last.

Chloe frowned. "Yes. They're helping me find my lost... shoes." She managed to fake a smile.

"Of course they are," Ryan said sarcastically. "Alright then." 

He slowly backed away, leaving Chloe and Candi-Rose alone again.

"He believed us!" Candi-Rose said.

"Candi are you kidding? This is not going to plan."

*****

Although Ryan had an inkling that something was going on with the dumping ground's longest residences, he was smart enough to know that the best thing to do in a situation like this was to just to keep quiet. This was potential blackmail, and if that was the case he had to wait until he had evidence.

And so five days went by. 

For five days Jody and Tyler stayed away from each other. For five days they ignored each other. And after five days they were fed up with it.

On day five, Tyler stood nervously outside Jody's bedroom, until he plucked up the courage to knock on the door. 

She opened hastily and then stood staring at Tyler; who she hadn't had a conversation with in what felt like forever.

"Can we talk?" he said.

He paused, looked past Jody and into her bedroom. Isla was in there, sitting in her bed and reading a magazine.

"Alone?"

Jody got the message and followed him downstairs, going out into the front garden.

"What is this Tyler?" she said when they got into the garden and had made sure that they were alone. 

She leaned on the wall and crossed her arms.

Tyler smiled. "It's been five days Jodes." He chuckled a bit. "Your plan worked. As far as I can tell, no one suspects anything." 

Jody smiled back. Her plan had worked just like she had hoped.

"Yes," she mumbled.

"So," Tyler said, taking her hand. "Let's go out."

"What?"

"Come on. Let's go into town. Get away from this lot. Just be together."

Jody stuttered, "what now? I'm not sure. I don't think that's a good idea."

"Why not?"

Jody froze. Why was that not a good idea? What was the problem with going out with Tyler?

"Okay," she breathed out softly. "Mike won't mind, will he? We won't be too long."

Tyler shook his head. "No. Just trust me Jodes."

Jody nodded and Tyler smiled, before leaning down to softly kiss her.

"Tyler!" Jody hissed, looking around frantically.

"What?" he said. "There's no one here."

To prove his point her kissed her again. A little stronger this time. 

Jody rolled her eyes, but smiled happily. "Come on then you idiot."

Tyler tutted. "You love me really."

Jody smiled and nodded; taking his hand and going off on their way.

*****

When Jody and Tyler returned to the Dumping Ground after their nice afternoon together, there was one person very keen to talk to Jody.

"What do you want Ryan?" Jody said, when she opened her bedroom door. 

She walked back into her bedroom, and sat back down on her bed.

Ryan looked around. "Good, Isla's not here."

Jody shrugged. She didn't know where Isla was, but was happy to have the room to herself.

Jody sighed. "What do you want?"

"I have something to show you," he said, pulling his phone out of his pocket.

"Ryan, I'm not interested! Can you please just go?"

Ryan ignored her, instead opening up his phones gallery, playing a video and holding it out to show her.

And there it was. Ryan's evidence. 

There was a video of her and Tyler outside in the garden.

Every word could be heard. Everything could be seen.

"Now," Ryan said when the video finished. He put his phone into his pocket, and smirked. "What are you willing to do to keep this between us?"

"Ryan—"

He interrupted her. "I was thinking you could do my washing up for the next week."

"No way!" Jody said

"Oh, I'm sorry do you want me to tell everyone about you and Tyler? Do you want them to see this?"

Jody shook her head.

"Well, then you can do my washing up...actually you can do all my chores this week, and don't even think about backing out, or i'll tell. And don't tell Tyler." 

Ryan backed away from Jody, smirking. "It's your choice."

He a grinned devilishly and left the room.

He had won, and there was nothing Jody could do about it.

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833 Words

This part was first published on 28th June 2020