Lucy Gordon - Plain Jane in the Spotlight

‘In a sense,’ Travis said so quietly that she barely heard.

‘Amos Falcon was in the papers last week,’ she went on excitedly, ‘and there was a picture with this little scar-’

Travis groaned. ‘All right, yes, but please forget it. I shouldn’t have told you.’

Charlene began to chuckle. ‘The journalist went on about that scar, how the “heroic” Amos Falcon confronted a robber and drove him off, at the cost of injury to himself.’

Travis gave a shout of laughter. ‘Robber, my foot! Mom chucked an ashtray at him. She must have been a bit like you, losing your temper and storming out of the bank. She’s got her violent side too. I reckon you two would like each other. She really scared my father. Not that he’d ever admit it, but after that things tended to be at a distance.’

‘Do you mean you don’t see him?’

‘We meet occasionally, but we’re not close. His second wife booted him out as well and he married a third time. I told Mom once that he ought to have married her-I was very young and naive in those days. She said she’d sooner marry the devil himself, except that the devil wouldn’t be nearly so interesting as Amos Falcon.’

‘He sounds a colourful character.’

‘I believe his business enemies say the same. A falcon is a bird of prey, and he’s known for preying on people. But enough about him. I must tell Mom the nice things you said about her. She’ll be so thrilled that someone remembers her. What was the film they were showing?’

‘Dancing on the Edge,’ Charlene remembered.

‘That’s her,’ Travis said at once. ‘How often have I heard her say, “If it isn’t on the edge, it isn’t fun”?’

‘She played the hero’s sister, the one who was always putting her foot in it, but everyone forgave her because she had that lovely cheeky grin.’

‘True. And it’s just how it is in real life. She blurts out all sorts of outrageous things, then says “Sorry, honey”, and gives you such a smile that you have to forgive her.’

Charlene wondered if he realised that he had the same smile-mischievous, delightfully wicked. He was nice too, courteously paying her as much attention as if she’d been a raving beauty. Not like Lee Anton, she had to admit with an inner sigh.

As if reading her thoughts, Travis said suddenly, ‘Why do you bother with him?’

‘Maybe because I’m a fool,’ she said lightly. ‘We got close during the play-all those scenes we had together-’

‘But they weren’t love scenes,’ Travis pointed out. ‘Demetrius rejects Helena until the last minute-’

Charlene nodded. ‘Saying things like, I love thee not, therefore pursue me not. But Helena won’t get the message. She follows him saying, Neglect me, lose me, only give me leave, unworthy as I am, to follow you. What a twerp she is!’

She gave a grim laugh at herself. ‘Listen to me, saying that. Follow him. That’s exactly what I did.’

‘But Helena won Demetrius in the end,’ Travis pointed out.

‘Only because someone cast a spell on him. It wasn’t true love. It doesn’t happen in real life. Oh, look, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t be going on like this, making you listen. You’ve been really nice to me, although I can’t think why, considering that I assaulted you.’

He’d been wondering that himself. He had a kind heart and often went out of his way to help people, but he didn’t normally linger. Strangely, her clout across his face had been a turning point. Her horror and dismay had aroused his pity, making him want to defend her. He didn’t fully understand it, but she ignited his protective instincts in a way that only one other person did. And that other person was his mother.

‘I’ll get out and stop bothering you-’ she hastened to say.

‘You’re not bothering me.’ He took her hand in both his and spoke gently. ‘Look, I’ll be honest. I have a selfish motive. I don’t like Lee. I’m not sure why. There’s just something about him that gets up my nose. It’ll be a real pleasure to annoy him. You wouldn’t be so hard-hearted as to deny me that pleasure, would you?’

It was a performance. The twinkle in his eyes revealed as much, and also the fact that he expected her to share the joke. And why not, she thought, since she gained from it?

‘How could I be hard-hearted enough to deny you anything?’ she said lightly, matching his theatrical fervour with her own.

He brushed his lips against her hand. ‘That’s good,’ he murmured, ‘because Lee’s watching. No, don’t turn your head. Just look at me. Try to seem entranced.’

She sighed, throwing back her head and giving him a glance of adoration, plus a brilliant smile.

‘Well done,’ Travis said. ‘That’ll teach him.’

‘If he saw.’

‘He did. He edged just closer enough to see everything. Trust me, I’m directing this production. Am I doing a good job?’

‘They should give you an award,’ she assured him, and he grinned. ‘Is he still watching?’ she asked.

‘I’m afraid not. He’s concentrating on Penny, which makes sense because she’s the female star of the show.’

‘And she can do him a lot of good,’ Charlene mused.

So Lee’s interest in Penny was mostly professional. She would cling to that thought.

Travis read her mind and burst out, ‘Forget him. He can’t matter that much.’

‘He does,’ she said softly. ‘But I can’t talk about it.’

‘All right, I won’t press you. We’ll talk some more tonight, over dinner.’

‘I can’t promise that-’

‘You mean you want to stay free for him. But he’s engaged this evening. He’s got to go to this ghastly dinner they’re giving for Frank Brenton. He and I can’t stand each other so I won’t be- Wait a minute! ’ He slapped his hand to his forehead. ‘What am I thinking of? It’s been staring me in the face all the time.’

‘What is?’

He didn’t answer but grasped her hand, looking round and calling, ‘Denzil!’

Denzil had appeared in the doorway and Travis hailed him loudly. He came straight over. Charlene felt Travis tighten his grip on her hand, urging her to say nothing.

‘What’s up with you suddenly?’ Denzil asked, sitting down.

‘I’ve been thinking about tonight, and maybe I was a little unreasonable. I’d like to attend that dinner after all, if they can accommodate me at the last moment.’

Denzil beamed. ‘I don’t think there’ll be any problem about that,’ he said.

‘Fine, I’ll want a table for two. Charlene will be my guest.’

Denzil nodded slowly, as though something had just become clear to him.

‘Leave it to me. I’ll fix it.’ He vanished.

‘So that’s settled,’ Travis said. ‘Lee will be there tonight, so dress up to the nines. Let him know what he’s missing.’

Her head was in a spin. Travis was making everything happen so fast, it was like being taken over by a whirling dervish. But a kindly dervish.

‘It’s nice of you to take so much trouble for me-’ she began.

But he shook his head firmly. ‘Let’s be clear about this. I’m not being nice. I’m doing it for myself. You’ll make me look respectable and that’ll get them off my back. That’s why I strong-armed you into it without asking your opinion first. Sheer bullying to get what I want. So don’t praise me. I’m just being selfish.’

She regarded him fondly. ‘So you’re being selfish?’

‘Horribly selfish.’ There was a twinkling devil in his eyes. ‘I don’t know how you can stand me for a moment.’

‘Neither do I,’ she agreed. ‘In fact, all I can say is-’ she paused for dramatic effect ‘-if that’s your idea of being selfish, I wish there were more selfish people in the world.’