Runaway Actress (23 page)

Connie pulled her hand away.

‘I mean, other than the muddy embrace,’ Alastair said, as if he hadn’t noticed the fact that they had touched.

‘I’ve had a great time,’ she told him, looking away. ‘Mud and all. Nothing could spoil today. It’s been brilliant,’ she said.

‘Good,’ Alastair said, nodding lightly as he hopped over the stile and walked on ahead of her.

‘What did he say?’ Catriona asked as she caught up with Connie.

‘Nothing,’ Connie said.

‘He likes you,’ Kirsty said. ‘He likes you a
lot!
’

Connie ignored them both but she couldn’t help dwelling on their words. Did Alastair really like her?

She watched as he walked ahead of her, his stride so strong and sure, his dark hair blowing out in a dozen different directions at once. He wasn’t like the men Connie was used to. But maybe that was the attraction. She’d left LA to get away from all that fakery. Here – right before her – was a
real
man. A man who was at home in the mountains, a man who didn’t mind sitting amongst thistles and sheep dung. A man who apparently liked her. Connie smiled as she realised that she apparently liked him too.

They followed a stony track through the valley where the tallest thistles in the world grew, their huge purple heads swaying in the breeze. Everybody’s pace had slowed down now. Legs and bodies were pleasantly tired after the day’s hike and thoughts were turning towards home, supper and a chance to take one’s boots off.

The final half-mile back to Lochnabrae seemed endless but, finally, they were in sight of the familiar white houses and everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

‘We’ve made it!’ Sandy said, waving his stick in the air. ‘Pie and a pint for me.’

‘A hot bath for me,’ Kirsty said.

‘Who’s that?’ Maggie suddenly said, removing her new sunglasses.

‘Who?’ Hamish asked.

‘That strange man?’

Everyone looked towards the pub where a small, bald man stood holding a briefcase. He had a suitcase by his side and he didn’t look at all happy to be there.

‘Oh my God!’ Connie cried.

‘What is it?’ Maggie asked.

‘He’s here. He’s really here!’

‘Who?’ Maggie and Hamish said together.

‘My agent,’ Connie said, her mouth dropping open in horror.

Bob Braskett looked an odd sight standing outside The Capercaillie in a crisp navy business suit. His shiny bald head seemed to be glowing with anger and his eyes were narrowed behind his round spectacles.

‘What the hell are you doing here, Bob?’ Connie asked, taking her rucksack off as she approached him.

‘I might ask you the same thing,’ Bob said.

Everyone crowded around them, intent on finding out what was happening.

‘What is this gawd-forsaken place, anyway?’ Bob yelled. ‘It’s in the middle of nowhere. There’s nobody here. Nothing’s open.’

‘We’ve all been on a hike,’ Connie said.

‘What –
every
one?’

‘Most of the village,’ Connie said.

‘Where can a person get a drink around here?’ Bob asked. ‘This is a bar, ain’t it?’

‘We can get a drink later,’ Connie said.

‘Fine,’ Bob said, clearing his throat noisily. ‘Now how do I check into that damned awful hotel? There was nobody there when I knocked.’

‘
I
run the bed and breakfast,’ Isla said, stepping forward, her face clouded by a frown. ‘And we’re fully booked.’

Connie took hold of Bob’s left arm and walked him away from the crowd.

‘Bob,’ she said, ‘you can’t talk to these people like that. You’ve insulted virtually the whole village and you’ve only just arrived.’

‘Insulted? What about me? I’ve been stood here in the freezing cold for hours.’

‘Then you should’ve told someone you were coming.’

Bob glared at her. ‘I tried calling your cell phone.’

‘Ah,’ Connie said. ‘I kinda lost it.’

‘Look,’ Bob said, ‘just get me a goddamned room.’

‘Okay,’ Connie said, leaving him for a moment and rejoining Isla. ‘Isla,’ she said, ‘are you
really
fully booked?’

Isla’s cheeks coloured. ‘Well,’ she said, ‘not exactly. But I didn’t think he was very polite.’

‘He isn’t,’ Connie said. ‘He’s a Hollywood agent. He’s
my
agent.’

Isla gasped. ‘
He’s
your agent? The man who was nasty to you?’

‘He’s flown all the way from America.’

‘I don’t care if he’s flown all the way from Mars. He’s been mean to you, Connie and I won’t have him upsetting you again – not in my bed and breakfast.’

Connie sighed. It was nice, of course, to be defended like this but she had a real problem on her hands. This was the man who masterminded her career, as he was so keen to point out to her the whole time. So, she didn’t like him very much. So, she didn’t trust his judgement as much as she used to, but she still couldn’t leave him standing there in the middle of the street, could she? He had too much power over her life to risk upsetting him.

‘Please, Isla – you’d be doing me a huge favour,’ she said.

Isla looked far from happy. ‘I’d be doing it for you,’ she said, ‘and not for him.’

‘Absolutely,’ Connie said.

Isla’s face was still clouded with disapproval. ‘All right then,’ she said. ‘But I’m putting him in the smallest room.’

Connie breathed a sigh of relief and went to tell Bob the news.

‘I’ve got you a room.’

‘Where you’re staying?’

‘Yep. Come on,’ she said.

‘Connie,’ Bob said. ‘Why are all those people staring at us?’

‘Because you’re making a scene.’

‘Who are they, anyway?’

Connie smiled. ‘They’re my fan club.’

‘Yeah, well, they’re creeping me out,’ Bob said, taking one last look behind him before he hurried towards the bed and breakfast with his suitcase and briefcase in tow.

Connie had her own front door key and let him in before Isla had a chance to catch up with them.

‘Jeez!’ Bob said as he plonked his things in the hallway. ‘This place is enough to bring on one of my migraines.’

‘Oh, stop moaning, Bob. It’s beautiful here.’

‘It’s like being inside one of those kaleidoscopes. Everywhere I turn, I see a different pattern.’

It was then that Isla entered. Connie swallowed hard, hoping that Isla hadn’t heard but, from the look on her face, she had and she turned to face Bob, her eyes stony with loathing.

‘This way,’ she announced, her voice as spiky as a thistle. Connie and Bob followed her up the stairs and Isla opened the door into a small bedroom with a dizzying carpet. Bob’s mouth dropped open.

‘Is there nothing bigger?’

‘No,’ Isla snapped. ‘Take it or leave it.’

‘He’ll take it,’ Connie said.

As Connie disappeared into the bed and breakfast with Bob, Maggie and the rest of the fan club watched in wonder.

‘Wasn’t he just the rudest man?’ Kirsty said.

‘And his breath stank,’ Catriona said.

‘Who was he?’ Euan asked.

‘Connie’s agent – from Hollywood,’ Maggie said.

‘I’ll have to have a word with him,’ Angus said.

‘Yes,’ Euan said, ‘tell him to take better care of our Connie.’

‘No,’ Angus said. ‘To tell him that Connie should be doing westerns instead of all them romantic comedies.’

‘Angus!’ Maggie shouted. ‘Will you stop going on about bloody westerns for five minutes?’

For a moment, nobody said a word. Maggie never lost her temper, let alone swore.

‘You okay?’ Hamish asked, stepping forward and laying a hand on his sister’s shoulder.

‘I’m fine. I’m just worried about Connie,’ Maggie said.

‘She looked okay to me,’ Angus said.

‘Then you weren’t looking closely enough,’ Maggie said and, with that, she walked up the road towards the shop.

She was anxious and, if she was totally honest, she was anxious not just for Connie but herself too. Connie had become such a wonderful fixture in Lochnabrae and Maggie wondered if the arrival of her agent marked the end of her stay.

‘She said she’d do the play,’ she told herself. ‘She has to stay for that.’

She let herself into the shop and dumped her rucksack behind the till, leaning forward onto the counter and sighing. She knew she was being selfish wanting Connie to stay. Connie had her own life to lead – she had films to make, premieres to attend, and other, far more glamorous people than Maggie to meet. She wasn’t going to stay in Lochnabrae for ever. Who was Maggie trying to kid by thinking that she would? It was an impossible dream – a Maggie dream – and it was nothing more than pure fantasy.

She wasn’t surprised when she heard the bell at the door sound. She’d had a feeling Hamish would come after her so, when she looked up and saw Mikey standing there, she didn’t know what to say.

‘Are you all right, our Maggie?’ he asked, his eyes dark and anxious.

Maggie nodded but didn’t say anything.

‘You think Connie’s leaving?’ he asked.

‘Well, what’s she got to stay here for?’

‘Oh, I don’t know,’ Mikey said, ‘there’s plenty to keep a person happy here.’

‘Really?’ Maggie said. ‘Then why did you leave?’

Mikey’s brows narrowed over his eyes. ‘I went travelling.’

‘Why?’

‘To see places. I needed to see what was out there.’

‘Lochnabrae wasn’t enough for you, was it?’ Maggie said.

‘I came back, didn’t I?’

‘But for how long?’

‘What do you mean?’ Mikey asked. ‘What’re you talking about, Maggie?’

Maggie turned away.

‘Maggie?’

‘Nothing!’ she said. ‘I mean nothing.’

‘It didn’t sound like nothing.’

Maggie blinked away the tears that were threatening to spill and then she turned to face Mikey again. ‘What do you want?’

Mikey looked confused. ‘What do I want?’

‘You came in here. What did you want?’

‘Oh!’ Mikey said. ‘I came in for that shortbread. You know, we were talking about it the other night?’

Maggie sighed. ‘Middle shelf at the end,’ she said quietly.

‘Brilliant!’ Mikey said, a fat enthusiastic smile on his face. ‘How much is it?’

‘Just take it,’ Maggie said, waving a hand at him.

‘Thanks, Mags,’ he said. ‘You’re the best.’

And Maggie watched as he left the shop with the packet of shortbread clutched in his hand.

Connie’s agent wasn’t the type to calm down – the only thing that would ever calm him down would be a fatal heart attack and Connie was quite certain he was heading straight towards one.

‘You were lucky to get this room at all,’ Connie said.

‘Lucky?’ Bob said incredulously. ‘It’s a complete dump. I can’t understand what you’re doing here.’

‘I told you – I needed a break.’

‘Well, couldn’t it wait, for pity’s sake?’

‘For when, Bob? Maybe you’ve not noticed but there’s
never
a break. When I finish one film, I’m straight into another. You know my schedule – you’ve been orchestrating it for the past ten years.’

‘And I haven’t heard any complaints before.’

‘That’s because I didn’t have any
time
to complain!’ Connie shouted, sinking down on the single bed by the window.

Bob scratched his bald head and took his glasses off. He looked around the room and scowled. ‘I need to eat,’ he said. ‘I haven’t had anything decent since I left LA. You’ve got a car, right?’

Connie shook her head. ‘I got a taxi from Glasgow airport.’

‘You didn’t hire a car? You mean you’re stuck here?’

‘I like it here. I don’t need to go anywhere else.’

‘But there’s nothing here!’ Bob shouted. ‘No restaurants, no shops,
nothing
.’

‘There’s a small shop that sells everything you need – well, almost – and there’s the pub. We can eat there,’ Connie said, surprising herself at how strongly she defended the very village that she’d been unsure of just a few days ago.

Bob didn’t look convinced.

‘Look,’ Connie said, ‘take a shower, get changed and then we’ll head out. You’ll enjoy yourself – I promise.’

Connie waited for Bob in her own room. She took off her hiking clothes, had a hot shower and changed into a lilac cashmere jumper and a pair of jeans. Combing her hair, she wondered what the evening held in store for her. She was uneasy with Bob’s presence in Lochnabrae. He was out here purely for business purposes and she wasn’t sure she liked the implications of that. She’d come out here to find the time and space to make her own mind up about things. She didn’t want her agent doing it for her and she knew he had every intention of doing just that. Why else had he flown out here? He wasn’t anxious about her well-being – he was more concerned with his own. Connie knew that she was one of his biggest clients and he was protecting his own interests by following her to Scotland.

There was a light rap on her bedroom door.

‘Connie?’ a voice said. It was Isla.

‘Come on in,’ Connie said and Isla entered the room. Her face was pale and anxious.

‘I’ve come to see if you’re all right, my dear.’

Connie smiled. ‘That’s kind of you, Isla.’

‘Is his lordship in his room?’

Connie nodded. ‘We’re heading out to the pub this evening. Would you like to join us?’

Isla looked startled. ‘I don’t think his lordship would thank you for inviting me, would he?’

‘Probably not,’ Connie said, ‘but I’d like to have you with me.’

Isla walked across the room and took Connie’s hand in hers. ‘I think you might need to be alone with him, don’t you?’

A huge sigh left Connie. ‘Yes. You’re right but I’m absolutely dreading it.’

‘Are you going to leave him?’

‘I don’t know. I really don’t know.’

‘He’s making you miserable,’ Isla said.

‘Yes, but he’s been making me miserable for so many years that I’m kind of used to it and I’m not sure how I’d function with anyone else.’

‘But there must be other agents you could try.’

‘Oh, sure.’

‘Then why don’t you give a different one a go?’ Isla asked.

Connie didn’t answer for a moment. ‘Because,’ she said at last, ‘I’m not at all sure what I’m going to be doing in the future.’