Chapter twenty-five - A cup of coffee

Two days after her meeting with Laura, Jess dug the screwed up napkin from her bag and flattened it out on her dressing table.

  That's what Gareth had said. He'd even described the cameo as a present from a friend. She would have no problem ringing Laura right now, or any of the other friends she'd met in Derbyshire, so why did she feel so awkward picking up the phone and speaking to Gareth?

He'd already watched her make a fool of herself over Mr. Darcy. Surely nothing else could be more embarrassing than that.

Jess took a breath, dialled the number and waited. It rang...and rang. Then the answering machine picked up and a default corporate female voice asked her to leave a message. Had she dialled the wrong number? Jess ended the call and threw the phone onto her bed, as though it had bitten her.

She opened her laptop, to check whether any more jobs had been posted since the last time she'd looked. No joy. She was either the wrong age or the wrong sex, she didn't speak fluent Swedish, and was not okay with gratuitous nudity.

Her phone lay where she'd dropped it on the top of her duvet, its mere presence a silent accusation of her wimpishness. What was she afraid of? She picked it up and carefully reentered the numbers on the napkin. Jess double checked each digit, then hit the call button. This time the person she was calling was on another line, or so the voice told her, but she could leave a message.

What should she say? It was almost a month since their job in Derbyshire had ended. Did Gareth even remember her? Again, she ended the call, feeling more than a little stupid that she'd not worked out what she was going to say before she'd rung his number.

Returning to her laptop, Jess opened another tab and stared at the empty search box, the cursor blinking impatiently. Tapping her fingernails on the case, she glanced over her shoulder to check her bedroom door was still closed.

Then she typed 'Gareth Jones' into the box then let her cursor hover over the button. Jessica took a deep breath and hit search. She scrolled through some of the results, but the name was surprisingly common. She hadn't realised there could be quite so many Gareth Jones's in the world. She tried again, adding "actor" to the end, and then hit the link for an image search.

There he was—head shots from his resume, publicity images from various casts, and a few of Gareth on stage in costume. Near the bottom of the page she saw a small photograph of their group at Exley Hall. It was one of the pictures taken during the dress rehearsals. She followed the link to find a bigger version and discovered that the Tourist Office had uploaded all of the photographs taken that day to their on-line account. Some were of the whole cast, with her and Sebastian front and centre, while others were smaller groups and pairs.

Gareth wore the long grey coat, open down the front to reveal jacket, waistcoat and snug breeches beneath. She particularly remembered that morning because it was the first time she'd seen him without his glasses. It may have been the first time she'd truly noticed him at all.

She couldn't deny he was handsome, especially when dressed in those clothes. The mere act of donning the tailored coat and the Regency neckcloth had also altered his general deportment. The costume made him stand taller, his back straight and chin raised, making it difficult for him to fade into the background.

Jess then looked more closely at some of the less than perfect alternative shots. She groaned. Elizabeth Bennet was flirting rather pathetically with Mr. Darcy, while Darcy was smiling at something, or someone, out of shot. She'd been so besotted with him that she hadn't even noticed.

At the back of the group young Georgiana was staring with undisguised distaste at Jessica. Ruth had been right. The young woman had wanted Sebastian all along, and she'd been oblivious to it all. Jessica had only seen what she wanted to see.

Mr. Bingley's attention had also wandered during the photo shoot. He was looking past Sebastian towards herself dressed as Elizabeth. Laura was leaning towards Gareth, whispering in his ear as she rested what now—with the benefit of hindsight—seemed to be a consoling hand on his arm.

Laura had described him as being smitten with her, yet smitten was hardly a word anyone would use to describe a powerful emotion. It was the lexical equivalent of weak, milky tea. Surely, anything he thought he'd felt for her must have dissipated by now. It might even have faded before their time at Exley Hall had ended, and that would explain why he hadn't asked for her number or tried to keep in touch.

Therefore, it was quite safe for her to meet up with Gareth socially. It shouldn't be embarrassing for either of them. Former cast mates could have a drink together without it meaning anything.

It would be fun to see some of her new friends again.

~~~~~~

Hyde Park was full of people enjoying the August sunshine. Men in shirtsleeves, their jackets slung over one shoulder, paced the turf while holding invisible conversations with their Bluetooth headset. Secretaries and assistants in tight white blouses and short skirts sat on the grass eating their sandwiches, their glossy high heels discarded next to them. Students lounged on the grass, wrapped in a bubble of music as wires sprouted from their ears. Children laughed, ran and played as mothers watched over them with complacent smiles.

In the midst of this sea of humanity, Jessica spotted Laura sitting on a travel rug just beyond the shade of a large oak. She waved.

"Jess, over here!" Laura patted the soft plaid blanket. "Sit down. You're looking well. What have you been doing with yourself?"

"Not much really. How about you?"

Laura described a recent project she'd been working on, and then they chatted for a while about the weather, Saturday evening television and the eternal difficulties in finding employment. "And, you know, I saw a dress the other day ... a blue floral print that reminded me of the curtains in the blue drawing room at Exley Hall." She laughed. "I mean, who would want to walk around looking like a pair of curtains?"

Jess worked the thin leather strap of her handbag through her fingers like a rosary, plucking up the courage to ask the one question she had come for. "I can't believe it's almost two months since we left Derbyshire. Time passes so quickly. Have you heard anything from Ruth lately? It would be great to meet up with some of the others for a drink. You said you'd kept in touch with most of them."

"That sounds like a great idea. I'm seeing Ruth tomorrow so I'll ask her."

"What about Gareth? How is he doing?"

A week earlier, at work, Jess had spotted a man standing in a corner with a group of friends. From the back, she would have sworn it was Gareth Jones. The same height, same hair colour, and the same quiet way of standing there, listening while not saying much. Moving across the room, collecting dirty glasses, she had a smile all ready, but when the man turned around his face was unfamiliar. The sharp pang of disappointment had dropped like a lead weight in her stomach.

"Gareth? I spoke to him on the phone...oh, when was it? About a week ago. He seemed fine, but you never rang him, did you?"

Jessica pulled a long blade of grass and began to wrap it around her finger. "I tried multiple times, but it always went to voicemail."

"I told you he was busy. Did you leave a message? Send a text?"

"I didn't know what to say. I thought it would be easier if I could talk to him face to face."