Chapter twenty-eight - Opportunity knocks

The front door banged. Jess clapped the flour from her hands as Beatrice came into the kitchen. She sniffed as she undid the buttons of her coat. "Something smells good, and I'm starving."

"I made a batch of those biscuits you like. How was rehearsal?"

Bea tugged the pink fluffy jumper over her head. Her red spring-shaped curls rebounded from their temporary confinement. "Cold. I think the heating boiler is not long for this world and may soon shuffle off its copper coil. Remind me to wear more layers tomorrow." She picked a few loose strands of magenta mohair off her t-shirt. "Hey, do you like my new top?"

"Not particularly. Where did you get it from?"

"The Gareth Jones Fan Forum. They were selling these cool shirts. As soon as I saw it I had to grab one."

The image filling the front of the t-shirt was Gareth, standing by the martian window, half-naked, holding a cup. The caption beneath read: . Jess shook her head. "That's embarrassing."

"It's lucky I didn't buy another for you then, isn't it?" Bea dropped into her favourite chair. "So how did your meeting with Ron go? Another pointless audition?"

Jessica understood Bea's scepticism. Her agent was an old friend of her uncle's, and she'd always assumed he'd taken her onto his books as a favour. Every so often he would put her forward for one or two minor parts to show he hadn't forgotten her. Yet, she'd never been a high priority for him, and some of the work he'd sent her way was worse than useless.

But this time things were different.

"I have an appointment tomorrow to see someone about a part in a drama. It's a speculative project, but they're trying to sell it to one of the major TV companies. If this thing comes off, you could be watching me on three consecutive Sunday evenings."

"TV? Now we're talking. What part is it this time? Murder victim number three?"

"No, the main female character. It's a big deal. The biggest opportunity I think I've ever had."

Bea grinned, rubbing her hands together. "Finally! This could be the break you've been waiting for."

Jess scraped some of the spare dough from around the edge of the bowl and rolled it into a ball. "Don't go writing my BAFTA acceptance speech yet. I haven't booked the job, it's only an audition."

"You always said you preferred the theatre."

"I do, but then I never expected to be up for something like this. It's an incredible opportunity."

"At least Ron put you forward for something decent, for once."

The oven timer beeped, and Jess pulled out the last batch of golden brown shortbreads. She lifted them to lay on the cooling rack. "He didn't. They asked for me. By name."

Beatrice sat up, her attention now fully engaged. "Do you think they saw that YouTube video of you kissing deadbeat Darcy in Derbyshire? I knew something good had to come of that."

Jessica laughed. "No, no, they're probably looking for a particular type. Someone my age, my height, my hair colour. They'll have a specific look in mind for the character and probably found my head-shot in the middle of a large pile somewhere."

"So what's the story?"

"Wealthy father becomes estranged from his only son because he married someone the father doesn't approve of. She's an average girl from a working-class background and the rich businessman doesn't think she's good enough for his son. When he discovers he might be dying, and that they're having his grandchild, he realises that he has to reconcile with them while he can. The twist at the end is—"

Bea's hands flew up to cover her ears. "No, don't tell me. I want to be surprised. So you're auditioning for the working class girl?"

"Yeah, it's a really small cast. The plot focuses mostly on the interplay and frictions between the three main characters."

"Who's playing the father and son?"

"No idea. I might find out tomorrow."

When Jess returned home from work the following evening, she hung her coat on the peg and wandered through into the kitchen to put the kettle on. A few minutes later Bea burst through the door and threw a magazine into the middle of the table. "I've changed my mind. I think you had a lucky escape from Gareth Jones."

"Why?"

"There are photos of him in here with two different women, on the same night, and neither was his girlfriend. They're calling him the Coffee Casanova now."

Jess sighed. "I know fame can change people but he never really struck me as the Casanova type. Let me see."

Bea opened the magazine and flicked through the pages until she reached the celebrity gossip section. "Look, two different women on the same night. He probably thought he could get away with it until the cameras caught him."

The two photographs had been taken in different places and, according to the photographer, three hours apart on the same day. In both pictures, Gareth wore jeans, a grey shirt and a black leather jacket. In both cases, he had one hand raised to shield his eyes from the glare of the flash while the other arm draped around his companion's shoulder.

Gareth had once wrapped his arms around Jessica like that, comforting her when she was upset. It hadn't meant they were in a relationship. He was just that kind of guy. Caring. Compassionate. "You have no idea who these women are, or what he was doing with them."

Beatrice laughed. "I know what I'd be doing with him if I was in their shoes, Casanova or not."

The younger of the two females seemed familiar. Jess tapped her finger on the paper. "I think I've seen this girl before. There was a photograph of her in Gareth's room at Exley Hall. She's his twin sister."

"I don't see a family resembl— Hang on, what were you doing in his bedroom?"

Jess shook her head. "That's not important. If this is his sister, he has every right to walk down the street with her."

Bea pointed to the largest photo of Gareth on the page. "You're telling me you spent time in his room and didn't think it was worth mentioning?"

"No, because he wasn't there. Laura and I spent time in Gareth's room while he was somewhere else. That's when I saw the photo." Jess had tried to forget the moment when she'd discovered that Gareth had bought her the brooch. The same brooch that was sitting on her bedside table. The one she looked at every morning before she crawled out of bed.

"What about the other one?"

"What other one?" For a moment Jessica thought she meant another brooch, then realised Bea was talking about the other woman who stared out from her photograph like a startled deer. "She looks older, so she could be his agent, or maybe... yes, she looks a bit like his dad. She has his eyes. I wouldn't be surprised if this was one of his older sisters."

"Another sister? How many does he have?"

"You're full of questions, aren't you? Didn't the fan club already share that nugget of information?" She plucked the magazine from the worktop, waving it in the air. "What you need to understand is that this gossip rag bought these photos from some sleazy paparazzo, and is now making up stories to fit the pictures. They're jumping to conclusions, and so are you. They know that including photos and gossip about Gareth will sell more copies right now, and that's all they care about. He isn't cheating on his girlfriend. I'm certain he wouldn't do that."

"Pity. You might have stood a chance with him if he was single." Bea took the crumpled pages out of her hand and threw them into the recycling bin, She settled onto her stool with her hands around a mug of tea. "How did that audition go?"

"Okay, I think."

"Was it busy?"

That was the first circumstance that Jessica had found odd when she'd arrived for her appointment. "I didn't see anyone else waiting, either before or after. It was all fairly low-key actually."

"So what happened? Did you read for them?"

"I read two scenes on camera with the casting director, and she asked me a few questions, but didn't seem too interested in what I'd done before."

"Oh, well, at least you had the chance to audition. It's all good experience. I'm sure there's something just around the corner that's perfect for you."

This was the bit Jessica needed to talk about. "They didn't say no."

"Surely that's good news? When I saw your long face I thought...well, you don't look too happy about it."

"They rang me about half an hour ago to invite me to something they called a pre-production workshop. They want me to spend some time with the two other cast members for a few days to see how we get on. Then I'll find out whether I get the job."

"That makes sense. If it's all focused on the relationships between the three characters you have to be able to work with them. Do you know who will be playing the son?"

"No, but they did tell me who the father will be. Sir Ieuen Hall-Jones is producing and starring in his own project. He's taking the part of the dad."

"You're working with Gareth's father? I don't understand why you're not more buzzed about this. Not only could this be your big break, but you might even get the chance to meet Mr. Bingley again." She leaned across the table. "You've not forgotten you promised to get me an autograph, have you?"

"What if Gareth had something to do with me getting the job? What if he recommended me for the role?"

"So what if he did? How does that change things? It's not like you had an affair or anything. There's no conflict of interest."

"But it's his dad!"

"What do they say about inspecting a horse's teeth? Don't examine a gift like this too closely, just grab it and make it work for you."

Jess busied herself near the sink, drying some plates and a mixing bowl before storing it in the cupboard. "The workshop is in Wales. Sir Ieuen has a production office there, near his house. What if Gareth is at home? What if he's there with his girlfriend?" Jessica had already made a fool of herself in front of him once. She couldn't face doing it again.

"Then you'll smile sweetly at her and become her best friend. You might find she's lots of fun." Bea slipped a warm shortbread from the rack. "You're worrying for no reason. Didn't the newspaper article say that Gareth doesn't accept any career help from his father? He'll probably be working somewhere else and you won't even meet him. When does this workshop thing kick off?"

"They want me there by Monday lunchtime, so I need to check the train timetables. I'll only have a few days to create some believable chemistry between myself and whoever they get to play the part of the son." She would also have to impress an international movie star and feted director, who could give her career a vital lift up the proverbial ladder.

Beatrice grinned as she pinched another biscuit. "And if you're really lucky whoever it is might be single and cute. You never know, this could be the start of a beautiful friendship."