bed and breakfast
and hide away, but she couldn’t leave. Her aching legs felt like jelly.
‘This
is unbelievable’ Terri laughed, reading the article and turning her attention
back to Jules. ‘I mean, it’s really unbelievable. I...I just can’t believe it.
How exciting.’
‘Exciting?’
Jules responded in disbelief.
‘Well
yes, I mean, Guy Rawson, he’s really famous.’
‘So?
He’s also a total bastard, launching this...this ridiculous thing.’
‘Oh,
I see.’ Terri paused for a minute, looking back at the article. ‘But it says
here he loves you.’
‘The
only thing Guy loves is himself,’ she replied, wishing her voice would stop
echoing around the pub.
‘You
know,’ Rich began, sliding the scrap of newspaper back to Jules, ‘If you hate
it so much I’m pretty sure you could get an injunction or something and stop
them printing anything else.’
‘No,’
Jules replied, shaking her head. ‘Anything I do will be playing straight into
his hands.’
She took
another gulp from her glass. The sticky taste of the orange was beginning to
churn in her empty stomach.
‘Let’s
forget it, okay? It’s nothing really.’ Her eyes darted between Rich, Terri, Dan
and Jason. From the expressions on their faces it seemed the only person
convinced by her comment was her. ‘Seriously guys, no one is going to remember
this story tomorrow. It’s over.’
‘Sure,’
Rich nodded.
‘Oh,
of course Lovey,’ Terri chirped.
‘Thanks.
Now, Terri,’ she began in a final bid to change the subject. ‘You haven’t told
me how you got into the building trade?’
‘Well,
that would be all down to my ex-husband you see. He was the builder really, not
me. But like I said he ran off with Dawn from the post office, leaving me with
a business in depth and two boys barely out of nappies. So when someone called
in search of a decorator, I thought why not, I can do that.’
‘I
put myself through a few trade courses and haven’t said no to a job yet. Of
course, if my boys –‘
Jules
let Terri’s voice wash over her as she slipped the scrap of newspaper back into
her pocket and finished off the contents of her glass.
‘You
okay?’ Rich whispered as he lent towards her. His body so close she found
herself breathing in the scent of his aftershave.
She nodded,
unable to disguise another hiccup from escaping.
‘I’ll
get you some water.’
Leaning
her head back against the wall, Jules took a long intake of air, feeling the
dizzying effect of the alcohol she’d consumed. It felt good. Her thoughts merged
into a single blur. She didn’t care about Guy. She didn’t care about The
Daily . All she cared about was maintaining this feeling for a little while
longer.
‘And
a glass of dry white please,’ she called out to Rich.
Maybe
all she needed was a distraction, she thought. Something that would keep Guy
out of her thoughts, something fun. Jules let her gaze follow Rich’s body as he
moved easily around the bar, biting back another hiccup as he stepped back
towards her.
Eight
Who, who knows you baby?
Who, who sees you baby?
How
long had he been sitting there, watching the people and their cars go by? The
scorching tea he’d purchased now sat tepid and untouched in its wallowing
cardboard cup.
The
sticky icing of the untouched Danish Swirl had begun to congeal. Although Guy
had a hunch that stale food and dishwater tea were compulsory components of all
roadside services.
Expectation, a dangerous connotation
He
reached into the grey Armani jacket Giorgio had given him on the shoot in Japan
less than a year ago, a night he’d prefer to forget. His fingers fumbling for
the tattered notebook and pencil, as he hurried to scribble down the lyrics
before they evaporated from his consciousness.
What
the hell had he been doing for the past couple of days? Guy wondered. What had
possessed him to drive across the country and track down someone he hadn’t seen
or spoken to for five
and hide away, but she couldn’t leave. Her aching legs felt like jelly.
‘This
is unbelievable’ Terri laughed, reading the article and turning her attention
back to Jules. ‘I mean, it’s really unbelievable. I...I just can’t believe it.
How exciting.’
‘Exciting?’
Jules responded in disbelief.
‘Well
yes, I mean, Guy Rawson, he’s really famous.’
‘So?
He’s also a total bastard, launching this...this ridiculous thing.’
‘Oh,
I see.’ Terri paused for a minute, looking back at the article. ‘But it says
here he loves you.’
‘The
only thing Guy loves is himself,’ she replied, wishing her voice would stop
echoing around the pub.
‘You
know,’ Rich began, sliding the scrap of newspaper back to Jules, ‘If you hate
it so much I’m pretty sure you could get an injunction or something and stop
them printing anything else.’
‘No,’
Jules replied, shaking her head. ‘Anything I do will be playing straight into
his hands.’
She took
another gulp from her glass. The sticky taste of the orange was beginning to
churn in her empty stomach.
‘Let’s
forget it, okay? It’s nothing really.’ Her eyes darted between Rich, Terri, Dan
and Jason. From the expressions on their faces it seemed the only person
convinced by her comment was her. ‘Seriously guys, no one is going to remember
this story tomorrow. It’s over.’
‘Sure,’
Rich nodded.
‘Oh,
of course Lovey,’ Terri chirped.
‘Thanks.
Now, Terri,’ she began in a final bid to change the subject. ‘You haven’t told
me how you got into the building trade?’
‘Well,
that would be all down to my ex-husband you see. He was the builder really, not
me. But like I said he ran off with Dawn from the post office, leaving me with
a business in depth and two boys barely out of nappies. So when someone called
in search of a decorator, I thought why not, I can do that.’
‘I
put myself through a few trade courses and haven’t said no to a job yet. Of
course, if my boys –‘
Jules
let Terri’s voice wash over her as she slipped the scrap of newspaper back into
her pocket and finished off the contents of her glass.
‘You
okay?’ Rich whispered as he lent towards her. His body so close she found
herself breathing in the scent of his aftershave.
She nodded,
unable to disguise another hiccup from escaping.
‘I’ll
get you some water.’
Leaning
her head back against the wall, Jules took a long intake of air, feeling the
dizzying effect of the alcohol she’d consumed. It felt good. Her thoughts merged
into a single blur. She didn’t care about Guy. She didn’t care about The
Daily . All she cared about was maintaining this feeling for a little while
longer.
‘And
a glass of dry white please,’ she called out to Rich.
Maybe
all she needed was a distraction, she thought. Something that would keep Guy
out of her thoughts, something fun. Jules let her gaze follow Rich’s body as he
moved easily around the bar, biting back another hiccup as he stepped back
towards her.
Eight
Who, who knows you baby?
Who, who sees you baby?
How
long had he been sitting there, watching the people and their cars go by? The
scorching tea he’d purchased now sat tepid and untouched in its wallowing
cardboard cup.
The
sticky icing of the untouched Danish Swirl had begun to congeal. Although Guy
had a hunch that stale food and dishwater tea were compulsory components of all
roadside services.
Expectation, a dangerous connotation
He
reached into the grey Armani jacket Giorgio had given him on the shoot in Japan
less than a year ago, a night he’d prefer to forget. His fingers fumbling for
the tattered notebook and pencil, as he hurried to scribble down the lyrics
before they evaporated from his consciousness.
What
the hell had he been doing for the past couple of days? Guy wondered. What had
possessed him to drive across the country and track down someone he hadn’t seen
or spoken to for five
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