Chapter 6
CHAPTER 6
JACK
‘ N ow that really is quite something,’ said Jack, stepping back from the big bushy tree after hanging the final glittering icicle in place. It had been quite a job to find an empty branch for it.
‘Not bad, eh?’ said Caroline, staring at their handiwork.
Jack nodded slowly. He’d never had so much fun decorating a Christmas tree in his life… though, if he was being honest, he hadn’t actually decorated an entire tree since he was a kid.
He’d certainly never had the pleasure while he’d been living in America. His handlers had brought in Festive Designers for such things, and the most he’d been allowed to do was dangle a ceremonial candy cane here and there at charity dos.
Working side by side with Caroline had been unexpectedly fun. They’d spent the last hour squabbling playfully over who was in charge of the tinsel and what order everything should go in. It felt like they’d known each other forever. There was an ease and a tension between them all at once. His fingers had brushed hers when they’d both reached into the box at the same time, and a tingle of electricity had leapt between them, making his stomach flip. It had been as much as he could do to draw breath.
‘Well… I think we’re done,’ said Caroline.
‘I think you’re right,’ said Jack. ‘Just as well, really, considering there isn’t room for anything else on there, even if we tried!’
‘Good point,’ said Caroline, reaching out and hooking a loop of tinsel a little higher. ‘One more job left to do, though.’
‘The lights,’ said Jack. ‘You want to do the honours?’
Caroline shook her head. ‘I think you need all the practice you can get, don’t you?’ she said, shooting him a cheeky smile. ‘Think of it as an audition for the starring role.’
‘An audition?’ said Jack, raising his eyebrows. ‘I thought you were the one here begging me to do it.’
‘You thought wrong,’ said Caroline. ‘This role is a privilege… one you have to earn.’
‘There’s the Caroline Cook I know and… am mildly terrified of!’ laughed Jack.
Caroline rolled her eyes. ‘You do realise you’re doing the full-name thing with me now, right?’
‘What can I say? It’s catching!’ said Jack. ‘Okay, give me a sec to get into character here…’
‘What character?’ said Caroline. ‘Big knobhead actor?’
‘Ouch!’ laughed Jack, just as Caroline clapped her hand over her mouth.
‘I’m so sorry,’ she muttered through her fingers. ‘I don’t know what’s wrong with me. It’s like I can’t turn it off!’
Jack just grinned and shook his head. ‘Ready – for the best big knobhead actor you’ve ever seen?’
‘I’ll be the judge of that!’ said Caroline, smiling at him, clearly relieved that he didn’t care about her less-than-cosy commentary.
‘Okay, here goes,’ said Jack. He let his smile drop before turning his head this way and that, making a show of stretching his neck.
‘Lord, give me strength!’ muttered Caroline, as Jack rolled his shoulders and stretched his arms across his chest as though preparing for a race.
Buoyed by her reaction, Jack started to ham it up for all he was worth, reaching for his toes and then bouncing a couple of times before dropping into a lunge.
‘Are you quite finished?’ giggled Caroline.
‘Hmm, not sure,’ said Jack, straightening up before adding in a side-bend. He promptly received Caroline’s elbow in the ribs.
‘Oof!’ he laughed, rubbing the spot.
‘Get on with it,’ said Caroline. ‘With that performance, I’ll be roping you into the Crumbleton Panto if you don’t watch out!’
‘Oh no you won’t!’ said Jack gamely.
‘Oh yes I… actually… let’s not go there,’ said Caroline. ‘Turn those lights on already, man!’
Jack gave her a little salute before dropping to his knees and groping through the prickly branches until his fingers found the switch.
‘Oooh!’ cried Caroline. ‘They’re absolutely gorgeous!’
Jack scrambled back to his feet, brushing a few stray needles from his jeans as he went. Then he stared up at the tree and nodded. The multi-coloured, twinkling lights set the whole thing off perfectly. Suddenly, the room felt like home, and for the first time this year, he really believed that Christmas was waiting for him just around the corner.
A sudden warm tightness in his chest took Jack by surprise, and he blinked rapidly, clearing his throat.
‘I’d like to thank my agent,’ he said, instinctively covering the weird swell of emotion with more impromptu ridiculousness. ‘Of course, I couldn’t have done this without my fans. But more than anything else, I’d like to thank Caroline Cook. Her reporting might be a bit on the wild side, but her heart is well and truly in the right place, and she knows how to hang a mean bauble…’
‘Bloody actors!’ huffed Caroline, rolling her eyes at him.
Jack grinned at her. ‘Seriously though,’ he said, letting his voice drop to its normal pitch, ‘thank you for this. I think I’d still have had a half-naked tree when New Year rolled around if you hadn’t turned up.’
‘You’re very welcome,’ said Caroline. ‘It was fun. But… now that’s done, I think I’d better see if things have eased off out there. With any luck, I might be able to get home…’
Jack nodded, doing his best to ignore the sinking sensation in his stomach. He didn’t actually want her to leave… which was a bit of an odd realisation, considering the circumstances.
The pair of them moved to the window, and Jack couldn’t help but laugh.
‘That’d be a no, then,’ said Caroline.
‘Erm… yeah,’ said Jack. ‘That snow’s being far too enthusiastic for its own good… and I reckon if the beach is still white, the roads definitely will be too.’ He raised his hand and ruffled his hair, a sense of unaccustomed nervousness washing over him. ‘I guess you’re stuck with me.’
‘Nope,’ said Caroline, shaking her head, ‘I’m afraid it’s you who’s stuck with me. But I promise I’ll try not to be too much of a pain in the bum.’
‘I’ll hold you to that!’ said Jack. ‘Anyway, it’s just as well I’ve got plenty of food in. If this had happened yesterday, we’d be sharing half a dry crust of bread and a bowl of soggy cornflakes – without milk!’
Caroline crinkled her nose. ‘Wow, how the other half live!’
‘Right?’ chuckled Jack. ‘Not today, though. We’ll feast like the three kings, thanks to Brian.’
‘Brian?’ said Caroline. ‘You mean Brian Singer?’
‘My saviour!’ Jack nodded. ‘I’m not sure what I’d have done without him since buying this place. He brings me shopping so that I don’t have to out myself by visiting the supermarket or ordering online. Plus, he ferries me around whenever I’m in town. The man’s a saint, and he never tells anyone I’m here… well… not until today, I guess.’
‘Oh, it wasn’t Brian who told me!’ said Caroline quickly.
‘Really?’ said Jack, looking sceptical. ‘Trish then?’
‘No chance. Neither of them would dream of it! Lee, however…’ she glanced at Jack’s new bookcase.
‘Ohhhh!’ said Jack as the penny dropped. ‘I didn’t think he recognised me!’
‘Erm… yeah, he did,’ said Caroline. ‘And Lee is an idiot. Much as I love him…’
‘You do?’ said Jack. This admission didn’t make his stomach flip. Instead, it dropped right through the centre of the earth, and the Christmas lights suddenly lost all their charm.
‘We’ve known each other forever,’ said Caroline.
‘Oh. Well… that’s nice.’ Jack cringed. His voice had just gone all hard and cold.
‘It’s the only reason I let the plonker get away with being… well… himself!’ laughed Caroline.
‘So… how long have you two been together?’ said Jack, turning to head back through to the kitchen. Suddenly, he needed to get away from the festive scene.
‘Wait – EEW!’ said Caroline, grabbing at his hand and swinging him back towards her. ‘Together?!’
‘You and Lee,’ said Jack. ‘I mean, you said…’
‘Hell no!’ Caroline wrinkled her nose. ‘That would be like… EWW! He’s like my brother. No – not even that. Like an annoying cousin who turns up and ruins your Barbie dolls. I would never, ever kiss…’
Jack started to laugh as Caroline tailed off and started to make barfing motions at the floor.
‘Okay, okay,’ he chuckled. ‘My bad! I got the wrong end of the stick.’
‘Wrong end of the entire forest, more like!’ said Caroline, staring at him with horror still in her eyes.
‘And you think I’m the drama queen,’ said Jack, shaking his head.
‘At least give me some credit for taste,’ huffed Caroline.
‘So… your husband’s cute then?’ said Jack, trying to make his tone light and failing completely.
‘Husband?’ hooted Caroline. ‘I’m not married. Or living with anyone. Or in a relationship… unless you count my ailing spider plant?’
‘I don’t think anyone would count that,’ said Jack, a broad smile spreading over his face. For some strange reason, his heart had just pogoed back into position.
This didn’t make any sense at all. Caroline was larger than life, stubborn, bossy… and… well… she was doing something to him. Jack hadn’t felt this giddy in… hell, he’d never felt this giddy! Not when he’d won his first award. Not even when he’d stepped onto his first film set.
‘So… what should we do now?’ he said, his voice strangely husky.
‘Got any more trees that need decorating?’ said Caroline. ‘I quite liked making myself useful!’
‘Sadly not,’ said Jack, ruffling his hair awkwardly. ‘You know, it’s a shame you’re not an interior designer. I’ve got no idea where to put the shelves your boyfriend delivered.’
‘Again – EEW!’ said Caroline with an exaggerated shudder before she pottered towards the new bookshelf and ran her fingers over the glossy wood. ‘So… is this your Christmas gift to yourself?’
‘Not exactly,’ said Jack, ‘but it’s much needed.’
‘To hold all the Christmas cards from your swooning fans?’ said Caroline.
‘No, smartass,’ said Jack. ‘To hold all my scripts. They’re getting everywhere… and I need to get them in some kind of order. I’ve already managed to cover them in coffee rings and goodness knows what else.’
‘Well, I’m definitely not an interior designer,’ said Caroline, ‘but I’m happy to help!’
‘You’re my guest,’ said Jack. ‘I’m not putting you to work!’
‘For one thing, you’ve already done that with your Christmas tree,’ she laughed. ‘And for another – I don’t mind. Besides, it’ll be easier to move it around with two of us.’
Jack nodded. He couldn’t exactly fault that logic.
‘So… any idea where you want it?’ she prodded.
‘Not too near the wood burner for obvious reasons,’ said Jack.
‘And I’d suggest not too near the windows either,’ said Caroline. ‘All those scripts will just remind you of work instead of letting you enjoy the view.’
‘Good point!’ said Jack. He hadn’t even thought of that. Work already took up more than its fair share of his life.
‘It would fit best just over there near the door,’ said Caroline.
‘What, right in front of the light switch?’ laughed Jack.
‘Oh… yeah,’ said Caroline. ‘Maybe not. Erm… how about we shift that sofa into the room by about two feet? You’ll barely notice it’s moved, but then you can pop the shelves against the wall over there.’
Jack stared at the spot and then back at Caroline. ‘You might just be a genius.’
‘Might?’ huffed Caroline. ‘It was proven years ago - you just need to catch up.’
She winked at him, and Jack felt something inside him melt.
‘Alright,’ he said. ‘Let’s give it a go.’
With more than a little grunting, the pair of them managed to slide the sofa away from the wall. Then they shuffled the heavy shelves into place before standing back to admire their handiwork.
‘What do you think?’ said Caroline, glancing from him to the shelves and then back again.
‘It’s perfect,’ said Jack with a little shrug. ‘Now we just need to fill it up!’