Chapter 29
Erica
After another gruelling week of cardiovascular workouts and breathing exercises, Erica saw improvement. Archer came each morning and mostly kept his hands to himself. She raced over the logs and climbed the tree Archer had picked out for endurance. Bit by bit, he’d built an organic obstacle course. In the afternoons, she practised yoga. Her physique for the movie was lean and not bulky. When Saturday morning arrived, she woke early to prepare for their trip to the flower fields on the other side of the small island. Erica had read the island used to have dozens of flower farms but now only had a handful. They were heading to the Narcissi Flower Farm. Lounging on the couches outside, she picked up the novel Yanny had sent her, along with the rest of the mail he thought she should see. While she was thinking about Yanny, her phone rang. There was no number, but then very few people knew her private number. Specifically, the number they were dialling was Erica Taylor, the Oscar-winning actress .
“Hello,” she said, putting it on speakerphone while she continued reading.
“Is this Erica?”
She stayed quiet, not confirming or denying, allowing for an uncomfortable silence until the caller made a decision. They either hung up or introduced themselves.
“My name is Jason Turner. I believe you are going to marry my brother.”
Erica snatched up the phone and switched off the speakerphone.
“This is Erica,” she replied.
“The same Erica who is going to marry Archer?”
“Yes.”
“Can we switch to video call?”
“No, why would you want to do that? It’s early.”
“I don’t give a shit about the time difference, sweetheart. I want to see the face of the woman who bizarrely has agreed to get hitched to the Turner family.”
“Just Archer,” Erica replied.
“If you think you’re just marrying Archer, then he hasn’t introduced you to our aunt like he said he had.”
A chill down Erica’s spine made her shudder. He’d confirmed her suspicions, and she didn’t feel good about it.
“I’ve met your aunt. She’s lovely,” Erica said.
She wanted to play the fool for a little while. Years of journalists attempting to trick her into saying stuff she didn’t mean had her attention set to wary.
Jason let out a howling laugh in response to her comment. She smiled back even though he couldn’t see it. She was tempted to switch her video camera on, but her wariness remained on high alert.
“So he has introduced you. It looks like I might like my new sister-in-law. Tell me, Erica, are you Erica Taylor or Erica Potter?”
Now grateful she hadn’t opted for a video call, she brought the phone away from her ear and pressed the speaker button. Placing the device carefully on the tabletop like it was a bomb ready to go off, she remained mute.
“My lovely aunt called me late last night and left me a voicemail, telling me my brother was marrying a two-bit actress. Perhaps I should ensure your intentions are long term.”
Jason had emphasised lovely when he spoke about his aunt, revealing his dislike for the woman in his tone. She couldn’t stay quiet for much longer else, the answer would be obvious.
“I think your aunt may have me confused with someone else.”
“Like an Oscar-winning actress?”
“Jason, I have to go. Archer is walking across the lawn towards me.”
He was nowhere in sight, but she wanted off the call with Archer’s brother without seeming rude.
“I’ll take it you are the one and only Erica Taylor who won an Oscar. A character in the film about a woman who enters into an arranged marriage and gets the shock of her life.”
“You saw the film?”
“Of course, I saw the film. Half the world saw the film. You’re fucking famous without your scumbag husband cheating on you.”
“He’s not my husband,” she replied.
“That’s not what the press are saying.”
“Don’t believe everything you read, Jason. The divorce came through a couple of months ago. It appears he didn’t tell his new girlfriend, who confronted me ten minutes before I went up and collected my award, seven months pregnant with his child.”
“Wow, she’s got some front to do that.”
“I split up from my ex-husband a while ago,” Erica said a little quieter.
“I’m sorry, that’s rough. He’s a fool.”
“It’s in the past.”
“I guess you don’t value marriage in the same way anymore, which is why you so readily agreed to marry Archer.”
“Something like that.”
“He’s a good guy, Erica.”
“Yeah, I’m beginning to see that. Will I have Luke and Daisy calling me too?”
“I doubt it, my aunt doesn’t like them, and I’m not going to tell them.”
“Thanks, Jason.”
“I’m keeping quiet for now. When they find out I knew, I’ll be roasted for years, so this plan had better work.”
“I understand what’s a stake. No marriage, no business, no jobs for you, no place to settle as a family. I get it.”
“What do you get out of this?”
Erica remained quiet. She didn’t know anymore. When she didn’t really know Archer, the marriage could save her pride in the public eye if they knew not only was she already divorced, she had remarried. But now? She didn’t know why she continued with the facade if his aunt insisted on a minimum of one year of marriage.
“I don’t need the money. I’m going to be a nice person. It’s better I do this than some money-grabbing woman who wouldn’t be nice to Archer. Not everyone has to have an agenda. ”
“Oh, Erica, you like him.”
Erica rolled his eyes at his tone, all gushing. What wasn’t to like? Archer was handsome, kind, and determined to take care of his siblings, even entering into a fake marriage for their sake.
“He’s a great person. Of course, I like him. Do you think I’d fake marry a horrible person?”
It was Jason’s turn to be silent.
“Are you still there?”
“Yeah, just thinking. Listen, I need to go, but we’ll talk again soon. Do not let my aunt intimidate you.”
He didn’t let her reply before he hung up the phone. A few minutes later, she was still staring at the blank screen of her phone when Archer called out from across the lawn. She watched him approach in long navy shorts and a buttoned pale blue shirt. Teddy was at his side, half running, half walking to keep up with Archer.
Erica stood, brushed down her linen trousers, and went to meet him at the opening in the wall. He kissed her soundly, holding her tight. He nuzzled her neck and then stepped back.
“Everything okay? We can go another day,” he said.
She thought she was better at hiding her agitation, but with Archer, he sensed the discomfort of her call with his brother. Jason was going to keep her secret, not that she knew why it should be a secret. Erica searched her mind to understand why she hadn’t mentioned she was an actress. It was easy enough to say. She had nothing to share about the humiliating press coverage of her ex-husband parading around with a woman pregnant with their child when they were clearly still married. The press covered every aspect of her life and documented proof that she and her husband were still together when you calculated the child’s conception.
“Just work stuff earlier, my manager rang to say there was a delay somewhere along the chain, and I may have to leave at a different time.”
“Oh, not sooner, I hope?”
“Probably later. It could coincide with getting my wedding dress.”
Archer squeezed her hand and smiled wide, seemingly mollified that all was okay. “Okay, let’s go and look at some flowers.”