Chapter 7
7
‘So, Esme, Olivia tells me you had an audition last night. How did it go?’ Brodie asked as he accompanied her and Olivia back from grabbing pastries at the café. He was pushing a sleeping baby Freya in her pram.
The film crew were in the café eating breakfast and Olivia had wanted to check in to make sure they were all happy and had everything they needed. It was a dull spring morning, and a mist hung low over the loch in the distance. But even on days like this, the place was stunning and so atmospheric.
‘I think it went well,’ Esme replied.
‘Exciting stuff,’ Brodie replied.
Olivia said, ‘I saw Parker earlier and he said you were amazing. In fact, he said you’re wasted working as my PA.’
Esme cringed and placed her hand on her forehead. ‘Oh, heck, trust Parker. I’m so sorry he said that.’
Olivia laughed. ‘It’s fine. I got what he meant.’
‘I think it’s great that you’re indulging in your passion again. We’re not quite ourselves when we avoid what we love, eh, Olivia?’ Brodie said with a wink.
‘He’s right,’ Olivia said. ‘Take it from someone who knows. That’s why I’ve started designing again.’ Before inheriting Drumblair, Olivia was a designer for New York fashion house Nina Picarro and had only recently returned to her drawing board.
Brodie said, ‘Aye, you’ll be so glad you did it when you’re up there on that stage.’
Esme laughed. ‘I haven’t got the part yet.’
Olivia smiled. ‘I really think you’ll get it. I have a feeling.’
‘Did you speak to your mum and dad about Garden Cottage? Judd’s a top bloke. I reckon you and he will get on great as housemates,’ Brodie said as he reached in to pull Freya’s blanket up a little.
Esme nodded. ‘I did. My dad was great about it but Mum…’
‘Struggling to let you go?’
Esme sighed. ‘She really is. It seems worse now than when I went travelling. I don’t get it.’
Olivia reached out and patted her arm. ‘Don’t take this the wrong way, Esme, but I think it’s intrinsically woven into the very soul of being a parent. We’re only just realising this now, aren’t we, Brodie?’
He nodded his agreement and widened his eyes. ‘Oh, aye, totally.’
Olivia continued, ‘I remember when I relocated to New York to work for Nina. Mum was distraught, but she eventually came around. I’m guessing your mum will do the same.’
Esme sighed. ‘It’s not as if I’m going all that far. It’s a mile up the road, if that.’
They reached the castle and Olivia opened the doors so Brodie could push the pram inside. ‘I don’t think the distance is the only factor. I think it’s the fact that you’re an adult now and she has to accept that she won’t know where you are or what you’re doing every minute of the day. It’s not about control though, it’s about protection.’
‘I agree,’ Brodie said. ‘They just want you to be safe, that’s all.’
‘I suppose so.’ Esme wanted to change the subject as thinking about her mum’s face last night made her stomach churn. ‘Anyway, I was wondering if I could make a start on decorating my room at Garden Cottage this weekend. I think it might be better to do that before I move in so I don’t have to sleep amongst the dust and mess. Is that okay with you both?’
‘It’s absolutely fine with us,’ Olivia said with a smile. ‘Judd knows you both have free rein to do whatever you want. Within reason, of course.’ She laughed.
‘Aye, don’t go all Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen on us and paint everything fuchsia pink, will you?’ Brodie gave a deep laugh. ‘And maybe steer clear of leopard print too, eh?’
Esme feigned sadness, sticking out her bottom lip like a petulant toddler. ‘What’s wrong with leopard print? And fuchsia’s my absolute favourite colour.’
Olivia laughed. ‘Well, in that case you’ll definitely need to curb your design choices.’
Esme saluted. ‘Aye, cap’n. Creams and neutral tones it is.’
‘Right, my darlin’, I’ll be off to the kitchen to see Granny Mirren,’ Brodie said as he leaned to kiss his wife. ‘Love you.’
Olivia gazed up at him with eyes filled with adoration. ‘Love you too. Bye, my precious girl, be good for Daddy,’ she said, reaching in to stroke Freya’s cheek. Brodie turned and headed in the direction of the castle kitchen and Esme and Olivia continued on.
When they reached the study, a voice called from the other end of the corridor. ‘Lady Olivia!’ They stopped as Eilidh, the production coordinator from the film crew, approached them in a hurry, her long blonde hair bouncing as she jogged. ‘Sorry to bother you. I just wanted to let you know that the actors will be on set from tomorrow. This means the security team will be here too, and at times there’ll be restrictions on where people can and can’t go within the building. I just wanted to check that you’re happy with everything.’
Olivia gave a strained smile. ‘Oh, yes. Everything’s fine. It’s quite exciting. Oh, and I’ve finished up the Georgian ballgown for Ruby if you want to send her to me for a fitting when she arrives.’
Eilidh’s face lit up. ‘Oh, my word, I can’t wait to see it. Thank you for agreeing to take such a huge task on when you have a baby to look after. I don’t know how you do it. How is the wee princess today?’
‘She’s fine. Her daddy has just taken her to see her Granny Mirren for a few hours. Then Brodie and I are taking the afternoon off to have a drive out and get some fresh air.’
Eilidh tilted her head and made that dreamy face people made when thinking about babies, puppies or kittens. ‘Aww, how lovely. Right, well, I’ll let you get on. Bye just now.’
‘Bye, Eilidh,’ Olivia and Esme said in unison.
* * *
The following morning, Esme was woken before her alarm clock by her phone ringing. She rubbed at her eyes and reached for it, squinting through blurry morning vision to see Sylvia McNab, the drama club director’s number highlighted on the screen. Betty woke up from her slumber too and gave an annoyed sneeze then stretched, yawning with a loud grumble to show her displeasure.
‘I know how you feel, Betty Boo. It’s a bit early to be having an am dram emergency.’ She noticed the time and groaned. ‘Ugh, it’s only 6a.m. I didn’t have to be up for another hour.’ She sat up and cleared her throat, then, trying to mimic the bright and breezy voice of someone who had been awake for hours, she answered the call. ‘Hello, Sylvia, how are you?’
‘Esmerelda, darling! I’m so glad I caught you.’ Caught me? Where did you think I’d be at this time? ‘Are you well?’
Apart from being half asleep and rudely awoken, I’m great . ‘I’m good, thanks. What can I do for you at this early hour?’
There was a pause. ‘ Early hour? I’ve been up since four!’ Esme fought the words more fool you to stop them escaping from her lips and wondered if perhaps the woman had been drinking espressos since she rose, on account of her unusually high-pitched, squeaky voice . Sylvia continued, ‘Anyway, I thought you would be happy to know you are my Juliet!’
Esme’s heart skipped and she gasped. ‘Really? Oh, that’s wonderful! Thank you so much!’ She jiggled about in bed, waving her free arm around, punching the air and simultaneously silent screaming with her eyes closed as Betty looked on with a tilted head.
‘Have I interrupted you while you’re out for a jog?’
Esme ceased her movements and sat stock still. ‘No, why?’
‘Nothing, it just sounded like you were jogging. Bryce will be your Romeo.’ She followed this with an almost inaudible mumble of, ‘He’s no Leonardo DiCaprio, that’s for sure, but he’s the best of who we have. Right, I’d better go and make the rest of my calls. Rehearsals begin next week so get preparing. Ciao, ciao.’
‘Ciao, erm, I mean bye, Sylvia, and thanks again.’ She hit the end call button and immediately texted Parker.
I ONLY GOT THE BLOODY PART DIDN’T I?!!!!!
Within seconds he responded:
Can u please not shout at me this early in the day (insert winky face) Srlsy tho, I knew u wd! Well done! See you in a cpl hrs. P xx
No mention of his own call from Sylvia so she would have to wait to hear if he had secured the part of Mercutio.
Esme almost floated off the bus and up the lane towards the castle but as she reached the gravel area in front of the castle she stopped in her tracks. A fancy black car was parked outside and a tall dark-haired man that she would recognise anywhere was climbing out of it. Her mouth went dry, and her heart began pounding at her ribs.
It’s him… it’s really him, in the flesh, all six feet two of him. Zachary Marchand… Oh, my word, he is beautiful…
He was wearing dark-coloured jeans and a black leather jacket; a little reminiscent of a 1950s bad boy. His hair was a little longer than the last time she had seen him on screen, and he had a distinct five o’clock shadow gracing his angular jawline. He was as dreamy as she remembered, if not more so.
‘Caught you!’ Parker said as he slammed his hands down on her shoulders, causing her to squeal loudly.
Much to her horror, Zachary Marchand stopped and turned in her direction. She covered her mouth with her hand with such force she bashed her lips into her teeth and her eyes watered. ‘Bloody hell, Parker, you scared me half to death!’ she hissed.
Zachary simply smiled that heart-stopping smile he used in his movies, and for the cameras on the red carpet, and her insides turned to jelly. Then he turned and walked into the castle, followed closely by his security guard.
‘My God, he is so gorgeous it should be illegal,’ Parker said dreamily.
‘I can’t believe you made me squeal like that in front of him,’ Esme said with a whack to his arm.
‘Well, at least he’s noticed you.’
‘Yes, for all the wrong reasons. He probably thinks I’m some stupid fan girl who squealed because I saw him. Oh, God, I’ll never be able to face him now.’
Parker linked his arm through hers and began to lead her towards the castle. ‘Don’t be daft. You’re Juliet. If you can face losing Romeo, you can face anything.’
* * *
Parker popped in to see her mid-morning to share the news that he had got the part as Mercutio.
‘I can’t believe it!’ Parker said, fanning his face. ‘Me, on stage in a serious role! I wonder what the costume will be like. I hope it’s not tights as I haven’t been concentrating on my legs at the gym and I just know I’ll look like a turkey.’
Esme laughed as she pictured him on stage dressed as poultry. ‘Oh, heck, I hadn’t even thought about what we’ll be wearing.’
‘It’s all I can think about! Look, I know we were going to do lunch together, but would you mind if I take a rain check? I want to call Benoit and tell him all about it.’
Esme hugged him. ‘I don’t mind at all. He’ll be so excited for you. Maybe he’ll come to see the show.’
Parker sighed. ‘I just wish he’d come over for good. We’ve been saving towards a deposit for our own flat for ages now and I’m ready to move out of my parents’. We just need him to find a job over here. Anyway, enough of me moaning, I’d better get back to work.’
At lunchtime, Paisley was in a meeting with Olivia, meaning Esme was alone for her break. She grabbed her lunch bag, lovingly prepared for her by her mum, and wandered out into the grounds to find a quiet spot in the fresh air to eat and decompress after the morning of phone calls from local and national press wanting the scoop on the castle’s latest guests. She walked across the gravel to a little bench that had been crafted from rustic logs and sat amongst the trees and took a seat. She opened her lunch bag and found a note in her mum’s handwriting:
You won’t get this treatment when you move out. I bet you’ll miss my lunches as much as I’ll miss you. Love Mum
Esme sighed and pulled out the greaseproof paper, unwrapping it to find a chicken salad sandwich on crusty homemade bread. Her stomach growled in anticipation, and she took a much-needed bite and began to chew, eyes closed and head tilted slightly back, letting the fresh air tousle her waves.
‘Oh, hi,’ said a male voice from behind her.
She opened her eyes, swivelled in her seat and locked gazes with none other than Zachary Marchand. Her pulse rate increased and all the red blood cells in her body seemed to decide that precise moment would be a good time to have a meeting. In her face. She knew she must be the same colour Olivia and Brodie had insisted she not paint her room.
With her mouth full of half-masticated lettuce and roast chicken, she smiled and swallowed then made a weird noise that was supposed to be, ‘Hi, Mr Marchand,’ but came out garbled and squeaky due to the food.
Zachary chuckled and said, ‘Oh, goodness, please, it’s just Zach. And I’m sorry to interrupt your lunch. It looks good. I was just trying to find a peaceful spot to go over my lines and I’d spotted this bench earlier and thought how peaceful it looked so… here I am.’ He glanced around and then in a theatrical whisper said, ‘Between you and me, I should know my lines already, but…’ He shrugged and cringed.
Esme swallowed the rest of her mouthful and took a long swig of her water. ‘Oh, it’s no bother. You’re fine.’
He pointed at the bench. ‘Do you mind…?’
She cleared her throat and croaked, ‘Not at all. Mi bench es su bench.’ Then mentally slapped herself for the utterly stupid reply.
He smiled and held out his hand. ‘I’m Zach, by the way.’
She nodded. ‘I know.’ She shook his hand and kept her disbelieving gaze on him.
He narrowed his eyes. ‘And you are…?’
‘Oh, yes, sorry.’ She giggled and immediately felt even more ridiculous – if that was even possible. ‘Esme. I’m Esme Cassidy. PA to Lady Olivia.’
‘Ah, yes, she mentioned that we should speak to you in her absence if we needed anything. Her baby is the sweetest little thing I’ve ever seen. The prettiest eyes.’
Esme smiled. ‘Oh, yes, Freya is lovely. And they’re such good parents. Completely natural.’
‘I’m a bit of a sap when it comes to babies. Just love them. My younger sister has a one-year-old boy and he’s a real character. A stocky little bruiser with these vivid blue eyes and a mop of brown curls like his mum. Calls me Yak.’ He laughed and his eyes crinkled at the corners. He shook his head, and his smile faltered. ‘I miss seeing him when I’m on location.’
Esme felt sad for him. ‘I bet it’s hard to be away from your family so much.’
He nodded. ‘It is but… this is the life I chose so…’ He stared off into the distance for a few moments. ‘Anyway, don’t let me interrupt your lunch. I’ll just sit here quietly and read for the next scene rehearsal. Next time you see me, I may have on a very fetching wig and satin breeches.’ He wiggled his eyebrows, and she laughed.
He opened his script and began to read. She wanted to continue with her lunch. It had that delicious mayonnaise stuff on it that her mum made by mixing… something with it. But her stomach was now too full of butterflies to accommodate a sandwich as well. She watched Zach in her periphery as he silently mouthed the words on the page before him.
He sighed deeply and Esme’s heart leapt. Had he caught her watching him and got annoyed about it? Shit . Maybe she should get up and leave.
‘Look, I know you’re on your lunch break but?—’
She immediately stood. ‘Oh, heck, I’m so sorry, am I distracting you by being here? I-I can move.’ She gestured back towards the castle.
He held up a halting hand. ‘No, no, not at all, I was going to ask a favour actually.’
She widened her eyes. ‘Oh?’
‘Could you maybe read Lucille’s lines for me? I think it would be easier to reply to someone rather than imagine it.’ The statuesque blonde American actress Lucille Delgado was playing his betrothed. She was the epitome of stunning. If you looked up the word beautiful online there would no doubt be a picture of her face.
Esme grinned. ‘Well, they do say acting is reacting.’ Oh, God, why am I so geeky?
Instead of the expected snide or sarcastic retort, Zach said, ‘Exactly! And I always find it easier to work with someone when I’m practising lines. Could you be my someone?’
Her heart melted and she almost disintegrated into a pile of mush. All that was missing was a halo of hearts around him and some soft, dreamy music. Realising she hadn’t replied, she straightened her back and cleared her throat. ‘Okay, I’d be happy to help.’ She sat again and couldn’t help the beaming smile that spread across her face as she hoped to goodness she didn’t appear possessed.
‘Right, we’re starting here.’ He pointed to the script and scooted a little closer to her. She could smell his cologne and wondered which one it was. It was fresh and expensive, that one thing was certain. ‘Good day, Miss Robertson. I trust you’re feeling recovered.’
Esme narrowed her eyes momentarily until she realised he had started. She looked at the next line. ‘You trust I’m feeling recovered? Who are you to speak of trust? Do you not know of the heartache you have caused me?’
For a moment, Zach was silent and simply fixed his eyes on her. And then, as if he too had forgotten he was supposed to speak, he shook his head. ‘S-sorry. Erm… I can assure you I didn’t mean to cause pain to you, my dearest. Your happiness is all that I crave.’
Esme scoffed, getting into character. ‘I am no longer your dearest, Lord Christoph, that much is clear to all. You have made a fool out of me. And I dare not enquire as to your brother’s wellbeing. I only know that there should no doubt be a duel ahead. And then I shall lose you all over again.’ Esme’s voice wavered as she expressed the emotion she expected her character to be feeling.
Zach stared at her again for a moment and then he smiled. He shook his head and straightened his features. ‘Miss Robertson… Amelia … I’m leaving tonight for that very reason. I do not wish to fight my brother for I know I shall kill him. I want to ask your forgiveness before I go. I wish I hadn’t fallen for Lady Eleanor. It was not meant to happen but who can help the path their heart decides upon? And you’re right, my brother is baying for my blood. But I swear that causing pain to you was the furthest thing from my mind. All you have ever been is gracious.’ He reached out and took her hand, fixing his chocolate-brown gaze on her.
Esme glanced down at the line and then returned her attention to him. ‘I was gracious to a fault and that fault has now caused my heart to break irrevocably. I shall not forgive you, Christoph. Not while I have breath in my body.’ She snatched her hand away and turned sharply to face the opposite direction.
‘Bloody hell, you’re quite good at this, aren’t you?’ Zach said, breaking character and grinning.
She wanted to say, ‘Yes, I was supposed to be doing what you’re doing, in fact I could’ve been Lucille Delgado but instead my parents convinced me I would be mad to pursue an acting career so here I am!’ but instead she felt her cheeks warming again and simply replied, ‘Thank you.’
They went through a few more scenes and Esme suddenly glanced at her watch. ‘Oh, shit, I should’ve been back at my desk ten minutes ago. I’m sorry but I’m going to have to head back.’
Zach nodded. ‘Of course, absolutely. I really appreciate your help, thanks.’
Esme smiled. ‘No bother. It’s been fun.’ Her heart skipped in her chest with a rush of adrenaline.
Zach ran his hands over his hair and opened and closed his mouth a few times before saying, ‘Look, I know it’s really cheeky, and a hell of a lot to ask, but is there any chance you could help me again tomorrow lunchtime? I mean if you don’t usually get a lunch break that’s fine. Or if you’ve got other things to do…’
‘No, I’d be happy to help. Same time and place?’
That handsome smile appeared on his face. ‘Same time and place. Thanks, Esme.’ She tried not to swoon at how her name sounded coming from his luscious mouth but was pretty sure the colour of her face by now must have given the game away.
She turned and headed back towards the castle, almost floating on an invisible cloud. She pinched herself and when she didn’t wake up, she grinned. It really did happen. She glanced once over her shoulder to find him watching her.