Chapter 13 #2
‘No. He might be good at his job, but there’s something vaguely sinister about him.’
Carol reached for the Prosecco.
‘I agree.’
After filling up their glasses one last time, she banged the empty bottle down on the table.
‘OK, confession time. Did either of you ever succumb to his advances? We know he tried it on with every female within range. No judgement here, just asking. It goes no further than this room.’
Suzie put her hand up.
‘I’ll admit to one kiss. It was no great shakes. Never wanted to repeat it.’
Teresa was keeping very quiet in the corner, mused Suzie.
Carol turned to her bandmate.
‘Ter?’
The woman couldn’t look more awkward if she tried.
‘Oh my God, you did, didn’t you?’
Carol reached over and patted her friend’s leg.
‘Come on, spill. How did I never know this?’
Teresa squirmed in her seat.
‘It was only the once…’
Carol’s laugh echoed around the room.
‘I’m sure once was enough.’
‘More than enough, believe me.’
‘Well, you certainly kept that hidden.’
Teresa smiled broadly.
‘I wish Frank had.’
They were all in fits of giggles again.
Suzie scooped up the last few peanuts and threw them into her mouth.
‘We were so young. We all did crazy things back then. I know I did.’
Carol turned to face her.
‘Was Christian one of your crazy things?’
Carol was turning out to be quite the interrogator. She’d better stall for time.
‘What do you mean?’
‘We had eyes, Suze. We all thought you two would ride off into the sunset together.’
‘God, no. It was fun while it lasted, but as you probably remember, Christian wasn’t really one for settling down. Or sticking to one woman for that matter.’
The memory of finding him in his dressing room with his tongue down the throat of Kim, their make-up artist, was still raw all these years later.
Carol leant forward.
‘No, that’s true. He’d got it into his head that he was going to be the next Adam Ant, hadn’t he?
And to be fair, he did end up being a lot more famous than any of us for a while.
I used to watch him on Top of the Pops, and think, I knew you when you were still a teenager who used a tonne of foundation to cover up your acne. ’
Teresa sniggered into her glass.
Suzie was just relieved the focus was off her for a moment. Or at least off her and Christian as an item.
‘Let’s have a toast.’
She raised her glass in the air.
‘To no regrets!’
‘No regrets’ was echoed back at her with gusto.
It wasn’t exactly true in her case, but it would do as a handy sentiment.
Everyone had regrets of one sort or another when they’d got to their age.
It was just whether those missed opportunities were minor irritations or major life changers.
There was one big thing from those days that she wished she could change. But it was too late now anyway.
Frank’s appearance with three parcels wrapped in white greaseproof paper stopped her musings in their tracks. The smell alone made her stomach groan.
‘As requested, my lovelies.’
None of them were his lovelies, but they were all very grateful for the food.
‘Thanks so much, Frank.’
Suzie moaned with delight as she unwrapped the pitta stuffed with succulent pork pieces, salad, tzatziki and chips, the perfect combination of naughty and nice.
Frank seemed a little shocked at the frenzied way all three of them fell on the gyros, as if he’d never seen hungry, tipsy women before.
After the first few bites, with the taste of the combined ingredients exploding in her mouth, Suzie realised Frank was still there.
‘Not having one yourself?’
Frank shook his head and walked off.
Carol made for the fridge.
‘Got any water in there? Think it’s probably time to give the booze a rest if we’re going to be in any fit state to sing again tomorrow night.’
Suzie nodded, an over-large mouthful of gyros making it impossible to speak.
Carol pulled out three small bottles of water and put one in front of each of them.
‘Here you go.’
Both Suzie and Teresa gave a thumbs-up, too busy eating to waste time talking.
With the gyros demolished, and the thought of the final performance ahead weighing on her mind, Suzie stood up and hugged each one of them in turn.
‘Thanks for tonight. I’ve had a lovely time, and I hope you have too.’
Teresa linked arms with Carol.
‘We certainly have. And I’m serious about coming to visit you on your island one day.’
Carol nodded her agreement.
‘Me too. And now, we’d better all get some sleep. See you on the other side after the show. Then we can really let our hair down and par … ty.’
‘Amen to that. See you both tomorrow.’
Suzie threw the gyros wrappers away and stacked the empty bottles ready for the cleaner in the morning before messaging the car service, and was told her lift would be five minutes.
Gathering up her coat and bag and dreaming of a hot bath, she went to switch off the lights and almost ran slap bang into Frank, who’d appeared from nowhere as usual. He moved past her into the room.
‘Is your party over?’
He said it as if there could possibly be people hiding in the wardrobe.
‘Hardly a party, Frank. Just a couple of old friends having a chat.’
‘Good. I was waiting to get you on your own.’
The way he said it made the hairs on the back of her neck stand up.
‘Really? Why?’
‘Two reasons.’
‘Sounds intriguing.’
It really didn’t, but she didn’t want to keep the car waiting.
It was best to rip the plaster off and get it over with.
Frank had moved so close she could see the flecks of yellow in his caramel-coloured eyes.
They went with his lurid yellow T-shirt emblazoned with the name of some band she’d never heard of.
He liked to keep up with the current trends.
His hand on her arm reminded her of nothing so much as the claw of a lizard she’d once seen in a zoo’s reptile house.
‘We’ve always got on well, haven’t we?’
‘Yes, I can’t argue with that.’
By his tense body language, he was building up to something.
‘I was just wondering if … there’d ever be a way forward for us… romantically?’
What on earth had given him that idea? She had to tread carefully here. A rejected Frank wouldn’t be a pleasant Frank. She only had one more day to get through, and then she’d be shot of him.
Suzie turned on the smile she used on difficult customers. She needed to be kind but leave no room for doubt.
‘I’m very fond of you, Frank, you know I am, and we’ll always be friends, but … I’m afraid there’s nothing more, not from my side anyway.’
His pinched smile hid the fury she knew was lurking close to the surface.
‘Message received and understood.’
His voice was brittle with anger. It must have taken a lot for him to approach her.
‘I’m sorry if you…’
Frank’s hand was up in front of her face.
‘Let’s never talk about this ever again.’
‘Of course. I won’t mention it to anyone.’
Suzie glanced up at the clock on the wall. Her car would be outside by now.
‘You said there were two things you wanted to speak to me about?’
Hopefully, for both their sakes, the second thing would be something about the show tomorrow, and they could get back onto a professional footing. She didn’t make a habit of humiliating men, but neither could she give him even a crumb of hope.
Frank’s face took on a manic quality as a lopsided smile emerged and his eyes glittered under the overhead lights.
‘I’ve got a surprise for you.’