Chapter 10 #2
Before Frankie could answer, Dave leaned in with a cheeky grin. ‘You coming down the Smuggler’s for a pint, Lady R?’
‘A pint? Behave yourself, Dave, for God’s sake!’ Becca scolded. ‘I’m sure Ros has better things to do than go drinking with us.’
‘While I did hold my university college’s record for downing the fastest yard of ale, we’ll have to make it another night as my grandmother is expecting me for dinner.’ Rosamund’s enigmatic smile made it impossible to tell if she was joking or not, but Frankie rather liked to think she wasn’t.
‘Now that’s a sight I’d pay good money to see!’ Unbowed by the laser glare his wife was shooting at him, Dave leaned over and stole a kiss from Becca before bearing a sweaty, grinning Dalton off to his trailer to get changed before they headed to the local pub.
Tired as she was, Frankie was intrigued enough by Rosamund’s request that she turned to Becca. ‘I’ll join you in the caravan in a minute.’
She followed Rosamund across the hall and into her sitting room. ‘If it’s about filming in here without your permission, then I’m really sorry. It was a spur-of-the-moment thing. Dalton was worried about the scene and I wanted to give him a little ego boost.’
‘Oh, don’t worry about that. I told you before you were welcome in here any time.’ Ros took a seat on the sofa and folded her hands in her lap. There was something slightly nervous about the way she rubbed one thumb over the other and it was odd to see her as anything other than calm and composed.
‘Is everything okay?’
‘What? Yes, everything’s fine. It’s just that I saw your video and it gave me an idea.’ Ros reached up and ran a hand over her sleek ponytail. ‘Goodness, I feel awkward even asking…’ She gave a funny half-laugh.
‘There’s no need to be. You’ve been so kind since the first day we met.’ Sitting in her gown was out of the question, so Frankie had to settle for resting her hands on the back of the sofa. ‘If there’s something I can do to help, I’ll be more than happy to.’
Some of the tension in Rosamund’s shoulders faded. ‘Running the castle takes an enormous amount of money.’ She shrugged a shoulder and smiled. ‘It’s one of the reasons we’re trying different things to raise revenue.’
Frankie wasn’t sure what this had to do with her, but it was clear the other woman wanted to get something off her chest so she went along with it. ‘Like letting our production company film here, you mean?’
Ros nodded. ‘Exactly that. We’re planning to open to the public next year for the first time. With the show being so popular, we’re hoping it will generate an extra level of interest.’
‘If the fan sites are anything to go by, a lot of people have loved visiting the locations of the first season, so there’s no reason why it wouldn’t be the same for Boscowen Castle.
’ Frankie suddenly understood where the conversation was going.
‘You mentioned the video I made with Dalton. Did you want me to do something to promote the castle?’
A relieved smile brightened Rosamund’s features. ‘I know it’s probably the last thing you’d want to do…’
It certainly wasn’t at the top of her list but, given how helpful and kind the other woman had been to her, it didn’t feel like a big ask. Frankie pushed away the tiredness pressing at her and gave Rosamund her best smile. ‘I’d love to do it. Do you have a script or are we just going to wing it?’
* * *
‘I was about to send out a search party,’ Becca said when Frankie finally walked into the caravan.
‘Sorry to keep you hanging around. Ros wanted me to film a little promo thing for the castle and, well, you know how helpful she’s been to us all.’
‘She’s been brilliant,’ Becca agreed. ‘If you were doing her a favour, then we don’t mind, do we, Jessie?’
The younger woman shook her head. ‘Not at all! And if it’s anything like the clip you did with Dalton, it’s going to be a sure-fire winner. You’re the number one trending topic right now!’
Frankie knew the other woman was only trying to be supportive, but hearing that had Frankie swallowing back a wash of bile. The last time she’d trended had been for all the wrong reasons. She picked up her phone, took one look at the number of notifications and immediately switched it off.