What the Lightning Sees: Part One (11 page)

Beth poked me in the ribs. “Beth, Dave, this is Haven, Haven, this is my very annoying sister Beth and my friend Dave.” She looked beautiful.
Her hair was down again. I wondered for a second whether she’d worn it down specifically for me. And she was wearing red.
Wow.
She seemed softer and more relaxed than I normally saw her. I couldn’t help but grin.

“This is Luke and Ash. You’ve met Ash before.” Her cheeks colored slightly and I grinned at the memory of her drunk in her pyjamas in the street.

“Mr. Aston Martin, nice to meet you,” Ash said.

“You see.” I turned to Beth. “The DB9, basking.”

She ignored me and introduced herself to Luke and Ash and I shook Luke’s hand. I couldn’t work out how he fit in to the picture. Ash was the best friend, that I understood. Was Luke the gay in their relationship, or her boyfriend? If she was involved with someone, she wouldn’t have kissed me back, and she surely wouldn’t have brought him here. Right?

“Sorry to be a drag, but I need to introduce you to some people, Harry,” Dave interrupted our introductions.

“No. I warned you about this.”

“Don’t be a brat,” Haven said.

“You took the words right out of my mouth,” Beth agreed.

“So who’s the blonde?” Dave asked as he dragged me through the crowd.

“A girl I work with. The one on the Sandy story.”

“Really? Sandy didn’t mention her. Probably because she’s gorgeous and you’re so obviously interested. It must be sending Sandy into a tailspin not having your full attention.”

“I’m not interested, stop trying to make trouble.”

Dave raised his eyebrows at me.

“What do you think of the guy? Does he play for your team?” I asked.

“Luke?” he clarified.

I nodded.

“Unfortunately not. Although I might try and turn him, he’s very handsome.”

I scowled at Dave. So Luke wasn’t gay. And I wasn’t a believer in the theory that men and women could be friends. He was either in Ash or Haven’s underwear—or wanted to be.

“Let me introduce you to Daniel Armitage and his lovely wife Leah. Daniel, Leah, this is Jake Harrison, star of our show tonight.”

“You’re very talented,” Leah said.

“Thanks. This isn’t really my thing. I just do it for fun,” I said.

“Oh, you’re one of those are you?” Leah asked.

“One of what?”

“I’ve got one here,” she said, squeezing her husband’s arm. “Super talented and successful, but too modest to see it. Well, we love your work.”

I nodded, hating the attention but trying not to be rude and excused myself. I scanned the room, trying to spot Haven. She wasn’t where I’d left her. I wanted to get to the bottom of who Luke was to her.

Haven

When we had arrived at the gallery, I’d wondered if we were in the right place. The exhibition was for a Jake Harrison. It was only when I saw Harry that I was convinced we hadn’t got lost.

“These photographs are beautiful, Haven,” Ash said, turning her head from right to left.

I nodded. “Yes, they’re better than I expected.” She was right, they were beautiful. I could see some portraits across the space from where we were, but we were surrounded by landscapes. They were huge and some of them were exposed in a way that gave them an abstract quality. But overwhelmingly, they were very romantic.

“Don’t be a bitch¸” Luke said.

“I’m not, it’s just, he works at Rallegra. I didn’t expect him to be a serious, proper photographer. You know what Robert’s like, he’s always getting his friends jobs that they’re not qualified for.”

“I think Robert asked Jake, not the other way around. Jake’s got so much on with raising the money for Elemental Energy that I don’t think he would have done it for anyone else,” Beth said.

I hadn’t realised his sister was still around, I’d been too distracted by Harry’s unexpected talent.

“Sorry, I wasn’t trying to—”

“It’s fine,” she said as she rested her hand on my shoulder. “Really, I know Robert and he has loads of friends who dabble in things but aren’t really interested in doing anything with their lives. You should know by now that Jake doesn’t fall into that category.”

I nodded politely. I supposed there was no specific example of him being another of Robert’s posh-boy friends—apart from his confidence and that he disappeared every now and then. Harry did seem to be a little different.

“To be honest, I don’t know a whole lot about him. Apparently, not even his name.”

Beth threw her head back and laughed. “Jake Harrison. Harry is a nickname. But it’s stuck and it suits him.”

I had thought that Harry and I had become close, so it was a shock to realise I didn’t even know his name. My cheeks heated. I felt ridiculous. And embarrassed that I’d assumed we had an intimacy that we clearly didn’t. He’d kissed me. I’d kissed him back and it seemed I knew nothing about him. Something about that stung. I wanted to know more. I wanted to know everything.

“And what were you saying about energy something?” I asked.

“Oh, don’t ask me about that! Jake always teases me that I can’t keep anything in my head for longer than two seconds. I’d better go and find out where he’s got to and stop him from snarling at whoever he’s talking to. It was so good to meet you.”

“So licky is licky even when I’m sober apparently,” Ash said as Beth disappeared into the crowd.

“Stop calling him that.” Harry was more than just handsome and I didn’t like that Ash made him sound like something to ogle after.

“What? Is this the guy that you said was ‘fine’?” Luke asked.

Ash nodded. I tried to distract them by wandering over to one of the many photographs on the wall. The one I faced was of a bridge in the Scottish highlands. The print was huge, it must have been six by three. There was a very wistful, romantic air about it. You could see the ends of the sunrise and the morning fog still clinging to the moss that had gathered on the rocks of the bridge. It was beautiful.

“Three thousand pounds!” I gasped when I saw the price.

“How much?” Ash asked. “Well, that explains the Aston Martin.”

“No, it does not explain the Aston Martin. You really don’t have a clue do you? He’s not driving what he’s driving by selling these photos. That comes from somewhere else.”

“He can’t help it if his father has money,” Luke said. “Some people have easier starts in life. You can’t resent them for it just because we struggled. We should be happy that others didn’t have to.” Luke had a way of shaming me like no one else could. I wanted to be a sister he could be proud of, but sometimes if felt like a hopeless quest.

I nodded and moved on to the next shot.

Over the next hour or so I caught glimpses of Harry chatting to various people throughout the evening, the ever-attentive Dave at his side. I was at the bar, refreshing our drinks when he appeared next to me.

“You still here? Thought you’d have given up with this boring old stuff before now.”

“You think I can’t appreciate art?” I asked.

“I didn’t say that. Don’t get shitty. I just meant these are a bunch of snaps I’ve taken, I’m not sure why anyone has stuck around.”

“Free booze,” I said, grinning. He must have known he was talented, but I liked the fact he was playing it down, that he was understated about what he did.

Jake nodded.

“Do you really not think they’re any good or is it the attention you don’t like?” I asked.

He looked at me, his eyes wandering to my lips and then back up, “I think they’re okay. I think if I didn’t know Dave, I wouldn’t have an exhibition, and I definitely don’t like the attention.”

“So you
can
answer a straight question with a straight answer.”

“Tell me when I haven’t, other than when you’ve been deflecting a question from me.”

It was true. He had always been very straightforward with me. We smiled at each other and something in his eyes made me feel uncomfortable. It was as if he could see into me, to parts I worked hard to keep hidden and I felt exposed. My stomach tilted.

“So which one is your favorite?” I asked, trying to pull myself back into reality.

“It’s not here. It’s at home.”

“The glamazon’s minding it for you, is she?”

“What?” He seemed confused.

“Millie, I think her name was.”

“Oh. Right. No. I don’t think she ever saw it.”

I smiled. “I’d better get back with these drinks.”

He nodded. “I’m still meeting you at the studios tomorrow?”

“Yes, eight sharp. See you then if I don’t see you later.”

As we made our way home in a cab, my phone buzzed in my bag.

Harry: You looked beautiful tonight.

My stomach flipped.
How do I respond to that?

“Who is it?” Ash asked. She was so nosy.

“Just from Harry, thanking us for coming.”

“That’s sweet,” she said.

Ash and Luke exchanged another glance.

Haven: Thanks for the free booze. I liked your pictures.

It buzzed again.

Harry: Because of the alcohol? Nice.

Haven: Are you fishing for compliments?

Despite checking my phone every nine seconds for the rest of the evening I went to bed without a reply.

The next day I drove into Pinewood Studios at ten minutes before eight and found Harry already waiting for me in what had become his usual spot. Last time we’d been here, he’d kissed me. Part of me hoped it would happen again.

“You’re early,” I said as he opened his door.

“So I could nap,” he said.

I smiled. “You’re funny.”

“I know. It’s a natural talent I have.”

“Did you have a good time last night?” I asked.

“Hmmm. In parts.”

“I was sorry not to see Millie again.” How come she hadn’t been there? I wanted to see her properly, and I wanted to understand the dynamic between her and Harry. Maybe it was wishful thinking, but I found it difficult for me to picture him with a high-maintenance glamazon.

Harry stopped and looked at me, then continued with our walk toward the stage.

“So your hair’s up again,” he said.

“Very observant.”

“Why did you wear it down last night?”

Why are we talking about my hair? “
I normally have it down when I’m not at work or running.”

“I like it down.”

My heart skipped. I wasn’t sure of the appropriate response. Did he just go around saying that to all the women he came across? Was I wrong to like it when he said things like that to me?

Jake

I’d decided that I wanted Haven and there wasn’t much I didn’t get when I set my mind to something. She was movie-star beautiful and didn’t seem to realise it, and she was sharp and challenging and soft and vulnerable. I wanted to know her and I had to have her.

I needed to understand if Luke was going to be an issue, then I would convince her that she wanted me like I wanted her.

I’d had mixed signals from her so far. She’d kissed me back but then seemed unaffected in the post-kiss aftermath. She’d come to the gallery opening, but potentially brought her boyfriend. And now she was not so subtly asking about Millie. Next week we were in Paris, and if I couldn’t seduce a woman in Paris then I’d chop my dick off.

Sandy came running up to us as we arrived. Things hadn’t kicked off yet. The atmosphere on set was much more relaxed than last time.

“Harry, Harry, so sorry to have missed your exhibition. Dave said it was wonderful. You’re so talented!”

I caught Haven rolling her eyes and grinned at her. I didn’t know if it was Sandy or Sandy’s flirting she didn’t like.

“No worries. I’m sure you had better things to do.”

“You look beautiful, Sandy,” Haven said, using my words about her.

“Thanks. We’re getting to know each other more and more. Can I introduce you to the director?”

“See what happens when you’re nice to people?” I whispered to her as Sandy led her off toward the throng of people.