Whatever Love Is (12 page)

‘
This is Wills – sorry I can’t take your call . . .’

She grabbed her laptop and Facebooked him.

Nerys told me she said no – she’s a cow. But don’t worry, it’s not up to her. I’ll tell Ned – he’ll sort her – and then we can find a cheap B
and B when we visit Mum. I really want to see you. xx

Frankie got up and stood staring out of the window onto the rain-soaked garden, her stomach churning. How dare Nerys speak to her like that? ‘Stupid cow!’ She thumped her fist
against her thigh and brushed tears of frustration from her cheek.

‘So this is where you’re hiding.’

She wheeled round to find Henry leaning against the doorpost, chewing gum and looking for all the world as if he owned the place.

‘What do you want?’ she muttered, turning her back to him and hastily rubbing her eyes. ‘I’m busy.’

Within a second his hands were on her shoulders, and she could feel his breath against her neck.

‘No you’re not,’ he replied. ‘You’ve been crying.’

‘So what’s it to you?’ she said, shrugging his hands away. ‘Just leave me alone, OK? I’m . . . I’m . . .’ She swallowed the words down, knowing that if
she said anything more she would blub in front of him and no way was she giving him the satisfaction of seeing her like that.

‘You’re what? Gorgeous? Fascinating? Sexy?’

‘Stop making fun of me!’ Frankie snapped. ‘You think you’re so cool.’

‘Hey, chill!’ he replied gently, raising his voice above the drumming of rain on the conservatory roof. ‘I’m only telling the truth. You are gorgeous and you do fascinate
me. A lot.’ He brushed her cheek with his finger. ‘You’re beautiful,’ he whispered, ‘and later, I’ll tell you just what you do to me. But right now . . .’
His tone changed to one of briskness and efficiency. ‘. . . you’re needed asap,’ he said. ‘We want a photograph to stick up on the board at M-Brace – get people
interested before our slot. Ned’s battery is flat but he says you’ve got a decent camera.’

Frankie nodded, thankful to be able to change the subject. ‘My brother gave me his old Nikon.’ At the thought of William and her aunt’s spiteful interference, her eyes filled
with tears again.

‘Hey,’ Henry said, cupping her face in his hands. ‘What is it?’

‘Nothing. Oh, just that William – my brother – has lost his job and he wanted to come and stay but Nerys told him he couldn’t. And she had no right – interfering
old bat!’

‘He’s the photographer, right?’

She nodded.

‘I guess you two must be really close,’ Henry said easily. ‘I mean, what with the problems you’ve had to face. I know that’s how it worked with Alice and
me.’

He does understand
, Frankie thought with surprise.

‘We are close,’ she admitted. ‘When Mum got ill . . .’ She hesitated.

‘It was you two against the world?’ Henry ventured.

She nodded. ‘And I so want to see him. He’ll be back in a few days. But with Uncle Thomas and Tina away, Nerys is on her high horse and shouting the odds and . . .’

‘Maybe Nerys is just having a bad day,’ he said. ‘Although Nerys on a good day can be pretty daunting, can’t she?’

Frankie laughed in spite of herself.

‘That’s better,’ Henry said. ‘It’s not up to her anyway. Just send Tina a text and get her to deal with it. Job done!’

Frankie nodded. ‘You’re right,’ she said. ‘I’m being a wimp.’

‘Well,’ Henry went on, ‘I’m here if ever you need to talk to someone with no axe to grind. OK?’

She nodded, wondering whether perhaps she’d been too hasty in forming her initial opinion of him.

‘Oh and by the way, if you want driving practice without having to wait for my sister to leave Ned in peace, I’m your man.’

‘Thanks,’ she murmured. ‘That’s really kind.’

‘Great.’ He smiled. ‘So let’s get that camera and start shooting.’

‘So – what do you think?’

Alice and Mia threw a pose as Frankie adjusted the focus on her camera. They were wearing tiny gold shorts, bra tops studded with strategically-placed fake jewels and gold-glitter dancing
shoes.

‘You look lovely, Mimi-pops,’ Nick said, sidling up to her and sliding his hand down her back.

‘For the last time, don’t call me that!’ Mia snapped. ‘Come on, Frankie, get on with it!’

Grateful for the chance to hide behind the viewfinder, Frankie clicked away for several minutes. ‘And now all of us!’ Jon insisted. ‘An action video. In position
everyone!’

‘Wait!’ Frankie said. ‘I can’t remember how to find the switch to go to video . . .’

‘Let me see.’ In an instant, Henry was behind her, his arms over her shoulder manipulating the dial. ‘There!’ he said. ‘That should do it.’

And equally quickly, he was back in position at the keyboard.

As Frankie, feeling her cheeks burning, pressed
record
, she saw Mia staring hard at her. The look on her face was one of pure spite.

‘Right – action!’

Jon snatched up the mic and began rapping as though the audience was already in front of him. James’s drumsticks darted like lightning between bass drum and snare, while Henry, foot
tapping and swaying, bashed away on the keyboard. Mia and Alice strutted their stuff, Alice clearly the better dancer, even throwing in a couple of cartwheels during which one of her shoes flew off
and hit Nick in the face. Even Nick, the so-called stooge, made a play at lightly clumsy dancing and clapping.

The only one who looked awkward and out of place was Ned. At first his eyes never left Alice, but after a couple of minutes, he began to look distinctly uncomfortable and stared at the ground,
twice hitting the wrong chord and earning glares from his brother.

‘You know, these stills are good,’ Jon said afterwards, taking the camera from Frankie and clicking through the shots. ‘We’ll get them printed and blown up and start
sticking them up round the site. Give me the camera and I’ll upload them onto my laptop.’

‘So are we done?’ Alice asked. ‘Because the rain’s let up and I’ve got to get changed and saddle Fling. Ned’s going to have his first go at cantering,
aren’t you, babe?’

‘I’ve just got to take Frankie over to meet the guys from KOT,’ he said. ‘I won’t be long.’

‘You’d better not be,’ Alice said. ‘Fling doesn’t like to stand around once he’s saddled and ready to go . . .’ She smiled at him coyly. ‘And
neither do I.’

‘Has Alice said anything to you? About anything?’ Frankie asked Poppy later that evening as they walked to the pub to meet up with some of the old gang from
school.

‘Frankie, she lives with me, worse luck, and yes, occasionally she deigns to speak,’ Poppy teased. ‘About what precisely?’

‘About her and Ned.’ Frankie sighed.

‘Now I get it!’ Poppy laughed. ‘You’re jealous.’

‘Don’t be ridiculous, of course I’m not!’ Frankie protested. ‘Why . . . should I be?’

‘Well,’ Poppy went on, ‘Alice says that Ned is adorable, has the cutest bum she’s ever seen, and comes on to her a bit stronger every time they meet. But you really
didn’t want to hear that, did you?’

‘I don’t care.’ Frankie shrugged. ‘Why would I care? I’m just interested, that’s all.’

‘There’s something else,’ Poppy added.

‘What?’

‘Henry says pretty much the same about you.’ Poppy grinned.

Like that’s any comfort
, Frankie thought.
Although he is nicer than I thought. And definitely fit.

But he’s not Ned.

CHAPTER 8

‘You are such a fine speaker that I’m afraid
you may actually end in convincing yourself.’

(Jane Austen,
Mansfield Park
)

B
Y
S
ATURDAY AFTERNOON
,
THE RELENTLESS RAIN HAD
rendered the festival site a quagmire. Tents sagged under
the weight of water, hawkers selling transparent brollies did a roaring trade and every event in the indoor arena was packed out. The leaflets that Frankie was supposed to be handing out were
sodden within moments of leaving the shelter of the KOT gazebo and mud clung to her boots making every step an effort. Health and Safety had closed the zip-wire attraction as well as the climbing
wall and a few disconsolate children were making do with trampolines and ball pits in the large marquee. Ned had never got his riding lesson because the pause in the downpour had only lasted for
ten minutes, but Frankie could take little comfort from that. When she had returned to the house the previous evening, she had seen Alice and Ned emerging from Fling’s stable and it
didn’t take a genius to work out the meaning of Ned’s dishevelled appearance and the straw sticking to Alice’s usually immaculate hair. All in all, the weather reflected the way
Frankie felt.

Everyone else, however, seemed to be on a high. Even the fact that having the five o’clock slot wasn’t exactly prime time, they were all acting as if they were about to headline at
O2. When she got back to the house, splattered with mud and longing for a hot shower, the kitchen had been buzzing. Henry, Jon and Ned were packing instruments in their cases, all set to hike them
over to the stage; Alice and Mia were spraying glitter on every part of their anatomy that wasn’t covered (which was almost all of it) and Nick was wandering around in pink cords and a
paisley waistcoat, asking if he looked OK, and being ignored by everyone. Even Nerys, clad in a waxed jacket and trilby of uncertain age, was filling a Thermos flask and declaring that she was
determined to brave what she called ‘the screaming masses’ to see her beloved niece perform. But the biggest surprise of all was to see Tina perched at the kitchen table, watching the
rehearsal video on Jon’s laptop and clicking her impeccably manicured fingers in time to the beat.

‘Hi Tina, I didn’t think you were coming back till Sunday,’ Frankie said.

‘I wasn’t, darling,’ Tina replied, ‘but to be honest, there’s only so much raw food and wheatgrass a woman can stand. And of course, one doesn’t like to be
away from home for too long – it doesn’t do to let other people take over, does it?’ She cast a sidelong glance at Nerys and then smiled at Frankie. ‘And then there’s
William to prepare for, isn’t there? I’m thrilled he’s going to join us.’

Frankie ran over and gave her a hug. ‘Thank you,’ she said. ‘Thank you so much.’

Tina winked at her as Nerys slammed the Thermos flask onto the counter top with unnecessary force.

‘I’m so looking forward to seeing him,’ she said. ‘We all are.’

‘Seeing who?’ The kitchen door swung open and James, carrying a music stand, eyed his mother sharply. ‘Are you telling me Dad’s on his way back?’

Frankie glanced at him and was astonished to see a mixture of anger and fear in his eyes.

‘I wish,’ said Tina with a sigh. ‘No darling, we’re talking about William – he’s coming up for a few days.’

‘Great,’ James said. ‘That’s great. Now can we get a move on everyone, please?’

The stage designated for ENT night was on the very edge of the site at the top of the Maddoxes’ field, within sight of Park House and hard up against their boundary
hedge. To one side was a small tent, in which performers could wait for their slot and tune their instruments. Frankie had arranged to meet up with Lulu, who had spent the whole day drooling over a
variety of acts on the main stage. She was waiting for her under a dripping beech tree when Mia, a bright yellow waterproof hiding her skimpy costume, shouted to her from the doorway of the
tent.

‘Hey, Frankie, over here! Jon wants you.’

Reluctantly Frankie splashed her way through the puddles and into the tent where the band were getting ready.

‘I’ve brought your camera back,’ Jon said. ‘And I need a favour. Will you take some more photos?’

She nodded.

‘Great. So what I want is candid camera – lots of shots. Now, while we’re getting set up, and then during the act. And not just us, but close ups of people’s expressions
while they watch us, mood shots, all that kind of stuff. I want to use them for a collage on the website we’re revamping.’

‘Actually, I’m waiting for Lulu,’ Frankie ventured, swallowing her fury at being spoken to like some kind of hired servant.

‘So you can’t press a shutter button while talking to a mate?’ James said, swigging a can of Red Bull. ‘For God’s sake, Frankie, it’s not like you’re
contributing in any other way.’