‘You’ve got a nerve, coming back here.’ Tight faced and clearly angry, Jeremy rattles clothes from hangers and throws them on the bed next to his suitcase.
‘I live here!’ Martin stands in the doorway, still wearing his coat and the tired smile of the jet-lagged.
‘Well, I don’t, not for much longer. The horses have been taken care of. Angela’s taking responsibility for them until such time as you make other arrangements. That’s my friend, in case you’ve forgotten.’
‘Jere-my’ Martin walks towards him in the hope of an embrace. ‘Don’t be like this.’
‘What did you expect?’ Jeremy glares at him until he lets his hands drop. ‘A right fool you’ve made out of me. I can’t believe I didn’t see it coming.’ He starts to fold shirts on top of the trousers already in his suitcase.
‘I didn’t see it coming either.
‘Well, there’s a first.’
They tussle over the shirts as Martin tries to take them out again. Snatching one from Jeremy’s hands, Martin takes it to the wardrobe to find a hanger. ‘Jeremy, I’ve come all this way to put things right,’ he says, sliding one shoulder of the shirt and then the other over the hanger and smoothing its front with his hand before returning it to the rail. ‘I’ve got three hours before I’ve got to fly back again. Doesn’t that mean anything to you?’
‘It means you’ve got more money than sense and something to feel guilty about.’ Jeremy snips, deciding to leave the shirts in favour of tipping his underwear drawer directly into the case and bunching tee-shirts in his hands and throwing them in.
‘I don’t feel guilty because there’s nothing to be guilty about!’ Exasperated, Martin upends the entire contents onto the bed again and throws the suitcase to the far side of the room. ‘Listen to me! That photo isn’t how it looks. I tried to tell you that on the phone.’
‘So Gloss Goss got it all wrong, did they?’ Jeremy stands with his hands on his hips. ‘And what about the quotes from your happy little friend, did they make those up as well?’
‘I haven’t read it...’ Martin says tiredly, rubbing bleary eyes and sighing. ‘And he’s not my little friend as you put it, happy or otherwise. He’s just someone I met on set.’
‘How fortunate you had your trailer to go to.’ Jeremy retrieves the suitcase and starts repacking but without any of the previous care he had taken with folding.
‘He has never been in my trailer. Nobody goes in my trailer. Will you stop that and listen to me?’
‘Why should I?’ The glare returns but more watery than before. ‘All my friends will have seen it. They’ll be laughing themselves silly. What made me think someone like you could ever want someone like me; I can hear them saying it now, and they’d be right. I was a fool to think I’d ever be anything more than a passing phase. Head cook and bottle washer, that’s me, that’s all.’ He blinks away any sign of emotion and his jaw tightens. ‘Well, un petit Francais should spice things up a bit for you,’ he says sarcastically. ‘I hope you’ll be very happy.’
‘Stop that and stop it now....Please’ Martin puts a gentle hand on Jeremy’s arm only to have it shrugged off again. ‘What you saw wasn’t what actually happened. You’ve seen photos like that in the papers, where the paparazzi catch a shot the split second it looks like someone’s focussed on something they shouldn’t ...down someone’s cleavage or up their skirt. Well, it was the same with Anton and me. They caught him halfway from kissing one cheek to kissing the other side of my face and it looks a lot more amorous than it actually was. It’s how he greets everyone,’ he says, pushing a distracted hand through his hair and leaving it pressed against the back of his head as though being reasonable makes it hurt. ‘It doesn’t make him gay and it doesn’t make him a threat to us either.’
‘You’re telling me he’s not gay?’ Jeremy scoffs. ‘He twitters on about how happy he is to be with you and he’s not gay?’
‘Happy to be working with me, that’s all. He can’t mean anything else because there’s nothing else going on.’ The hand drops to Martin's side and he tries to shake the tiredness from his head. ‘I need coffee.’
‘Then you’d better make it yourself, hadn’t you?’
‘Don’t do this, please.’ Martin takes advantage of the fact Jeremy has his back to him and puts his arms around his waist. ‘Come with me...’ he murmurs against his neck. ‘Come back with me and meet Anton, see for yourself. I love you for goodness sake. I’ve said it often enough. You are so wrong about this. Come back with me and you’ll see you’re worrying about nothing.’
‘Sort that out with him did you?’ Jeremy sidesteps from his grasp and turns to face him. ‘’Keep out of the way while the housekeeper’s here and promise I’ll make it up to you once I’ve got rid of him?’’
‘You’re my husband for Christ’s sake! I’m not getting rid of you; it’s you who’s packing.’ Martin throws a hand towards the bed and the case. ‘And where do you think you’re going to go?’
‘I’m not without friends, you know,’ Jeremy snaps back. ‘I’m sure I can find someone who’ll put me up until I find somewhere of my own. Or was that what you were banking on, that I’m so reliant on you I can’t exist on my own anymore so you can do what you like? Simon made that mistake.’
‘Don’t be so childish. I’m fully aware you’re an independent man. I’m under no illusions at all. I know if I didn’t treat you right, you’d be off.’
‘And that’s why you’re here, because you know you’ve put your foot in it and you’ve got to get in quick with your excuses before you lose your charlady and stable boy?’
‘Stable boy...right...’ Martin grasps the opportunity to even the balance. ‘While we’re on the subject, how is me being away and working with other men any different from me leaving you here with him?’
Jeremy snorts with derision. ‘Now who’s being stupid? I’ve told you before, he’s been twice round every one of the village girls while he's waiting for the jail-bait to come of age. He’d be more likely to become Pope than turn queer.’
‘We’re not the only gays in the village.’ Martin mutters to himself, amusement tugging at the corners of his mouth.
‘Oh, ha ha, very funny.’
‘None of this is funny, is it? You really have got hold of the wrong end of the stick...’
‘And which end did Anton get hold of?’
‘Not mine! This would never have happened if you’d agreed to get married properly instead of making some wishy-washy vows over the kitchen table.’
‘Well, aren’t you lucky we did?’
‘Meaning?’
‘Meaning, dear heart,’ Jeremy criss-crosses the room while gathering his things together. ‘you can play the field all you like because nobody is going to tut at you and say you should know better because they didn’t know anything about it then, so it needn’t mean anything to you or anyone else now.’
‘I meant every word and still do. I don’t want you to do this. This is mad, totally over the top. ’
‘That’s me all over, isn’t it, dear?’ he sashays back to the suitcase.
‘Stop acting like a queen. It’s not you.’
‘Isn’t that what I am?’
‘No,’ Martin pushes himself away from the wall to try and reason with him again. ‘You’re a wonderful man and I love you very much. I’ll give it all up....’ he says, throwing his hands in the air.
‘What, your little fling with Anton?’
‘No, not Anton!’ he moves closer to Jeremy and lowers his voice as he reaches out to lay his hands on his shoulders. ‘My career, everything. I’ll give it up and stay here if only you’ll stay with me.’ His hand lifts to touch his cheek, then his resolve cracks and resentment flares. ‘I’m not losing you over some bloody photo!’ He turns away angrily and stomps to the window to stare out.
‘You’d do that?’ Jeremy says in a small voice, the shirt he intended packing bunched and held against his chest.
‘If that’s what it takes.’ Martin lets the curtain drop and turns to give a curt nod.
Jeremy flaps a hand. ‘Oh, I couldn’t have you under my feet all day, every day. It’d drive me to distraction. And what if I wanted to go anywhere?’
‘You’ll stay?’ Martin says with a croak in his voice.
‘I might think about it.’
The Old Smithy, Standersfield
Chapter Forty-five
Woodbury General Hospital
‘Hello.’ Corinne looks up from the nurses’ station and smiles as Nathan approaches.
‘Hello, yourself.’ he taps a rhythm on the top of the counter with the flat of his hand and winks. ‘You okay?’
‘I’m fine.’ Her smile widens and her eyes dance.
‘And how’s ....’ Nathan turns his head to look to the far end of the ward and his voice fades to a whisper ‘Steph today?’ He falters as though a moment’s pause might persuade him that what he is seeing is simply wishful thinking and then he jolts into action. Delighted he high-fives Corinne and starts to run.
‘No running in the ward, Mister Samms!’ A stern faced Sister reprimands with a shake of her head. Her dour expression changes the moment he passes and she follows his marginally slower progress with a smile.
‘Oh, wow’
‘Hi.’ Stephanie laughs as Nathan crouches in front of her, lost for words other than the softly breathed exclamation.
‘Oh, wow.’
She reaches out and feigns a punch to his chin. ‘You yait until I’n yalking.’
‘This’ll do for now.’ He puts his hands on the arms of her chair and lifts himself just far enough to be able to kiss her on the lips. ‘You look......’
‘Nornal?’ Stephanie suggests with a smile.
‘Beautiful.’ Nathan kisses her again and gets to his feet. ‘Someone’s switched your light on.’ He smiles tenderly as he cups her chin in his hand and caresses her jaw with his thumb. He looks around for another chair, borrows one from beside the next bed and sits down beside her. ‘Take it everything went alright?’ he smiles and folds her hand in his. ‘I knew this was going to happen sometime...but seeing you out of bed...sitting there...like...like...’
‘Nornal, what I said.’
‘Wrong word...’ Nathan tips his head sideways, rubbing his forehead and smiling while he tries to work out what he does mean. ‘Beginning....a new beginning, that just about covers it.’ He says, squeezing her hand. ‘I thought it’d be physio and straight back in bed again. This is fantastic. You in a lot of pain?’ he adds in a less cheery afterthought.
‘Not yad.’ Stephanie tilts her hand from side to side in a ‘so so’ gesture. ‘Wor’ it.’ She sits back in her chair, looking smug. ‘I can stan’ uh’
‘On your own?’ he says incredulously.
‘Wid dars.’
‘Bars?’
Stephanie nods. ‘And take ny hands o’ gor a little yile.’ She bends forward to rub the lower half of her legs. ‘Yey not stron’ nu’ yet.’
‘This is why I want you to go to the other hospital, where there’s a pool. You need help with getting them strong, they can do that there.’
‘Ny ‘riends are here.’ She argues determinedly. ‘I don’t yant to go!’
‘Okay.’ Nathan laughs softly, giving her hand a brief shake. ‘It was always up to you. If you don’t want to go, you don’t go. That’s all there is to it. But if you change your mind...You would make other friends there....’ The pitch of his laugh deepens at the obstinacy in her glare and he gives up any hope of persuading her otherwise. ‘Whatever you want.’
Stephanie grunts her approval and lets her shoulders relax.
‘This mean you could be home soon?’
‘Uh uh.’ She shakes her head. ‘It’s too soon. It too nuch yor Nun n’ Dad. I can’t get here on ny own, I ha’e to ha’e helf yith eyerything.’
‘I could do it,’ he says eagerly ‘you could stay at my place, I could put a bed downstairs, I could...’
‘Carry ne to the loo? No yay!’
‘I don’t mind....’
‘GUT I DO!’
‘But it’s something I’d have had to do if you didn’t get any better than you were. I was up for it, didn’t bother me. I could’ve dealt with the lot if I’d had to. As long as I was with you, it wouldn’t’ve mattered. I’d’ve wiped drool, cleaned you up, washed...’
‘I did no’ drool!’
‘No?’ He lifts an eyebrow and grins as he jokes: ‘You should’ve seen yourself.’
‘I do see nysel’’ Stephanie lowers her head, letting her hair hide her face.
‘Stop that.’ Nathan tries to lift her chin. ‘You wouldn’t know now unless you were looking for something and that’s the truth.’ He catches her hand on its way to her mouth. ‘Don’t you dare. It’s getting there. I can see the difference even if you can’t. They’ve worked wonders and you’ve worked bloody hard but it all takes time. Yes?’ he prompts.
‘Yes.’ She sighs and lifts tear-filled eyes to his. ‘I niss you.’
‘And I miss you.’
‘I nean I NISS you!’
‘Yeah,’ Nathan laughs ‘I miss that as well but think what it’ll be like when we can get it together, eh?’
She hesitates over the question, twirling her hair round her fingers. ‘You ha’en’t geen yith anyone else?’
‘What do you take me for? No, of course I haven’t. I can wait. You know something?’ he says, looking round then standing up and lifting a finger to mean that she should wait. ‘I reckon you’ve got too much time on your hands, too much time to worry about things like that. You’re bored, that’s what’s the matter with you. You hang on here a minute.’
‘Yere an I going to go?’ Stephanie grumbles and slaps the arms of her chair, but manages to look intrigued just the same as he strides the length of the ward to the nurses’ station. She watches the exchange between him and the nursing staff and recognises the smile meant to win any argument and the body language of the stubbornly uncompromising. Eventually, he leans across the desk and kisses the Ward Sister on the forehead. Grinning, he walks back to her. ‘Yat’s going on?’
‘We’re going on a date.’ He says, pulling the curtains around the bed.
‘A date?’ she echoes.
‘Well...the hospital restaurant...but it’s a start and it’s as far as they’ll let me take you. You need a wee or anything before we go?’
Stephanie giggles ‘No. But how....’
‘The same way you get anywhere.’
‘You’re not going to yush ny yed, are you?’
‘Oh...’ For a moment, Nathan looks bemused. ‘No wonder they thought I was off my head.’
‘Here we are...’ Corinne pushes her way through the curtains with a wheelchair. ‘Any problems and you’re to bleep the ward.’ She says, putting a bleeper into his hand. ‘And don’t go anywhere we don’t know where you are. The restaurant on the next floor and that’s it, okay?’
Nathan nods gravely.
‘Right, your first lesson...You get that side, I’ll stay this. One arm under hers and behind her back, the other under her knees, hold onto mine.’
‘Your knees?’
‘This isn’t a joke.’
‘Sorry...’ Nathan’s grimaced apology follows swiftly in the wake of the nurse’s scowl. ‘Like this?’
‘You ready, Steph?’ Corinne nods at Nathan and smiles at her. ‘Persuasive, your fella, isn’t he?’
‘I’n ready.’ Stephanie puts an arm round each of their necks, her voice shaking with nervous anticipation. ‘And yes, he is...’
