Country Rivals

by Zara Stoneley

  ‘I do all these things, just to be on the safe side, and when I saw that I thought of you. Here take it, you never know.’

  ‘How sweet.’ Pandora held the card with the tips of her fingers and looked at it with distaste.

  ‘Shame you’re not going to be here much longer.’

  ‘You’d be surprised.’ Pandora’s tone was dry.

  ‘Really, babe? You think on,’ she pointed at the card, ‘I always like to help my friends get rid of the nasty stuff. Some just end up where they shouldn’t, don’t they? Need a good blast to get rid of them.’

  ‘Sorry, I haven’t a clue what you mean.’ Pandora glanced at her watch. ‘I really haven’t got time to chat, though, we do have a film to make. Come on, Katie, we don’t want to keep everybody waiting, do we?’

  Sam had developed a new daily routine since Lady Elizabeth had presented Roxy with a pony. Very keen to instil a sense of responsibility in her daughter, she made a point of taking her down to visit Rupert the Shetland each morning. It also gave her the chance to chat to Lottie, who she had grown to love like a sister, over a cup of coffee in the tack room.

  She then never missed the opportunity to observe some of the filming, with Lottie in tow if she could drag her away from the horses, before heading off for lunch with the girls in Kitterly Heath.

  In the afternoons Roxy would attend nursery, whilst Sam and the glamorous ladies who lunched would have beauty treatments, interspersed with shopping and champagne breaks, or chats to their footballer husbands, depending on upcoming fixtures and training routines.

  Right now, with Roxy brushing her pony under Rory’s supervision, she decided Lottie still wasn’t her normally bouncy self.

  ‘Tell.’

  ‘What?’

  ‘There’s something wrong, isn’t there, babe? I can see it all over your face. It’s not still that business about all them girls suing you is it? Everything’s okay with the horses and Rory, isn’t it? Oh, no there’s nothing wrong with her ladyship, is there?’

  ‘I’m beginning to think this is all a disastrous mistake.’ Lottie glanced up at Sam glumly, who was shocked to see her green eyes clouded with what looked suspiciously like tears.

  ‘Aww, babe. It can’t be that bad. I’m sure if you get your solicitor to talk to—’

  ‘It’s not just that. Look,’ she waved a letter, which Sam hadn’t noticed, in her hand, in the air. ‘It’s a letter from the vicar, the actual vicar. He’s never written to us before, and it’s on his headed paper, and look, it’s signed the Very Reverend Waterson. He says we’re bringing the village into disrepute.’

  ‘That’s a bit pompous, babe. You don’t want to take any notice of that.’

  ‘But we are, and he mentions all these people who aren’t happy. Apparently, we were on the agenda at the last village committee meeting. An actual item on the agenda, not even Any Other Business. But I can’t stop now or we won’t get any money at all, in fact we’ll probably end up paying them.’

  ‘Oh Lottie, it’s just like Tiggy said, it’s just the ones that are jealous that don’t like it, cos they can’t be involved.’

  ‘And it gets worse. I’ve had three messages left on voicemail by reporters asking if the rumours are true about Rory and Pandora. They’ve got a picture of her falling into his arms.’

  ‘Oh my God, you’re kidding?’ Sam knew all about the runaway horse incident from a mother at Roxy’s nursery, who had heard it from Mrs Jones in the corner shop, who had been told by Tab, so it had to be right. She paused, wanting to verify facts, but not sure if she should when Lottie looked so upset. She lowered her voice. ‘Is it true that he leaned over and dragged her off it, onto his own horse?’ Lottie shook her head. ‘It reared up and attacked Rory and his horse?’

  ‘No.’ Lottie sounded defeated. ‘It just bolted, but he caught up and managed to grab a rein and stop it.’

  ‘Oh. So that’s all is it, babe?’ Sam felt mildly let down. ‘But how come she, er, ended up in his arms?’ That bit had to be true.

  ‘He was just stood there at the side of the horse asking if she was okay, and she fainted on him.’

  ‘Really?’ Sam was sceptical, but seeing Lottie’s lip wobble gave her a hug. ‘How did they get a piccy of that, hun? Nobody comes and watches now, do they? I thought you’d banned that.’

  ‘Well they don’t come in and pay, no, but they still climb the walls and hide behind bushes until the dogs sniff them out.’

  ‘Aww, babe, that’s terrible. But you know the stuff they’re saying isn’t true. Your Rory’s not like that. I mean, it’s like all that bollocks they printed about you and Xander, that wasn’t true was it?’ Lottie shook her head. ‘Rory loves you to bits, you do know that? I hope you told them to stuff off.’

  Lottie nodded, biting on her wobbly bottom lip to try and get a grip. She was overreacting, being stupid. But she was beginning to build up quite an impressive drawer of newspaper clippings. The fire, her and Xander, Rory and Pandora.

  ‘He’d never go off with her, doll. She is such a cow, so full of shit,’ Sam giggled, ‘I gave her a card for a colonic irrigation offer. Not that it’ll cure her.’

  ‘Sam! You didn’t?’ Lottie had never heard Sam say a bad word about anybody, and she didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.

  ‘I did. I have to admit,’ she leant forward conspiratorially, ‘I don’t like her.’ She straightened up. ‘I gave her a subtle warning not to mess with us, but she probably didn’t get it. I mean, I like people who go after what they want, but she was all over Rory, completely out of order she was,’ she cast Lottie a worried glance, ‘and it’s not right, is it?’

  It’s not right, no, thought Lottie. What if Rory had got fed up of her? All they did these days was argue, then they did make up, but she could tell he wasn’t happy.

  ‘Is there something you’re not telling me?’ Lottie had known Sam for a few years now, and her reaction just seemed slightly over the top – even for her. Or she was being paranoid?

  ‘Well, babe, I have to admit, I did know. Not about our vicar’s letter, but somebody already told me that they had some photo. You know that Andy who came here? He’s okay really, and I was so cross about it. You’re my friend, and I stick up for my own. Not that you’ve got anything to worry about with Rory. He’s a doll. I told Andy that, said to him I’d try and get him something juicy if he didn’t put anything in the papers about Rory and Pandora, but he said it wasn’t up to him. He said if he didn’t run it and everybody else did then he’d look a dick. Anyhow I don’t think he’ll make a big thing about her being in his arms, he said he’d go on about Rory being a hero, you know, say that he saved the star of the show. I gave him some quotes and stuff.’

  ‘Quotes?’

  ‘Well yeah, the kind of stuff Rory and you would say. I didn’t think you’d mind? Come on, let’s go and keep an eye on the silly cow. If she thinks she can mess with me she’s got another thing coming.’

  ‘I suppose I’ve got half an hour to spare, then I need to straighten the muck heap.’

  ‘Ooh you’ve got such a glamorous lifestyle.’ Sam giggled.

  ‘Just let me put Gold out, then I’ll follow you up.’

  ‘Okee doke, babe. I’m going to see if I can persuade Rory to come too and we can drape ourselves all over him and wind her up.’

  Chapter 20

  By the time Lottie left the yard and was heading towards the film crew, with straw in her hair and muck on her boots, it was the immaculately made-up Pandora who had draped herself over Rory.

  ‘I wanted to say thank you, you saved my life, literally.’ Her words, buffeted by the strong wind, carried clearly to Lottie. ‘You’re my hero.’ Lottie knew she should rush over and leap between them, but she felt such a mess. How could she compete with that?

  Pandora gave Rory a winning smile and moved in for a kiss. Unluckily for her, Sam got there first. Throwing her arms round the bemused Rory she gave him a smacker right on his lips and a bear hug that
made Pandora cringe. ‘You’re everybody’s hero, aren’t you, Rory?’

  Pandora’s eyes narrowed as she stiffened and glared at Sam. ‘Oh, we’ll catch up later, darling, shall we? I’ve got to find some way of showing my gratitude.’ And blowing him a kiss she stalked off towards the waiting crew, taking her bad temper out on the man she knew would always stand by her.

  * * *

  ‘This is ridiculous, Seb. I cannot shoot in this, it’s ruining my hair.’ Pandora batted one of the sound engineers, who had nearly taken her eye out with a wind-blown boom, out of the way.

  ‘Nonsense. It’s very Wuthering Heights, it’ll heighten the atmosphere.’ Seb, his mind busy with working out angle shots, blanked out her protests and concentrated on the job in hand.

  He had originally envisaged this scene taking place on a beautiful, calm, sunny morning, but the change in the weather added a whole new element. White clouds were chasing each other across the glorious blue sky, but behind Tipping House a gloomy mass was building, creeping over the horizon – an advancing army full of murderous intent. Impending doom. It was perfect.

  ‘Into your places everybody. I want to shoot this before the weather changes. If it brightens up or starts to piss it down then we’re knackered. Where the fuck is Dan?’

  Right on cue, Dan, the main love interest in the film, opened his trailer door and paused theatrically.

  ‘Oh my God, look at him.’ Sam forgot all about draping herself over Rory and grabbed Lottie’s arm. ‘It’s him, look, Lottie,’ she pointed wildly in the direction of the actor, who, aware that he now had an audience, was sauntering over towards Seb, the wind tugging at his dark curls so that his high cheekbones were shown off to perfection. ‘It’s him. Look, he’s even more gorgeous in the flesh than on the telly.’

  ‘Who?’ Lottie squinted and wondered if she’d got her contact lenses in the wrong eyes again.

  ‘It’s that Poldark bloke.’ Her voice dropped with disappointment. ‘He’s not quite as tall as I thought he’d be, though.’

  ‘I thought he was dead.’ Rory folded his arms and wondered what all the fuss was about. ‘My mum used to watch him.’

  ‘No.’ Sam giggled. ‘This is the new Poldark.’

  ‘Oh. I’ve just got to run over to your dad’s to borrow some electric tape, Lots, then I’m going down to the gallops after that. Fancy coming?’

  ‘Oh yes.’ Lottie smiled at him, the first genuine smile for days. She felt slightly better now that Sam had thwarted Pandora’s snogging intentions, and assured her that the newspaper reports would be slanted towards ‘hero’ not ‘lover’.

  ‘Please.’ As his lips met hers, Sam grabbed Lottie’s arm.

  ‘What’s his name? You know. Ooh he is such a dish even if he’s a bit different to what I expected.’

  Lottie shook her head. ‘I’m pretty sure Seb’s budget doesn’t run to hiring stars like Aidan Turner. Shame really, but there again, would he want to be in something like this?’ She felt like adding ‘and with Pandora’, but that would be mean, so she didn’t.

  ‘Oh, you’re probably right, babe. His hair doesn’t look quite right either, now you mention it. He does look a lot like him, though, doesn’t he?’

  ‘I won’t be more than an hour at Billy’s.’ Rory wasn’t interested in ogling the stars.

  ‘I could come with you now?’ Lottie had a sudden urge to start following her husband around like Tilly the terrier did.

  He grinned. ‘You stay and keep an eye on things, gorgeous. Check Pandora doesn’t start snooping again.’ He winked, then squeezed her bum. ‘Won’t be long.’

  ‘Can I come, can I come Worwy?’ Roxy, who had been sitting quietly on the grass trying to plait Scruffy’s tail, jumped up at the first sign of movement.

  ‘Sure. Is that okay, Sam? We won’t be long.’ And he had swung her up onto his shoulders and was galloping across the grass, Tilly at his heels barking, almost before Sam had answered.

  ‘Somebody shut that fucking animal up, I need quiet.’ Seb sat down in his seat, his ankle resting on his knee, fingers steepled in front of pursed lips, and waited for silence. His wife, her arms crossed, glared at him. ‘Brilliant, Pandora. That’s the perfect mood I wanted you to capture. Ready for an argument about being bored, and why you should join in with the country sports. We’ve got a brief love scene, then switch back to that, and let it all out when your husband rolls up. Should come naturally to you.’

  Pandora’s co-star, who she detested because he always did his best to steal the limelight, sauntered into position and peered over his dark glasses at her breasts.

  Pandora, and at her insistence Seb, had followed Sam’s advice and she was dressed in the most expensive polo gear money could buy. Next to her, the man who was supposed to be the genuine article wore a well-washed polo shirt, stained polo whites, and brown boots. He pushed his sunglasses back up his nose into place.

  ‘Nice of you to join us, Dan,’ Pandora said waspishly.

  He grinned. ‘Now I know I’m irresistible, but no tongues this time, eh?’

  Lottie was just beginning to think she should head back to the stables when Seb called for quiet. Sam smiled and linked arms with her, then whispered. ‘I wonder if he’ll take his shirt off, like Poldark does?’

  If Pandora disliked Dan, her love interest in the film, it was nothing compared to the distaste she felt towards her other leading man – the rock star.

  Despite her pleading, Seb had not let her have any say in the casting of the other parts. The actor he’d chosen to play Pandora’s husband was as down to earth as they came. He swore, drank copiously, smoked roll-ups continuously (and the sweet smell told Seb there were definitely added ingredients in the tobacco) and sported some vivid tattoos that spoke of a close affinity with the devil. And that was all before he got into character.

  A heated argument with him required no acting at all on Pandora’s part, although Seb just hoped she was professional enough to remember her lines and not slap him across the face, as she had done once in the studio.

  ‘Action.’

  Pandora looked up at Dan through her eyelashes, her hand resting on the horse’s reins millimetres from his. ‘Thanks for the lesson, it was incredible.’

  ‘You’re a natural rider.’

  ‘It makes me feel alive again. I was so bored until I met you.’

  ‘A woman like you needs a challenge.’

  ‘Are you offering?’

  ‘A few chukkas on a Friday afternoon?’ He raised an eyebrow, his wicked grin suggesting a different kind of horseplay.

  He reached out, took her other hand in his, and turned it slowly over.

  Sam’s grip on Lottie’s arm tightened, despite the fact that this was the third take and she knew exactly what was coming next. The first time the horse had barged between them, the second time it had snorted at the critical moment, showering them with spittle, and this time Seb said if it didn’t stand still it was going to be canned dogmeat and they’d manage without it.

  With agonising deliberation Dan lifted her hand, dipped his head, and pressed his lips against the soft flesh, and it wasn’t just Pandora that trembled.

  Sam muffled her little squeal with her hand then hissed into Lottie’s ear, ‘Have you seen the way his buttocks tighten? They’re like two rock cakes.’ Which left Lottie fighting for control over a threatening fit of giggles.

  Dan looked up, straight into Pandora’s eyes.

  ‘My God, have you seen his hard-on?’

  ‘Shut up, Sam.’ Lottie couldn’t take much more. Any minute now she’d have to crawl away.

  ‘I was thinking, maybe we could,’ Pandora reached up, resting her hand lightly on his chest, ‘have some private lessons.’

  ‘One on one?’

  ‘Something like that.’

  ‘We could start right now.’ His hand was on her buttock, and she’d been dragged against his startling erection before she had a chance to react. Lottie stifled a giggle, certain from the
fleeting stiffening of Pandora’s body that his actions hadn’t been in the script. A second later and he was crushing her mouth with his, strong fingers entangled in her windblown hair, giving her no chance to object.

  Sam and Lottie were looking at each other with barely contained glee, but being very careful not to make a sound, when the roar of an engine announced a new arrival on the scene.

  At the sound of the approaching car Dan released his vice-like grip and Pandora drew back. She glanced at the black convertible that screeched to a halt just inches away from them, sending a flurry of gravel over the grass.

  The rock star flung his door open and leapt out, muscles bulging so that the snake tattoo seemed to writhe in the sunlight. The horse took a nervous step backwards.

  ‘I didn’t think you were due back until tomorrow.’ Pandora’s voice had a distinct tremble, and the watching crowd were fairly sure it was a reaction to Dan’s assault rather than spectacular acting.

  ‘Thought I’d surprise you, and a bloody good job too. What are you doing? Making me look a twat?’

  ‘I’m not—’

  ‘I’ve heard all about you shagging your way through the fucking county.’

  Pandora drew herself up. ‘And what about you and those groupies? You shag your way round the whole bloody country let alone one county. What do they call you, “dicks on tour”?’

  He gave a smug grin. ‘I’m expected to behave like that, you’re not, you slag. You’re my wife and you better fucking remember it. Well I’ve decided, we’re selling this place and going back where we belong. They’re hammering a fucking for sale sign up at the bottom of the drive right now.’

  Pandora glared. ‘But that’s not what we agreed.’ Her voice went up a tone. ‘I belong here. I’m not going anywhere.’

  ‘No, you don’t you stupid cow. You’re not like this wanker.’ He gestured at Dan. ‘You said you were bored when we first came here. You were the one who said you wanted to go back.’

  ‘I was bored, but I did something about it, didn’t I? Like you told me to do. I made a life for myself, didn’t I? Found some interests. What am I supposed to do? Sit on my arse twiddling my thumbs while you’re bonking your way from Bristol to Barbados.’