by Jill Mansell
Then the red ball transformed into a giant crimson chrysanthemum that was instantly joined by sapphire, white, and orange bursts of light exploding beneath their flight path like gigantic flowers blooming on fast-forward.
“It’s a firework display!” Belatedly realizing that Dan might think she was choosing a creative way to change the subject, Lily exclaimed, “It was a firework I saw, not a UFO! I love you too!”
He turned to look at her as they flew over the multicolored carpet of fireworks exploding far below them. “Really?”
“Really!”
“In a just-good-friends way, do you mean?” He’d sounded so calm before, but he wasn’t feeling calm at all, Lily realized. He was double-checking, being cautious, needing confirmation, and it just made her love him more.
“Not in a just-good-friends way at all. Quite the opposite kind of way, actually.” She felt her stomach unknot and broke into a smile, finally unafraid to reveal her true feelings. At last she could be honest. “There’s never been anyone else for me, either. It’s always been you.”
“I can’t believe this.” Dan reached across for her hand. “I just can’t believe it’s happening. I want to kiss you, but…”
“You have a plane to fly,” Lily said. Every single cell in her body was zinging with anticipation at the thought of what lay ahead. “Are we nearly home yet?”
He gave her fingers a squeeze. “I suppose we’ve waited fifteen years, so another fifteen minutes won’t kill us. Unless… Have you ever had sex in a cockpit before?”
“Waiting might not kill us,” Lily said, “but sex in a cockpit definitely would. Let’s get our priorities right and land safely, shall we?”
Dan was grinning at her. “You’re the boss.”
Chapter 52
One year later
It wasn’t every day you got to see yourself plastered across a huge poster advertising a hotly anticipated, about-to-be-released movie. Lily couldn’t stop gazing up at it.
OK, it wasn’t actually her face on the poster, but it was the face of the actress bringing her to life on the screen. And having your character played by Mira Knowles was still pretty amazing, not to mention surreal.
“Well?” asked Dan, who was at her side. “How does it feel?”
“Weird.” Lily leaned against him. They’d viewed the poster online, but this was the first time they’d experienced it in the flesh, so to speak: full-size and on display for everyone to see.
“Wait till millions of people have seen the movie. That’ll be weirder.” Dan brushed his warm mouth against her cheek. “We should check in to the hotel. You haven’t heard from Patsy, have you? She didn’t reply to my text.”
Right on cue, Lily’s phone began to ring. She glanced at the screen. “This is Patsy now. Hi, where are you? Have you left yet?”
“We’re not going to be able to make it.” The line was crackly, and Patsy sounded distant and out of breath. “I’m having contractions. Oh, Lily, it’s happening. I’m in labor!”
Lily’s mouth dropped open. “What? Oh my God, really? Right this minute? Are you in the hospital?”
“We’re heading there now… Ooh…ow, ow, owww… Hang on a sec…”
“She’s having the baby,” Lily told Dan. “They’re on the way to the hospital. Right now!”
Dan regarded her with amusement. “You sound so astonished. She has been pregnant for the last thirty-nine weeks, you know. It had to come out sooner or later.”
Lily gave him a thump on the arm. “I know, but it’s exciting! Pats, can you hear me? Do you want us to come back?”
“OK, contraction’s passed. I’m here again. No way,” Patsy exclaimed. “You’ve got a premiere to go to. No, no, you do your thing, and I’ll do mine. We’ll see you tomorrow… Ooh, this weather! Is it raining in London?”
“Still sunny here.” Lily glanced up at the clear blue sky. “Hasn’t rained at all. How’s Oliver doing?”
“Trying to be brave on the surface, but underneath he’s panicking like a—Ooooh!”
“Well, tell him to drive carefully,” Lily said. She loved Oliver; they all did. The night Patsy had been stood up had turned out to be the best night of her life.
“Aaarrrgh,” Patsy gasped. “I will!”
* * *
Patsy’s last aaarrrgh hadn’t been another contraction. Rather, it had been due to the fact that she’d discovered the flooded lane they were traveling down was more flooded than they’d first thought.
To be fair to Oliver, you couldn’t say he hadn’t been driving carefully. He’d driven very carefully indeed through the water when it was only a few inches deep, and there had been no indication whatsoever that the lane would suddenly dip and the water would become much deeper. Poor Oliver, it wasn’t his fault; he wasn’t familiar with this nifty shortcut she’d told him to take.
Patsy, who was familiar with both the shortcut and the sudden dip, had been too busy talking to Lily to pay attention. The rain was lashing down around them. On the radio, there were reports of flash flooding throughout Gloucestershire and Oxfordshire, and there were warnings that the emergency services were at full stretch. Patsy looked at Oliver, the man who had made the last year the happiest of her life, and saw his hand tremble slightly as he turned the key in the ignition.
Rurr-rurr-rurr-rurr-rurr…
Nothing happened. The engine was flatly refusing to start. It was like trying to force a sleeping teenager out of bed with a plastic spoon.
Patsy witnessed the growing panic in Oliver’s eyes as the realization sank in that they could be in real trouble here. And as if in sympathy with the tension in his jaw, the ominous tightening sensation started up again inside her stomach. As before, the first few seconds were fine, but then it moved beyond an acceptable level and became a wave of pain so intense it took her breath away. Ow. Ow.
Rurr…rurr…rur…rur…rur.
“OK, here goes.” Abandoning his attempt to start the engine, Oliver opened the driver’s door and jumped into a foot of murky brown water. “Maybe if I can push us out, it’ll do the trick.”
He was strong, but not that strong. Under the circumstances, Rambo himself might have struggled. As Patsy clutched her enormous stomach and panted her way through the contraction, Oliver tried and failed to move the car either backward or forward. Climbing back inside like a sodden, drowned rat—actually, more like a drowned bear—he said in a strained voice, “We’d better call an ambulance.”
If there was one available.
Patsy’s phone, which had slid to the floor during the last agonizing contraction, began to ring.
* * *
In their central London hotel, Dan was stretched out on the huge bed in their room, watching as Lily began getting herself ready for the evening ahead. Her hair, still wet from the shower, was rippling down the back of her white terry cloth bathrobe. Her dress was hanging up in the steamy bathroom to get the last few wrinkles out of the peacock-blue silk. It was early, still only four o’clock, but they were meeting Eddie and Mira to catch up before the main event.
“What are you looking at?” Lily was eyeing him through the mirror as she smoothed foundation onto her cheeks.
“Some girl I fancy,” Dan said.
“And why are you watching her?”
“Just wondering if I’ve got a chance of persuading her back into bed.”
“You already had your chance, and you took it.” Lily’s eyes sparkled as she finished blending in the foundation and reached for her pot of blusher.
Dan loved to watch her doing her makeup. She was fast, but the result was always impressive. He loved the way she widened her eyes as she applied mascara to her long lashes, then leaned forward and raised her eyebrows to brush darker shadow into the sockets of her eyes. He adored the way she put on lipstick, pouting, then pressing her lips together. And he knew he’d
never tire of watching her tilt her head this way and that as she sprayed scent behind each ear, along her collarbones, and—always the final squish—down her cleavage.
Basically, he just loved every single thing about her, more than he could have imagined possible. His friends and work colleagues might tease him for having become a one-woman man, but they didn’t know the half of it. If they could only be aware of the thoughts that went through his brain, they wouldn’t believe he was the same person. But he was, and he was finally the person he’d always wanted to be. Being with Lily had made his life complete, and he knew without a shadow of a doubt that he never wanted them to be apart.
Hence the plans he’d made for tonight…
* * *
The call on Patsy’s phone had come from Sean, just to let her know that he and Will were about to leave Stanton Langley and head up to London for the premiere. When she told him where she was, Sean had said at once, “Don’t bother calling an ambulance. Stay where you are. We’re on our way.”
They arrived twenty minutes later, appearing through the torrential rain like two knights on a shining white charger.
OK, in a muddy, gray Range Rover, but Patsy wasn’t complaining. Her contractions were now less than five minutes apart, and she was in a world of pain.
“Has she had it yet?” Sean leaped down from the passenger seat and was instantly up to his knees in water. Within two seconds, his hair was plastered to his head, his sweatshirt and jeans soaked through. “No? Jolly good. Let’s get her out of there, shall we?”
“Huuurrrgh.” Patsy clenched her teeth as the next contraction seized her in its remorseless grip. “Huuurrrgh.”
Will backed up the Range Rover, sending waves of water whooshing onto the floorboards of the car. Oliver and Sean linked arms and, between them, managed to carry Patsy across to the 4x4 and lift her onto the backseat. Oliver waded back, collected her case, and locked the car. Then the four of them headed off through the biblical downpour to the hospital where Patsy was due to give birth.
Thirty minutes later, they sloshed into the parking lot. Will pulled the Range Rover up outside the entrance to the maternity unit, and Sean raced inside, located a wheelchair, and brought it out for Patsy.
“I feel like a sack of potatoes,” Patsy panted as they pushed her into the reception area.
“That’s exactly what you feel like,” Sean said. “Only heavier.”
Despite the pain, Patsy laughed and tried to hit him. The receptionist said cheerfully to Sean, “So you’re baby’s father, I take it?”
“Not me.” Sean shook his head. “I’m the ex-husband.”
“Oh, right. Sorry! Is it you, then?” Taking in the impressively broad shoulders and huge biceps, the receptionist beamed at Will.
“Ow, ow, wrong again.” Patsy puffed her way through the next contraction. “He’s my ex-husband’s boyfriend.”
“But you never know,” Will said cheerily, because they were currently interviewing potential surrogate mothers, “you might see us back here in a year or two when we have one of our own.”
“Right! I see!” The receptionist, who had clearly encountered every possible variation in her time, turned to Oliver and said brightly, “So how about you, dear? Third time lucky, or are you a taxi driver just here to pick someone up?”
“Ow, ow, ow,” said Oliver, because Patsy was squeezing his hand so tightly his fingers had gone blue. Then he broke into a huge smile suffused with pride. “I picked her up fifteen months ago. Yes, I’m the father.”
“Well, that’s great,” said the receptionist. “And how many of you are staying for the birth?”
“Not me!” Will looked horrified.
“Nor me.” Sean took the keys to the Range Rover from Will. “We’re off to the movie theater to see a movie.”
Oliver rubbed his crushed fingers. “Looks like it’s just me, then.” Then he rested his hand on Patsy’s shoulder and shook his head in wonderment. “I’m going to be a dad. I can’t believe it.”
“I’m going to be a mum.” Patsy smiled up at him.
“We’re going to have a baby,” Oliver marveled.
“And it’s not going to be born on the backseat of a broken-down car, thanks to us.” Sean struck a manly pose. “We’re like gay superheroes.”
“OK, the midwife will be along to see you any minute now,” the receptionist told Patsy before turning her attention back to Sean and Will. “So! What movie is it you’re off to see?”
“It’s called Five Days Away,” Will said.
“Oh, that one—gosh, I had no idea it was even out yet! It was filmed not far from here. Did you know that? Starring Eddie Tessler and Mira Knowles… Ooh, I love those two,” the receptionist exclaimed. “I’ve heard it’s supposed to be really good…”
* * *
Prior to the premiere, everyone had gathered in a private room at the hotel where they were staying. Champagne was served, members of the cast and crew met up once more with the characters Eddie had based his screenplay on, and the producer and director both gave brief speeches to say how incredibly proud they were of the end result.
“Any news about Patsy?” Once the speeches were over, Eddie joined Lily, who took out her phone and checked that no new texts had come through while it was switched off.
“Not yet. Oliver said they’ll be back in touch once it’s over. We’re not allowed to call them because apparently she’s busy being in labor and it’s distracting. So who knows when we’ll hear? Could be any minute now,” Lily said, “or tomorrow morning.”
“That’s the trouble with babies,” Eddie said. “They’re such divas. So self-centered and unpredictable.”
Lily said, “And now it’s my turn to ask. Do you have any news?”
“About what?”
“Whatever you like. But I’m kind of wondering if there’s anything you’d like to tell me about you and Mira.”
Silence. Eddie was looking at her. Finally he said, “Are you a witch?”
Lily grinned. “Considering you’re actually a pretty good actor, you haven’t been able to hide it very well. Even Dan noticed something was going on with you two. And he’s a man.”
Eddie gave in with good grace. “Oh well, we’re just trying to keep the press off our backs for a bit longer. It’ll come out sooner or later. Two years we’ve known each other, three movies we’ve made together, and all that time we were just friends. Then a couple of weeks ago we met up in New York, and everything changed.”
“That’s brilliant.” Lily truly meant it. “I’m so happy for you.”
“It might not last. It’s great at the moment.” As he spoke, Eddie’s gaze settled on Mira across the room, talking to Will and Sean. “But you never know how things will work out, do you? Especially in our business.” He made a face. “I’m still pretty new to it, remember. Mira was a child star—she’s been famous her whole life. She’s incredible, and I love being with her, but she hasn’t exactly had a normal upbringing.”
Turning to look at them from thirty feet away, Mira winked at Lily. “On the other hand, I have amazing hearing. Ears like a bat!”
The waiters were collecting the glasses; it was time for everyone to leave the hotel and make their way across to Leicester Square.
“Heard anything?” Coral joined Lily and Eddie while Dan and Declan went to check that the cars were waiting for them outside.
“Still no news. You look fantastic,” said Lily.
“Do I? Are you sure?” Coral smoothed down her coffee silk dress. “These heels are killing me. I can’t believe I’m about to walk down an actual red carpet!”
Declan was at the doorway, beckoning to them. Lily said, “You can take your shoes off as soon as we’re inside the movie theater.”
“But I don’t want to rush in,” Coral protested. “It’s going to be my one-and-only time on a real
-life red carpet. I want to make it last as long as I can.”
Chapter 53
“RRRAAARRRGGGHHH.”
Patsy was roaring now. Oh God, the unearthly noise she was making; she sounded like a wild animal, and she felt like one too. Panting hard and aware of the perspiration trickling down her forehead, she opened her eyes and gasped, “Sorry… I’m sorry. Is this completely putting you off me?”
Oliver mopped her forehead with a wrung-out cold washcloth and smiled down at her. “It’s not putting me off you.”
“Are you sure? Because what if you’re thinking this is the most hideous experience of your life and you can’t stand the sound of me howling like a… Ow, like a wolf…owww… Oh, make it stop… Waaahhh!”
“OK, listen to me,” Oliver said when the contraction had eased off. “You look beautiful. You’re having my baby, and I’m not going anywhere. I already love both of you, and one of you hasn’t even been born yet.”
The warmth of his reassuring words flooded through her. Patsy felt her heart swell and her anxiety recede. This wonderful man was the best thing that had ever happened to her. With Oliver at her side, she could do anything, including giving birth to something the size of a prize-winning pumpkin.
“Right then, Patsy,” the midwife announced from her position at the foot of the bed. “You’re ten centimeters dilated, my darling. It’s all systems go now. Time to start pushing this baby out!”
* * *
Lily and Declan were standing back, watching the stars of Five Days Away do their thing on the red carpet for the barrage of cameras as photographers jostled for the best shots.
“Enjoying yourself?” Declan asked.
“Well, I haven’t spotted any runaway mice this time, which is a bonus. It’s a lot easier not being the center of attention. Although some people seem to be having fun.” Lily twisted the crystal-studded bangle on her wrist and smiled at the sight of Coral being photographed with the actresses who’d played her and Patsy in the movie. Coral was loving every glamour-packed second, every camera flash and scream of delight, not to mention the buzzy air of excitement that was—
