Page 76 of The Girl with the Irish Secret
Vi’s spirits sank at the thought of her sisters. ‘No, not really. Not any more. We had a… disagreement a while back, I’m afraid.’
‘Oh? That’s a pity. But maybe you can sort it out between you?’
Vi sighed, the memory of her rift with her sisters taking the gloss off the moment with the man of her dreams. ‘It doesn’t look possible right now, I’m afraid. But maybe the movie and all the excitement around it will cheer them up.’
‘Could be. We could give them small parts in the movie,’ he suggested.
Vi laughed. ‘Yeah, that might be fun for them.’
‘I’m looking forward to my trip to Ireland,’ he said. ‘Especially Kerry. Never been there before.’
‘Then you’re in for a treat. It’s a wonderful county. Especially around Dingle,’ Vi told him, her heart beating faster at the thought of going back to her hometown. ‘It’s incredibly beautiful. Wild and dramatic, with mountains and beaches and views of the ocean to die for. Dingle town is the cutest little town, too, with houses in all kinds of colours and quaint little shopsand pubs where they play trad music and…’ She stopped and laughed. ‘Sorry to be blathering on about it.’
He looked at her with a glint of warmth in his eyes. ‘No need to apologise. I’m looking forward to it even more now.’
‘You’ll love it.’ She finished her pint in one go, dabbing her mouth with a paper napkin to remove any foam.
‘Would you like another pint?’ Jack asked.
Vi shook her head. ‘No thanks. I’m notthatthirsty.’
‘Well, I have to leave in a minute anyway,’ he said. ‘A car is picking me up to take me to my hotel and then I’m leaving early tomorrow. Would you like a lift anywhere?’
‘I don’t want to take you out of your way. I live in Croydon, so that would really be a big detour.’
‘Oh.’ He looked suddenly a little awkward. ‘That is rather a hack.’
‘I’ll just take the Tube and then the train,’ Vi said. ‘It’s okay, really. I’m used to the “hack”.’
‘Well, if you’re sure,’ Jack said, looking as if going to Croydon would be like a trip to the Outer Hebrides.
‘Oh yes, absolutely.’ She smiled reassuringly. ‘You might get stuck in traffic anyway and then you’d never get to your hotel.’
‘You’re probably right, even if I feel bad about it.’
‘Oh, please don’t,’ Vi said and got to her feet at the same time as Jack. ‘I’d feel doubly bad about making you go all the way out there.’
‘That’s very nice of you,’ Jack said. He hesitated for a moment, looking at Vi with a warm smile. ‘Well, it was great to have that chat. I know we’ll work well together. See you in Kerry in a few months. I’ll be there a few weeks before shooting. Just to get the local colour and all that.’
Vi nodded. ‘Good idea. Give me a shout when you get there.’
‘Of course. I’ll get your number from Liz.’ He paused. Then he leaned forward and kissed her lightly on the cheek. ‘Bye for now, Violet.’
‘Bye, Jack,’ Vi managed before he turned and swept through the crowd, ignoring the attention from everyone in the place.
Vi stood there for a moment, the kiss burning her cheek, feeling as if she had been hit by a hurricane.He was just being polite, she thought.I hope he couldn’t hear my heart beating like a drum or notice the effect he had on me. How am I going to cope when we’re working together, playing husband and wife? Looking lovingly into those brown eyes won’t be a problem when we’re acting, but off camera, I’ll have to learn to switch off the adoration.
But then, as she travelled home, she felt a tiny dart of disappointment that Jack had not insisted on driving her. Yes, Croydon was a long way to go, but he had a car and driver to take him there and back. He probably thought Vi wasn’t worth the effort. Well, she would be less enthusiastic the next time they met. That would put all her acting skills to the test.
5
Vi spent the trip on the Tube thinking about Dingle and how wonderful it would be to go home for a while. She had meant what she’d said to Jack and telling him about it had awoken all the good memories. She pushed the thoughts of her sisters to the back of her mind and simply reminded herself of the delights of Kerry and how good she always felt when she came home. It was the soft air, the friendliness of the people who were always happy to have a chat about anything under the sun, the ever-changing skies, the endless ocean, the cries of seagulls and the green hills above the town. She had longed to see the world, to go to exciting places and have a career as an actress. Now that she had succeeded, it would be good to come back to show everyone. She might not stay in Kerry for good, but this time she wouldn’t feel like running away. For a while, anyway.
Just before Vi left for Kerry, her agent called her saying the film team wanted to take a few publicity shots of her for the press release. ‘Looking as close to Kathleen as possible,’ he added.
‘Gosh, I’m not sure how to do that, but I’ll have a go,’ Vi said.
‘Their makeup artist is going to be there and do everything. Hair, face, the lot,’ Hugh said. ‘He needs to practise on you, they said. After all, he is going to have to do it every day during filming.’
