‘I can’t believe it,’I squealed.‘Four months in London and we have a film shoot and an agent as well, I can’t believe it.’
We stared at each other, grateful that we were there to share this new reality of our lives.
‘If it hadn’t been for Tamara – meeting her was the biggest break of our lives,’ I said. Nelly nodded.
‘She’s so generous … to recommend us to her agent friend, to hire us, she is making us,’ Nelly said. ‘When we accept our acting awards, she has to be the first person we thank every time.’
‘Agreed,’ I said. We entered our favourite haunt and found a table just inside the door. Not long after we were accepting a glass of sparkling wine from the waiter – it was cheaper than champagne and looked just as good.
‘Celebrating ladies?’ he asked, delivering our order. He was a mature man, handsome, and we were in our business suits.
‘Indeed, work victories,’ Nelly said, to him and gave him one of her charming smiles. It always reeled them in.
‘Well congratulations,’ he said, with a wink and headed off.
We clinked glasses.
‘To our brilliant careers,’ Nelly said, and I laughed.
‘To us.’ I sipped and sat back with a sigh. ‘Haven’t our lives changed so much in the last four or so months? I can’t believe it.’
‘I know. If you had said to me six months ago when we were on stage that we’d be working on an Edgar Linton film, living in London in an apartment together, and we would be signed to an agent, I would have asked you to share the glue you were sniffing,’ Nelly said and grinned.
I laughed and shook my head. ‘So bizarre, the whole thing, and getting an agent couldn’t come at a better time.’ Then I sobered. ‘I’m finished filming my part next week, so I don’t have a job to go to – I’ll be out there looking for the next best thing.’I sighed.‘Oh, the joys of acting.’
‘Yeah, that’s a reality check. I’ve got two weeks left,’ Nelly said. ‘It was so good of Tamara to give me a role as an extra.’
‘I’m sorry it wasn’t bigger but she had almost finished casting when she met you. Otherwise—’
‘It is perfect,’ Nelly said. ‘I’m on set a lot and it allows me to study the director and director’s assistant which you know interests me more. Weird isn’t it when you think the film won’t be out until next year … we will have forgotten what we did by then, we’ll have to see the film to remind ourselves!’
‘I hope Jo and James can get us work – I mean J&J, our agent,’ I said, and laughed because it sounded so surreal. ‘We’re really doing this, Nelly.’
She nodded. ‘We are. But I’m still trying to catch up with it all … you, Cathy, you’re different now,’ Nelly said, studying me.
I knew I was different; I was hardened. I felt older, a little burnt, but I didn’t think it was obvious on the outside.
‘How so?’ I asked.
She shrugged. ‘You’ll hate me saying this but you are more mature and confident.’
‘That’s me,’ I teased, ‘mature and confident … I wish. Anyway, I don’t mind you saying that at all,’ I said, relieved that she didn’t say I had become a hard-nosed bitch or a drag.
Nelly slipped her jacket off and put it over the back of the chair. I knew from her silence what was coming next. I wish people wouldn’t ask me about Heath but I guess it was inevitable for a while and Nelly was one of my closest friends.
‘Have you heard from him at all or is it officially over?’ she asked in a lowered voice.
‘Heath?’ I asked, as though I never gave him a thought. The truth was that I spent every waking moment trying not to think about him. ‘No, it is well and truly over. I don’t know what he’s doing these days and I don’t want to know.’
‘Right,’ she said. ‘So what’s he doing?’
I gave her a prize-winning smirk and then spilt everything.
‘He’s seeing Isabella Linton.’
Nelly nearly fell off her chair. ‘What the fuck? Are you kidding me?’
I shook my head. ‘She went to Oxford to see his play, and since then she appears to be going to Oxford quite a lot. There were pictures of the two of them all over her feeds – out to dinner, out at plays and events.’