Scandals and Secrets

'Try. What was the first thing you heard? Who was speaking?'

'It. . .it was Nathan. He said ... he said ... "So what if it was just sex between us last night? When has it ever been anything else?" And you said ... "When has it ever been anything else but sex for you with any woman?" And then Nathan laughed.'

'What a bastard,' Celeste muttered.

'Shut up,' Byron hissed from where he'd moved to be standing right behind her shoulder.

'What next?' Lenore probed mercilessly and Gemma winced.

Celeste couldn't stand the pain in those lovely brown eyes any longer. 'For pity's sake, Byron,' she whispered, throwing him a desperate look.

'Patience,' he exhorted under his breath.

Gemma was clearly struggling to remember the exact words. 'I think you then said something about having been in love with him when you got pregnant with Kirsty .. .'

'Would the words have been ... "You think I didn't love you that night all those years ago, when we made a baby together? You think that was only sex for me?'"

Gemma was taken aback. 'Yes, that's it. That's it exactly! Nathan replied he knew it was only sex and you called him a bastard.'

With a shuddering sigh, Lenore bent and picked up a large plastic folder from the coffee-table in front of her. Opening it, she flipped over some of the printed pages within, then brought it over to show Gemma, pointing to a spot at the beginning of one of the pages.

'Read from here,' she instructed.

Celeste watched as all the blood drained from Gemma's face. When she finally did look up, her cheeks were ashen and there were tears in her eyes. 'It's all from Nathan's play,'

she choked out. 'Everything I heard was words from Nathan's play .. .'

'It's a scene I've been having trouble with," Lenore explained. 'Nathan kept saying I wasn't putting enough emotion into it. He ... he was helping me with it on Sunday, playing the part of my leading man.'

'Oh, God,' Gemma groaned, swaying on her feet. Celeste rushed forward and grabbed her, making her sit down. 'Some brandy, Byron,' she ordered. 'Or some whisky. Quickly!'

'Won't be a see,' he bit out, and hurried from the room.

'Oh, Celeste,' Gemma cried brokenly. 'What have I done?'

'Surely things can be fixed up between you and Nathan now that you know the truth,' Lenore suggested, in total ignorance of what had transpired that afternoon.

Celeste shook her head. 'You don't understand.' 'I'll speak to Nathan myself,' Lenore offered.

Byron returned to give Celeste a glass with a hefty slug of brandy in it which she proceeded to force a distraught Gemma to drink.

'I think, Lenore,' Byron said, 'that it's best if I speak to Nathan. Do you know where he is tonight?'

'Not really. We were to have a full dress rehearsal for the play today but he didn't turn up. We went ahead anyway and he did make an appearance towards the end of it in the most deplorable condition. I managed to get out of him that Gemma had left him and she thought we'd been having an affair. He mumbled something about her coming home and finding us together last Sunday and jumping to the wrong conclusion. He said he was going to get blind drunk and left. It was only then that it suddenly hit me what might have happened and I rang you. I suppose he might be home by now at a pinch. You could try there.'

'I'll ring straight away. God, what a mess! You might as well go home, Lenore. There's nothing more you can do here.'

'But I feel so awful!' she wailed.

'Just go home,' Celeste bit out, thinking Gemma could only improve with her absence, no matter how innocent she was.

'Wait!' Gemma said and got shakily to her feet. She walked up to Lenore and embraced her. 'I'm sorry I thought all those dreadful things about you,' she cried. 'You've always been sweet to me and I've returned your kindnesses with jealousy and suspicion. I'm so sorry. None of this is your fault. I've been a fool.'

'Oh, Gemma, love,' Lenore said with a sad sigh. 'You've never been a fool. And what happened was not your fault. Any woman would have thought the same thing. And I haven't helped, running to Nathan with my problems all the time. But he loves you, Gemma. For all his faults, he really loves you. Don't throw him away. If you do, you'll destroy him.'

'I don't want to throw him away,' she said with a strangled sob. 'But I don't think he wants me back.'

'Then fight for him,' Lenore urged. 'You love him, don't you?'