‘You’re perfect as Kate,’ Juliet put in gently. ‘You deserve the honour.’
Jake had said Kate was perfect—she wouldn’t think of Jake! ‘I’m surprised Paul Forbes allowed it.’
‘He didn’t have any say in it. Weston insisted on it, and when he insists like that no one argues with him.’ Matthew watched Stacy closely for her reaction.
Her face paled, her breathing shallow. She licked her bottom lip, a purely nervous gesture. ‘Jake did?’ she asked shakily.
‘Jake did,’ Matthew confirmed.
‘But I— Why?’
He shrugged. ‘Who can tell why that man does anything? He just does it.’
Juliet gave her a gentle smile. ‘We can wait for you while you change.’
It had taken Stacy aback that Jake should do this thing for her, but it didn’t change her decision not to go to the premiere. She didn’t want to see Jake and rake up the feelings she still had for him, feelings that she had pushed to the background to stop them hurting so much.
It was four months since she had left the film location, four months of fighting the love she felt for Jake, four months of knowing it was a fight she couldn’t possibly win. She had heard nothing from him—and hadn?
?t expected to. As far as she was concerned the break had been final.
But Matthew was right, she was losing her figure, and she would lose her looks too if she wasn’t careful. It somehow didn’t seem to matter any more, the ambition she had always possessed in abundance was just not there any more. If she went after a job and got it, that was fine, if she didn’t get it that was fine too. In actual fact she rarely bothered to go after jobs any more, living off the small amount of money she had managed to save the last couple of years. She would worry about what to do next when the money ran out.
‘Jake will be there,’ she stated the obvious.
‘Well, yes,’ Matthew agreed. ‘But you don’t have to go near him. And there’s always the possibility he may not be there—he left the filming before anyone else, some crisis in the States, I think,’ he told her thoughtfully. ‘He may still be unavailable.’
‘And he may not,’ she shook her head. It wasn’t a risk she was prepared to take. ‘No, I’m sorry. I appreciate your coming around here for me, but I’m not going.’
‘I think you’re a fool,’ Matthew was angry again. ‘The quickest way over this thing is to face it head on. Meet the man and get it over with.’
Stacy smiled wanly. ‘You’re probably right.’ But she knew he wasn’t. There was no way out of what she felt for Jake.
‘But you don’t think so,’ he realised with a sigh. ‘Oh hell, Juliet talk some sense into her!’
‘Juliet knows better,’ Stacy answered for the other girl. ‘I told you he acted like my older brother,’ she teased.
Juliet laughed. ‘Yes. And he’s not going to take no for an answer.’
Stacy sobered. ‘But you understand, don’t you? You know why I can’t go.’
‘I think so,’ her friend nodded.
‘Then take this big idiot away and try and explain it to him. You should leave now anyway, it’s getting late.’
‘You’re adamant about not coming?’ Matthew demanded.
‘Very.’
‘All right, but don’t blame us if everyone wants to know where the new up-and-coming star is. I never thought of you as temperamental, but you’re certainly giving a good impression of it.’
‘Come on, Matthew,’ his fiancée encouraged, pulling him towards the door. ‘I’ll call you tomorrow, Stacy.’
‘And tell you how good you were,’ Matthew muttered as a parting shot.
Stacy was able to relax once more when they had gone, the boring serial which had been showing when they arrived now replaced by an old film. This one was older than most, the storyline almost non-existent, the dialogue deplorable, the only reason for the film being made at all being that the hero managed to make a constant show of his biceps.
Nevertheless, Stacy watched it, and several other programmes that held no interest for her. Sandy came in about twelve-thirty and went straight to her bedroom; their other two flatmates at an all-night party.