‘You haven’t forgotten his reputation?’ Helen said dryly. ‘I told you the first time I met him that he’s a rake, and you know it’s true.’
‘No man gets to be thirty-four without a few affairs.’
‘A few? I’ve lost count of them! No, Jenny, I have a feeling he’ll forget me while he’s in America.’ And strangely that hurt.
* * *
Helen waited all week for him to call, but didn’t hear from him. It was amazing how just in the short time she had known him she had come to rely on seeing him. Knowing he wasn’t even in the country made her feel curiously vulnerable, as if by telling him about herself she had put herself in his care.
Perhaps that was why the picture in the Sunday newspapers of Leon out at a party with his female co-star hurt her like a physical pain. The Sunday newspapers tended to report on that sort of thing more than any other daily newspaper. Crystal Graves was a tall classical blonde, very beautiful, very assured, and Leon was gazing into her face as if he wanted to do more than just look at her.
Helen felt betrayed by the photograph. Leon had forgotten her, forgotten he ever knew her. She had been confused, hesitant, even frightened before she had finally told him everything about herself, and it had meant nothing to him; she meant nothing to him. He had calmly gone off to America to work and was now dating the beautiful actress. He might even be laughing at her now for the mess she had made of her life.
No! That she couldn’t believe. Leon might be cruel at times, a little heartless on occasion, but he wouldn’t laugh at her, of that she felt sure. He had probably just decided he didn’t want her sort of complication in his life, that he didn’t have the time to cope with a near-hysterical female every time he came near her.
She handed the open newspaper to Jenny without a word and got up to remove their breakfast things. She had a smile fixed on her face when she came back from the kitchen, desperate that Jenny shouldn’t see just how hurt she was by Leon’s defection. ‘It’s a good photograph, isn’t it?’ she remarked lightly.
’I’m sure there’s been some sort of mistake.’ Jenny was watching her closely.
‘You can’t make a mistake with a photograph,’ said Helen with forced humour.
What she really wanted to do was crawl away and cry her heart out. It seemed that now Leon had finally been the one to reduce her to tears he was going to do it all the time. She had liked it better when she felt nothing.
‘Perhaps it was a publicity stunt,’ Jenny persisted. ‘I believe they sometimes do that, the romantic image and all that.’
‘Even if it was for publicity you can’t dispute the fact that he hasn’t called me as he said he would.’
‘Well, he must have been pretty busy over there, and then there’s the time difference. Perhaps by the time he’s had a free moment it’s been too late to call here, we might have already gone to bed.’
‘Then he could have got up slightly earlier one morning and telephoned then. No, Jenny, I’ll just have to face it, I’ve frightened him off.’
Jenny sighed. ‘I’m sure you’re wrong. There has to be a logical explanation for it.’
‘Oh, there is—he prefers Crystal Graves. And who wouldn’t!’
Her cousin gave her an impatient look. ‘You don’t know that that’s true.’
‘I know that he hasn’t called, and that’s enough for me.’
‘You’re so stubborn,’ Jenny sighed.
‘It’s better than being gullible as I used to be.’
Jenny stood up. ‘You’re impossible! I lose all patience with you. Matt’s taking me out today, would you like to come with us?’
‘Matt, not Brent?’
Jenny blushed. ‘I told you to forget that conversation.’
‘Yes, but—’
’Please, Helen. Now, do you want to come with us?’
‘Stop fussing about me, Jen,’ said Helen. ‘You don’t need to invite me along on your dates. Goodness, you never used to be this protective!’
‘I just thought you might enjoy it better than sitting here on your own all day.’
‘Being miserable,’ Helen added the words her cousin omitted. ‘But I’m not going to be miserable,’ she said brightly. ‘I’ve got plenty to occupy me.’