| |
“OH, WHY MUST A MAN like that be made unhappy when there are lots of girls about who would worship the very ground he trod on?”
Bram Stoker, Dracula
––––––––
“HI.” GRACE STOOD NEXT to Ben and tried to resist touching him.
“Grace.” His voice was warm and deep and she liked it when he said her name. “Have a seat.” He snapped his laptop shut and indicated the chair opposite him.
She sat down, twisting her hands in her lap, until she noticed she was doing it and stopped abruptly. No one else ever made her this nervous.
She smiled at him. “You got the part of Quincey. Your Texan accent was good and you have the right look, I think.” She allowed her gaze to roam very briefly over his broad shoulders and chest. She bit her lip thinking how lucky Sophie was to be able to grope him as part of her role in the play.
He unconsciously tousled his hair as he smiled back at her, and she longed to reach out and run her fingers through it. It needed cutting, and was starting to curl, but she thought it had never looked so inviting. God, she had it bad.
“That’s great news. I didn’t think I’d get the part with Clem and Clarke messing about on the stage the way they were.”
“Yeah, they weren’t the only ones. I’m running out of places to hide the bodies of all the people who wound me up,” Grace said jokingly.
Ben was sympathetic. “It must be tough being Director, a lot of responsibility.”
“It’s a thankless job, but I’ve got a lot of karma to burn off.” She hoped she was coming across as funny and not too spiky, but she was very tired.
Ben leaned closer and she could smell his aftershave. He smelt like sage and leather. She tried to remember if she was wearing perfume today; probably not. She inhaled deeply and then wondered why she was torturing herself. Fancying Ben, and doing nothing about it, was something she had learned to live with a long time ago.
“Um, Grace. Can I ask you something personal?” He lowered his voice.
Her breath caught, “Yes?”
“It’s about Rose. Are she and Leo a long-term thing?” Ben’s eyes watched her carefully and she saw just how much he cared.
Damn, damn, damn! She hadn’t realised until now that he had been all that serious about Rose. Their relationship had seemed very casual, sometimes weeks had passed between their spending time together. Rose always said that it was more a relationship of convenience, a partner to events, someone to dress up for, that kind of thing. She even said that he had been unbothered when she had told him that she was with Leo. Now Grace wondered if Rose had really known Ben very well. One look into his big brown eyes had shown Grace they were filled with longing. He must have been too shy to push his way further into Rose’s life.
“Sorry, Ben, but you need to move on.” She didn’t mean to be harsh but the last thing she wanted to do was get involved in a conversation about his chances with Rose.
“Right. Okay, thanks. Plenty more fish in the sea and all that.” He shifted away from her in his chair. She saw the shutters come down on his emotions. He hid them well. Much like herself, she thought.
She wanted to make him smile again. She wanted to be the one who comforted him, but it wasn’t appropriate. She hoped he would get over Rose quickly, but she didn’t really want him to find someone else. She stood up. “I’ll see you at rehearsals then?”
He nodded, but his attention was already lost. He reopened his laptop, so she walked away. He wasn’t the only one who needed to move on. She was determined to find someone new to fixate on as well. It was working for Sophie. Sophie hardly mentioned Jack’s name anymore. It was Torrin says this and Torrin says that all day long. Grace felt she could cheerfully strangle Sophie if she mentioned once more Torrin’s perfect “bod”. Rose was even worse; she didn’t say much but she was just so bloody happy all the time. She never concentrated on anything Grace said to her, she was always staring off into space with a dreamy look on her face, and she lit up like a Christmas tree whenever Leo walked into a room. When would it be Grace’s turn to have a boyfriend she could obsess over? When would anyone else compare to Ben Everest?
***
BEATRICE COULD HEAR Jenna coming all the way from the East Tower Common Room. Jenna’s footsteps pounded as she evidently took the stairs two at a time, before she whirl winded into their dorm room.
“Crumbs, Bea. Why didn’t you tell me you were auditioning for the play? I’ve just checked the cast list, you’ve got the part of Mina! You!”
“I know, Grace told me already.” Beatrice was too happy to be upset by Jenna’s obvious shock.
“But this is fantastic! I got a part too, Dracula’s tart. You know, the vamp who seduces Harker?” Jenna was clearly ecstatic, though it wasn’t a role Beatrice would want, never in a million. She tried to be pleased for her roommate.
Jenna and Beatrice gave the outward impression that they were good friends. But they weren’t really. Beatrice had stumbled in on Jenna crying in the bathroom during their first year and had been so kind that Jenna had confided in her. Her secret was that she was at Compass Court on a scholarship. Her parents had no money and she thought the other girls would tease her. Beatrice had been surprised; surely Jenna ought to be proud that she was so clever? Wasn’t a scholarship something to brag over? But Jenna had been adamant that she didn’t want anyone to know. Beatrice had considered sharing her own secret, that she was extremely rich, but it had seemed rather inappropriate so she had kept quiet. However, she was sure that Jenna suspected she had money. Beatrice had only one expensive weakness (apart from chocolate) and that was clothes. She deliberately chose designers that were not flashy with logos, but there was no hiding the fact that her clothes were extremely high end. Most people didn’t pay enough attention to Beatrice to realise what she was wearing, but Jenna was constantly pinching stuff from her wardrobe at the weekends, and there was no way she wouldn’t have noticed.
Not that Beatrice’s clothes fitted Jenna anymore. Jenna had a figure that Beatrice could only dream of. It was funny because Jenna had been short and skinny and had dark greasy hair when they started school, but over the years she had shot up in height, her hair had thickened, her eyes were almost feline and her face had become rather spectacular. Jenna had turned into a look-alike for Megan Fox. She was now very popular, especially with the boys, and was dating a boy from London who would turn up for her every other Saturday on his motorbike.
Beatrice had also treated Jenna to things all the time. If they went into the village then she paid for lunch. If they took a bus into town or went to the cinema then Beatrice got the tickets. Jenna didn’t merely take her clothes, she borrowed her sunglasses, her shoes, her makeup, even her iPad. Beatrice hadn’t minded, she had thought Jenna was her friend, but one day she overheard someone ask Jenna why she hung around with Beatrice. Jenna had laughed and cruelly said that standing next to Beatrice made her look taller and thinner.
That was the end of their close friendship as far as Beatrice was concerned, but she and Jenna still had to share a room. Jenna continued to be nice to her face, so Beatrice didn’t say anything, but she didn’t pay for anything again either.
Jenna handed Beatrice the cast list. “Take a look at who else is in it! You get to kiss Gabriel Brenner, you lucky lucky git! And we both get to kiss Alex Parkhurst – he’s pretty cute. In fact I get to rip his shirt off.”
Beatrice couldn’t help laughing along with Jenna, she was so shameless and made everything sound more fun than it probably was.
“I went and had a look at some of the costume designs. Yours is going to be rank. A Victorian dress, ankle length with a high neckline, you poor thing. Mine is totally revealing. I wonder if there is anyone I could seduce in it?” She ran her finger down the cast and crew lists.
“Ooh, what about Bradley Delacroi? I’ve always fancied him. Just like coffee and chocolate, some things are better black. And he is delicious.”
“What about Nick? Aren’t you seeing him anymore?” Beatrice said.
“Yeah, but I might dump him. He works as a waiter, for cripes sake. The boys here have a lot more money.”
Beatrice hid her disgust. She understood that Jenna was really just very insecure about being poor. “I thought you liked Nick. He’s crazy about you.”
Jenna sighed theatrically, “So many men, so few who can afford me. Just like coffee or chocolate, some things are better rich.” Jenna stopped at another name. “Oh, here we go. What about Ben? He’s not going out with Rose Falcon anymore. Plus he’s on the rugby team and fairly yummy. His dad works for Formula One, doesn’t he? He could invite me to Silverstone or something.”
Beatrice rolled her eyes. “I doubt it. But Ben doesn’t strike me as easy to seduce anyway.”
Jenna smiled wickedly, “Ah, that’s what you think. I think I can get anyone if I put my mind and body into it. Do you think you could subtly ask him if he’s seeing anyone else yet?”
“No way, my powers can only be used for good.” Beatrice shook her head firmly, glad at least to hear that Jenna wouldn’t try to steal anyone else’s boyfriend.
Jenna looked unperturbed. “I’m going to go and have a crack at warming him up now, he’s down in the Common Room. And just wait until you see my costume. It won’t be a question of if, but of when!”