Midsummer Magic

‘You should know by now that I never speak of how the show works,’ said Freddie with a mischievous smile. ‘Shh, it will spoil the magic.’

‘He said it!’ Ant roared in delight.

‘Shh, it will spoil the magic,’ had been Freddie Puck’s catchphrase back in the day, solemnly chanted in playgrounds up and down the country every Monday morning after the show was aired the previous Saturday.

‘Yes, brilliant,’ said Harry, feeling somewhat embarrassed by his friend. He was beginning to wonder if he’d made a big mistake bringing Ant with him this weekend. He’d forgotten in the two years that Ant had been away, just how loud, how forward, how full of hot air, how thrusting, his best friend could be. They’d been mates a long, long time, and Harry had always felt slightly overshadowed by his funnier, more confident, better-looking friend. And today, as Ant grew more expansive, Harry felt himself shrivel a bit, partly from embarrassment (Ant would insist on talking to Freddie Puck), partly from an old and familiar feeling that in Ant’s presence no one was interested in what he had to say. Luckily Freddie seemed to have an ego to match Ant’s and was revelling in the attention.

‘I’ll just get the drinks to the girls, shall I?’ Harry muttered as Ant went into an interminable discussion about how he’d watched Illusions week after week, and tried to work out how they did the tricks. Freddie just smiled enigmatically as Ant came up with ever more outlandish theories about how they were done.

Sensing they didn’t really need him, Harry took the tray of drinks over to the girls.

‘Sorry about that,’ he said, sliding gratefully into his seat. ‘Ant would insist on holding court with Freddie Puck. Honestly, he’s incorrigible.’

‘That’s one word for him,’ Diana said pointedly.

‘Look, Di,’ Harry felt even more embarrassed, ‘I’m sorry. I had no idea that you and Ant knew each other. I’d never have brought him if I’d known.’

‘It’s okay,’ said Diana, with a grateful smile. It almost made her look vulnerable, and he noticed with slight surprise how pretty she was. ‘Past history. Done and dealt with a long time ago. Now let’s get onto something far more interesting. Like you two getting hitched.’

Harry tried to smile with enthusiasm. He wasn’t sure ssssshe wanted to talk about the wedding either. For reasons he felt uncomfortable dwelling on , the thought of the wedding was making him feel more and more uneasy. But he’d do anything to avoid a row, so he smiled again and said, ‘Yes, it’s going to be great, isn’t it?’

‘I know,’ said Josie grabbing his hand. ‘We’re so excited, aren’t we, Harry?’

‘Yes,’ said Harry, with more enthusiasm than he felt. ‘We can’t wait.’

He felt mean then. He squeezed Josie’s hand and kissed her on the lips. Of course she was excited. They were getting married; they were going to spend the rest of their lives together. The thought of spending the rest of his life with Josie made him tingle all over. She was so gorgeous and she was his; he was very, very fortunate.

Diana was looking at her texts, and frowning.

‘Shit, first signal I’ve managed to get all day, and apparently I need to ring work. Will you excuse me for a moment? You two can keep wedding planning in peace.’

‘Wonderful,’ said Harry, trying very hard to feel it was wonderful.

The afternoon was turning out better than expected. Ant still hadn’t come to join them, as soon after Harry had sat down with Josie and Di, Freddie had been joined by none other than Auberon Fanshawe, the star turn in the Illusions show. While Freddie’s act had been all about the art of illusion and the power of the mind, Auberon Fanshawe had been everyone’s favourite TV magician. They’d made a formidable duo, and a formidable fortune in the process. Ant looked like all his Christmases had come at once, sitting between them; a small puppy trying to please two masters.

‘Look at that,’ Diana smirked, having sat back down after being unable to get a signal. ‘It makes a change to see Tony, I mean Ant, looking overawed. That is something positive to take from this weekend, at any rate.’

Josie laughed. ‘I know what you mean,’ she said, ‘Ant is always so much in control. Hilarious. Anyway, back to the wedding; let’s talk table plans …’

Josie was feeling a little out of sorts, and she couldn’t work out why. The sun was still really warm, and the beer she was drinking was making her feel ever so light-headed. She didn’t often drink in the day. It was pleasant sitting basking in the sun, and watching the seagulls whirl above the cliffs, and dive down to catch fish. Part of her wished she could stay here always. She missed Cornwall when she was up in London. It should have been a perfect afternoon, but somehow she felt that Diana and even Harry just weren’t as interested in talking about wedding plans as she was. Diana kept drifting off, looking across at the bay, and acting as if she hadn’t heard what Josie was talking about, while Harry … Well. Sometimes she wondered why he’d asked her to marry him. He couldn’t have appeared less interested if he’d tried.

Josie wasn’t the sort of person to get irate, or worked up about things; she normally hated taking charge, and being confrontational, but this was her’s and Harry’s wedding and she just wanted it to be special. So she decided that she would have to take charge for once, and be more forthright.

‘Look, Harry,’ she said, as she caught him drifting off again, ‘this is important. We can’t just sit your Auntie Vi with Dad’s sister. It won’t work. Lulu is a huge snob and an alcoholic to boot. She’ll be vile to Vi, I just know it.’

‘I can’t believe we’re even talking about the tables,’ said Harry. ‘The wedding’s next year. Auntie Vi might not come.’

‘Fail to prepare, prepare to fail,’ said Josie. ‘I do not want my wedding to turn into an episode of My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding, with brawls at the top table.’

‘Come on, it can’t be as bad as all that,’ laughed Diana, ‘weddings aren’t normally that exciting, except in films.’

‘And we’ll have to keep Ant away from pretty much everyone. He’s bound to upset somebody.’

‘Now that, I can agree on,’ said Di.

‘Oh come on, Josie,’ said Harry. ‘I think you’re being unfair now. And you’re worrying about nothing. Why would anyone want to fight at our wedding?’

‘I just want things to be perfect,’ said Josie, wishing he’d understand.

‘I know,’ said Harry, ‘and they will, I promise. But the most important thing is we’re getting married, and nothing else matters.’

He grabbed her hand, and squeezed it tight, then gave her that little grin she found endearing, and she was instantly mollified. Harry was right; she was getting hung up on detail. Everything would be fine.

‘Excuse me while I barf,’ said Diana, with characteristic sarcasm. ‘I think I’ll just leave you two lovebirds to it.’

‘Di,’ said Josie, stricken. She hadn’t meant to make her friend feel left out, but she knew sometimes she felt she and Harry were in their own little bubble and the rest of the world was excluded.

‘It’s all right,’ said Diana, ‘I really need to get hold of work. I might get a signal on top of the cliffs. And I fancy watching the sunset anyway. I’ll wander back up to the Stones, and see you back at home. At least it means I get to avoid Tony for a bit longer. Result.’

‘If you’re sure,’ said Josie.

‘Absolutely,’ said Di firmly. ‘So lose the stricken face. You and Harry can have some time to yourselves. I’m sure you need it.’

And with that, she was gone.

‘Okay,’ said Josie, ‘time to talk about flowers …’

‘Josie,’ said Harry with a groan, ‘do we have to?’

‘Yes,’ she said firmly, ‘we absolutely do. Now shut up and listen.’

‘I love it when you come over all dominant,’ said Harry, giving her a grin that made her go shivery all over.

‘Oh, do shut up,’ said Josie, throwing a beer mat at him, but she felt better. Organising weddings was hard work, it was bound to make them tense with each other sometimes. So long as Harry always looked at her like that, they’d never have anything to worry about. ‘And concentrate, we have a lot to organise.’

Ant was having a whale of a time. Freddie Puck was fascinating company and Auberon Fanshawe a master of the discreet, or not-so-discreet, celeb story. Ant couldn’t believe his luck. Fancy meeting his boyhood heroes. No one, but no one would ever know how much time the young Ant had spent alone in his parents’ shed with a box of matches and a firelighter, trying out Auberon’s ‘How Do You Light The Burnt Match?’ trick. It was his little secret, but for the first time in his life he felt able to share it. They would understand. Freddie and Auberon were both good sports too, happy to have their photos taken with him, joking that their pictures would no doubt be all over Twitter and Facebook in an instant. Discreetly, when he thought they weren’t looking, Ant had done exactly that. He felt a little foolish when they caught him out, but it wasn’t every day you met your heroes …

‘So what’s your next project going to be?’ Ant asked.

‘Hush, hush, my boy,’ Auberon tapped his nose. ‘Early doors and all that. Let’s say my agent is in some … interesting discussions. And I have a few irons in the fire production-wise. I’m more in the production side of things now, with Freddie here.’

Freddie gave Auberon a sly look.

‘You could always sign up for A Dream. I hear an old friend of ours is playing Titania soon.’

Auberon blushed, and looked flustered. ‘I don’t think so,’ he said.

‘What about you, Freddie? Any chance we’ll be seeing Illusions back on our screens?’ asked Ant.

‘Possibly,’ said Freddie, ‘but actually, I’m down here researching a new project.’

‘Which is?’

‘Going to different locations in the UK, and trying to work out if the local myths have any grain of truth in them.’

‘Such as?’

‘Well, here it’s the Standing Stones,’ said Freddie. ‘Locally people claim to plight their troth at midnight, and fall in love for ever. I’m going to see whether by suggestion and hypnosis, we can actually make two people fall in love with one another.’

‘Right,’ said Ant. ‘Now that’s something I’d like to see. Because I don’t believe it can be done. Take me for instance. I’m not in the slightest bit suggestible.’

‘Really?’ said Freddie. ‘In my experience most people are a bit suggestible.’

‘Well, if you could say, make me fall in love with – that woman,’ said Ant, ‘then maybe I’d believe you.’ He pointed in the direction of Diana, then realised Diana had disappeared and he was pointing at Josie.

‘What, that pretty little girl?’ said Freddie. ‘Easy peasy.’

‘No, not her,’ Ant looked round wildly for Diana. ‘She’s marrying my best friend. The other one – she was here a minute ago, tall, large, redheaded, loud, thoroughly obnoxious. She must be round here somewhere. I can honestly tell you she is the last person on earth I would want to be with, and vice versa. If you could make her fall in love with me, then maybe I’d believe you.’

‘Are you a betting man?’ said Freddie with a smirk.

‘Okay,’ said Ant. ‘Tenner says it can’t be done.’

‘Twenty, that it can,’ said Freddie.

He extended his hand to Ant.

‘You have a deal, my friend.’

Chapter Five

‘Well, that was exciting,’ said Ant, finally making his way over to where Harry and Josie were sitting. Auberon and Freddie, no doubt glad to be free of their most enthusiastic fan, had settled down with their drinks in the far corner. Harry felt guiltily relieved. Maybe Josie would calm down on the wedding chat for a bit. He had tried to be as fascinated about flowers as she was, but he found he just couldn’t do it. All he really wanted was to spend time alone with Josie and not have to mention weddings for a week.

‘You’ve come to join us at last,’ said Harry, ‘and save me from this endless talk of weddings.’

He’d intended it as a joke, but a trace of irritation had entered his voice, and he could see from Josie’s slight wince it wasn’t lost on her. He immediately felt guilty again. He didn’t want to upset Josie.

‘What happened to Dynamite?’ said Ant as he sat down.

‘Gone for a walk to the Standing Stones,’ said Harry.

‘And don’t call her that,’ said Josie.

‘Talking about the Standing Stones,’ said Ant – before he was interrupted by a dramatic figure striding into the beer garden, followed by a retinue of apologetic-looking people clearly trying to calm her down.

‘Who does he think he is?’ she was saying angrily, ‘coming here, spoiling my moment.’

‘Don’t worry about him, darling,’ said a rather androgynous creature dressed in the tightest chinos that Harry had ever seen, and a long flowing top. Harry would have hazarded a guess at the figure being male, if it weren’t for the long painted nails, and the high heels. He/she appeared to be following the woman, a blowsy-looking blonde dressed in tight leather clothes thirty years too young for her and dripping in gold, touching up her make-up at every opportunity. ‘Don’t frown, darling. You’ve only just had the Botox done.’

‘Which means I can’t frown, Gray,’ snapped the woman.

‘Is that?’ asked Harry.

‘Tatiana Okeby, yes,’ said Josie, ‘I remember her now. She and Auberon Fanshawe were all over the papers at one time. But, God, she’s gone to seed.’

‘Put your claws away,’ said Ant. ‘I think she’s rather magnificent.’

Harry couldn’t see it himself, she was a bit bold and brassy for his tastes, but she certainly had … something. The whole beer garden had stopped to listen to her, enthralled by the situation unfolding before them.

‘Tatiana, my darling, what a lovely surprise,’ Auberon Fanshawe drawled. He and Freddie had been sitting quietly in the far corner. Harry could see that Freddie was sniggering into his pint glass, clearly enjoying the drama.

‘Surprise, my arse,’ said Tatiana. ‘You planned this, didn’t you? You and Freddie. Just couldn’t wait to spike my guns, could you?’

‘What do you mean?’ said Auberon, wide-eyed and innocent. ‘Freddie and I are here quite by chance. Freddie’s researching a new TV programme. We’re staying at Tresgothen Manor.’

‘How very convenient,’ said Tatiana. ‘That you just happen to turn up in the same village, where I’ve been staying already, negotiating to play Titania in A Dream. I’ve been in talks with Mike Slowbotham about it for days. You’d better not screw this up for me.’

‘As if I would, Tati, as if I would. I’m sure the world is waiting with bated breath for your Titania.’

‘Don’t you dare,’ she glared at him angrily. ‘And don’t call me Tati.’ But she seemed mollified enough to calm down. Suddenly aware of her audience, she smiled graciously around her at the holidaymakers packing out the pub.

Before long someone had plucked up courage to ask for her autograph, and she smilingly obliged, as if the previous scene had never occurred. Soon she was surrounded by an adoring crowd and the chatter had returned to normal.

‘Well, that was entertaining,’ said Ant. ‘What a woman. Never a dull moment.’

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