Kelsey-boo, I miss you. F x
She shuddered at the cold jolt of sadness as she switched the phone off. Hiding her head under the covers, she tried not to think about Fran all by himself in his flat, his dreams and plans shattered. She suddenly felt very alone.
Chapter Thirteen
‘Self-love, my liege, is not so vile a sin, as self-neglecting’
(Henry V)
Determined to arrive at work early that morning, Kelsey had wolfed her breakfast and thrown on her uniform, but with jeans this time, leaving her blow-dried hair wild and loose and remembering to open the window wide to stop her bedsit turning into a sauna after her shower.
Thinking of how frazzled her skin had been yesterday she slathered on sun cream, loving its scent. Even in the depths of winter on rainy days at home she’d been known to smear on her summer sun lotion. You simply can’t have the January blues when you smell like banana daiquiris and coconut.
Passing the rainbow-striped strap of her camera over her head and across her body she felt instantly complete, her mind abuzz with thoughts of the beautiful photographs she might capture today.
There on the floor beside the camera bag was Fran’s envelope brimming with cash. Crouching down to lift it, thoughts of Fran flooded back, and she felt the wind leave her sails again. She hadn’t called him yet and even though she didn’t really know what she’d say to him if she did, she knew she’d have to, and soon. Yes, she missed her family and Mirren, but there just wasn’t that same tug of homesickness when she thought about Fran. Instead there was overwhelming guilt and another, more subtle feeling, still too new for her to recognise fully: the growing glow of self-reliance. Shoving the money into the zip compartment of her camera case, Kelsey rushed for the door. There were errands to run before meeting Will.
First, she made her way to the bank on the high street and hurriedly paid in the money, relieved to get rid of it. It simply wasn’t safe having that kind of cash just lying around, but it certainly made the prospect of a summer away from home a lot more enjoyable. It meant she needn’t worry too much about paying her way and it was going to make her second errand a lot more fun.
Kelsey made a beeline towards the smart shopping arcade near the river, scanning the rows of shops for a clothes store. She passed the florists, art galleries, hair salons, jewellers, patisseries, and coffee shops before spotting the little cluster of quirky independent clothes shops with cutesy names like ‘Flora and Frieda’, ‘Watermelon’, and ‘Boo and Blue.’
I’ve got to come back here on my days off, it’s gorgeous.
Her heart was beating faster. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d shopped for herself. Fran always noticed on the rare occasions she wore something new and he’d sulk about it, asking how much it had cost. Well, today she was going to shop, or rather, speed-shop.
The boutique was smart if rather tiny and sparse inside. Kelsey was the only customer and the girl behind the till looked surprised to see someone in the shop so early. She closed her magazine quickly and greeted Kelsey politely. ‘Come on in. Are you looking for anything in particular?’
Kelsey eyed the rails of expensive-looking clothes. ‘I was looking for boring work trousers, but now I’m here…’
Twenty-five minutes later Kelsey was running as fast as she could towards Will, two large bags bumping up and down on her hips. And she was laughing like a maenad. Her working summer holiday in this shopper’s paradise had got off to the perfect start.
‘Ciao, bella,’ Will called out. He was leaning on the lamp post opposite the agency doors.
‘Eh? Oh, ciao, I guess. You’re very chipper this morning.’
‘You’re looking pretty happy yourself. And, I must say rather sexy too, except…’ He was eying her new cropped dark grey pants. ‘Perhaps ditch the price tag?’ Reaching a swift hand down towards Kelsey’s hip Will yanked the label from her trouser pocket.
‘Oh my God. Thank you, I think.’ Blushing again? She cursed inwardly, exasperated at Will’s ability to fluster her. Trying to collect herself, she pressed on. ‘Can I drop these bags at your hotel this morning?’
‘Of course, let’s go.’
Will slipped on his sunglasses, his hair falling messily around their dark frames. He looked just as good as she remembered but she couldn’t help fulminating over how this posh-boy stranger could make her feel so attractive and so young and silly at the same time. What frustrated her even more was her suspicion that he knew exactly what he was doing, in fact, he seemed to delight in it.
‘Doing a bit of swanky shopping then? Good for you. You’re a beautiful girl; you deserve nice clothes, especially if they make up for having to wear this godawful uniform.’
Walking on, chatting about the day ahead, Will told her they were hosting an Italian group all day and they wanted the exact same tour the students had yesterday. Kelsey waited on the busy pavement as Will ran up to his room in the Osprey Hotel.
Unexpectedly, she felt a gentle hand on her shoulder as she was greeted with an enquiring ‘hello?’ Startled, she spun around to be met with the bright smiling eyes of two women, both wearing the Norma Arden Agency uniform.
‘Hello! More tour guides? I’m Kelsey. Lovely to meet you.’
Trying to read her new colleagues’ name badges, she made out only one, ‘Valeria’, belonging to the petite, glamorous woman with the long glossy brown hair who was already hugging her.
‘Welcome to Stratford,’ she was saying in a soft accent that Kelsey couldn’t place. ‘I’m Valeria, and this is Myrtle.’ She placed a hand on Myrtle’s back and pulled her into the conversation. Myrtle, a little older and broader than Valeria, with cropped pixie-cut dyed white hair, leaned forward to shake Kelsey’s outstretched hand.
‘Glad to meetcha, Kelsey. Is that an Irish name?’ she said in a slow American drawl that reminded Kelsey of Jerry Hall.
‘It’s Scottish, I think. Do you know, I’m not sure? But I’m Scottish.’
‘What we really want to know is why you’re hanging out outside Will’s rooms.’ Valeria’s voice crackled wickedly. ‘Shall we all set off and leave him wondering where you are?’
‘Depends where you’re going,’ Kelsey replied.
‘Same place as you, honey. We’re all doing the Italian tours today,’ Myrtle drawled.
I really bloody must memorise that rota! ‘Fabulous!’ Kelsey compensated for her embarrassment with enthusiasm. ‘We’d better wait for Will, though. He’s stashing my shopping in his room.’
Her fellow guides glanced at one another with a flash of amusement and slightly raised eyebrows. The look lasted a millisecond, but Kelsey knew what it meant. They were thinking that Will had his hooks into the new girl already. A tiny pang of offense pulsed through her and she felt her cheeks redden. She wanted to have them know she was newly single – well, possibly, sort of single – and not about to fall for just any old Flash Harry, but instead she looked down at the street, lost for words. Myrtle had her arm around Kelsey’s shoulders in an instant..
‘Yep, let’s wait. He’s a sweetie, all right. Showing you how it’s done, is he?’ Myrtle’s voice was kind but Kelsey still felt stung and flustered.
‘Kind of. I hope I can do it. He’s pretty good, isn’t he?’
‘Honey, you ain’t seen us at work yet,’ Myrtle said with a laugh, just as Will stepped through the hotel doors and out into the sun. He was carrying four bottles of mineral water.
He kissed Myrtle and Valeria twice – a friendly smacker on each cheek – and handed out the bottles.
‘Just one of the perks of having your own bar.’ He flashed that Cheshire cat grin again. ‘We’ll need them this morning; it’s set to be the hottest day of the year so far. Right, let’s do this. I’ll take the church first. Myrtle and Valeria, start by the river? Then we’ll swap, yeah?’
They walked down the wide curving road to the church where three large coaches were lined up. Tourists were pouring out onto the street. Kelsey had no idea wh
at they were saying. Will casually took her hand and pulled her towards the front coach.
‘This is us, Kelsey Anderson. Watch and learn, kid.’
Will produced a clipboard from his backpack and started rhyming off names in a thick Italian accent, calling the group to order with nothing but charm and an obvious love of being the centre of attention. Soon they were under his spell, listening intently to their guide’s perfect Italian as he led them through the shady churchyard.
Valeria winked at Kelsey as she walked briskly past, her group rushing to keep up with her as they made their way down to the riverside. In the distance Myrtle was trying to herd her group off the bus and onto the safety of the pavement, her voice raised to a loud shout over her gabbling crowd. ‘This way, folks.’
She seemed to have less command over her lot than Will and Valeria, but Kelsey was still in awe of her courage and that loud voice. Soon she’d be trying out her own voice in front of the crowds. The quick dread flooded her body, suspending her breathing and quickening her pulse.
Chapter Fourteen
‘What’s to do? Shall we go see the relics of this town?’
(Twelfth Night)
After visiting Shakespeare’s grave again, the group wound their way down to the shaded riverside where Will expertly recited the same sonnet as yesterday, this time, of course, in luscious Italian. Kelsey had to look away to stop her mouth falling open. Who knew it was possible to make Shakespeare sound even more romantic? Kelsey looked at the notebook open on her lap; today’s page was blank. Excluded by the language barrier, she certainly wasn’t learning anything new, other than how flirtatious Will could be.
It wasn’t easy catching his attention as he stood in the middle of a circle of unbelievably glamorous women of all ages who crowded around him on the steps of the main theatre, but by eleven she’d had enough.
‘Will? Excuse me, Will.’
His momentary look of confusion told Kelsey he had completely forgotten she was tagging along, and that smarted a bit, though she wasn’t entirely sure why her pride would be stung. Will was just doing his job.
‘I haven’t a clue what you’re all saying. Do you mind if I sneak off the tour? I think I’d get more out of today if I just found a quiet spot and read through Norma’s information booklets again.’
‘Yeah, sure, no worries. Just meet us at the pub later. You know, for the Bard Crawl? We’ve got a few Yanks, and some Brits booked in. Five o’clock? Do you know where the starting point is?’
Shaking her head, she shrugged. ‘It’s a pub called the Yorick, isn’t it? But I’ve no idea where it is, Will.’
He made his way over to her, leaving the women to cluck crossly at his sudden neglect. Seeing the scowls, Kelsey felt inwardly rewarded. He smiled as he held her firmly by the arms and spun her round, pointing to the lovely old cottage pub she’d been standing in front of all along.
‘Seriously, look at your map, woman. It’s right there.’
Spinning her around again, he leaned in and kissed her on both cheeks as casually as though he’d known her all her life. Kelsey stood frozen to the spot, dazed and aware that she was grinning stupidly, wishing he wasn’t walking away from her. She watched as he disappeared, devoured by the ring of women already bombarding him with questions, each one jostling for his attention.
‘See you later,’ she offered, in a higher pitched voice than she expected, but Will was oblivious.
Turning with a deep breath to face the crowded riverside she was struck by a sudden giddy sense of freedom. The summer was in full swing, the sun was blazing down and she had the rest of the day to explore her new town. She knew exactly what she wanted to do.
With her camera cradled in her hands, she passed the theatres, heading down into the theatre gardens – a broad expanse of closely cropped grass criss-crossed with wide canals and bridges.
There in the canal basin, which had the air of a smart little marina, were narrow boats painted in every colour and moored in rows, some with little walkways jutting out into the water alongside them. A few boats had signs by them inviting visitors in. They were shops. Kelsey peeped inside the first one she came to, the brightest of them all. Its rooftop sign read ‘Roses and Castles.’
Inside Kelsey discovered a little gallery selling miniature paintings on tiny wood-framed easels, and red flowerpots, yellow milk urns and black metal jugs all boldly painted with flowers in green, white, and gold. Spotting a painted heart hanging on a ribbon she immediately thought of her mum at home and reached for her purse.
‘The colours are so vivid. Is it OK if I take some photographs in here?’ Kelsey asked, as the smiling lady behind the counter in the stern busily wrapped the gift in tissue paper. She didn’t mind one bit, even offering to pose for a shot in front of her workbench where she was painting a large box with a sloping lid that lifted up on hinges.
‘It’s a writing desk,’ she let Kelsey know, pointing out the sunken glass pot for the ink.
After taking a few carefully lit shots using her flash to warm up the boat’s dark interior, Kelsey thanked her before climbing out onto the gangplank that led back to the path. The next boat was even more tempting. It was an ice-cream barge.
Soon, Kelsey was sitting on the grass enjoying her mint choc-chip and watching the tourists bustling around the canal basin, feeling only a little guilty she wasn’t yet brushing up on Norma’s information booklets. She’d settle down to work soon. At times like this, only a selfie on a camera phone will do, so she did something she rarely attempted. Holding her phone up high, licking the melting ice cream and winking cheekily at herself on the screen, she tried to capture her best angle.
Eat your heart out Mirr! 32 degrees here and I found a boat full of ice cream. When are you getting here? Kelse xx
Shielding the screen from the sun’s glare she could just make out Mirren’s reply – a picture of her friend hunched over her desk in the newspaper office wearing a thick cardigan and miserably holding up a healthy muesli bar.
Sucks to be me right now. See you mid-July, got a whole weekend off. Also got a night in late August. Want a visitor then too?
Kelsey smiled broadly to herself as she finished her ice cream and sent back just one word: ‘YES!’
Kelsey’s eye was suddenly caught by the familiar thick black font on a sign that read, ‘Historic Walking Tours: Tickets Sold Here.’ The sign stood on a narrow jetty jutting out into the water alongside a broad boat that seemed taller than all the rest. Its shutters were opened wide and inside she could make out a man sitting by a cash register. Making her way over to him, she guessed he was possibly in his late forties, though his dark skin, chiselled features, and bulging muscles made him appear far younger at first glance. He was squeezed into the familiar burgundy agency uniform. From his name badge she knew that this was the renowned Gianfranco, the one Will had told her about, Norma’s squeeze. Just as she was about to introduce herself, Kelsey recognised a voice from further inside the boat.
‘All right, Gi-Gi, you keep pushing those tickets for the Bard Crawl, and I’ll see you tonight.’
Norma had just finished counting money from the till into a bank deposit bag, and was leaning down to kiss Gianfranco’s handsome, placid face, when she spotted Kelsey.
‘Kelsey, dear! How lovely to see you. Settling in all right, are we? Good, good.’ As usual there was no time to reply. Norma ploughed on. ‘Have you met Gianfranco? He’s our best ticket seller. Doesn’t say much, but the tourists love him.’
Norma’s eyes sparkled as she looked down at him, and he returned the unmistakeable look of a man deeply in lust.
‘Nice to meet you,’ said Kelsey with delight, reaching into the hatch to shake hands. Good for you, Norma.
Gianfranco smiled coyly, revealing a little gap between his front teeth, putting Kelsey in mind of Arnie Schwarzenegger.
‘Hello,’ he said in a lilting voice that didn’t seem to belong to this big beefy bloke. He had started tidying the already very tidy
leaflets on the window ledge in front of him. Kelsey instantly understood why Norma liked this big shy hunk of muscles. He barely spoke. He just listened. Perfect for Norma.
‘Kelsey, dear, aren’t you with the Italians today? Little break, eh? Jolly good. Can’t stand here chatting all day. Off to the bank. Count out those pennies, eh?’
Norma gave the money bag a sharp shake before kissing Gianfranco on his silent upturned face, first on the lips and then leaving a gentle kiss on the tip of his nose. The pair smiled sweetly at each other, as Kelsey watched on, feeling every bit the gooseberry. He whispered something inaudible that seemed to make Norma blush as she clambered out the low door and down the gangway, rushing as usual, and a little flustered too.
‘Norma?’ Kelsey cried out after her. ‘Thank you so much for the lovely welcome gifts.’
‘My pleasure, darling,’ she called back as she marched off into the crowds.
Kelsey smiled at the blushing Gianfranco who was looking down at his broad thighs, trying not to meet her eye. I’m guessing Norma didn’t hire this big softie for his tour guiding skills.
‘So are you mainly ticket sales, then?’ She grasped for something to say in the awkward silence.
Gianfranco nodded, keeping his eyes cast down. ‘Yes. You will be with me soon, no? Selling tickets. On Tuesdays?’ He was practically whispering in his soft accent somewhere between Spanish and Italian.
Selling tickets on the barge? I forgot about that. That’s it, I am stapling that rota to my forehead. She manged a sensible, ‘Right, great. Well I’ll see you then.’ Looking forward to the great chats.
Gianfranco went back to shuffling the leaflets about with a silent, affable nod.
It was getting on for lunchtime and Kelsey’s stomach was starting to growl. One ice cream cone just wasn’t going to cut it, and she could smell the food cooking in the town’s restaurants and pubs that were by now in full-on lunch service mode. Calling out her goodbyes to Gianfranco she wandered on, not relishing the idea of a sunburned picnic on the riverside in the blazing heat.
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