by Katie Ginger
‘I don’t care what you think,’ Lottie said huffily. She was acting like an insecure teenager.
‘Then why ask me?’ Sid focused on the road.
Lottie opened her mouth to speak then closed it again. She was all red and blotchy with anger. ‘You’re so bloody infuriating.’
The last interview was a tense, hurried nightmare. Lottie clearly hated every minute she had to be in Sid’s company and when he spoke to her she ignored everything he said. She answered with a simple ‘yes’ or ‘no’ only when she had to and then returned to absolute silence when they were alone.
When Sid pulled up outside her house he said, ‘Look, I’m sorry you don’t like what I said, Lottie.’
Her mouth dropped open. ‘Is that supposed to be an apology?’
‘Of sorts.’
‘Why of sorts?’
Sid screwed up his brow. ‘Because I’m not apologising for what I think. I just don’t want it to come between us, again.’ Just when they started getting on something happened to drive them even further apart.
Lottie angrily un-clicked her seatbelt and grabbed her camera bag, pulling it onto her lap. ‘It already has, Sid. I wasn’t sure either at first. But I believe Jeremy wants to help. Do you still think he doesn’t actually care about me? It that it? Even after all this time? Why can’t you believe someone like Jeremy would be interested in me? I’m not that grotesque.’
‘It’s not about you, Lottie. It’s about him.’
‘He’s my boyfriend, Sid, and you’d better start getting used to the idea.’ Lottie got out and slammed the door shut.
Sid watched her go, then put the car in gear and moved off. Lottie Webster was without doubt the most annoying, clever, stupid person he’d ever met. He opened the window to let the cold air rush in and tried to calm down. He’d tried everything to make it work but Lottie was so wrapped up in Jeremy he was all she could see.
Feeling the anger in his body pulse through to his hands, he hit the wheel. He could really do without this right now. Selena was quite demanding at the moment and being with her was like having another full-time job. Not to mention the fact that his flat was gradually filling up with her things.
He checked his watch. He could easily nip back to the office and really start digging into Jeremy Bell and his company. He hadn’t been happy with some of the things Jeremy had said in his interview back in August, after the flood. Like when Jeremy had mentioned his previous experience, Sid had asked if he meant specifically with theatres, Jeremy’s left eyebrow had lifted slightly and he’d been thrown momentarily off course. But Sid had been so consumed with getting his relationship with Lottie back on track and giving Selena everything she wanted, he hadn’t done anything more with it. But now, things were different.
If he had something tangible, something Lottie could see and read, she might start to realise it wasn’t just him being weird and jealous. He’d stalled long enough. Nothing else was getting in the way this time. Sid flicked the indicator on, turned the car around and stepped on the gas.
Chapter 38
The Greenley Players were planning their next move. As it was now late October and people might actually bother coming to another performance, Lottie decided they should start planning the Christmas pantomime, plus she needed to keep her mind occupied and away from Sid. How could they have had another row and why was it always about Jeremy? Sid had Selena now, so why was he so jealous of him? In the theatre, Mrs Andrews had brought another picnic.
‘Is she trying to poison us?’ asked Gregory, looking over his shoulder to check Mrs Andrews wasn’t within earshot. ‘What do you think that is?’
‘It’s chia pudding with fresh strawberries,’ said Lottie, peering at the beautifully handwritten label. She didn’t like the look of it either. It looked like frogspawn.
‘And what in all that’s holy is this?’ asked Debbie.
‘Avocado bruschetta,’ replied Lottie.
‘Brew-what?’
Lottie patted her shoulder. ‘Basically, avocado on toast.’
‘Right. That looks safest, I’ll have that.’ Debbie took one and a glass of cloudy liquid from the side. She took a sip. ‘Urgh, what’s this? It tastes like the devil’s piss.’
‘It’s coconut water, Debbie,’ shouted Mrs Andrews from the other side of the room. ‘It’ll do wonders for your terribly dry skin.’
‘Dry skin my—’
‘Can we come to order, please, everyone,’ said Lottie quickly, climbing onto the stage. She was getting used to this now. ‘First of all, another big well done for the showcase. I think it went really well and we definitely impressed the town.’
‘And thanks to you, dear, Lottie,’ said Gregory, ‘for that rousing speech at the end. You did us proud. Elsie herself couldn’t have done better.’
‘Thank you,’ replied Lottie, smiling at the compliment. ‘So, we need to discuss our next performance and I thought, as we’re now at the end of October, we’d start work on a Christmas pantomime. What do you all think?’
She was greeted by cheers and hurrahs.
‘Don’t you think they’re for children?’ said Mrs Andrews. ‘Not to mention lowbrow. I know we used to do them in the old group but, really.’
‘Och, I think that would be amazing,’ said Debbie. ‘What one shall we do?’
When Lottie talked about the shows she couldn’t help but feel excited. ‘I thought we could do Aladdin,’ she said, remembering the flyer she’d found in her nan’s things, all those months ago.
‘Oh, yes,’ said Cecil, clapping his hands together. ‘Let’s do Aladdin. I used to love doing the pantos.’
‘It could be difficult,’ said Conner, receiving disapproving looks from Gregory and Sarah. He held up his hands. ‘I’m not being negative. Just, you know, there’s flying carpets and stuff.’
‘Oh, that’s true,’ said Lottie, pressing a finger to her lips. She hadn’t thought of that.
‘Don’t worry,’ Conner reassured her. ‘I’ll have a think and come up with something. I liked that film when I was little.’
‘Film?’ said Mrs Andrews. ‘It was a fairy tale long before it was a Disney movie.’
‘Whatever,’ came his mature response, but Lottie let him have that one.
‘I’m sure you’ll think of something suitable,’ said Gregory.
Lottie said, ‘I thought we’d do auditions for the roles this time to make it fair. And as you’ll be directing it, Conner, I’d like you to be on the panel with me.’ She was determined to really support him this time.
‘Sure,’ said Conner, brightening.
The theatre had finally lost the damp smell and the whole place was brighter. The walls were still bare and Lottie thought of what more she could do if Jeremy bought the theatre. She wasn’t bothered about putting Greenley on the map, but she did want it to be the best it could be. If he bought it there’d be money for posters and flyers and things like that. Why couldn’t Sid see it was a good idea? She wouldn’t even be stood in the theatre now if it wasn’t for Jeremy.
Over the last few nights she’d thought long and hard about his offer and about any reservations she’d had but decided to trust her instincts and trust in their relationship. She was going to give it her full support at the committee meeting tomorrow night.
‘Are we going to have the same musical numbers as the film?’ asked Cecil. He was as excited as a child.
‘Oh, I hope so,’ said Sarah.
Cecil placed a hand on her knee. ‘You could sing “A Whole New World” beautifully, my dear.’ Sarah blushed. ‘When are we having the auditions, Lottie?’
‘Yes, definitely auditions this time,’ Gregory cut in. ‘We don’t want another Much Ado, do we? I may be able to act, but I’m not sure casting is my thing.’
The players gave an embarrassed laugh and Lottie smiled at him to let him know it was okay. ‘I’ll email round an audition piece for everyone tomorrow. I thought we could hold them next week so we have lots and lots of time for rehearsals. Greg
ory, for now did you want to take us through some more exercises?’
He jumped up out of his seat and stood in front of everyone fidgeting with excitement. ‘I’ve been doing some research and I’ve found this amazing exercise for building trust. It’s called a blind circle. We form a circle and each take it in turns to be blindfolded and walk across to the other side.’
‘And how does that build trust?’ asked Mrs Andrews, looking genuinely confused rather than snippy.
‘Well, you have to trust us to stop you from falling off the edge of the stage and keep you going in the right direction. Come on, let’s go.’
Without any moaning and groaning the players got up and went to take part. They were nervous and jumpy but worked together well, enjoying the experience.
Lottie sat back feeling satisfied. She’d made up her mind and soon she would have achieved the goal her nan set for her. The one crusade Elsie never managed to win. The theatre would be saved and Lottie had made it happen. She’d never thought she could actually do it. But as usual when something happened with the theatre, she lost Sid, even if it was only for a while. She should have felt confident they’d make up, like they had before, but each time it happened the gap seemed to widen between them. She hadn’t even seen him at work, as he’d been in and out of the office so much on some kind of top-secret job.
‘Lottie?’ called Gregory from the stage. ‘Come on, it’s your turn.’
Lottie sighed and gingerly got up and climbed onto the stage. The Greenley Players were really bonding this time. And Lottie reassured herself that they deserved this too. They’d put in so much effort and overcome so much, she’d be letting them down if she didn’t accept Jeremy’s offer.
She eyed the edge of the stage nervously as Gregory tied a blindfold over her eyes. Trust or no, if they let her walk off the edge and crack her head again, no number of banners or balloons would stop her from killing them.
Chapter 39
It was like the first time all over again as Lottie and Jeremy sat in the town hall meeting room. The butterflies in Lottie’s stomach were doing some kind of drunken conga and she tipped her head to one side to wish the nerves away. Jeremy gave her a warm smile exuding confidence and she found herself relaxing a little.
Once everyone had taken out their things Lottie cleared her throat. ‘Shall we begin?’ Everyone nodded. ‘As we have an important matter to discuss I thought we’d move straight to that. After donating a substantial sum of money for repairs Jeremy has offered to buy the theatre.’
Sarah gasped in delight. Trevor seemed unsure, and Mayor Cunningham, judging from the puce colour of his face, was outright mad.
Mayor Cunningham ended the silence that was threatening to descend. ‘Well, that is a generous offer.’ He narrowed his eyes. If Lottie had been casting for a suspicious pig-faced man he would certainly get the part. ‘However, the council needs time to consider it. We need to look at exactly what you’re offering and review all our options.’
Jeremy nodded. The mayor’s tone hadn’t bothered him at all. ‘I’ve prepared a small booklet outlining all that information for you.’ He handed around a shiny document with brightly coloured graphs inside. ‘All the financial information is at the back.’
They all took one and scanned through it. Lottie frowned, and felt a little cold. He hadn’t mentioned this before. Looking down, she saw the cover showed little computer-generated people stood outside the shiny theatre smiling and laughing. The exterior was the same but repainted with a big swanky sign, and there were now flower beds out front with pretty pink and purple dots. Some lights had been added into the ground that shone up at the front. There were no children though which Lottie thought odd. And it occurred to her that all the little people looked quite posh.
‘If I may?’ Jeremy said to Lottie, who nodded and sat down. Jeremy stood and adjusted his tie. ‘Let’s be honest here, folks, the theatre was in a terrible state. The costs are huge, more than this small committee can really deal with, and I mean no disrespect by that remark. There’s only so much time in the day and this is a full-time project.’
He began slowly pacing around the table and Lottie couldn’t take her eyes off him. ‘As you can see, I have the capital to purchase the theatre and the land it sits on, and am willing to invest to make it a top-notch venue. If we proceed with this, I’m looking at a two-month timescale with a full-time team of builders and decorators to have the theatre refurbished with new, state of the art equipment and facilities in time for the Christmas pantomime.’
Lottie sat in awe. He made it all sound so simple.
‘May I ask why?’ said Mayor Cunningham, flicking backwards and forwards through the pages of the glossy booklet.
Lottie opened her mouth to speak, to defend him, when Jeremy continued. ‘Why?’ Jeremy chuckled and subconsciously fiddled with his tie. ‘Because I love this town. It really is that simple. I love the theatre and what it’s beginning to mean to the community again. I love seeing people coming together like this.’
He was quoting Lottie’s words back at her and it made her heart swell with pride. Coming back round to his seat he stood behind it and rested his hands on the back. ‘Don’t get me wrong, I’m not a charity. Though you can see on page thirty-four I suggest we register as one as soon as possible. I’m a businessman and I think the theatre will make a very profitable business within the next five years. This is an investment for me and …’ He chuckled. ‘I’m a pretty shrewd businessman.’
Lottie watched him speak with wide eyes. There was something attractive about a man with that much self-belief. It really was the only way to explain some women’s attraction to Simon Cowell.
‘Basically,’ Jeremy continued, starting to pace the room again, ‘I’m proposing that I purchase the theatre and the surrounding land. We’ll keep the committee as it is now, maybe with one or two more people and you’ll all still have your places, as would I. We’ll continue to work together to make it a success. We can look at new revenue streams, like the clubs I’m told Lottie mentioned in her speech at the showcase, and one or two touring shows. The only difference is that my company would own it and not the council.’
His eyes had shot to her when he said her name and she melted a little more. Not only that, he was taking her ideas seriously.
‘As the council needs a substantial sum of money to balance this year’s deficit, I felt this was a solution that worked for all parties. The community still get a great local theatre, and I get a great property to add to my company’s portfolio. It really is a win-win for all concerned.’ He glanced at Lottie again, moved to his chair, and sat down. ‘I’m happy to take questions. Or we can go through some of the figures if you’d like, but I’m conscious of the time.’
Lottie tried to focus as her mind whirled about. She’d need to read this booklet in more detail later, though on first glance, it was all very promotional and less business-y than she’d expected. ‘Thank you, Jeremy, for your … presentation.’
‘Yes, a good presentation indeed,’ said Mayor Cunningham. ‘Miss Webster, I think you’ll agree there is a lot to take in—’
‘I don’t want to push,’ said Jeremy, leaning over the table and Lottie’s eyes shot to him. Was this something new too?
‘But I really will need an answer soon. I have another property that I’m looking into and the auction date for that is Monday. If this is a no-go, I’ll be moving forward with that, so I really need an answer tomorrow.’
Lottie turned to see Mayor Cunningham whose eyes narrowed. ‘I’m afraid that won’t be possible, Jeremy. This will need to be voted on by the council.’
Jeremy responded as though he’d known that was exactly what the mayor would say. ‘From what I understand we can ask for a special meeting, can’t we, Roger?’
‘How do you know that?’ asked Mayor Cunningham. Jeremy shrugged in response, his face placid. ‘We can. If you insist.’
‘I’m afraid I’ll have to.’ Jeremy smiled and nodded. �
�I’d also request that this offer isn’t made public for reasons of commercial sensitivity. You’ll see on page eighty-six of the booklet, there’s a letter from our solicitors outlining our reasons for this request.’
Mayor Cunningham immediately turned the multitude of pages, trying to find the letter.
Lottie sat watching the exchange, her throat tightening. He hadn’t mentioned any of this before. She felt a giant knot in her stomach pressing down. She’d stupidly presumed it would be simple but looking at the document in front of her it seemed anything but. Worst of all, they didn’t have much choice but to make a decision quickly.
Thoughts of Sid’s warnings threatened to rise up but Lottie pushed them down. It was just that it was all quicker and more official than she’d expected.
Mayor Cunningham studied the booklet one more time. ‘As an official offer has been made I have no choice but to call an emergency meeting of the council for tomorrow evening and we’ll examine your proposal in more detail and make a decision.’
‘Thank you,’ Jeremy replied, confidently. He sat back in his chair, his arms wide. ‘I’d just like to reassure everyone that the theatre will remain a theatre. I know that’s been a concern for some of you. And to you, Roger, I know the responsibility of balancing the books at times of such austerity is hard, almost impossible, one might say. But this is a great opportunity for Greenley.’ He looked at Lottie. ‘A great opportunity for the theatre and the council. And for us all to really move things forward.’
With nothing else to discuss, Lottie ended the meeting. She kept her eyes down while she packed up her belongings. Her head was spinning. The alarm bells she’d put down to too much wine the other night were ringing again. This time Sid’s voice mingled in with them and she felt queasy. Jeremy hung back and waited for Lottie while everyone else left. Putting on his coat he said, ‘That went well, don’t you think?’
Lottie didn’t feel she could completely agree. The lump in her throat told her something wasn’t right. ‘Your presentation was … impressive.’