Just Married?

by Natasha West

  But it had.

  ‘One more gin and tonic, please’ she said to the barwoman and as she was handed the drink, Ruby appeared at her elbow. ‘Hi. I’ve had enough of this party. Wanna get out of here?’

  ‘What? Did you already do whatever it was your mum wanted you to do here?’

  ‘Kiss ass? Nope. Done with that. Look, the thing is, I think we need to talk…’

  ‘Yes, we do’ Emily interrupted. ‘We’ve got a bit of a problem.’ She dragged Ruby out of the room, into a marbled bathroom.

  ‘What’s going on?’ Ruby asked.

  ‘Two things. Rock knows that we didn’t meet before Vegas.’

  Ruby stopped dead. ‘How the fuck does he know that?’

  ‘He had us investigated.’

  ‘He did fucking what?!’ Ruby hissed.

  ‘Wait, there’s something else. He told me something I didn’t… That we didn’t realise. The certificate, the wedding… They weren’t real.’

  Ruby shook her head. ‘Bullshit.’

  ‘Seriously, I’ve seen a video. I mean, apparently there was a ceremony and everything, but none of it was legally binding. It was just a novelty thing.’

  ‘We’re not… really… married?’ Ruby said slowly. ‘So why the hell did I post that we were?’

  ‘I dunno. Maybe you actually thought we were? You were pretty smashed. We both were.’

  Ruby scratched her head, thrown for a loop. Emily sympathised. The whole thing was mind boggling. ‘So does this make things more complicated? Or simpler?’ Ruby asked.

  ‘That depends’ Emily told her.

  ‘On what?’

  ‘On if you still want that part.’

  ‘No’ Ruby said firmly. ‘I’m sick of this circus. I’m not jumping through any more hoops.’

  Emily, despite the situation, began to smile. ‘According to Rock, you don’t have to. He says you got it.’

  Ruby laughed, unimpressed by the news. ‘How the hell would he know?’ she asked cynically.

  ‘He knows someone who knows someone. He seemed pretty sure. That’s why he did this. He knows you’re a sure thing. He wants to cling to your coattails’ Emily said, unable to keep the disgust out of her voice.

  Ruby looked off into the distance, a faraway look in her eyes. ‘Really? I got it?’

  Emily nodded happily, watching pleasure spread through Ruby’s features. It was a big deal. A major franchise, hers to lose. Even in the midst of the Rock nonsense and the wedding revelation, anyone would have felt good. Emily just wished she could take a moment to enjoy the victory. But Rock waited, the wanker. ‘So here’s the thing. Rock says he’s happy to forget what he knows if you get him a role.’

  Ruby’s mood shifted again, back to reality. ‘Pfft. I haven’t even officially been told I’m getting it. I can’t exactly make demands like that.’

  ‘He thinks Denise can get it included in your, what is it, rider? Maybe drop your fee if that’s what it would take.’

  ‘He’s got it all worked out, hasn’t he?’ Ruby said to herself. She turned her attention back to Emily. ‘What do you think I should do?’

  ‘Me?’

  ‘I’m not talking to the wall’ Ruby told her with a small smile.

  Emily was taken aback. Why did Ruby care what she thought? ‘You want it, don’t you?’

  Ruby didn’t say anything.

  ‘Well, it’s yours. And I think you deserve it’ Emily said earnestly. She didn’t care if she was showing her hand. She just wanted to say something honest to Ruby, something unguarded. This might be her only chance. Because their deal was done. The finish line was in sight. Their time was almost up.

  ‘You do?’ Ruby asked.

  ‘Yes. I’ve been watching your show…’

  ‘Oh, Christ’ Ruby said with an eye roll.

  ‘Yes, I know, it’s… It’s not great. But you are.’

  Ruby looked embarrassed. ‘Emily, I don’t need you to tell me that.’

  ‘I’m telling you the truth’ Emily said quietly. ‘You’re gonna be huge one day, probably one day very soon. That’s why Rock is trying to attach himself to you, that’s why your mum pushes way too hard. Because he knows. So does she. And so do I. It’s obvious from watching ten minutes of that godawful show. Because if you can shine out of that? You can shine anywhere. And that’s rare. You’re a star, Ruby. It’s that simple’ Emily finished, trying to hold her nerve. She’d never gushed like this at Ruby, never just told the plain truth: that Ruby amazed her.

  ‘That’s what you think?’ Ruby asked, her eyes moist.

  ‘Yes’ Emily said, holding her gaze. ‘I do.’

  Ruby licked her lips. ‘Right. I know what to do.’

  Twenty-Eight

  ‘Right. I know what to do’ Ruby breathed. ‘I’m gonna go talk to Barry.’

  ‘I guess you should’ Emily agreed and touched her lightly on the arm. ‘Remember, it’s already yours.’

  Ruby nodded. ‘You wanna come with me?’

  Emily smiled. ‘Of course. Oh, but what should we do about Rock?’

  ‘You don’t need to worry about him. He’s not your problem. He’s mine. I’ll deal with him’ Ruby told her firmly.

  Emily looked nervous but said, ‘Whatever you say.’ She held out a hand. ‘I guess we should present a united front.’

  Ruby slipped her hand into Emily’s and gave it a little squeeze. Emily squeezed back and Ruby felt stronger, able to put one foot in front of the other to do what she needed to do.

  They walked out of the bathroom, hand in hand, across the room to where Barry stood. Marisa was still there, a middle-aged guy standing next to her with a big grin on his face. Ruby surmised he was probably her agent. Marisa looked less happy than him, her small smile was somehow pained, and Ruby greeted her first. ‘Hello, I’m Ruby. I’m such a fan of yours, I just wanted to tell you that.’

  Marisa smiled properly and put a hand out. ‘That’s very kind. Thank you.’

  Ruby shook it, pleased to get a chance to look Marisa in the eye and tell her that she admired her. Only then did she turn to Barry. ‘Hi.’

  ‘Hello, Miss Knight. Great to see you.’

  ‘Is it?’

  ‘It is’ Barry said, with a wink that confirmed what Rock had already blabbed about. She had it.

  ‘I need to talk to you about something’ Ruby told him, feeling wobbly on her legs. ‘I need to tell you something important.’

  ‘OK…’ Barry said and glanced around at the assembled circle of onlookers. ‘You wanna do it in private?’

  ‘Sure’ Ruby said, and Barry swept her across the room to a quiet corner. Ruby grabbed Emily’s hand. She needed her. Emily looked uncertain but came anyway.

  In the quiet corner, Barry turned to Ruby with purpose. ‘I’m guessing you wanna talk about the movie? Look, there’s no need to-’

  ‘Barry, I don’t wanna interrupt you but there’s something I need to tell you before we get into anything else.’ She pointed across the room at Rock, who was talking to a bored looking beauty dressed in clothing so on trend it looked like it had come from a designer’s machine not ten minutes ago. ‘You see that guy? He’s my co-star and I’ll be honest, we hate each other.’

  Barry looked with interest. Rock noticed himself being pointed at and saw Barry look at him. He tried, quite unsuccessfully, to put his focus back on his date.

  ‘Oh, that’s… That’s a shame’ Barry said, a little confused. Emily shot her a surprised look. But Ruby was just getting warmed up. ‘So he heard about, you know, this whole thing and he decided he wanted a role, thought maybe I was his in. So you know what he did? He hired someone to look into me, for blackmail material.’

  Barry’s mouth fell open. ‘Oh, he did, did he?’ He looked across at Rock. Rock, who was attempting to throw an ingratiating smile to Barry - misunderstanding what was happening - stopped dead when he saw the expression on Barry’s face. He looked back to his date who said something Ruby lip-read as, ‘What’s wrong with
your face?’ Ruby had to smile despite the circumstances. Rock was sweating. It was a beautiful thing. ‘Yeah. He did. But the thing is, Barry, he found something’ Ruby said.

  Barry’s head whipped away from Rock, to Ruby. ‘What did he find?’ he asked seriously.

  Ruby took a deep breath. ‘That me and Emily aren’t really married.’

  ‘Oh Christ’ Ruby heard Emily mutter. But Ruby wasn’t close to done. ‘I mean, we thought we were. We got pretty drunk and had some kind of ceremony. But we just found out it was fake.’

  ‘Oh’ Barry responded and then shrugged. ‘Well, that’s... I mean, we could probably spin that alright. It might not be a problem. I’d have to talk to my people but-’

  Ruby shook her head. ‘There’s more. We only met recently. The night we got pretend married.’

  Barry frowned and pinched the bridge of his nose. ‘I see. So that story you told me about the airplane…’

  ‘Bullshit. I lied. I’m sorry. This whole thing has been a ploy for publicity, so you’d see me as bankable, someone who had pull, mass appeal. Plus, I wanted you to see me as a capable adult who could make your movie a success. But I’m a shit show, clearly.’

  Barry rubbed his chin. ‘You know I was going to give you the movie, don’t you?’

  ‘I know you were, yes.’

  ‘But I gotta be honest, Ruby. This shakes my faith in you. Deeply. I need a strong back to carry this movie, this franchise. This makes you look a lot less strong.’

  ‘Yeah, I know’ Ruby sighed. ‘But you don’t need to worry. I don’t want the part.

  Barry’s eyebrows shot up. So did Emily’s.

  ‘I’ve given it some thought, and everything you promised me would happen if I got this movie… I don’t want any of it. I want to live more quietly than that. I just do’ Ruby continued. ‘You should give it to Marisa. I know she’s a lot more expensive. But in this case, you’d get what you pay for.’

  Barry was confounded. ‘So if you don’t want the part, why tell me any of this?’

  ‘I just wanted to tell you the truth. Seemed right.’

  Barry bit the inside of his cheek and glanced around the room. He spotted Denise in another corner, talking to a producer while pretending not to watch them. ‘Your mother put you up to all this, didn’t she?’

  Ruby didn’t answer that, but Barry nodded. ‘That woman is one of the biggest sharks I’ve ever met. And that’s saying something.’

  Ruby laughed, feeling a weight slip off her shoulders. ‘She’s a go-getter, alright.’

  ‘That’s one word for it’ Barry said. ‘Well, I appreciate you being straight with me. You saved me some trouble. Because I would never hire that talentless pretty boy over there’ he said, nodding over his shoulder to where Rock looked pretty worried now. His date looked peeved that she couldn’t get his attention. ‘He couldn’t act his way out of a paper bag’ Barry noted.

  ‘You’re right on that’ Ruby agreed.

  ‘So does this mean he’s going to expose all this?’ Barry said, looking between Emily and Ruby.

  ‘We’ll have to see.’

  ‘I’d avoid that, if I were you. You might have some PR trouble from it.’

  ‘I don’t really care about that. But it’s not fair to Emily’ Ruby said.

  ‘Don’t worry about me’ Emily said, surprised.

  ‘I am, actually’ she told Emily. ‘You agreed to be married to me. You didn’t agree to be part of some stupid scandal. But I’ll talk to him. Maybe we can make some other deal’ Ruby tried to assure her. She wasn’t certain what she was going to do about Rock, but she had some ideas. She could offer to quit the show in exchange for a promise never to leak. That would probably satisfy him. She hated to let him win like that, but Ruby owed Emily, big. Talking to Emily recently had cleared her head, allowed her to figure out she didn’t want to do things her mom’s way anymore. And the belief Emily had displayed in her tonight? That had given Ruby the strength to make a real decision about who she wanted to be. That person wasn’t someone who snaked their way up the ladder doing dirty deals. Nor was that person famous. It was a relief to finally say goodbye to mega-stardom. It wasn’t for her. She just wanted to do what she did and do it well. That was all. She didn’t need the world to see. As long as she could get hired occasionally, she’d be alright.

  Emily had given her so much. But what Ruby had just done had ensured she would not get her big payment. She was sorry for that, she really was. The least Ruby could do was protect her from any further ugliness.

  But apparently, there was no need. Because Barry said, ‘Wait there.’ And he walked over to Rock. Rock slapped a big grin on his face and stuck his hand out, but Barry didn’t take it. He leaned over and muttered some things in Rock’s ear. Ruby couldn’t hear anything being said, but Rock’s face looked terror-struck. He started nodding vigorously. Barry gave him a not-very-friendly slap on the back and walked back to Ruby and Emily. ‘Done.’

  ‘What did you say to him?’ Emily gaped.

  ‘Told him to delete everything he had on you or I’d blacklist him in the industry. He’d never work again.’

  ‘You’d really do that?’ Ruby exclaimed.

  ‘I don’t actually like to operate that way. This industry needs to be done with that kind of shit. But he doesn’t know that’ Barry said, turning to give Rock a little wave. Ruby and Emily joined in, waving and smiling. Rock put down his drink and almost ran out. He actually forgot his date, who went running after him, enraged. ‘What the fuck? Nobody gives me an Irish Goodbye!’ she shouted across the room. Ruby watched, delighted.

  ‘Well, best of luck, Ruby’ Barry said warmly. ‘Whatever you decide to do, I think you’re gonna be successful.’

  ‘Thanks Barry. Good luck with the franchise.’

  They shook hands and Barry walked across the room, back to Marisa.

  When he was gone, Ruby looked at Emily. ‘I’m sorry. I know this wasn’t the deal…’

  But Emily was beaming. ‘I don’t care about that.’

  ‘You don’t?’

  ‘No. I’m just proud of you’ Emily said and gave the longest sigh. ‘I think you made the right decision.’

  Ruby was overwhelmed by Emily’s selflessness. She knew there would never be another girl like this in her life. Ever. She had to tell her how she felt. She was prepared for the humiliation of Emily telling her she just wanted to be friends or whatever else Emily might want to say to ease herself out of an awkward situation. Because Ruby needed to tell her what she meant to her. ‘Emily…’

  A hand landed on her arm, a rough one. ‘Ruby Knight, you better explain yourself.’ Denise was dragging her out of the party!

  Twenty-Nine

  Emily watched, along with half the guests at the party, as Ruby was pulled through the room by her mother like a naughty ten-year-old. She wasn’t sure what to do. Denise had clearly gotten wind of the recent developments regarding Ruby’s career. She was more than likely going to go nuclear. Emily wasn’t sure if Ruby would want her there for that. It had been so sweet the way she’d wanted Emily with her when she told Barry the truth. She’d felt important to Ruby for a moment. She would cherish that when she was gone.

  And she’d meant what she’d said to Ruby. She was so proud of her. A lot of people would never have given up what Ruby had. It was the world on a plate. It took strength to walk away from it all.

  But there was about to be some consequences, in the form of Denise. Emily made the decision to stay out of it. If Ruby had proved one thing tonight, it was that she could handle a hard conversation. So Emily left them to it, feeling awkward in the middle of a collection of strangers.

  Fifteen minutes later, Denise and Ruby walked back in. They both looked rather red in the face. ‘OK, Emily’ Denise said angrily, no longer caring who saw or heard anything. ‘That’s a wrap on you. Thanks for nothing.’

  ‘Don’t blame her, Mom’ Ruby hissed.

  They all walked out together and the three got in Den
ise’s car, Emily and Ruby in the back. Denise turned from the driver’s seat to look at her daughter. ‘Ruby, what are you doing? You drove here.’

  Ruby looked briefly flummoxed. ‘I’m coming with you. I’m not letting you scream at Emily too tonight.’