The Rock'n'Roll Romance Box Set (Pam Howes Rock'n'Roll Romance Series) (110 page)

‘You’re not. Carry on.’

‘I’d gone in Jon’s car that night, so
Roy
gave me a lift back to my place and
invited himself in for coffee. We sat and talked for a while then he made a
pass and kissed me. He was very upset afterwards. He practically ran out of my
flat, apologising. I couldn’t stop thinking about him, the kiss, the way I’d
felt when he touched me. It was like an electric shock. I can’t begin to
explain.’

Sheena nodded, scarcely breathing while
Livvy was telling her tale.

‘
Roy
must have felt something too, because he
called me first thing the following morning and invited me to lunch. That was
my cue to say no, but I didn’t. We drove to a place called Castleton. Honestly,
I felt like a queen, out in a posh car with a handsome and famous man. We had
lunch in a little country pub and he bought me a beautiful teddy bear from a
craft shop. I still have him at home.

‘We went back to my flat and made love
all afternoon. It was my first time and I was so glad I’d waited.
Roy
was a wonderful lover. I can’t begin to
tell you, it was like flying to the moon and back!’

Sheena sighed and rolled her eyes. ‘God,
lucky you!’
 

‘We began seeing one another as often as
we could.
The Raiders
had disbanded then and
Roy
had lots of free time. He and Ed were
still writing songs. They had loads of hits in the eighties. That
Perry’s Dream
group had two number ones
for them the year of our affair. I can never hear those songs without being
transported right back to that time. Anyway, he told me he loved me, but also
loved his wife and couldn’t leave her.’

‘Why didn’t you get out while you could?’
Sheena asked, frowning.

‘It wasn’t that simple. I was completely
under his spell.’

‘Who else knew about the affair?’

‘Only Ed. He told
Roy
to end it. Nick was eighteen that May.
Roy
bought him a car. Nick and Jess got
engaged in August. At the end of the month Nick crashed the car. Jess was badly
injured and Nick died in September. That same week I discovered I was pregnant.
I couldn’t tell
Roy
because he and Sammy were in bits about their son. So I told Ed.

‘Anyway, to cut a long story short, Roy
and Sammy split up. He said he wanted to be with me. But he was back and forth
between us until in the end she forgave him and they re-took their marriage
vows.’
   

‘My God! She must be a saint. I’d have
castrated him.’ Sheena poured them more drinks and threw another log on the
fire. She settled back down. ‘Carry on. This beats East Enders any day!’
   

‘During all the upheaval
The Raiders
re-formed. They were busy recording new songs and rehearsing for their tour. I
went to stay with my boss Sean and his wife Tina until the baby was due. Before
Roy and Sammy re-took their vows I asked them if they’d be willing to bring up
the baby as their own. I couldn’t handle the thought of being a single mum. I
believe a child should always have two parents if possible. To my surprise,
they agreed to take the baby and pass it off as Sammy’s.

‘Harley was born the night of their first
show in
Manchester
. My waters broke in the theatre
hospitality room. I’d been in labour all night but I didn’t want to miss the
show. I wanted our baby to share Daddy’s return to the stage. When the group
sang
My Special Girl
I’m sure Harley decided she couldn’t wait any
longer.’ Livvy smiled, remembering the night as though it were yesterday.

‘I used to love that song,’ Sheena said
dreamily. ‘I always felt as though
Roy
was singing it just for me alone.’

‘Roy and Eddie wrote that song for Jane
and Sammy while the group was on its first tour.’

‘How romantic. Anyway, carry on. Did they
get an ambulance and rush you to hospital with blue lights flashing, or did you
deliver behind the drum kit?’

‘Neither,’ Livvy laughed. ‘Ed’s wife Jane
drove us all to the hospital, only we didn’t make it.
 
Harley arrived on the back seat of the Jeep.
Jane delivered her, with Sammy and Roy as an audience!’

‘Oh, Jesus Christ, Olivia!’ Sheena
gasped.

‘
Roy
fainted clean away as the ambulance
arrived. I handed Sammy her new daughter. The joy in her eyes outweighed the
pain I’d seen on previous occasions. I had no doubts that Harley would be
adored and pampered all her life. It was far more than
I
could give her
at the time.

‘I signed an agreement that I would keep
quiet. I accepted fifty-thousand pounds from
Roy
as a one off payment. I’ve kept the
secret to myself ever since. No one knows outside of
Roy
’s close circle. I told Danny I had a
daughter who’d been adopted by a wealthy couple. He has no idea who the father
is. Whenever we have an argument, which is most of the time these days, he
throws Harley’s father in my face. He’s convinced I’m going to search for her
and
him now I’m home. But I don’t need
to search. I know exactly where to find both my daughter and Roy.’

‘So, have you plans to see them?’ Sheena
asked.
 

‘Yes.’ Livvy nodded slowly. ‘
Roy
promised me that he would tell Harley
about me when she was ten years old. She’s never been in touch, even though I
regularly send her cards.’
 

‘Well if you don’t want Danny to know the
whole truth, isn’t seeking out Roy and Harley a bit of a risk?’

‘I
do
want Danny to know the truth, but not until I’m sure Harley herself knows. I
don’t want her life destroyed by Danny playing the jealous husband and
threatening to get even with Roy, or whatever. This is why I’ve never spoken of
my time in
Manchester
. One, because I wanted to protect my daughter from
feeling rejected by me, and two, because I’m still in love with her
father.’
 

Sheena sighed and shook her head. ‘So,
are you saying you want to resume your affair with Roy Cantello?’

Livvy smiled ruefully. ‘I’d give my right
arm to, but I don’t think that’s an option after all this time. I presume he’s
still with Sammy and I doubt he’d leave her now. They’re both in their fifties,
but he still looked good last time I saw him on TV.’

‘There were pictures in The Sunday Mail
magazine recently of Roy, Eddie and their wives, sunning themselves on a beach
in
Australia
,’ Sheena said. ‘According to the article, the group
had just finished a tour, and Roy and Eddie were taking a well-earned break.
Actually, all four of them looked in good shape for their ages. You mentioned
Jon and Jess before. I remember reading a bit of scandal about those two a few
years ago. They’re half-brother and sister yet they had twin boys together and
actually got married. How did they manage that?
 
It’s against the law to marry your siblings!’

Livvy grinned at Sheena’s puzzled
expression. ‘And there hangs another tale! Jon and Jess fell in love after
Nick’s death. Jess became pregnant with the twins while I was expecting Harley.
Then they discovered that Ed wasn’t Jon’s father and they weren’t related at
all. Ed had been duped by Jon’s mother into marrying her after she’d told him
she was pregnant. But she was carrying someone else’s child.

‘Ed and Jane brought Jon up and kept the
truth from him. Jon’s Gran inadvertently gave him his late mother’s diaries
where Angie had secretly recorded her confessions. He and Jess married the year
after me and Danny. Jack and Nathan, their twins, are four months younger than
Harley is.’

‘Bloody hell, what a colourful
life you’ve all led,’ Sheena said. ‘And Jason,
Roy
’s youngest son is the gay one?’
   

Livvy nodded. ‘Yes. Jason was an absolute
darling. He was so quiet and gentle; nothing at all like Nick, the charmer, who
was just like his father. Jason had a friend, Jules who he was very close to. I
wonder if they’re still together.’

‘Ah, my turn now to tell
you
something,’ Sheena said. ‘They
are
still together. Jules is a famous
sculptor and Jason an interior designer. They featured in Hello magazine
recently at the opening of their new gallery in
Cheshire
. Fancy that, Jason Cantello’s your
daughter’s half-brother. I can’t take all this in, Livvy. No wonder it was
doing your head in, keeping it all under wraps. I’m surprised you don’t need
therapy.’

‘Being part of
Juice
has kept me
together. We’ve been so busy over the last few years. The guys are very
supportive. They know when I need a shoulder to cry on and when to leave me
alone. My drummer, Hank is wonderful. He and I write most of the songs. He says
I’m at my most productive when I’m miserable!’

‘That’s a back-handed compliment. Has
there ever been anything between you and Hank?’
 

‘No, he’s happily married and the father
of four teenage daughters. At least he understands women and their mood
swings.’

‘When you came back from
Manchester
all affluent but sad eyed and silent, I
knew something drastic had happened to you. You couldn’t wait to marry Danny
and drag him out of the country either, which Gerry and I found a bit strange.
We never saw the pair of you as a love match.’

‘That move was to put as much distance as
possible between The Cantellos and myself, so they could get on with being a
family,' Livvy said. 'Otherwise, I wouldn’t have been able to stay away from
them, no matter what promises I’d made.’
  
 

‘That was very brave of you. Well
I
feel as though I’ve had a really
boring life by comparison. The only bit of excitement was getting caught two
years on the run with the kids!’

‘But at least you and Gerry are happy.’

‘For the most part – yes - we are. We
have our ups and downs like everyone else of course, but nothing like yours.’
Sheena stood up and stretched her arms above her head.
 
‘Let’s go and make ourselves a cuppa. I’ll
let the dogs out and then we don’t get up to puddly floors in the morning.’

Livvy followed Sheena to the kitchen and
opened the French doors for Sandy and Fred. ‘Will you do me a big favour,
Sheena?’

‘What would that be then?’ Sheena asked
as she filled the kettle.

  
‘Will you come to
Manchester
with me next week? I have to go and find
Harley. I can’t go back to the States and not see her.’

‘What about Courtney?’ Sheena asked.
‘Will we take her with us?’

‘Would Gerry be prepared to look after
her for a few days?’

‘I don’t see why not, and my mother will
stay over to help if I ask her. We can tell Gerry you have business to attend
to, or something.’

‘Good idea. Tell him I’ve got to meet a
new songwriter and I want to treat you to a few nights away. We’ll fly down and
stay at the
Midland
. I’ll try and contact Sean or Jon tomorrow morning.
I have a feeling Sean still works at Flanagan and Grey’s even if Jon doesn’t.
We’d better go to bed now. I don’t want bags under my eyes for my first meeting
with my new family.’

***

CHAPTER FIVE

MANCHESTER
- MARCH
2001

The junior sales assistant popped
his head around the staffroom door. Jon Mellor looked up from reading Mojo
magazine. ‘What’s up, Liam?’
  

‘Woman on the phone, wanting to
speak to you or Sean. Shall I tell her you’re busy?’
  

‘Who is it?’

‘Dunno. Wouldn’t give her name.
Told her you were both on lunch break. She said to see if you were in the
staffroom. She’s gorra funny sort of accent! American-Scottish-Irish or
summat!’

Jon laughed. ‘Double Dutch more
like.’
  

‘You say she wants Jon or me?’
Sean Grogan chipped in. ‘She actually asked for us by name - as though she
knows us?’

‘Yeah - like I just said.’ Liam
spoke with an air of boredom.

‘Okay, put the call through,’ Sean
said. ‘We’ve ten minutes of lunch left. I’m determined to have my full hour
today.’ As Liam went back into the shop Sean offered Jon a cigarette and lit up
himself. The phone rang out and he grabbed the receiver. ‘Hello there, Sean
Grogan speaking.’ His eyebrows shot up his forehead and his face broke into a
wide smile. ‘Fucking hell, I don’t believe it! Pardon my French, Livvy, it’s
the shock.
 
How are you, my little
darlin’? More to the point, where are you?’

Jon felt his jaw drop as Sean
continued, ‘Glasgow, eh? You on
tour? - I see. Well, I’ll look forward to that, so I will. - Of course he’s
still here - part of the bloody furniture! - To be sure, I’ll ask him. Speak to
you soon then. Bye.’ He hung up. ‘That was Livvy Grant.’

‘I gathered that. What does
she
want?’

‘To meet us next week for lunch or
dinner,’ Sean replied. ‘She’s flying in, staying at the Midland
for a couple of days and will call us when she arrives.’

Jon nodded. ‘Harley’s sixteen on
Saturday. Livvy'll want to see her. We’ve all been kind of expecting it for the
last few years.’
  

Sean sucked on his teeth and
frowned. ‘We’d better call Roy and
warn him.’
   

‘I’ll do it,’ Jon said. ‘Though to
be honest, I’m low on his list of favourite people at the moment after my
wayward son’s antics with his precious daughter.’

Sammy took Jon’s call. She told
him Roy was at a band meeting at Hanover’s
Lodge. ‘How’s Harley?’ he asked.

‘
Not so good. The doctor took blood samples. We get the results next
week. I’m in two minds whether to cancel the party, but Harley insists she
wants it to go ahead.
’

‘It might perk her up a bit.’
 

‘Maybe, anyway, we’ll see. The test results should tell us something
.’
   

‘Hopefully. I’ll see you Saturday,
Sammy.’ He hung up. ‘Roy’s at my
dad’s place,’ he told Sean. He dialled his parents’ number. ‘Hi, Mum. Can I
speak to Roy, please?’
  

‘
Hold on a minute, Jon. I’ll give him a shout.’

Jon could hear her calling
upstairs then Roy’s deep voice
following her into the kitchen.

‘Hi, Jon, what can I do for you?’

‘You’d better sit down. I’ve
something to tell you.’

‘
What the fuck’s happened now
?’

‘Livvy’s been in touch. She’s in Glasgow
and flying to Manchester next
week.’ There was a clatter and then silence. ‘You there, Roy? Roy
- are you there?’

‘
Jon, it’s Mum. Whatever you said to
Roy
has totally shocked him. He’s white as a
sheet. What’s happened?’

‘Livvy’s coming to Manchester.’

‘
What? How do you know
?’
  

‘She just rang me.’

‘
She rang you? But why? After all this time for God’s sake. Did she say
what she wanted?’

‘I’m sorry. No. She just rang out
of the blue and that’s all she said.’

‘
Oh God! Right, I’ll get your father and pour
Roy
a brandy.’
She hung up
.

Jon turned to Sean. ‘That’s put
the cat amongst the pigeons!’

***

‘Ed, come down here, please,’ Jane
called up the stairs. She poured Roy
a brandy and bumped into Eddie on her way back to the kitchen.

‘Who’s that for? Bit early in the
day.
’

‘Roy’s
had a shock.’
 

‘What’s happened, mate?’ Eddie
placed his hand on Roy’s shoulder
as Jane handed over the brandy.

Roy
looked up, a strained expression on his face. He told Eddie what Jon had
said.
 

‘This is it, Ed. This is where I
lose my daughter.’
  

Jane’s eyes met Eddie’s over Roy’s
head. ‘Go home, Roy,' she said.
'It’s time to tell Harley the truth. Ed will make your excuses to the rest of
the band.’

‘But she’s ill. I can’t tell her
now. It’s her party on Saturday. I don’t want to spoil things. It’ll have to
wait until Sunday.’

‘Roy,
the more you make excuses, the longer you’ll put it off, the harder it will be
to deal with. Believe me
I
know,’
Eddie said. ‘Livvy will want to see her daughter. Why else would she come?
Juice
isn’t currently on tour in this
country. She’s coming to see if you’ve fulfilled the promise you made.’

‘Well I have. I’ve looked after
Harley’s every need. I’ve taken good care of her.’
 

‘I mean your promise of telling
her the truth.’

‘I have to do it, don’t I?’ Roy
ran his hands through his thick, dark hair. ‘Fucking hell, this is a nightmare!
I don’t even have a clue how to begin. She’ll hate me for this, you just wait
and see!’ He rooted in his jacket pocket for his car keys. ‘I’ll see you on
Saturday night then.’
 

Jane turned to Eddie as Roy
left the house. ‘Don’t envy him, do you?’

‘No, sweetheart, not at all.’

***

‘You absolutely sure you’re doing
the right thing?’ Sheena said as Livvy replaced the receiver.

‘Dead sure. Jon will call Roy
now. If he hasn’t already, Roy may
tell Harley about me this week. I want to see my daughter. You’ve no idea how
much I think about her. She’s constantly on my mind. I don’t even know what she
looks like now. Roy’s never allowed
her to be photographed by the press. Well I haven’t seen anything in magazines
or newspapers.’

‘Come to think of it, neither have
I,’ Sheena said. ‘The only kid of Roy’s
I’ve seen in the press recently is Jason.’
 

‘
The Raiders
are very private where their families are concerned.
They’ve never really courted publicity, other than for the band,’ Livvy said as
Courtney appeared in the kitchen and announced she was starving.

‘Sit down, Courtney,’ Sheena said.
‘I’ll make you both a sandwich before you go and see your family. Cup of tea,
Liv?’

‘Please, Sheena. By the way, do
you have a stamp? I need to post something later.’

***

Roy’s
head whirled as he drove slowly up the long driveway of Jasmine House and
pulled up outside the garage block. He felt sick, shaky and not sure that he
had the strength to say anything to Harley. He wished he could whisk her and
Sammy away to a secret location where Livvy could never find them. He just knew
that his comfortable and carefree lifestyle was about to be ripped apart -
again.

He looked up. Harley’s bedroom window
was closed and the curtains pulled across. She must still be in bed. That
wasn’t like his daughter, he thought as he clambered out of the car. She was
usually up early and bouncing with energy. This virus, or whatever it was, had
floored her.
 

He strolled towards the large
Edwardian house that had been the family home since the sixties, and surveyed
the surroundings. The trappings of wealth and he was proud of it. He’d worked
bloody hard for it, him, and Sammy, both. She’d shelved her successful design
career and sold her business to be a stay-at-home mum to Harley. Harley was
his
mistake, but it was Sammy whose life
had changed drastically, while he continued much as he’d always done – a happy
Jack the Lad, or Jack the Old Man, as he now thought of himself.
    

He found Sammy sitting alone in
the kitchen by the open patio doors. He joined her, poured a mug of coffee and
topped hers up. ‘Harley upstairs?’
   

‘She’s sleeping. Don’t go
disturbing her.’

‘I won’t.’ He shivered. ‘Bit
chilly in here, Sam.’

‘It’s nice and fresh. I’m boiling
hot, as usual.’ She looped her long, light brown hair back behind her ears and
fanned herself with a magazine.

He stroked her cheek. ‘Another hot
flush?’

‘How did you guess? When we take
Harley for the blood test results I’m going to ask the doctor to change my HRT
prescription. The pills don’t seem to be working. Jane’s got patches.
She’s
sailing through the bloody
menopause and I’m stumbling blindly through mine!’
  

‘Don’t let him prescribe anything
that puts you off sex! I read in one of your magazines that some types of HRT
can do that.’

She rolled her eyes and laughed.
‘Trust you, Cantello! Always thinking of yourself.’

‘I’m not. You know how crabby
you
can be if you don’t have a regular
servicing.’

‘You make me sound like an old
car,’ she giggled. ‘Anyway, why are you home so early? I wasn’t expecting you
until tea-time.’

‘Something’s happened. We need to
talk – seriously, I mean.’ He led her through into the lounge and they sat side
by side on one of the cream leather sofas. He took her hand.

‘What is it, Roy?
You look very anxious.’

‘Livvy’s in the country,’ he
began. ‘She’s flying into Manchester
next week. We need to tell Harley the truth.’

Sammy’s face blanched beneath her
crimson flush. ‘Telling Harley’s one thing. The reality of Livvy coming here is
quite another. Well - I guess you can’t put it off any longer.’ She squeezed
his hand.
  

‘I know what you’re thinking,’ he
said. ‘I won’t be seeing her, I promise. Not unless I’m with you or Harley.’

She nodded. ‘I’m not prepared to
go through all that again.’

‘You won’t need to. I can handle
it. I love you, Sammy. We’re not going to lose Harley to her mother.’ A
movement by the door caught his eye - Harley in her pink dressing gown. How
long had she been standing there? Judging from the puzzled look she must have
heard most of what they’d said. Roy
jumped up and walked across the room. He took Harley by the hand and led her to
sit beside Sammy.

She stared at him, her brown eyes
wide in her pale face. ‘Dad, what did you mean just then, about not losing me
to my mother?’

He puffed out his cheeks and
looked at Sammy for inspiration.

‘Dad’s got something to tell you,
darling.’ Sammy stroked Harley’s hair back from her face.
    

Roy
sat on the opposite sofa. He cleared his throat and swallowed hard. ‘Harley,
this isn’t easy for me,’ he began. ‘What I have to tell you will come as a big
shock. But I hope you won’t think too badly of me.’ He paused and took a deep
breath. ‘In 1984 I had a brief affair.’

Harley gasped and moved closer to
Sammy, who put a protective arm around her.
 

‘I err - I got the woman pregnant.
She gave birth to a baby girl.’ He looked at Harley who was staring at him as
though he were mad.
  

Her frown deepened as he
continued. ‘She wasn’t in a position to look after the baby, so she handed her
over to me and Mum to bring up as our own daughter.’ Roy
looked at Harley’s stricken face. A faint pink flush appeared on her cheeks.
‘Oh, sweetheart, I’m so sorry. I should have told you years ago, but I didn’t
know how.’

‘So why have you decided to tell
me now, Dad?’ Her voice wobbled and she stared, wide-eyed. She snuggled closer
to Sammy who held her tight.

‘Your birth mother’s coming to Manchester,’
Sammy told her. ‘She’ll probably want to see you.’

‘Well
I
don’t want to see
her.
’
Harley looked at Sammy in despair. ‘Mum, tell me he’s lying.
You’re
my
real mother, aren’t you? Everybody says I’ve got your ways, even though I look
like
him
!’ She pushed Sammy away, shot across to Roy
and beat her fists on his head and shoulders, tears tumbling down her cheeks.
‘You’re a liar, Dad! Why are you doing this to me? Mum’s my mum.’

Sammy gasped, tears flowing freely
down her face. Roy caught Harley’s
hands and pulled her down beside him. ‘I’m not lying to you. I only wish I
were, believe me. I had an affair, you were the result. We’ve brought you up
since you were a tiny baby and we’ve loved you more than any child could ever
be loved. Sweetheart, it’s the truth. No matter how much it hurts, it’s the
truth.’ He held her close and she lay limply against his chest. Shuddering sobs
wracked her slender body. He looked at Sammy who was sobbing too. She went
across, knelt on the floor and flung her arms around father and daughter,
crying with them. ‘It was never going to be easy, Roy,’
she said softly, stroking Harley’s cheek.

‘Can you get me a brandy please,
Sam? Pour a small one for Harley and put a drop of coke in it.’

‘I think we could all use one,’
Sammy said and got to her feet.

‘So - my real mum didn’t want me
then?’ Harley choked on her words.
 

‘Harley, she wanted you
very
much. But she was quite young and
worried about the future alone. She thought you’d be better off with two
parents. That’s why
we
brought you
up.’

‘She was
young?
’ She stared at him. ‘
How
young, Dad?’
 

Roy
swallowed hard, cringing inwardly. ‘Twenty-two and I was forty-two. She was a
friend of Nick and Jason’s.’