Watching Willow Watts (9 page)

Tapping his foot impatiently, h
e half-listened as she confirmed an appointment for perm and toner.

‘
Now, then.’ The woman turned toward him and winked. ‘What can I do for you, handsome?’

Jay ran
a hand through his hair. ‘I’m new in town and I’ve heard this is the place to meet beautiful women.’ He gave her an appreciative look, pleased to see a smile on her face. Christ, this was going to be easy. ‘And if they’re all like you, I can see I’m right.’

‘
I
f you find women over sixty attractive then yes, they’re all gorgeous.’ She tossed back her curly hair and leaned closer.

‘
W
hat do you say you come over to mine for a drink? Say, around one?’ Lordy didn’t open up until late-afternoon, and the pub would be quiet and deserted – the ideal conditions to get a leg over.

‘
Love to, but the salon is going to be swamped today. I’ll have to take a rain check.’ The phone rang and the woman turned away. ‘Gotta go.’

Jay nodded,
still smiling despite the irritation curling inside. Playing hard to get, was she? Living in this wasteland, he couldn’t imagine any woman not jumping at the chance to touch his bod.

He’d try again soon. T
his broad would fall under his spell, just like most women did. And once he was raking in the dough, Davinia would succumb to him again, too. He couldn’t wait to show her he was back in the game, then push her right off his playing field.

CHAPTER SEVEN

WILLOW SWIVELLED BACK AND forth on a chair in Paula’s salon as she waited for her friend to finish up. The place was practically empty now except for the bulky form of Matthias Clodington – again! God, those TV correspondents were vain; Matthias just couldn’t seem to stay away from RockIt, despite being practically bald now.

‘
So how long will you be in Belcherton?’ Paula was asking as she
shaved the sides of his head even closer.

Matthias shrugged. ‘Not sure, really. It depends on how things go here. Did you know the YouTube video has now reached almost a half a million views? And I heard a rumour Channel Ten wants to do a reality show on you, Willow.’

‘
A reality show?’ Willow
shook her head. What were they going to film – her standing around, smiling? It would be the world’s most boring television, that was for sure.

‘
Anyway, we’ll be running an hour-long special programme tomorrow night on
the latest developments here, and after that I might have some down time. Perhaps we could have dinner together, if you’re free?’ Matthias asked, smiling up at Paula.

Ah, so
that
was why Matthias was hanging about. Paula seemed to have an inexplicable power over men – all she had to do was crook a finger and throw them a grin, and they came running.

Paula shook her head
. ‘What is it with you out-of-towners? Do you think you can just come in here and ask out the poor country women? I had some bloke hitting on me earlier, too. He was fit, but I like to make my men work hard, you know?’

‘
I know,’ Matthias responded with feeling
.

‘
There, done.’ Paula gave
his head a final buzz.

‘
Perfect.’ Matthias nodded
enthusiastically, even though his hair was so shorn on the sides, his gleaming scalp was visible beneath. Easing out of the chair, he handed over some pound notes and left the salon.

‘
Phew, what a day,’ Paula said, wiping away the last traces of black kohl from under her left eye. ‘I’m exhausted. Wanna come back to mine? There’s a Bon Jovi special on Biography.’

‘
I’d love to, but I really need to talk to Jay.
’ Willow had meant to head straight to Jay’s base at the pub after greeting the fans at the campsite. Instead, she’d got suckered into helping Mrs Greene and Mrs Lemmon bake endless banana loaves to sell to the hungry hordes – for three quid a slice! Willow protested it was slightly exorbitant, but the two older ladies ignored her. After that, Paula had waved to her from outside the salon, and Willow had ducked in for a quick chat.

‘
Oh, I
forgot to ask how it went last night!’ Paula stopped sweeping up locks of hair carpeting the salon floor and glanced over.

‘
It was good.’ Willow flushed, recalling Jay’s fingers clutching hers.

‘
Only
good?’ Paula raised an eyebrow. ‘So are you going to sign with him?’

‘
Maybe
. I just need a few more details. I’m off to talk to him now.’ Part of her still couldn’t believe she was actually thinking about it. This time last week, signing up with a London agent would have seemed about as believable as Mrs Lemmon pole dancing. But the opportunity to help the shop was way too big to pass up without serious consideration, and Willow had seen from the campsite just how huge this thing was getting.

‘
Well, I think you should go for it. It’s a great chance, and if it was me, I’d have been twirling down the street in full Marilyn gear long ago!’ Paula attacked the hair on the floor again. ‘Anyway, it’s not like you’re busy doing something else. Ever since you came home, you’ve just been helping out your dad.’

Willow
flinched. Paula was right, but between worrying about her father and the shop, she hadn’t had the mental space to even think about trying to rebuild a life for herself here. The Willow who’d enthusiastically whipped up stunning floral arrangements felt like she’d been buried under an avalanche of anxiety.

‘
Where are you meeting him
? I’ll walk you over.’ After shoving the broom behind the counter, Paula linked arms with Willow and the pair pushed through the crowd that had gathered out front, waiting for Willow to emerge. As they made their way down the street toward the pub, Paula stopped abruptly in front of the bus shelter cum tourist information centre. ‘What’s happening here?’

A
forest of helium balloons printed with Marilyn’s face festooned the rickety metal contraption. Clad in a tuxedo, Simpson was handing them out to passersby.

‘
Willow Watts!’ Simpson’s face lit up when he spotted her.

‘
What’s going on?’ she asked, taking the balloon he offered her.

‘
We’ve finally got the funds to build the new tourist centre!’ Simpson beamed. ‘I’ve been trying for years, but the council always told me we never had enough visitors. Well, thanks to that video, now we do. Here’s hoping they keep coming.’ He drew her into an enthusiastic hug, then pulled back. ‘And I’ve just passed by your father’s shop. You should see the big surprise he has for you! I know he’s found it difficult since your mother passed on, dear. It’s good to see some life back in Richard.’

Willow nodded
, her mind racing.
The surprise!
What could Dad be planning? With the campsite, the banana loaves, and trying to meet with Jay, the whole thing had slipped her mind. She’d better get over there fast and see what he’d been up to. Jay would have to wait a few more minutes. Waving goodbye to Simpson, she grabbed Paula’s hand and the two of them ducked around people on the street. The bell tinkled as Willow opened the door to Watts’s Antiques.

‘
Dad! I’m—’

Whoa.

Willow’s
eyes popped as she took in rows and rows of neat merchandise. Neat
Marilyn
merchandise. Heart thumping, she rushed over to the glass cabinet, which had once held silver cutlery but was now full of horrible plastic Marilyn Monroe figurines. Marilyn singing in that white dress, Marilyn posing beside JFK, Marilyn with Joe DiMaggio, Marilyn . . . doing almost everything imaginable!

Willow
forced herself to look around the rest of the room. T-shirts with
Marilyn Lives!
and
If Jesus was alive, he’d marry Marilyn
adorned the walls, along with black and white blow-up photos and reproductions of Andy Warhol’s famous Marilyn print. Baseball caps and sun visors perched jauntily on the faux-Chippendale cabinet, and various bits of paraphernalia – from banners to a bumper sticker reading
Honk if You Love Marilyn –
were strewn across the small space.

‘
Oh my G
od,’ Paula breathed. ‘It looks like Marilyn threw up in here.’

Her father
poked his head around an oversized inflatable Marilyn in the corner. ‘Surprise! What do you think?’

‘
It’s great, Dad,
’ Willow said, struggling to sound enthusiastic even though her heart was plummeting. How on earth had he paid for this?

‘
It is, isn’t it?’ He
came over and put an arm around her shoulders. ‘I thought a bit of a change would be nice, so when Simpson mentioned the idea a few days ago, I figured, why not?’

‘
Yes, why not?’ Willow echoed.
Why not? Because we don’t have the money for all this!
Bloody Simpson, putting the thought of a Marilyn souvenir shop in her dad’s head.

Paula glanced from Willow to her father and back again. ‘Um . . . I think I’ll take off now,’ she said, backing out the door. ‘I’ll see you later, Wills.’

Willow nodded goodbye, grateful for the interruption so she could gather her emotions.

‘
Dad? Just
wondering, how much did all this stock cost?’

‘
Don’t worry, dear,’ her father
said. ‘We had a profit of almost five hundred pounds in the shop account! That’s almost the best month this business has ever had. All thanks to your expert accounting and the few extra sales we’ve made.’

Willow
sat down on an old wooden chair, now draped with bed sheets printed with black and white Marilyn images. Her father had spent everything – and after paying this month’s instalment, she’d have no more savings. Even if the shop
did
manage to somehow offload this rubbish before next month’s payment was due, God knows how much profit they’d make on the tat.

Looking up at her dad’s face, full of excitement and pride at the shop, she couldn’t bear to think of telling him the
business was in serious trouble, and that he’d unknowingly taken a risk they couldn’t afford.

There was only on
e thing to do. If she signed with Jay, he’d help her get money fast. The way he’d been talking, making a thousand pounds would be easy. And forget monthly payments – she might even be able to clear the whole debt. Ten thousand pounds wouldn’t take too long, right? A few smiles and twirls for a month or two, and everything would be fine.

‘
It all looks fantastic, Dad
.’ Willow kept the smile nailed to her face. ‘I’ll be back in a while to help you check the inventory. There’s just someone I need to see.’ She got to her feet, heart thumping at what she was about to do.

It’s not such
a big deal, she told herself, pushing through the crowded street toward the pub. Loads of people already thought she was Marilyn, anyway, and she wouldn’t have to do anything that made her uncomfortable. Willow hurried into the dim pub, scanning the tables.

Oh good, t
here he was. Relief shot through her as she spotted Jay’s head bent over a newspaper. All she had to do was sign, and the shop would be sorted soon.

‘
Hi,
’ she said, swinging into the chair across from him. His expensive-smelling spicy cologne enveloped her and her face went hot as she recalled his soft lips against her cheek.

The
brown eyes lit up. ‘Hello! It’s a yes?’

Willow leaned
back. That was straight to the point!

Jay
waved a hand in the air and laughed. ‘Sorry! Look at me, all business. Can I get you a drink?’

‘
Oh, that would be fantastic. Large white, please. Thanks.’ Willow closed her eyes and tried to relax as Jay went over to the bar. A few seconds later he was back, clutching a bottle of champagne.

‘
Thought I’d splash out. You deserve it.’ He set the bottle on the table and Willow looked at it in surprise. Lordy was going posh – usually, ‘house white’ was as classy as he got. And how lovely of Jay to get something special; she couldn’t remember the last time she’d had some bubbly. Maybe back in London? She watched as Jay expertly removed the gold foil and popped the cork.

‘
So.’ His dark eyes met hers. ‘Do we have something to celebrate?’

‘
Yes!’ The word burst out of her.
‘Yes, I want to do this. With you. As my agent,’ she added quickly, feeling her cheeks go even redder.

Jay’s smile widened
and he reached out to take her hand, cradling it between his two broad ones. Willow glanced down, noting for the first time how the backs of his hands were sprinkled in thick, sandy hair, so different from the smooth hands of . . . no, she wouldn’t think about him. Jay squeezed her fingers, then let go and poured them both a glass of champagne.

‘
Cheers!’ he said, raising his glass high in the air. ‘Here’s to being Marilyn!’

‘
To being Marilyn,’ Willow echoed. She wasn’t exactly eager to embrace her new role, but if it meant paying off that debt, it would be worth it.