Ten Days with Mr Darcy (on hold)

Chapter twenty-one - Truth revealed

A noise in the hall made Jessica jump. She refolded and replaced the receipt just before Laura walked in. Had Ruth been correct when she claimed Gareth and Laura weren't together? "Do you plan on meeting up again when this is over?"

Glancing back into the now darkened corridor, Laura closed the door. "With who...Gareth? We might." She smiled. "He's a great guy and so easy to talk to, but I'm already in a relationship. He and I are just friends."

Jess cast her memory back to all the occasions when she had seen Laura and Gareth chatting and laughing, their heads close, whispering secrets. "For two people who aren't together, you certainly had plenty to talk about."

The smile fell from Laura's lips as she leant against the door. She crossed her arms, her brow creased as she stared at Jess. Then she shook her head. "You really have no idea at all, do you?" she said, her voice reflecting both anger and disbelief.

"About what?"

"There's only one subject Gareth has ever wanted to talk about, one thing he's been interested in since he arrived here, and that's you."

Jess opened her mouth, then closed it again. There were no words to describe the jolt of shock she'd felt as Laura reached the end of her sentence. "Me? He can't... I would have known if he..." She shook her head, as though the movement could blow away Laura's words like dust. "He doesn't even know me."

Laura snorted and threw herself down on the bed. "I've been trying to tell him the same thing all week. The truth is he's been smitten since the moment he first set eyes on you, and the saddest part is that you barely noticed he was alive because you spent all your time drooling over Sebastian Fox."

"Why didn't he say something?"

"He wouldn't just tell you how he felt but he did attempt to talk to you, more than once. Didn't you notice? Whenever he tried to start a conversation, you weren't listening. You had other things on your mind. What average, normal guy can compete with Mr. Darcy?"

Jessica recalled occasions when Gareth had chatted with her or praised how she'd dealt with a scene. "Honestly, I had no idea he felt that way."

Laura's brief moment of irritation seemed spent as she rolled onto her back, staring up at the ceiling. "Gareth is everything that Sebastian will never be. He's kind and thoughtful, considerate and trustworthy, but he's not going to push in where he thinks he's not welcome. He's just a really nice guy. Maybe a bit too nice." Even though they weren't in the sort of relationship Jessica had assumed, it was clear that Laura cared for Gareth's happiness a great deal and didn't think much of Jessica's excuses.

"I'm sorry." As an apology, it seemed woefully inadequate. Besides, she was apologising to the wrong person.

"Try and get some sleep, if you can. We have one more day of performance tomorrow but, as far as Gareth's concerned, please be honest and tell him you're not interested. The poor guy needs to move on."

They settled down for what remained of the night. Jessica insisted that Laura should remain on the bed, while she sank deeper into the armchair. Sleep was out of the question for her now. She had far too much to think about.

The following morning, Jessica was surprised to find that she had dozed off after all, despite the fact that her brain had continued to pick over the day's events and revelations well into the night. She stretched, loosening a spine stiff from having slept curled up in the chair, as Laura returned to her empty room to change. Jess couldn't get washed or dressed for breakfast until she'd fetched some items or swapped rooms so she was back in her own.