The Show by Tilly Bagshawe Read Free Book Online

combination of the rural idyll and the celebrity residents. The scandals.’ She avoided meeting his eye. ‘Tatiana Flint-Hamilton, Brett Cranley, Emma Harwich, Santiago de la Cruz. They’re all synonymous with the valley. So yes, we’re showing farming life, but we’re also trying to package what it is that makes this place so special. It’s a nostalgic snapshot of England, if you like: what England used to be, what we all still wish it were.’
    ‘Like a Richard Curtis film, but in a reality format,’ Eddie mused.
    Laura looked delighted. ‘Exactly! That’s it exactly.’
    ‘All right,’ said Eddie. ‘So how would it work, if I were to fund this? What would I get for my investment? Talk me through the nuts and bolts.’

    He listened intently as Laura explained the process of producing a television series. She’s bright , he thought, and ambitious. And sexy. He noticed the way her dark hair continually fell forward over her face and her breasts rose and fell quickly beneath her silk shirt when she became animated. She had very little make-up on and was simply dressed in a grey woollen skirt and a cream blouse. Eddie was a fan of the effortless look.
    After ten minutes of straight talking, Laura finally drew breath. ‘So. What do you think?’
    ‘I think it’s intriguing,’ said Eddie. ‘I’ll give it some thought and come back to you.’
    He stood up and offered Laura his hand.
    ‘Oh. Right. OK,’ she stammered. ‘Thanks.’
    She hadn’t expected such an abrupt end to the meeting, and wasn’t quite sure how to handle it. She was still standing there like a lemon, her hand clasped in Eddie’s, when his wife walked in carrying a tray of tea.
    Lady Wellesley took in the scene – a beautiful young woman, her husband in flirt-mode – and shot Laura a look that could have melted stone.
    Christ , Laura thought. Penny wasn’t kidding. She really is intimidating.
    ‘Ah, darling.’ Releasing Laura, Eddie wrapped an arm around his wife’s stiff, distrustful shoulders. ‘How sweet of you to bring us tea. But Mrs Baxter was just leaving.’
    ‘What a shame,’ said Annabel, in a tone that clearly translated as good riddance.
    ‘I’ll see myself out,’ Laura mumbled awkwardly.
    Had the meeting gone well or badly? She couldn’t tell. Driving home, she wondered whether going into business with a politician might be more trouble than it was worth, especially if his wife disapproved. When it came to poker faces, Eddie Wellesley was a master.

    Two days passed. Then three. Then four.
    By Friday morning, Laura’s ‘work-from-home’ day, she and Gabe had still heard nothing from Eddie.
    ‘It’s dead in the water,’ said Laura.
    ‘You don’t know that,’ said Gabe, although privately he agreed. If Wellesley wanted in, he’d have called by now.
    ‘I do,’ Laura said. ‘The wife put the kibosh on it. I’m sure she thought I was flirting with her husband.’
    ‘And were you?’ said Gabe, giving Laura’s bottom a playful squeeze as she leaned over to pick up yet more Lego from the floor. Hugh had tried to build a rocket before nursery this morning, with mixed results. ‘You career women will stop at nothing to get what you want. How many times have I told you your place is in the kitchen?’
    ‘Er, no times?’ said Laura. ‘The last time I cooked for you, you said the lasagne tasted like burned plastic.’
    Gabe grimaced. ‘Oo, God yes, that lasagne. That was rough. Not the kitchen then. The bedroom.’ He circled his arms around her waist. ‘I hate you getting on that train to London.’
    ‘So do I,’ said Laura, with feeling. ‘But unfortunately, unless we can get this show off the ground, we need the money. Now sod off and spread some slurry, or whatever glamorous job it is you have on today.’
    Gabe went out into the fields, leaving Laura to finish cleaning up while Luca had his morning nap. She really must sack Lianne. The house was a pigsty. Then again, thought Laura, catching