The Cornish Cream Tea Summer Read online

  ‘I think they’re filming one of those big scenes later this week, actually.’

  Lila nodded. Aria would look extra beautiful alongside Sam. Individually they were both impressive human beings, but together, they might work even better than Aria and Toby, because of their contrasting colouring – Aria was dark haired and pale skinned, whereas everything about Sam was dusty gold and bronzed. Lila decided she wouldn’t go and watch that scene: not if it was the one that ended with Robert Bramerton and Marianne kissing.

  ‘Why don’t you film the scenes in order?’ she asked, trying to take her mind off it. ‘Doesn’t it get confusing?’

  ‘Not really,’ Keeley said. ‘We’ve read all the scripts – unlike you,’ she added, grinning, ‘and the filming schedule is based on location and actor availability. Imagine if there was a five-minute scene out here, and then a long scene inside the big house – which will be filmed on set in Bristol – then another one out here. That would make zero logistical sense.’

  ‘I hadn’t thought about it like that,’ Lila said, as they began making their way back to the sprawling backstage village. ‘But isn’t it strange, if your character’s got close to another character, to be doing the later scenes and then going back and filming encounters where you barely know each other?’

  ‘But we’re actors,’ Keeley replied. ‘It’s our job to be good at that stuff!’ Her eyes were dancing, and Lila noticed she looked much happier than she had earlier that day. She didn’t mind if her ignorance was helping her friend feel better.

  ‘And you are,’ Lila said. ‘Very good – brilliant, in fact.’

  Keeley laughed and rolled her eyes, turning sideways as three runners carried what looked like a piece of scaffolding in the direction they had just come from. Lila hoped that wasn’t another of Gregor’s methods for giving the audience a sense of danger. She couldn’t imagine any of the actors would be happy to wobble on that while it was balanced over the water.

  ‘Ooh, I meant to tell you,’ Keeley said, ‘a few of the cast are getting together on Friday evening for some drinks. We’re not sure where yet, but when I find out, do you want to come?’

  Lila hesitated. ‘If it’s just the cast, then—’

  ‘But I want you there. And you know Sam, and Aria a little. And you must be getting on with Toby if he’s giving you scripts.’

  ‘And Bert,’ Lila added, grinning. ‘Bert’s great fun. I would love to come.’ She wondered if she could ask Daniel’s neighbour, Lily, to hold on to Jasper until later on.

  ‘It’s settled then,’ Keeley said. ‘I’ll let you know as soon as we’ve got a destination.’

  Chapter Two

  Friday turned out to be beautiful, and as Lila drove from Porthgolow to St Eval, the sun was already making an appearance, shining in the window of the Volvo as if reminding her it still existed. She arrived on set and climbed out of the car, instinctively zipping up her maroon leather biker’s jacket, only to discover that it was warmer than it looked. The spring in her step was mirrored by Marmite, who bounded beside her as she passed the make-up trailer and made her way to the catering area, and Gertie.

  She was already bubbling with excitement about that evening, looking forward to spending time away from the set with some of the cast, soaking up their thespian vibes and hearing their stories. It was exactly the kind of thing she’d imagined doing when Winston had first appeared on the Cornish Cream Tea Bus and suggested they could be a part of Estelle. Lily had been happy to look after Jasper until Saturday morning, and Marmite could join in the fun – he was already popular with Sam and Keeley. She unlocked the bus, put the boxes of fresh scones and cakes on the counter, and turned on the coffee machine.

  From that moment, everything went wrong.

  Em was the first to appear, telling her that a lorry had spilled its load on the A39 and some of the crew were stuck en route from their accommodation. Em sighed, tapping distractedly on her clipboard, and then, without an explanation as to why that might affect Lila, left again, leaving her to look at Marmite in puzzlement.

  Regulars came in for their coffees, and Lila’s new halloumi bites were an instant hit, but everyone had a harried, impatient air.

  ‘What’s happening, Bert?’ she asked, when he sauntered onto the bus, togged up in his nineteenth-century finery.

  ‘It’s all gone to hell in a handcart,’ he declared, putting his nose close to Lila’s new selection of bakes. ‘Pret today, was it? These are rather more upper-class than your usual fare.’

  ‘Yup, Pret A Manger gave me a job lot this morning, and they’re only just out of date, so you shouldn’t get too sick. Why’s it gone to hell in a handcart?’ She started making his coffee, writing his name in a swirling script on the takeaway cup with a purple sharpie.

  ‘Because,’ Bert said, sighing dramatically, ‘Gregor is trapped in this pile-up of seashells, or whatever it is that’s currently covering Cornwall’s western artery, so nothing can begin. We have the actors,’ he swept his arms wide, ‘and most of the crew. We could start, were it not that our fearless leader is stuck in his Land Rover five miles away. Why he can’t start walking is beyond me.’

  ‘And you’ve got a heavy schedule today?’

  ‘Made even more crucial by the weather; the light is on point, and it’s a crying shame to lose any hours while it’s quite literally smiling down on us.’

  ‘Have a cake while you’re waiting. Or a savoury. Halloumi bite? Sausage roll? What about some of my arancini? They’re one of my biggest hits. Or, if you’ve got loads of time, how about a cream tea? I know it’s early yet, but—’ Bert held up a finger, silencing her.

  Lila hovered, feeling ridiculous.

  ‘Things are afoot,’ he said. ‘I’ll have to go and see what’s happening.’

  ‘Don’t you get called if you’re needed?’ Lila asked, pouring hot milk into his coffee and putting the lid on.

  ‘Sometimes,’ he said, ‘nobody knows I’m needed until I get there.’ He gave her a devilish grin and swept off the bus. Lila thought he should have a cloak, to make the effect even more dramatic. She wondered if he’d ever played Dracula, and took out her phone to look him up on IMDb.

  After that, all Lila’s customers weren’t just harried, but harassed. Sarah, who had accompanied Keeley to the equinox festival, told Lila that Gregor had eventually turned up, but he was in a foul mood because of the delay, and was shouting all kinds of insults about Cornwall and how backwards it was which, given the amount of local people working on set, wasn’t a good look.

  ‘So then Winston – because of course he’s here today – got a face like thunder,’ Sarah explained, popping a halloumi bite in her mouth, ‘and started snapping at everyone, and now the whole place is on the verge of exploding. Which is not good, especially when we’re filming one of the biggies today – the first clinch between Sam and Aria.’

  Lila chewed the inside of her cheek. She wished Sarah had said ‘the first clinch between Robert and Marianne’. ‘That does all sound a bit fraught,’ she admitted.

  ‘Fraught isn’t the word, my love. I’d better get back. See what firefighting needs to be done.’ She took her hot chocolate, and another couple of halloumi bites, and left the bus.

  Lila rested her head against the wall. ‘Oh Marmite,’ she said. ‘Why do I care? I don’t even know him, and he’s so out of my league.’

  Marmite barked as if in agreement, which she felt was a little mean.

  She spent the time in between customers scribbling new cake and pastry ideas in her notebook, and trying not to read the Robert and Marianne scene over and over again in her pilfered script. She sent Charlie photographic proof of her industriousness, and asked how their holiday was going, hoping for some photos of blue skies and San Francisco landmarks in return. She didn’t want to disturb them too much, but despite all the excitement of being on set, she was missing her cousin.

  As the official wrap time approached, Em came on board, looking contrite. ‘We’re going
to overrun this evening by at least an hour. You happy to hang on? I expect coffee will be needed.’

  ‘Sure,’ she said, and felt her hopes of some downtime with the cast slipping away. It had sounded too good to be true in the first place.

  The sun was setting; with nothing else to distract her, the noises Lila had started to associate with the workings of a TV set – distant chatter, laughter, the constant slamming of trailer and truck doors – came into focus. She could hear the sea, but only as an undercurrent, like the rush of wind.

  She wondered where exactly they were filming, what Sam and Aria were doing at this very moment. Were their lips locked together? Hands tight on waists, bodies pressed close? Their clinch wasn’t real, and even if it was, she had no claim on him. He was just an almost-friend, someone she admired and got on with.

  But she couldn’t help wondering if, when they kissed, Sam and Aria would find that elusive connection that meant they were the new Charlie and Daniel, destined to be together forever, their personalities perfectly complementing each other. So many actors ended up in relationships. It made sense – it was an unusual, demanding job, surely helped by having someone who understood what you went through on a daily basis, the perks and pitfalls of fame.

  Marmite yelped and put his front paws on the back of the driver’s seat.

  ‘Are any of these thoughts useful?’ she asked, scooping him into her arms. Despite his small size he was heavy and solid, his fur softer than it looked. ‘You know Marmite,’ she added, ‘if I didn’t have you, then I don’t know what—’

  ‘We need your bus.’

  Lila spun round and found Toby Welsh in the doorway, dressed in an approximation of his Henry Bramerton outfit, though the waistcoat and top few buttons of the shirt were undone, the frock coat nowhere to be seen.

  ‘You do?’ Lila asked.

  ‘We’re running so late, by the time we make it to the pub it’ll be near closing, even if the road’s been cleared by now. Keeley said you were up for tonight, so—’

  ‘I am, but what has Gertie got to do with it?’

  ‘Sly and Claude, on night security, said they would turn a blind eye if the bus left its position this evening, as long as it’s back by morning. Apparently there’s a secluded cove a couple of miles away, and with your cakes and a few bottles that can be provided, the pub idea pales into insignificance anyway.’

  Lila chewed her lip. Toby Welsh wanted to turn Gertie into a party bus, with her as the host. Except it wasn’t her bus, and the reason the Routemaster would be staying on set over the weekend and not taking up its usual spot on the beach in Porthgolow was because Lila couldn’t drive it there. She didn’t have a licence. She had promised herself she’d be responsible.

  ‘Toby—’

  ‘It’s been a tough day,’ he continued. ‘Gregor’s put us through the wringer. Sam and Aria especially. I suppose we could go back to digs, there’s a scruffy little local in the village, but …’ he let his words trail away, his dark eyes holding hers.

  Lila thought of Sam and Aria cosying up to each other in a quaint pub in front of a roaring fire, commiserating over their hard day, perhaps practising for another clinch later on in the story. She might not have a licence, but she knew how to drive Gertie, and Toby had said the beach was only a couple of miles down the coast.

  ‘What’s your answer, Lila?’ Toby gave her what had to be a practised, charming grin.

  ‘You know what my answer is.’ She returned his smile, ignoring the prickle of heat on her palms.

  ‘Excellent. Give us five minutes, and we’ll be on board. Aria can direct you.’

  ‘I’ll be waiting.’

  When Toby had gone, white shirt flapping in the evening breeze, she did a little dance. ‘Ready for a night of fun, Marmite? I’m not going to kill the entire cast of Estelle, am I?’ The dog cocked his head to the side and looked up at her, considering. She pushed down the swell of panic and went to check her appearance in her compact mirror.

  Ten minutes later, Toby, Aria, Keeley, Sarah from production, Bertie, an actor called Darius, who reminded Lila of a young Jamie Foxx and who played the Bramertons’ immoral but impressive arch rival and, of course, Sam, trooped onto the bus. They were laughing and joking with the air of, Lila imagined, lifers who had been unexpectedly released from prison. She hoped she wouldn’t be heading there before the night was out.

  ‘Here we are, folks,’ Toby said. ‘The venue for this evening. Lila has very kindly agreed to drive us down to the cove.’

  ‘It’s only ten minutes away by car,’ Aria said. ‘But it would be a long walk, and we’d have no shelter once we got there. The bus is perfect.’

  ‘Gertie has a multitude of talents,’ Lila said. ‘And tonight will be her Estelle party bus debut.’ She sounded confident enough, but now, with the cast on board, acting superstars who would all have heavy insurance policies, and Sam and Keeley, who she considered friends, it all felt very precarious. She thought of Charlie’s confidence in her, trusting her with Gertie all the way from America.

  She climbed into the driver’s seat and took the keys out of her bag, then stared at the dashboard and tried to remember everything that Charlie had showed her. The other version of herself would probably not have worried too much and started the ignition anyway: the version of herself that Clara had torn a strip or two off that last day … She took a deep breath and slipped down from the seat.

  ‘I’m so sorry,’ she said to the assembled group, ‘but we can’t go anywhere.’

  ‘Why not?’ Toby asked.

  She gave a nervous laugh. ‘Because I don’t have a licence to drive the bus. It’s Charlie’s, and she’s entrusted it to me and although it would be lovely and the plan sounds perfect, I just—’

  ‘So how do you move between locations?’ Bert asked.

  ‘Charlie arranged with Winston that Mike or Claude would drive the bus for me while she was away, so I—’

  ‘Claude?’ Toby asked.

  Lila nodded. She felt embarrassed, but she couldn’t risk everything her cousin had worked so hard for, with one act of total irresponsibility.

  ‘I’ll ask Claude if he’ll drive us,’ Toby said, standing up and flashing Lila a grin.

  ‘He doesn’t need to stay here?’ Aria asked.

  ‘We’ll only be gone a few hours, and Sly can man the gate. Back in two secs.’

  Once he was gone, the others started talking between themselves quietly.

  ‘Lila, are you OK?’ She hadn’t heard Sam come up behind her.

  She turned and smiled. ‘Of course. I mean—’

  ‘Crisis averted,’ Toby said, hopping back on board, Claude following behind. ‘We have our driver.’

  Sam gave Lila’s arm a brief squeeze and sat back down.

  ‘Are you sure, Claude?’ she asked.

  ‘It’s more fun than standing guard for hours on end,’ he said, giving her a warm smile. ‘And I love driving Gertie. There’s something very special about this bus.’

  ‘You,’ she smiled, handing him the keys, ‘are a wonderful man.’

  He waved away her compliment and settled himself in the driver’s seat, then started the ignition.

  Lila sat next to Keeley while Claude drove them away from the set, Aria hovering at his shoulder, directing him towards the cove. The atmosphere didn’t seem dampened in any way, despite the change of plan, and when she caught Toby’s eye, he gave her a mischievous wink.

  The bus slowed, and she felt the incline as it travelled down a hill. Outside, the impenetrable black of a narrow, tree-lined road suddenly gave way to reveal a tiny, deserted cove, appearing, as if by magic, out of the gloom. The sea sparkled ahead of them, the sun having been replaced by a bold silver moon, and even in the dark, with the shadowy, hulking cliffs looming up on either side, it was breathtaking.

  Claude drove Gertie onto a strip of concrete between the road and the sand, turned in a wide arc and brought the bus to a halt, allowing a view of the water out of t
he side windows.

  ‘Bravo, Claude,’ Toby said, while everyone gave him a smattering of applause. ‘Now. Let’s get this party started!’

  Vodka, sparkling wine and pink gin in a curved, frosted bottle were produced from various carrier and tote bags. Lila found glasses in the cupboards, and released Marmite from his crate so he could mingle. She declined the alcohol and made herself and Claude a cup of tea, and Keeley helped her plate up a selection of sweet and savoury pastries, while the others moved to the top deck. Sam was last, shooting a quick glance in their direction before loping up the narrow staircase, his tan boots the last thing Lila saw before he disappeared.

  ‘Are you sure you won’t have any of Sarah’s pink gin, since Claude drove the bus?’ Keeley asked. ‘Apparently you can only buy it online, and she’s been going on and on about it. Liquorice and juniper or something.’

  ‘Tea’s fine. I’ve got to drive back to Porthgolow at the end of the night anyway, and even though I can’t technically drive it, I still feel responsible for Gertie. Besides, I don’t mind not drinking.’

  ‘Because you’re effervescent enough as it is,’ Keeley chimed.

  ‘What about you?’ Lila asked. ‘How are things with Jordan now?’

  Keeley wrinkled her nose. ‘Much better. Less frosty. It’s just …’ She glanced at her feet. ‘I wish I was settling into it all better. I’m having fun, and the rest of the cast and the crew are all lovely, but … I didn’t know it would be so hard, this long-term drama business. Everyone else seems to be taking it in their stride.’ She pointed up, the sound of laughter drifting down from the top deck. ‘And I feel out of sorts.’

  ‘Is there anything I can do?’

  Keeley shook her head. ‘You’re making it so much easier already. Knowing you’re always on the bus and I can come and talk to you. And I’ll be fine – I’m just having a moan. It’s been a long week.’ She smiled, but it looked forced. ‘Let’s go and join the others.’

  Once on the top deck, Bert beckoned them over with his usual exuberance. ‘Darlings, come and sit down! And bring some of those delicacies. This is better than pub grub.’