‘You fucking slut,’ Dave shouted as he kicked the door.
Johnny crossed the room in two strides, wrenched the door open and grabbed Dave by the front of his T-shirt. Before Dave had time to realise what was happening, Johnny landed a punch square on his jaw and dropped him in a heap.
‘Don’t you ever speak to my lady like that again,’ he said. ‘Have some fucking respect.’ He slammed the door and turned back to Alex. ‘Are you okay, babe?’
She grinned. ‘I am now,’ she said. ‘That was—’
Johnny flexed his fingers. ‘Stupid, I know. Sorry, I just saw red. That fucking imbecile …’
Outside Dave clambered to his feet, his hand pressed to his sore face. He hoped it bruised. He’d just been decked by Johnny Burns; a bruise would be so fucking cool.
***
Later that day they arrived at Johnny’s villa. It was a lovely, spacious house in its own grounds, with an outdoor pool and a vineyard. Alex was getting used to fancy surroundings, but the place still took her breath away. Johnny had phoned ahead to say they’d be arriving, and so things were ready for them.
They dumped their bags in the hall and Johnny led Alex through to the kitchen and opened a bottle of Fitou. ‘Not one of ours,’ he said, ‘but pretty good, nonetheless.’ They took their wine outside and sat in the late afternoon sunshine, glad to be able to relax. Phones were staying off until the morning, which was the soonest email would be accessed, too.
In the evening they walked the couple of miles into town to a restaurant Johnny liked. They lingered over dinner then wandered slowly back, holding hands in the moonlight. It felt like a million miles away from the troubles of the past few days and the fresh smell of the countryside and comparative silence of their surroundings worked its magic on their mood. By the time they got back to the villa, they felt completely relaxed. Johnny rummaged out a bottle of brandy and some glasses while Alex put some music on; she reckoned Richard Hawley fitted the bill. Before long, she had fallen asleep curled up on Johnny. He put the brandy glasses to one side and carried her gently to bed.
***
Next morning they slept late then enjoyed a leisurely breakfast, having found a basket of fresh bread and croissants waiting in the kitchen for them.
After they’d eaten, Johnny got his phone out. ‘What do you reckon; time to check out what the world’s been up to?’
Alex grinned; she had her phone in her hand, too. ‘After three. One, two … three.’ They switched on and both phones beeped almost simultaneously. ‘Here we go.’ Alex had a couple of voice messages each from Isabel and Carol, wanting to know if she and Johnny were okay. There were also half a dozen or so rants from Dave that she deleted without fully listening to.
Johnny put calls in to Dan, Paul, Colin, and Chrissie, and Alex rang Isabel and Carol, to reassure them that everything was okay. Carol was to the point, as always.
‘Did he do it, then? Is it true?’
‘No. We’ll talk about it next time I see you, if you like, but no, it isn’t true.’ Alex didn’t intend to get into it on the phone. She promised to keep in touch and rang off.
Since nothing major appeared to have happened, they got on with enjoying their holiday. A couple of times Alex tried to get Johnny to talk some more about Heartbreaker, move the story on, but he refused. ‘Let’s just have a break, Alex,’ he said. ‘We can get back to work when we get back to England.’ Alex had one eye on their deadline, but let it go. If needs be, she could negotiate an extension, she was sure.
They had an idyllic fortnight. The weather was consistently good as June rolled lazily over into July and they ate good food, drank good wine, went for long, rambling walks in the countryside and made long, slow, leisurely love.
When the day came that they were to head back, they were both sorry to leave. ‘Back to reality,’ Alex said.
‘I’m not so sure,’ observed Johnny. ‘This feels more real than some of the crap back home.’
Chapter 63
They got back to Johnny’s place tired and hungry and were surprised to find Christabel sitting on the terrace, flicking through
Classic Rock
. When she saw them, she pushed her hair out of her eyes and squinted up at them. ‘Hey, there,’ she said, ‘have you two had a good time?’
Johnny kissed the top of her head. ‘Great, thanks, Chrissie. You okay, love?’
‘Yes. But I’ve got something to tell you.’ She shot him a crooked little smile.
‘Is this something I’m going to like?’
‘Probably not. Not at first, anyway.’ She looked past Johnny and Alex and smiled encouragingly at someone. ‘Come on. Now’s as good a time as any.’
Alex turned and saw Colin walking towards them. Johnny smiled. ‘Hi, Col. Do you know anything about this?’ Colin walked over to Christabel; she stood up and he put his arm around her, kissed her lightly on the lips. Realisation dawned on Johnny and he looked horrified. ‘No way.’ He appealed to Christabel. ‘Tell me this is a wind-up.’
‘Sorry, Dad, we’re together. Colin’s left Marilyn; we’re just hiding out here for a few days until the dust settles.’
Johnny rounded on Colin. ‘That’s my daughter, you sick fuck. You used to read her bedtime stories, for Christ’s sake.’ He ran his fingers through his hair, turned to Alex. ‘Did you know anything about this?’ She hesitated a beat too long, and her protestations sounded hollow, even to her ears. Johnny didn’t call her on it, but he gave her a look that told her she’d have some explaining to do later. Right now, he had other things on his mind.
‘How long has this been going on?’ he demanded of them.
Colin kept his voice even, not wanting to make things worse than they already were. ‘About six months. We couldn’t help it, Johnny, we fell in love.’
‘Fuck off!’
‘It’s true,’ said Christabel. ‘We’d been trying to ignore how we felt for ages before we got together.’
Johnny was trying hard to keep a lid on his temper. Colin chipped in with: ‘This isn’t just a fling, you know. We’re serious about each other. We’re planning to get married.’
‘Married? Fucking married? You’re having me on.’ He turned to Christabel. ‘He’s thirty years older than you, Chrissie. What on earth can you have in common?’
‘Well now, let’s see, what did you find to have in common with all your women friends over the years? You’ve coped with a few similar age gaps, haven’t you?’
‘So?’
‘So those women were someone’s daughter. So what’s the difference?’
‘They weren’t my fucking daughter, that’s the difference,’ Johnny shouted, any pretence at keeping cool now gone. Alex put her hand on his arm, tried to get his attention. He shook her off and squared up to Colin. ‘You bastard. I trusted you, I thought you were my friend. Then you go and do this? Christ, Colin.’
‘We’re not doing anything wrong, Johnny. We really do care for each other.’
‘Like you cared for Sky? Or Cleo? Or Mary-Lou?’ Johnny named some of the ‘tour wives’ Colin had adopted over the years, women he picked up and dropped as casually as he changed his shirt. ‘For God’s sake, that’s my kid you’re messing with, not some jacked up bimbo.’
‘Exactly, Johnny, and that’s why you should listen to us,’ Christabel exclaimed hotly. She grabbed his arms, turned him to face her. ‘You know us. You know me. When have I ever lied to you?’ She gave him a shake to emphasise what she was saying. Johnny was lost for words. She took his face in her hands, reached up to kiss his cheek and said more softly, ‘Trust me. Come on, Dad. Trust Colin. We’re right about this, you’ll see. Just give us a chance.’
Johnny put his arms round his daughter, held her close. He really didn’t have much choice in the matter, he would have to give them a chance, see how things went. ‘Okay,’ he said eventually. ‘It obviously means a lot to you. Let’s just try to get used to the idea.’
‘Thanks,’ said Christabel, hugging him. She sounded relieved. But she didn’t see the look he shot Colin over her head.
***
Things were strained over the next few days. Johnny and Colin were maintaining an uneasy truce and Christabel and Alex were caught in the middle. They tried not to leave the two men alone in case things flared up between them. Later in the week the women were chatting over a coffee, able to relax because Colin had gone into the village and Johnny was busy in the studio.
‘So how did you know?’ Christabel asked Alex.
‘I saw you two kissing in the garden one time.’ She shrugged. ‘I figured it was none of my business. I wouldn’t have known what to say, anyway.’
‘Did Johnny give you a hard time over it?’
‘He wasn’t too happy, but he saw my point of view eventually. As I said to him, it could have been completely innocent, and then what good would mentioning it have done?’
Christabel smiled, squeezed her hand. ‘Thanks, Alex.’ She pushed her hair out of her eyes. ‘It’s not going to be easy.’
‘Is he worth it?’
Christabel looked up, surprised.
‘No, I’m not having a go.’ Alex smiled. ‘What I mean is, is being with him worth all the aggro you’ll get elsewhere?’
Christabel considered her reply. ‘When I’m with Colin, he makes me feel as though I’m the most important person in his world. He’s certainly the most important person in mine. He’s kind, clever, generous. And he’s really talented, Alex. He’s never got the recognition he deserves, he’s a hell of a musician.’ Alex nodded. ‘And he’s a good lover.’ She grinned. ‘Don’t tell Johnny I said that, he’ll have a fit. So, is he worth it? Yes, totally. Completely and utterly.’ She took a drink of her coffee. ‘Mind you, we’re off to see Mum and Becky tomorrow. Ask me again when we’ve got through that.’
Chapter 64
Once they had gone, Johnny relaxed a little. The tension in his face and his shoulders was less evident, his movements less stilted. Then Nicci rang. She was incandescent with rage; Chrissie and Colin had just left her and she wanted to know what kind of irresponsible pervert Johnny was to have allowed them to get together in the first place, let alone stay under his roof as a couple. ‘I knew you pimped out your cast-off girlfriends, but I never thought you’d do it to your own daughter,’ she had stormed, loud enough for Alex to hear.
Johnny gave as good as he got, then ended up defending Christabel which made things even worse. ‘Daddy’s little golden girl,’ spat Nicci. ‘She never could do any wrong in your eyes.’
When Johnny got off the phone, he couldn’t settle. ‘I never fucking pimped anyone out in my life,’ he raged. ‘How could she say that? And about Chrissie of all people. Jesus, that woman can be a fucking witch.’ He stormed out and roamed the grounds for an hour before coming back in a quieter mood.
***
Next day, Alex tried to get Johnny to do some work on the book, but he refused. He claimed to be too restless, plus, it was Friday. He suggested they went away for the weekend. ‘Not far, just not here,’ was his sales pitch. They packed up and headed off to a little pub he liked that was just a few hours’ drive away, and fell straight back into their holiday routine. When Sunday came around, Johnny persuaded Alex to stay another day and she reluctantly agreed. The deadline was looming in her mind now.
They got home early afternoon on the Monday. Alex sorted their gear out and by the time she went down to the kitchen with her notebook and tape recorder, Johnny had vanished. She swore softly to herself; she couldn’t allow this to continue. They still just about had time to get back on track, but she hated working under that kind of pressure.
Johnny reappeared in the early evening. Alex was sitting in the living room reading a book, John Paul Jones playing in the background. Johnny wandered in with a bottle of Rioja and two glasses. He poured for them and passed a glass to Alex, kissed her lightly as he did so. ‘What do you fancy for dinner? Shall we order in?’
She nodded. ‘How about Chinese?’ There was an excellent restaurant in the village that would deliver.
‘Great. I’ll give them a call in a bit.’ He sat down next to Alex, put his arm around her. She leaned into him, rested her head on his shoulder and they sat for a while, content in each other’s company. Alex debated having another go at Johnny about the book. He seemed to have lost interest and she needed to get him back into it. In the end, she thought it would be enough just to get back into the routine in the morning; no need to spoil the evening by bringing something up that would cause tension.
Chapter 65
Next morning when Alex awoke, Johnny was already up and about. She showered and dressed and went looking for him, but found no sign.
He’ll be back sooner or later
, she reasoned, and made coffee and toast. Johnny wandered into the kitchen in the late morning.
‘Hi. Where did you vanish to?’
‘Went for a walk.’ He put the kettle on. ‘I’ll make some coffee, shall I?’
‘Not for me, thanks; I’m awash with the stuff.’ Alex measured her words carefully. ‘Johnny, we need to do some work. We’ve had a longish lay-off, we need to get back to it.’ She took his hand. ‘We were talking about the aftermath of the
Feet of Clay
tour in ’81. You went into rehab early the next year; can we pick up from there?’
Johnny snatched his hand away. ‘Jesus, Alex, can’t you give it a rest?’ He was suddenly angry, catching Alex off guard. He walked away, calling over his shoulder, ‘I’m going out. I’ll be back later.’ She heard his car door slam, tyres crunch over gravel as he drove away.
Alex was confused. Johnny had seemed happy enough to talk before now. Of course, he might be thinking better of continuing with the book in the aftermath of the recent press coverage. There again, there was Christabel and Colin to take into account. And even if she could get him to talk, she still would have to get him to okay whatever she wrote: he had final say. Right now there seemed little chance of either of those things happening. She sighed, feeling weary, padded through into the living room and picked up her book, put some music on. If Ruth Rendell and Glenn Hughes couldn’t sort her head out, she was a lost cause.