‘Yes?’ I ask, confused.
‘Johnny’s agreed to do a number.’ She indicates the stage where Contour Lines are playing their latest single. ‘Can you come with me?’ I nod and follow her through the crowd to the backstage area. We climb the stairs and she leaves me in the darkness. I feel a hand on my back and spin around to see Johnny.
‘Do you mind?’ he shouts in my ear as a soundman hooks up an amp to an electric guitar and hands it over.
I shake my head and smile at him as he puts the guitar strap over his head. He swings the instrument behind him so the strap is pulled tight against his chest. I have a sudden desire to put my hands on his hips, but then Scott introduces a ‘special guest’ and Johnny raises his eyebrows at me before striding out on stage.
I still remember the first time I saw him play a stadium, the sound of eighty thousand people chanting and banging like tribal warriors before the concert had even started. When he launched into one of his greatest hits, the crowd roared . . . I’ll never forget the sight of tens of thousands of people jumping up and down as one. Of course, here and now there are fewer than one and a half thousand, but they still go absolutely bonkers as he steps up close to the mic and speaks into it.
‘I wrote this song for the love of my life. The mother of my son. She’s here tonight.’ He looks backstage at me, and I stand stock-still in shock as he starts to sing my song. His voice fills up the marquee, deep and soulful as he closes his eyes, and when he turns and stares at me again, I feel like he’s piercing my soul.
I don’t have the strength to resist him anymore. I know I have to let go and give in, even if it ruins me. But I wouldn’t be me if I didn’t give it a try. I’d just be a shadow of myself, never truly knowing happiness, only pain.
He comes off stage to stupendous applause and then his hands are cupping my face and he’s kissing me. I kiss him back, passionately, as the world around me spins. He pulls away, but it’s me who speaks first.
‘Let’s go.’
We practically run to the car together, hand in hand, as I try not to giggle. He revs up the engine and screeches out of the car park.
‘Slow down or Lord March won’t invite you back next year,’ I squeal, but he just laughs.
I’m full of butterflies during the entire journey. Neither of us says a word, but the anticipation doesn’t die. I follow him to his room and he unlocks the door. The babysitter is right across the hall, but we’re back early; we have time. He shuts the door behind me and then he just stares at me. Is he going to kiss me or what? I stare back at him, warily, wondering why he’s not sweeping me off my feet; because I’m a goner, I haven’t the will to resist him anymore.
I cock my head to one side in confusion. There’s a strange look in his eyes. Has he changed his mind? Oh, God, has he?
He gets down on one knee and takes my hand. My jaw hits the floor.
‘I love you,’ he says as tears fill my eyes. ‘I never want to be without you. I never want to spend another day, another minute, without you and Barney by my side. I’ve been thinking about doing this for a long, long time. Meg Stiles . . .’
I cover my mouth with my hand and laugh tearfully.
‘Will you marry me?’
I nod down at him.
‘Yes?’ he checks.
‘Yes.’
Then he’s on his feet and I’m in his arms and he’s holding me so tight, and I never want him to let me go. He pulls away and looks down at me and then he’s kissing me passionately and I’m melting into him and tears are running down my cheeks as I realise that this is it. I was the one to change him. He fell for me. He loves me. And I love him right back. I’ll love him till the day I die.
Epilogue
It’s not George Harrison’s former house, but we do live in Henley in an enormous gated rock-star mansion. I couldn’t go back to LA. That house – that city – had too many bad memories, and, God knows, we needed a fresh start.
I was terrified about the press’s reaction to our relationship, but they’ve astounded me. Hilariously, I’ve been painted as some sort of angel: Johnny’s saviour. It appears that even the bloodthirsty media love a happy ending: the ordinary girl who hooked one of the most famous men in the world. Poor Dana, though. She’s still the devil’s spawn. But she has resilience – she’ll bounce back, I’m quite sure of it.
I still feel guilty about Johnny’s staff losing their jobs, especially Santiago, who has finally got a computer and emails me occasionally with the latest Hollywood gossip. But Johnny wrote everyone excellent references and gave them fantastic severance pay, so they’ll be okay.
Johnny still doesn’t have a PA. At the moment I’m handling things, and the first job on my list was to set him up with a proper fan club. I figure I’ve seen enough freaky letters to last me a lifetime.
Lena took a placement with Rod Freemantle, believe it or not. She’s worked for him for three months now, which is longer than any of his PAs lasted after Kitty. I think he’s still mourning her. It’s a shame there wasn’t any sexual chemistry between them, because they were perfect for each other. Rod split up with his fifth wife and will no doubt be onto his sixth soon. I think he’s trying to break some sort of record.
As for Kitty, the last I heard from her she was travelling around Thailand with a couple of hot American boys. She sounds like she’s having a whale of a time. I hope she drops in on us again soon.
Bess is the same as ever. She had another drunken snog with Eddie at our wedding. Did I forget to mention that Eddie came with us? He’s our full-time cook and he really does make the best chocolate-chip cookies I’ve ever tasted.
Sorry, I’m getting ahead of myself. Wedding. That’s right! We actually did tie the knot. We got married at a local church before coming back here to the house for the reception. All of Johnny’s former staff flew over for the ceremony, including dear Rosa. It was so good to see her again, and for Johnny it was particularly therapeutic. In fact, I think it was quite therapeutic for her, too. Kitty also put aside her backpack to join us for a few days, and even Liz and Guy came along. Liz nearly fell off her chair when I finally came clean about Johnny. It’s been a relief to have everything out in the open.
Christian and Sara were invited, although sadly they had other plans that weekend. Perhaps it was a bit too much, too soon. But Christian’s Contour Lines biography was a huge success and he’s writing his third crime book at the moment, so he’s in a good place, all in all.
Johnny and I got married in December and it snowed. The whole place was lit up with fairy lights and candles and it truly was magical. I always used to dream of a summer wedding, but I wanted to get married before I started to show. That’s another thing I forgot to mention. I’m pregnant. Again. But this time there’s no uncertainty, no hurt or pain or fear. Only love. Love, love, love. Just like The Beatles said – and yes, I do know who they are – that’s all you need.
Acknowledgements
Thank you – always – to my lovely, lovely readers. Your Facebook messages and friendship requests make me smile so much that my face aches – and I’m not even joking! I hope you continue to enjoy reading my books as much as I enjoy writing them.
Thank you to my brilliant editor, Suzanne Baboneau – it’s such a pleasure to work with you and the whole team at Simon & Schuster. Believe me, I know how lucky I am.
Big thanks to Jo Willitt for all her help with the Goodwood-related questions. Thank you to Giles Wright and his mother Ann for the Newcastle low-down. Thanks also to Zoe Paramor for the book title brainstorming session – and the alcohol that went with it . . .
Thank you to all my friends and family – but especially my parents, Jen and Vern Schuppan and my brother Kerrin and my parents-in-law, Ian and Helga Toon.
And thank you to my darling husband Greg and my beautiful children, Indy and Idha. This winter threw all sorts of ‘fun’ at us, from chicken pox and seemingly never-ending sleepless nights to sickness bugs and four bouts of tonsillitis, but ?
?? phew! – we got there in the end. I love you all so very much.
Read more about Johnny in Paige Toon’s brilliant novel
Johnny Be Good
978-1-84739-044-8
£7.99
Available in paperback from your local bookshop or direct from the publisher.
Turn the page for a sneak preview . . .
Chapter 1
Ouch. My head hurts. What sort of stupid person has a leaving party the night before starting a new job?
I’m not usually this disorganised. In fact, I’m probably the most organised person you’re ever likely to meet. Having a leaving party the night before I had to board this plane to LA is very out of character. But then I didn’t have much choice. I’ve only just got the job.
Seven days ago I was a PA at an architects’ firm. My boss, Marie Sevenou (early fifties, French, very well-respected in the industry), called me into her office on Monday morning and asked me to shut the door and take a seat. This had never hap pened in the nine months I’d been working there and my initial reaction was to wonder if I’d done anything wrong. But I was pretty sure I hadn’t so, above all, I was curious.
‘Meg,’ she said, her heavy French accent laced with despair, ‘it pains me to tell you this.’
Shit, was she dying?
‘I do not want to lose you.’
Shit, was I dying? Sorry, that was just me being ridiculous.
She continued, ‘All of yesterday I toyed with my conscience. Should I tell her? Could I keep it from her? She is the best PA I have ever had. It would devastate me to let her go.’
I do love my boss, right, but she ain’t half melodramatic.
‘Marie,’ I said, ‘what are you talking about?’
She stared at me, her face bereft. ‘But I said to myself, Marie, think of what you were like thirty years ago. You would have done anything for an opportunity like this. How could you keep it from her?’
What on earth was she going on about?
‘On Saturday night I went to a dinner party at a very good friend of mine’s. You remember Wendel Redgrove? High-powered solicitor – I designed his house in Hampstead a couple of years ago? Well, anyway, he was telling me how his biggest client had lost his personal assistant recently and was having a terrible time trying to find a new one. Of course I empathised. I told him about you and how I thought I might die if I ever lost you. Honestly, Meg, I don’t know how I ever managed before . . .’
But she regained her composure, directing her cool blue eyes straight into my dark-brown ones as she said the words that would change my life forever.
‘Meg, Johnny Jefferson needs a new personal assistant.’
Johnny Jefferson. Wild boy of rock. Piercing green eyes, dirty blond hair and a body Brad Pitt would have killed for fifteen years ago.
It was the chance of a lifetime, to go and work in Los Angeles for him and live in his mansion. To become his confidante, his number one, the person he relies on more than anyone else in the world. And my boss, in a moment of madness, had suggested me for the job.
That very afternoon I met up with Wendel Redgrove and Johnny Jefferson’s manager, Bill Blakeley, a cockney geezer in his late forties who had managed Johnny’s career since he split up with his band, Fence, seven years ago. Wendel drew up a con tract, along with a strict confidentiality clause, and Bill asked me to start the following week.
Marie actually cried when I told her it was all done and dusted; they’d offered me the job and I had accepted. Wendel had already persuaded Marie to waive my one-month-notice period, but that left me only six days, which was daunting, to say the least. When I raised my concerns, Bill Blakeley put it bluntly: ‘Sorry, love, but if you need time to sort your life out then you’re not the right chick for the job. Just pack what you need. We’ll cover your rent here for the first three months and after that, if it all works out, you can have some time off to come back and do whatever the hell it is that you need to do. But you’ve got to start immediately, because frankly, I’m sick to fucking death of buying Johnny’s underpants since his last girl left.’
And so here I am, on this plane to LA, with a shocking hangover. I glance out of the window down at the city. Smog hangs over it like a thick black cloud as we fly towards the airport. The distinctive white structure of the Theme Building looks like a flying saucer or a white, four-legged spider. Marie told me to look out for it, and seeing it makes me feel even more spaced-out.
I clear Customs and head out towards the exit where I’ve been told there will be a driver waiting to collect me. Scanning the crowd, I find a placard with my name on it.
‘Ms Stiles! Well! How do you do!’ the driver says when I intro duce myself. He shakes my hand vigorously as his face breaks out into a pearly white grin. ‘Welcome to America! I’m Davey! Pleased to meet you! Here, let me take that bag for you, ma’am! Come on! We’re this way!’
I’m not sure I can handle this many exclamation marks on a hangover, but you’ve got to admire his enthusiasm. Smiling, I follow him out of the terminal. The humidity immediately engulfs me and I start to feel a little faint so it’s a relief to reach the car – a long black limo. Climbing into the back, I slump down into the cool, cream leather seats. The air-conditioning kicks in as we exit the car park and my faintness and nausea begin to subside. I put the window down.
Davey is rabbiting on about his lifelong ambition to meet the Queen. I breathe in the outside air, less humid now that we’re on the move, and start to feel better. It smells of barbeques here. The tallest palm trees I’ve ever seen line the wide, wide roads and I’m amazed as I stick my head further out of the window and gaze up at them. I can’t believe they haven’t snapped in half – their proportions are skinnier than toothpicks. It’s the middle of July, but some people still have sad little Christmas decorations hanging out in front of their tired-looking homes. They twinkle in the afternoon sun – no wonder they call this place Tinseltown. I look around but can’t see the Hollywood sign.
Yet.
Oh God, how can this be happening to me?
None of my friends can believe it, because I’ve never been that fussed about Johnny Jefferson. Of course I think he’s good-looking – who wouldn’t? – but I don’t really fancy him. And when it comes to rock music, well, I think Avril’s pretty hardcore. Give me Take That any day of the week.
Everyone else I know would give their little toe to be in my position. In fact, make that their whole foot. Hell, throw in a hand, while you’re at it.
Whereas I would struggle to give up more than my big toenail. I certainly wouldn’t relinquish a whole digit.
That’s not to say I’m not thrilled about this job. The fact that all my friends fancy Johnny like mad just makes it even more exciting.
Davey drives through the gates into Bel Air, the haven of the rich and famous.
‘That’s where Elvis used to live,’ he points out, as we start to climb the hill via ever-more-impressive mansions. I try to catch a glimpse of the groomed gardens behind the high walls and hedges.
The ache in my head seems to have been replaced by butterflies in my stomach. I wipe the perspiration from my brow and tell myself it’s just the side effects of too much alcohol.
We continue climbing upwards, then suddenly Davey is pulling up outside imposing wooden gates. Cameras point omi nously down at us from steel pillars on either side of the car. I feel like I’m being watched and have a sudden urge to put my window back up. Davey announces our arrival into a speakerphone and a few seconds later the gates glide open. My hands feel clammy.
The driveway isn’t long, but it feels like it goes on forever. Trees obscure the house at first, but then we turn a corner and it appears in front of us.
It’s a modern architectural design: two storeys, white concrete, rectangular, structured lines.
Davey pulls up and gets out to open my door. I stand there, trying to control my nerves, as he lifts my suitcase out of the boot. The enormous and heavy wooden front door
swings open and a short, plump, pleasantly smiling Hispanic-looking woman is standing beside it.
‘Now then! Who have we got here?’ She beams and I like her immediately. ‘I’m Rosa,’ she says, ‘and you must be Meg.’
‘Hello...’
‘Come on in!’
Davey wishes me goodbye and good luck and I follow Rosa inside, to a large, bright hallway. We go through another door at the end and I stop in my tracks. Floor-to-ceiling glass looks out onto the most perfect view of the city, hazy in the afternoon sun shine. A swimming pool out on the terrace sparkles cool and blue.
‘Pretty spectacular, ain’t it?’ Rosa smiles as she surveys my face.
‘Amazing,’ I agree.
I wonder where The Rock Star is.
‘Johnny’s away on an impromptu writing trip,’ Rosa tells me.
Oh.
‘He won’t be back until tomorrow,’ she continues, ‘so you’ve got a little time to get yourself unpacked and settled in. Or even better, out there by the pool . . .’ She nudges me conspiratorially.
I lift the handle on my suitcase and try to ignore my disappointment as Rosa leads me into the large, double-height open-plan room. The hi-tech stereo system and enormous flatscreen TV in the corner tell me it’s the living room. Furniture is minimal, modern and super, super cool.
I’m impressed. In fact, I’m feeling less and less blasé about this job by the minute, and that’s not helping my steadily swirling nerves.
‘The kitchen is over there,’ Rosa says, pointing it out behind a curved, frosted-glass wall. ‘That’s where I spend most of my time. I’m the cook,’ she explains before I get the chance to ask. ‘I try to feed that boy up. If I were a bartender I’d have a lot more joy. He likes his booze, that one.’ She chuckles good naturedly as we arrive at the foot of the polished-concrete staircase.
‘Are you okay with that, honey?’ She glances back over her shoulder at my suitcase.