‘You all know this amazing woman on the stage,’ Jamie said, his eyes sweeping the audience and then focusing on Libby. ‘Some of you work with her; some of you have studied with her for years. But very few of you were aware of how talented she is. I knew she would never have agreed to do this tonight. That’s why I had to surprise her, and I am so grateful to Steve for allowing me to do it, and to all the girls who helped me plan.
‘Libby is the most determined person I know. She is also the kindest, funniest … and of course the biggest nerd.’ Another cheer went up from the crowd and Jamie paused until it died down. ‘She’s raised a wonderful daughter who is as beautiful, clever and quirky as her. And both of these fantastic females have blown me away.’ Libby stopped breathing as Jamie moved to her and sank down on one knee, pulling a small box out of his pocket. ‘Libby, I love you. I will spend the rest of my life proving that to you and Rosie, if you’ll just give me another chance.’ He produced a small box and opened it up. Inside, sitting on a plush little cushion was a Boba Fett, in pristine condition. Instead of answering, Libby sank to her knees and she and Rosie collapsed into him. As always, and as was his way, he caught them, he held them both, he supported them.
He made them feel safe.
He made them feel loved.
*****
‘Look, you haven’t actually given me an answer,’ Jamie said in her ear as he pulled them all up to standing and wrapped his arm around Libby to walk her down the steps and off the stage. Libby just kissed his cheek and gave him an adorably dazed smile. Yes, she had Boba Fett clutched in her hand, and yes, she looked relatively pleased at this development; but Jamie wanted a firm reply.
‘How did you – ?’ Libby started, but was cut off with a few aggressive pats on her back.
‘That was the dog’s bollocks, girl,’ Steve shouted over the clamour of the crowd. For a man whose club had been changed beyond recognition for what Libby supposed was just one performance, he was surprisingly upbeat. ‘I was a horse’s arse not to put all those routines in the show. From now on you have complete discretion with the choreography.’
‘Listen, Steve,’ Jamie cut in, and felt Libby stiffen, no doubt bracing for another tirade of his disapproval, ‘and you, Libby. I want you both to know that I totally respect what you do here and I’m completely supportive of – ’
Libby’s fingers came up over his lips to stop him mid-flow. He frowned but she just gave him another smile, this one slightly more focused. ‘I love you, Jamie,’ she said, ‘but I can speak for myself.’
‘But – ’ This time a smaller set of fingers squished his face from both sides to cut him off.
‘Mummy’s tawkin’,’ Rosie told him, her speech and the slightly lacklustre face-squish reflecting how tired she must be (it was now ten o’clock at night). Jamie made fish faces at her, then tucked her head into his shoulder, but decided he’d better let Libby have her say.
‘I got a grant from the Deanery,’ she told him and Steve, and Jamie’s head whipped round in surprise. With her free hand Libby reached over to touch Steve’s forearm as she stared up at him. ‘You’ll never know how grateful I am for everything, but Ineedto study. I won’t have time to work the nights. I can still help with the choreography, but I’m sorry, I –’
‘Thank Christ,’ Steve cut in, snatching her out of Jamie’s grip and engulfing her in a forceful hug. ‘You live that dream, Supergirl,’ he said into her hair. ‘’Bout time you stopped hanging around this place and did what you were supposed to do. I’ve got a bonus cheque for you here and I don’t want any arguments. You know you’ve at least doubled my profit over the last four years. If I wasn’t such a stubborn old sod you could have probably quadrupled it.’ He shoved the cheque into her hands and her gaze dropped down to the figure written across it.
‘Steve,’ Libby breathed, her eyes wide and confused, ‘I …’ She blinked, and blinked again, before her vision misted over with tears.
‘That’s enough of that now, Supergirl,’ Steve said, his voice rough before he cleared his throat. ‘It’s what I owe you, that’s all.’
‘Thank you,’ Libby whispered, a single tear escaping, which she wiped away before standing on tiptoes to kiss Steve’s cheek. The big bastard actually blushed and did some rapid blinking of his own before he reached up to muzz Rosie’s hair, telling her to ‘Take care of your mum’ and giving Jamie a significant look before melting back into the crowd.
‘Darlings!’ Jamie rolled his eyes as his mother ploughed dramatically through the bodies to get to them, dragging Libby’s mum in her wake. ‘Fan-bloody-tastic!’ she shouted, throwing her arms into the air on the last syllable and giving them all jazz hands. She pulled Rita forward to stand next to her and then manoeuvred them all into a group hug. ‘Youhaveto teach me and Rita all those moves. I will not be satisfied until I can flip my way across the lawn at my next Parish Council fundraiser.’
Rita and Libby were laughing, but Jamie sighed: they might think his mother was joking, but bitter experience of all the myriad ways she had of embarrassing him had taught him different. The dads arrived at this point, both of them hugging Libby and Jamie in turn.
‘Haven’t seen that since you were fifteen, honey,’ Libby’s dad said to her, then turned to the group. ‘My girl won the Nationals two years running. Could have been in the Olympics if …’ He trailed off and Jamie caught Rita giving him a sharp elbow in the ribs. Libby’s smile faltered but her dad shook his head and put both hands on her shoulders. ‘No, sweetheart. You don’t get it. We’re soproudof you. So goddamn proud of everything you’ve done.’ One of his hands moved from her shoulder to reach out and stroke a now sleeping Rosie’s hair. ‘Everything, honey,’ he told her, and she gave a little hiccup before she launched herself into his arms and hugged him fiercely.
That was when Jamie noticed the slow clap that had started in the crowd. He glanced around at Libby’s friends and family and saw that they were all turned towards her. ‘Encore!’ somebody in the crowd shouted. Rita approached Jamie to take Rosie away, and the clamour of the crowd became louder and louder. Jamie gritted his teeth. This was not in the plan. He wanted to take Libby back to the room he had booked at the Savoy and he wanted to get a firm answer out of her.
‘Get up there, you lazy lump!’ Kira shouted as she bounced up to them with a tray of tequila shots, which she pressed on Libby, Jamie and all their family. ‘Give the punters what they want!’
‘Ki-Ki …’ Libby paused as Jamie felt her body jolt. Claire had jumped down from the stage and was yanking her arm from her other side.
‘Comeon,’ Claire shouted above the increasingly loud shouts of the crowd. ‘We’ve done the soul-wrenching, fancy-pants stuff. Let’s have some bloody fun.’ Jamie tightened his grip on Libby as he felt her giggle and start to slip away.
‘I’ll be back,’ she told him on a smile, kissing his cheek and ducking under his arm. He crossed his arms over his chest and clenched his jaw as he watched the girls on the stage descend on Libby and form a little huddle. Kira gave him an enthusiastic shoulder-bump and he scowled down at her in annoyance.
‘Loosen up, Big Syringe. She’s got your weirdStar Warsfigure tucked down her bra hasn’t she?’
Jamie rolled his eyes and went back to watching Libby. The sound man was now on stage with the girls and Libby was shaking her head at him. She cupped his ear with her hand and stood on tiptoes to say something into it, after which he grinned, then jogged off stage. Minutes later the slow clap was drowned out by the beat. Despite his annoyance, when the piano kicked in and Jamie realised what song was starting, he shook his head, a reluctant smile tugged at his lips, and his ears started to feel decidedly hot.
The women on stage spread out in formation, all of them grinning madly. Once they were all in position Libby led the dance from the front. They moved in unison and with almost inhuman speed. The crowd went wild. After the first verse Libby and the two blondes started flipping down the aisles and back again, then all the women turned to the audience and started dragging people up onto the stage. Jamie had worked his way to the front. Once there, the chorus line – ‘I need a hero …’ blasted out through the speakers, and he braced when Libby came sailing through the air towards him.
‘Omph!’ he said as she knocked him back on his heels, her legs circling his waist and her smiling face looking up at his. ‘You’re heavier than you look, Supergirl.’
‘Shut up and kiss me.’
