Polly Pippin and The Tunnel of Death by Sarah Godwin Winter Page B

placed in front of
Piers.
    'Seriously, how's the movie going?' Lily
enquired.
    'Well, much to our surprise, not only has
Hamish totally backed down, he wants to be in it.'
    'That's impossible,' Lily said. 'Staid old
Hamish wants to be in it? You must be kidding?'
    'It's true. Miles and I nearly fell over
backwards when we got his call from Iceland. He said he was on his
way back and would do all he could to help.'
    'Brad Capriole must be in his element, and
Polly must be over the moon. Apparently he wants her in it. Want
anything to eat?' Lily asked.
    'Not at the moment, thanks, Lily, and I'm
not sure she is over the moon. She thinks it's because he wanted
the house so badly he offered her the part as leading lady. But we
will see. Is she a good actress, do you know?'
    'She's a natural. She's had plenty of
classes and has been in a few things. So with the studio showing
her the ropes, she'll be great. Hang on, here she comes.'
    Polly walked in on Brad Capriole's arm, and
Piers tried not to show how he felt, which was murderous!
    Alison, who was following Polly, said. 'Hi
Piers! Where's Miles? I've never seen you two apart.'
    'Oh, he'll be here in a tick Alison… He was
still languishing in the bath when I left. Good morning Polly.
Ready for our ride in the country today?' Piers said, deliberately
ignoring Brad.
    'Not today, old chap, our little star is
busy rehearsing,' Brad said and gave Polly a hug.
    Before Piers could retaliate, Alison, ever
the peacemaker, said. 'We can't let the boys down Polly.'
    Piers stood. He was taller than the other
man by a good couple of inches. Brad stepped back and stood behind
Polly.
    'Sorry Piers,' Polly said. 'I was looking
forward to it, but, as they say, business before…'
    'That's fine Polly,' Piers cut in sharply.
'Gemma and her friend Marilyn are here. They will love to come with
us, if that's okay with you, Alison.'
    This did not impress Polly at all, she felt
severely threatened. Marilyn was a beautiful blonde and came from a
very wealthy family. She'd just got back from America and really
liked Piers so would be dressed to kill.
    'As you said Polly, business before
pleasure,' Piers said. 'So enjoy your day. I certainly intend to
enjoy mine.'
    ~
    At that moment, Miles burst in. 'Sorry, I'm
late… Fell asleep in the bath. Lily, dying for a cup of coffee and
one of your fabulous breakfasts.' Miles pushed past Brad and Polly.
He grabbed Alison's hand on the way through and plonked her down at
the table next to him. As Miles had walked in, he had heard what
had been said and glared at Brad. He had no intention of letting
that bastard Capriole spoil their day out. If Piers was a big lad,
Miles was even bigger, and Brad backed right down.
    'I'm sorry lads. Of course Polly can have
the day off, it will do her good,' Brad hurriedly said, and he
relinquished his hold on Polly and took two more steps
backwards.
    But Piers was hurt and very jealous. 'No.
Wouldn't think of it old chap,' he said.
    Lily appeared at the table. 'Ready to
order?' she asked, pencil in hand.
    Piers walked to the door. 'No thanks Lily.
Put it on my account please,' he said. 'Miles, I'll ring Gemma and
Marilyn and tell them to get ready. See you at home, and don't be
long, I'm anxious to get going.' He looked long and hard at Polly.
'Don't work her too hard, Mr Capriole,' he drawled with a distinct
touch of sarcasm, and he was on his bike and gone.
    Polly was a bit miffed, she did not expect
Piers to react that way, she just wanted to make him a little bit
jealous. Alison was furious, and she shot Polly and Brad a filthy
look. 'Miles when you've finished your breakfast, would you mind
giving me a lift home?' she said. 'I'll wait outside.'
    'Oops! I think you have upset all your
friends Polly,' Brad said.
    'Not at all,' Miles answered for Polly. 'I
would like to spend some time with you, Ali.' He took her hand. 'It
was probably time for Piers and Marilyn to catch up, after all he
is very fond of her. So Ali, can we catch