Free Exposure by Caia Fox Page A

insistence that
I go when he called next day. I was still lying in bed glowing, wondering where
my clothes were that Nathan had pulled off the day before.
    She was even less happy when he told her we
were getting married.
    “You know she asked me, ‘Couldn’t you wait
until you had another movie or two under your belt?’” he said, “but fuck all
that waiting. Why should we? It’s only a movie. I like being famous, but not if
it stops me marrying you.”
    “I could stay away from the premiere if it
keeps her happy.” If I was honest, the whole event terrified me anyway.
    “No way. You’re going whether she likes it
or not. I want you by my side for my first movie. I don’t want the premiere to
be a sham for the media.”
    “But I’ll look like a freak with Sadie and
Katherine all decked out in their finery.”
    Nathan’s co-stars hadn’t given me the time
of day in Scotland.
    “You’re beautiful, Mel. You can hold your
own against any of those actresses.”
    He was talking a lot of bullshit, but I
liked that he said it.
    “What will I wear?” I was trying to think
which of my friends had anything that I could borrow. I’d never get anything
new in time.
    “Don’t worry. I’ve thought of that. I’ll
call Emma.”
    Emma was one of the wardrobe assistants
from the movie. She came over to the Savoy when Nathan called her to explain he
had a special job for her if she wanted to do it.
    “Hey, you’re getting married,” she said.
“Congratulations!” and gave us both a hug. I liked her.
    “I brought some things. I hope they’re
okay.”
    It was just clean underwear, a sweater, and
jeans that Nathan had asked her to buy so I didn’t have to wear yesterday’s
grubby clothes. She had great taste in daywear, so that was a good start.
    “We haven’t got long to get something, but
I have a friend who runs a vintage clothing store. That might be good to get
something a bit different.”
    The dress she picked out for me fitted me
like a glove after she put a few stitches in here and there. It was in a
delicate jade satin fabric with a hint of blue, dotted with tiny beads that
must have been hand stitched when it was made.
    “Looks fabulous with the coppery tones in
your dark hair,” she said.
    We found shoes to go with it an hour later.
She knew all the stores in London and half their stock.
    “Thank you so much. I feel like a million
dollars in that dress,” I gave Emma a hug. “At least, it looks good from the
neck down.” I looked at my decidedly unglamorous hair and face in the mirror.”
    “Oh, I know some people to help you out
there too, if you like.”
    They were expensive, but Nathan said to
screw the expense. He wanted me to look my best. He wanted to be proud of me on
his arm, I think, but he said he also wanted me to feel good too. He knew I’d
be nervous and looking good meant I had one less thing to worry about.
    The school had even given me the day off
work and other teachers were covering my classes so I could go up to London in
plenty of time. That was a first for my school when no one was dying.
     
    ***
     
     “You look beautiful,” Nathan said, just
before we got out of the limo at the premiere, a bank of photographers and fans
waiting, “Ready for this?”
    I nodded and made a face. I was petrified I
would fall over. I’d never been so scared. You could have given me a class of school
kids acting up any day of the week rather than face that mob.
    Yet as I stepped onto the red carpet in
Leicester Square, I knew I looked every inch the movie star’s fiancée, wearing
the dress and shoes Emma picked out for me, my hair falling in soft curls—courtesy
of her hairdresser friend Gordon—and my face somehow contriving to look both
natural and glamorous, thanks to the wizardry of a girl called Camille wielding
a million make-up brushes.
    As Nathan got out the car, the crowd
erupted. It was like a sea of noise, and we were being swept along by it. The
cameras flashed. I tried