The Exciting Life Read Online Free PDF Page B

strangers
– she’d been doing this since she was thirteen years old. As soon
as she entered the throng, she was approached by a fat,
greasy-looking bloke squeezed into an ill-fitting suit. With his
slicked back dark hair and toothy smile, he reminded Iris of a
vampire.
    ‘ Alright love,’ he said.
    ‘ Hello,’ she replied politely.
    ‘ You here on your own?’
    ‘ Sort of.’
    ‘ Fancy a drink?’
    ‘ I’ve got some champagne, thank you…’
    ‘ Dave,’ he said. ‘And what’s your name beautiful?’
    ‘ Iris. Iris Lindholm.’
    ‘ German?’ he beamed.
    ‘ Swedish. Half.’
    ‘ That accounts for the blonde hair. You are a natural blonde
aren’t you?’
    ‘ Oh yes, all of me is blonde,’ she purred.
    Dave
staggered a little, and Iris looked up and saw the handsome chap
with auburn hair heading towards them. Now he was the sort of man
Iris liked. Tall, with a cheeky glint in his very pale eyes and an
arrogant swagger.
    ‘ I hope you’re not bothering this young lady, Dave,’ he said,
winking at Iris.
    ‘ We were just discussing natural blondes,’ Iris said. ‘Dave was
trying to guess if I was one.’
    The man
lifted himself slightly and looked at the top of Iris’s head and
laughed.
    ‘ I don’t see any roots, so I’m guessing it’s all
real.’
    ‘ Iris is half Swedish,’ Dave said.
    ‘ Are you now?’ smiled the other one. ‘What do you do
Iris?’
    ‘ I’m an actress and a model.’
    ‘ Been in anything I would have heard of?’ he asked, and the
smirk on his face told Iris that he knew darn well what sort of
model she was.
    ‘ Bits of theatre. A couple of commercials. I’m only just
starting out.’
    ‘ I’m sure you’ll be a very big star.’ He stuck out his hand.
‘Patrick Collins.’
    ‘ Iris Lindholm. Pleased to meet you.’
    He held
her hand for a little too long, and she was sure he gave it a
little squeeze. Then Annie suddenly appeared beside him, putting
her hand on his shoulder and Patrick quickly let Iris’s hand
go.
    ‘ Hello Iris,’ she said. ‘Where’s Arthur?’
    ‘ Asleep in a booth,’ Iris quipped.
    ‘ Oh what a shame. I wanted to ask him if he had any plans for a
new play.’
    ‘ Who’s Arthur?’ Patrick asked.
    ‘ Arthur Hatfield,’ Annie said. ‘He’s a famous playwright. He’s
Iris’s boyfriend.’
    ‘ Boyfriend?’ Patrick said, and as he looked at Iris, she was
sure she could see a hint of either irritation or regret in his
eyes.
    ‘ Friend, really,’ she replied. ‘I look good on his
arm.’
    ‘ You’d look good on anyone’s arm,’ Patrick said.
    Someone
called his name from the other side of the room, and with a sigh,
he picked up Iris’s hand and kissed it.
    ‘ It was a pleasure Miss Lindholm,’ he said, and he walked away.
Dave also sloped off somewhere, leaving the two women
alone.
    ‘ I saw you in Woman’s Own with your Aunt,’ Iris said. ‘I still
love watching Alicia Bloom films on the television of a Sunday
afternoon.’
    ‘ She thought she’d do the interview with me to help promote my
new venture,’ Annie giggled.
    Iris
looked down at the black velvet stilettos Annie was
wearing.
    ‘ Did you make them?’
    ‘ These?’ She briefly lifted her left foot up. ‘Oh no. Mario
bought these for me in New York.’
    Did he now? Iris thought. Bitter at
the fact that Annie had been all over the world and had done so
many things, and yet she was only two years older than
her.
    ‘ Well they’re lovely. I wish you could make me a pair of
shoes.’
    ‘ I’ve not had any orders yet. I’m still renovating my building.
But when I’ve finished, I’ll make you a pair.’
    Iris
gave a theatrical laugh.
    ‘ I wouldn’t be able to afford them!’
    ‘ Well I’ll need showroom models. Why don’t you drop by in a
month or so and we’ll see what’s happening.’
    ‘ Do you mean that?’ Iris gasped, making sure she sounded really
grateful.
    ‘ Yes, why not? Maybe you could persuade Arthur to write another
play in