Third In Line

Chapter Thirty Six - The Night Ahead

Her neck was aching slightly from keeping the phone tucked between her cheek and her shoulder, her hands occupied working on her nails. It wouldn't have been so bad if Sophia, a friend from their time on TV together, hadn't kept her talking for so long.

"C'mon Em, where's all that fighting talk you used to give me?" Sophia asked.

"I'm sorry Soph, I'm just distracted is all" Emma tried to explain, her focus split between her friend's troubles and that one nail that she just could not get right.

"Okay, okay, then just tell me, yes or no, should I take this role?" Sophia's voice cut off to complete silence, there was nothing after, just the straight ass question.

"You really want my opinion?"

"That's what I've been asking for the past hour!" Sophia screamed down the line, but giggled a little at the end.

"Okay" Emma replied, snickering. "You should take the part, it would be really good for you Soph"

"Really Em? I mean like really really? Sophia responded almost in disbelief.

"Well yeah, I mean your entire career you've never had a chance to be the leading lady. You should take it Soph!" Emma pushed aside the clear varnish she was using and pulled all her attention to her friend, trying to sound as encouraging as possible.

"But Em, how many forty year old leading ladies have you heard of?"

"Well I can think of one if you take this part" Emma replied matter of factly. "C'mon, I know you're going to take it anyway!"

"You really think I'll be good?" her friend asked again, for like the fiftieth time. Emma could sense the uncertainty fading bit by bit in her friends voice, knowing it was time to drive it home.

"We've been friends for like twenty years, you really think I'd lie to you?"

There it was, the power play. Her friends had been turning to her for encouragement for so many years that she knew exactly how to get it right.

"Fine, I'll do it. Thanks Em" Sophia replied, sounding almost like she was reluctantly giving in. Emma wasn't worried though, she knew her friend had wanted this part desperately for several weeks.

"That's my girl. I'll hang up now so you can call them back, bye Sophiaaaa" Emma felt finally ready to put down the phone, letting it fall from her shoulder and into her hand, but just as she was ready to end the call Sophia's voice boomed back at her.

"Wait wait wait, I wasn't ready yet!" Sophia complained. Emma let out an involuntary sigh, staring at her unfinished nails.

"Soph I know you're just delaying having to call them!"

"Yeah well...." Sophia went silent, making Emma press her ear closer to the phone.

"Sophia?" Emma asked worriedly.

"Sorry" her friend came back sounding distracted, "I was just trying to think of an excuse. I'll call you back later bitch" Emma could practically here Sophia's devilish grin through the phone.

"See ya girly" she replied, breathing a relieved sigh as she finally put down the phone.
Glancing at her nails once again, she got back down to business. She stretched her neck out to get rid of the ache, but the truth was it had been bothering her ever since Harry had accidentally tweaked it a little earlier in the day during their special bedroom relations. She just hoped it wasn't too big a deal, or at least not too big of a deal to be gone by the evening.

She and Harry had a fancy dinner to attend that night, and a dodgy neck wasn't going to be fun when it combined with her high heels, a fancy dress and all the strict protocols they would have to follow. But even with all that, she was distracted by other things.
They were trying for kids again, that seemed to be taking pride of place at the front of her mind. But now she was alone, she couldn't stop thinking about whether it was too late, whether all their worrying had meant they'd gone past a point of no return. She was forty and still felt young, and Kate was older and pregnant again, so she clung to that hope and wished it would work out.