Page 94 of Did My Love Life Shrink in the Wash?
‘It’s clever.’
We fall silent watching her as she pauses to let the crowd chant a line back at her. Lucy did this on a girls’ holiday once. She stood on a bar. No one repeated the line back and I think she tripped over a beer tap and split her lip open.
‘Look at all that spotlight though, I hope she has good people looking after her,’ he whispers.
I like how Giles shows genuine concern for Kimmie. At seventeen, I was sitting on park greens drinking cider and sneaking around Cineworld trying to watch 18-rated films.
‘How are you, anyway?’ He looks at me reassuringly. I can tell he’s different to most in his industry, that he looks out for people.
‘Getting there.’
‘I sensed some issues with Will when I dropped you off that time. Are you OK? You can tell me if it’s none of my business.’
I glance over at his husband, Lucy hanging off his shoulder and laughing.
‘How long have you and Oliver been together?’ I ask.
‘Wow. Sixteen years. Married for five.’
‘Then you’ll get how there are sometimes glitches in the system?’
‘I’d be more surprised if there weren’t glitches. Sometimes you need those moments for clarity. I get it. I hope you work things out.’
I’m grateful for his concern.
‘Also, interestingly, we had a call from Yasmin’s agent last week. It turns out she’s pregnant.’
I blush intensely and look out into the concert knowing I’m probably giving myself away.
‘You knew?’ he asks.
‘I didn’t say anything. It’s her business and I didn’t want her to be judged unfairly for it.’
‘Is she OK?’ Giles asks.
I’ve been sworn to secrecy but I feel Giles has her best interests at heart. The secret is out and I don’t think he’ll swing it about like gossip.
‘She’s on her own; Jethro left her. She’s just working some stuff out. I’d go easy if you have any work lined up with her.’
He nods. ‘I thought you two weren’t friends?’
I laugh. Would she be the first person I called in an emergency? Are we going out on the razz next weekend? We’re not even mates on Facebook but I care about what happens to her now, and that’s what matters, I guess.
‘I’m glad she’s got you on her side.’
Giles links arms with me as we watch Kimmie take a bow. A group to the left of us have got more animated and one gentleman in head-to-toe Armani and who’s partaken in quite a fair bit of alcohol bumps into me, spilling some of that alcohol down my front. It’s cold. It’s very cold and I shriek as it runs down my cleavage.
‘So coooooolllllddddd…’
I pull at my T-shirt as the man looks absolutely horrified. It’s ice cubes and liquor and it’s sticky, slick and frigging arctic. I dance around fishing it out of my front, in what looks like some badly timed interpretative dance move. Lucy stares at me strangely, wondering if this is alcohol-induced, but as ice flies about, she realises what’s happened.
‘Oi, mate. What the hell are you doing…?’ she says, striding over, her hands up in the air.
Our small bar area goes quiet. Where did this girl get her front? Giles rushes around to grab at napkins while Oliver stands there, reluctant to get into a fight right now.
‘I am sorry. I am so so sorry,’ the man mumbles, his eyes transfixed on my chest quite awkwardly.
‘It’s fine. It was an accident. No harm done, seriously,’ I say, smiling.
