My right hand flips down the visor in the car, and I examine myself critically in the little mirror.

“You look fine, babe.” Todd’s hand rests on my thigh, his fingers caressing my naked flesh.

I push desire aside and roll my eyes.

“Fine?” I pout.

He leans over and plants a kiss on my cheek.

“Beautiful, angelic, gorgeous.” His lips caress my face.

“Stop it,” I giggle and quickly get out of the car. My parents are sticklers for punctuality.

The door opens as my feet scrunch on the fine pebble garden path leading to the front of the house. I stop to smell one of the roses. Its scent is intoxicating.

“Hello, love.” Mum comes out to greet me. We hug. I relish the cuddle before I pull away to introduce Todd.

“Mum, meet Todd.” I step aside so Mum can see him. “Todd, this is my mother, Olivia.”

“It’s an absolute pleasure and privilege to meet you, Mrs. Palmer, a woman of such beauty, elegance, and talent.” Todd bows and kisses the back of my mother’s hand.

She giggles like a little schoolgirl and winks in my direction.

“My, my, Sophie.” She links arms with me and motions Todd to follow. “You’ve caught a real charmer here, haven’t you?”

Once we are inside, Mum lets go of my arm.

“Come into the dining room. I’ll just walk ahead to let your father know you two have arrived.”

Todd stops next to me.

“Your mother is something else,” he whispers in my ear. “I feel like one of those teenagers meeting their idol for their first time.”

I chuckle.

“My mother has that impression on most people.” I take his hand. “I hope you didn’t pee yourself with excitement.

“Well…” Todd doesn’t finish the sentence.

We laugh.

“I can see how you would feel pressure living up to expectations,” Todd speaks quietly.

“Wait till you meet my father, and you’ll really understand where I’m coming from.”

Todd pulls out my chair, and I sit down.

“Such good manners are rare these days,” observes Mum who has come back into the room.

“Sophie, what a delight to find you here today.”

I push my chair back and run to greet Dad. His arms wrap around me. I must make sure to visit more often.

“Hi, Dad,” I say and kiss his cheek.

Dad shakes Todd’s hand, and they exchange the usual pleasantries, all while M

um busies herself with serving our lunch.

“So my gorgeous favorite daughter, how’s the big film coming along?”

“I’m your only daughter,” I tease Dad and take a mouthful of food.

“No need to become a pedant,” retorts Dad and pours Todd some wine.

“What’s the answer to how is the film coming along?”

“Fine.” I’m reminded of Emma’s comments.

“I must say, Soph…I’m really impressed. You have taken on such a huge amount of responsibility. It takes guts, real guts to agree to direct a film and be one of the main stars in it.”

A lump forms at the back of my throat. Is there something wrong with Dad? He rarely pays me compliments of this magnitude.

“Can I say, Mr. Palmer,” Todd chimes in, “your daughter, Sophie, is amazing. She has so much talent.”

My dad winks at me and picks up his glass.

“A toast to our Sophie. May her film be a huge success and an Oscar contender.”

“Hear, hear,” echoes Mum and Todd.

Mechanically I sip from my drink. Those negative, bitchy comments from Emma just won’t leave me alone.

“You know,” Dad lowers his voice conspiratorially. “I have it on good authority your film is being watched closely by member of the Oscar panel.”

“Dad.” I wag my finger in his direction. “Is this one of your stories?”

He shakes his head.

“No, I’m serious. A very close friend of mine is on the panel and told me the other day there were high hopes for your film. And not just for one Oscar, no…for several.”

Todd hangs on every word of my Dad’s and nods.

“Wait till you see the finished product, Mr. Palmer.”

“Hugo. Please call me Hugo, young man.”

“Sophie’s a fantastic director. She’s able to see things others don’t. I have a lot of respect for her, and she really brings out the best in all of us.”

My mother nods.

“Yes, Sophie’s very good. Once she sees for herself how good she is, she’ll be unstoppable.”

All this praise makes me feel uncomfortable.

Todd rests his hand on my back. He smiles at me.

“I think Todd’s exaggerating just a little,” I finally chime in. “Filming is going fine. You know what filming is like.” I turn to Dad. He nods and smiles.

“Not every day is going to be a perfect day, sweetheart,” he says, and I wonder if he senses my inner turmoil.

Dad can read me like an open book. I find it difficult to hide things from him.

By the time we get to dessert, we have solved some of the major problems in the world. We may not have solved world peace, but we’ve come a long way toward working out what is needed to feed the poor and make sure people get on better with each other.

“Let’s have coffee on the veranda,” suggests my mum, and we follow her.

On the way, Todd stops to admire some family photos, the kind every family has on display. Some of them are of me.

“This is my favorite,” Dad points to a photo where a little girl sits in the director’s chair with a megaphone in her hand.

“A born director.” Dad’s voice is filled with pride.

“And stunning to look at as well,” adds Todd.

By the time we say our farewells, it is near dark, and Todd waits in the car for me.

Mum holds me by the arm and looks me in the eyes.

“Be careful, dear.” Her voice is serious, as is her expression. “I know he’s a looker and on the surface seems like the real deal…but be careful. We have all seen what he can be like in the media.”

I kiss Mum and promise I will be careful.

Now isn’t the time to tell her that there is another side to Todd, a side I’m getting to know and like.