FUN!
He has no idea.
Connor wants to have fun tonight and I’m sure we can have a lot if this limo is booked to collect us at the end of the night. The journey isn’t long from the hotel to the venue, but I’m now hoping we can persuade the driver to take the long, scenic route back to our hotel.
“We’re nearly there,” Connor says.
“So I see.” The streets outside are busy; nothing unusual for any night of the week in London. It’s always busy. Life moves at such a fast pace here; everyone always seems to be in a hurry.
Ringing from my bag draws my attention away from the windows. My eyes dart to Connor and I’m sure it’s my own worried expression I see reflecting from him.
Slowly, I open my bag, and relief sweeps through me when I see Trevor’s name flashing across the screen.
“Hi, Trevor,” I say answering the call and looking at Connor.
“Hi. Ella. Have you heard from Donovan?”
“What’s wrong?” I ask, panic in my voice. Connor takes my free hand, holding it tightly in his, rubbing his thumb in circles against mine.
“I need to know.”
“He sent a text at the start of the week and today sent ten messages in a short space of time and, before you ask, I’ve not replied to any of them. What’s wrong?”
“Ella, Donovan is in London.” My heart sinks. “I wasn’t coming to the premiere but I’m here now. I’ll be waiting for you. How long until . . .” I don’t hear anything else; I’ve zoned out. He’s going to be here tonight. I know it. Why else would he be in London? I drop my phone but it doesn’t fall into my lap.
“Trevor, we’re only a few minutes away . . . No, she’ll be fine . . . See you soon.”
He ends the call and I turn to face him. “Ella, tell me what you’re thinking.”
“That I want to go home because I’m scared of how I’ll react in public if I come face-to-face with him. But there’s also a part of me that’s telling me not to be so stupid and not allow him to see that he’s affecting my life.”
“There’s my girl. You have the strength to do this, but most of all, you have my support to get through this. Trevor says Donovan’s name isn’t on the guest list, but Katherine Hunter’s name is.”
Of course he’ll accompany her tonight. Why wouldn’t he after all the time they’ve spent together recently? I nod slowly, not trusting my mouth to say the words that are spinning around in my head. Like, can we turn around and go straight back to the hotel room? That sounds like a great plan. I know Connor would be able to distract me for the rest of the night.
The car stops and I can already see a heavy security presence around the venue along with the ever present British media.
“Are you ready? Trevor is waiting just to the side for us.”
“Yes, I’m ready. You’ll be by my side the whole night?”
“Yes.”
Someone opens the car doors and we exit at the same time. Flashing lights blind me momentarily. Connor is quickly by my side, wrapping his arm around me. I look at him and smile. “See? You can do this.”
“Mr Andrews. Miss McGregor.” Our names are called out and we stand in front of the waiting media. Cameras flash from all directions, but having Connor by my side is comforting. We pose for a few photos before making our way along the red carpet, where Trevor is waiting at the entrance.
Calmness sweeps through me when I see the smile on Trevor’s face. In this moment, I take comfort as he looks more relaxed than I expected. He takes a step forward as we reach him, and opens his arms. Connor releases his hold of me and I step into the familiar, loving embrace of Trevor.
“Sweetheart, everything is okay. He’s not here.”
“Really? How do you know?”
“Because Katherine arrived ten minutes ago with one of her friends.”
I smile and kiss him on the cheek before he lets me go and Connor wraps his arm back around my waist. “Let’s go and enjoy our night,” Connor says, leading the way inside.
Trevor stays close beside us and that pleases me. I think I’ll need their strength when I come face-to-face with Katherine Hunter. The one thing I’ve learned about her over the years is that she can’t be trusted. She’s devious and will hurt anyone who gets in her way when she wants something.
A waiter with a tray of glasses approaches and Connor hands Trevor and me a glass of champagne each before taking one for himself. Everyone who is anyone in the industry is already here. Looks as though lots of big names have flown in from the States. Connor and Trevor stand beside me, talking, and I’m not paying attention to a word either of them is saying.
My eyes scan the area and I see a lot of familiar and friendly faces in the crowd. Then I see her. Katherine Hunter is standing by the bar with her friend, a drink in her hand. She’s looking around the room nervously. She doesn’t seem as composed as I’ve seen her in the past.
She stops; her eyes stare straight at me. I watch her as she anxiously moves from one foot to the other. She looks physically shaken as recognition hits her. I don’t turn or shy away; I raise my glass and offer her a smile. She doesn’t return it. Instead, she turns back to her friend.
“Well done,” Connor says, bringing my attention back to him. I smile. “Are you okay?”
“You know what? I am.”
“Glad to hear it,” says Trevor. “Now, if you follow me, I want to personally introduce you to the casting director of the movie you’ve been shortlisted for.”
“Should I be nervous?”
I’m surprised that it’s Connor who answers my question. “You have nothing to be nervous about. If they don’t love you, that’s their problem, not yours.” Trevor nods in agreement.
We make our way through the crowded room, getting stopped along the way with colleagues and friends wanting to talk to Connor and me. All the time we spend talking with other actors and producers, I find myself glancing in Katherine’s direction, and the one thing I notice is that she looks reluctant and a bit scared to engage in conversation with anyone except her friend.
“You two go and enjoy the party. Don’t make it too late a night, remember. I’ll collect you from the hotel at ten a.m, Ella.”
“I won’t forget.” I give him a hug and thank him for everything before he leaves.
“Okay, it’s just us. What do you say we skip the after party?” Connor asks as we stand at the bar.
“I say we mingle here for a bit then I’m all yours for the rest of the night.”
“That sounds like a perfect plan.” His eyes roam the room. “Is there anyone you want to meet?”
“Not really, although I do feel I need to go and talk to Katherine Hunter.”
“Are you sure?” he asks, his voice full of concern.
“Yes.” I need to do this for me.
“Okay then. Let’s go and introduce you to Miss Hunter.” With a quick deep breath, I square my shoulders back, hold my head high, and walk toward her with Connor by my side.
She doesn’t see us approaching her. “Katherine, I thought I should come over and at least introduce myself.”
She turns around hesitantly, staring at me in total bewilderment. “Oh! Hi, Ella.” Her voice is rough with what I think is anxiety.
“Katherine, this is Connor.”
“Hi.”
“So, you and Ella have been shortlisted for the same part.”
“So I’ve been told,” she says, her tone heavy with sarcasm. Me standing here is making her uncomfortable. “Will you be coming to L.A.?”
“No, the casting producer is happy to see me this weekend. Here in London.”
“Oh,” she says, her voice cold.
“What about you? How long are you in the UK for?”
“We’re not sure. We have a few things to do and I’d like to catch up with an old friend.” We? And I presume the old friend she’s talking about is Alex Mathews.
“Has Donovan got work here?” I ask, putting her on the spot. I glance at Connor and I think I’ve surprised him with my question.
“Erm, yes. He has a few things he has to take care of.” She might be speaking to me but her eyes are scanning the room, looking for the nearest exit. Inwardly, I find myself laughing. “It was great to meet you both. If you’re coming to the after party, I’m sure you’ll be able to catch up with Donovan then.”
Connor fidgets beside me and I know he’s wondering how I’m going to react, but he has nothing to worry about. There will be no tears or shouting from me, although I can’t guarantee the same for Katherine Hunter. “That would’ve been great,” I say. “But we have plans. If you could pass on a message to him for me though, I would appreciate it. Tell him to stop messaging me. If he wants anything, he should contact Trevor or Jonathon, my lawyer.”
She stands before me, her eyes almost popping from their sockets and her mouth hanging open. Oh, please. Can someone tell her this isn’t a good look on her? She doesn’t know he’s been trying to contact me. She twirls the stem of her champagne glass between her fingers. I glance at Connor and he shrugs.
Her eyes darken and she’s almost bouncing from one foot to the other. She releases the glass and watches as it falls to the floor and smashes against the ceramic tiles into a million tiny pieces.
People around us stop talking, turning to see what all the commotion is. Katherine’s eyes stay on the floor; her body is shaking with anger.
“Katherine, are you okay?” Connor asks as her friend returns to see what’s going on. Her friend places a hand on her shoulder, offering her some comfort, but doesn’t say anything.
“No. Take your damn girlfriend away from me. She’s nothing but a spiteful cunt. Why the hell would Donovan be in touch with her when he has me? She has nothing he wants!” she shouts, stepping through the glass until she’s standing right in front of me. A waiter appears with a dustpan and brush to clear up the mess on the floor. He cleans up quickly without looking at any of us.
Connor attempts to take my hand, but I brush his away. I won’t walk away from her. “Why don’t you ask him when you see him for yourself?”
“I don’t have to ask him. I trust him, and you . . . you’re just the woman he left behind for me.”
“Oh, please. And how long do you think he’ll keep you around before he finds someone else? I’ll tell you, shall I? When your money runs out.” I don’t shout or even raise my voice in the slightest. I’m just being honest with her; she’ll realise that one day. But by then it will probably be too late.
“You really are a little bitch,” she hisses, and takes a step toward me. Her friend urges her to walk away, but she refuses.
Connor steps in front of me, “Ladies, we don’t need a scene.”
“A scene!” she screeches in my face. “You won’t get my man and I’ll make sure you don’t get my part. That leading part belongs to me.”
“It might,” I say. “And as for your man, you can keep him. I have no interest in Donovan Bell and I wish he had no interest in me.”
I turn to walk away and Connor takes my hand, leading me away from the woman who seems to go out of her way to cause trouble. Although, maybe this is my fault. I shouldn’t have bothered approaching her.
As I take a step away, long fingernails dig into the skin on my shoulder. I freeze and Connor’s eyes widen in shock when he sees what she’s doing. Guests in our vicinity have long since gone back to their own conversations. “Katherine, you have until I spin around to take your claws out of my shoulder and, if you do, nothing more will be said on the matter. Because I’m sure this incident is one you’d rather not see making headlines tomorrow.”
She removes her hand and I spin around to face her. She really is a nasty piece of work. It’s no wonder she’s with Donovan; I’m sure the two of them are well-suited. “Katherine, I was being polite when I came over to speak to you. I really shouldn’t have bothered. Good luck when it comes to the casting.”
I turn on my heel and walk away. This time, Connor has his hand on the small of my back, urging me to continue walking. Neither of us turn back, but I know she’ll be seething. Connor and I say goodnight to some friends and the stars of tonight’s movie, who all try to talk us into going to the after party, but we respectfully decline.
My heart rate has just dropped to something that seems normal, and here I am thinking about our journey back to the hotel in the limo, which I’m sure will raise it again. Although, this time, in a good way.
“I can’t make up my mind if you handled that well or not,” Connor says as we reach the doorway.
There’s still a few reporters and cameramen outside, hanging around, waiting to see if they get any shots that could make headline news.
“I had to go over and speak to her for myself.”
“I know, and you did handle her well, although how you managed not to smack her in the mouth, I’ll never know.” He chuckles, opening the door, and the cold night air sends a shiver down my spine.
“Are you cold?” he asks as we wait on the car.
“A little.”
“I’ll heat you up.”
He wraps his arms around me and pulls my body tight to his. “I’m counting on that,” I say, pressing my lips to his. “We’re going for a little detour.”
“Oh! This sounds interesting.”