Page 59 of All the Right Words
Thirty-Four
Harper walked into the large bookstore, done up with banners containing early artwork forDeath Do Us Part. Harper wasn’t enormously impressed with the choices. It was very generic, obvious stuff. Shadowy knives and such. Harper hoped it wouldn’t end up being the final cover for the book. However, it wasn’t at the top of her worries list.
There was complimentary champagne in the corner. Harper made a beeline for it. She was going to need a bit of help tonight. She was ending it with Olivia.
The waiter with the drinks smiled. ‘Hi, would you like-’
Harper took the glass, poured its contents down her throat, and then panted out, ‘Could I have another?’
The waiter was a bit taken aback, but he hid it well. ‘Of course.’ He handed her another. She only drank half of that one. She wasn’t trying to get sloshed. She just needed to blur the edges. ‘Thanks,’ she said and turned to take in the vibe. People were milling about, the general public mixed in with journalists, book influencers and the like. And here came Olivia, looking happy to see her. Harper didn’t want to see that at all. Not when she was here to explain that she was breaking it off.
‘Harper, there you are!’ Olivia said.
Harper tried to paint on a smile, but she could feel how shaky it was. ‘Here I am,’ she declared erratically.
Olivia glanced around her, luckily too distracted to notice Harper’s jumpy vibe. ‘Good turnout, I think. Not sure about this grub, though,’ she frowned, eyeing up the trays going around the room. ‘I actually saw a tray of mini pizzas a minute ago.’
‘Is that bad?’ Harper asked, taking another swig of champagne.
‘I wasn’t expecting swanky – we put this together quickly - but Jesus,really?’ Olivia complained.
‘I quite like a mini pizza,’ Harper muttered, looking out for the tray. Carbs and cheese wouldn’t hurt right now. But as her eyes moved around the room, they did not find savoury, doughy goodness. They found Gina. They found a split second of eye contact.
And then Gina turned a hundred and eighty degrees and walked off around a bookshelf. It stung. But it wasn’t unexpected. Gina didn’t want to deal with this mess. Hopefully, some of that mess would be cleaned up by the night's end. They were all entangled with Brenda’s work, which might not change immediately, but Harper could simplify things to some extent.
She wasn’t planning to confess. She might have had she snogged anyone other than Olivia’s assistant. Gina did not have to go down on this sinking ship if it could be helped.
Brenda suddenly appeared in front of her and Olivia. ‘Can you see my sweat patches on this top?’ she asked, raising her arms. Two enormous dark, moist circles presented themselves to Harper.
‘Umm…’ Harper began.
‘That’s a yes,’ Brenda groaned, lowering her arms. ‘I thought wearing brown would cover it.’
‘Just keep your arms down,’ Olivia suggested.
‘While I’m reading from a book in front of a hundred people?’ Brenda snapped. ‘How the bloody hell is that going to work? I told you it was too soon for this!’ she hissed at them.
‘OK, look, the shops are still open. I can get you a new top ready for the reading if that would help?’ Harper suggested.
Brenda chewed it over. ‘You could?’
Olivia interjected. ‘Harper, that’s a great idea. But don’tyougo. Let me send Gina.’
Harper’s eyes went round with alarm. ‘What, no, I can do it my-’
But Olivia was already gesturing across the room, and Gina was coming. She looked like she was walking to her execution.
‘Yeah?’ she asked Olivia, completely ignoring Harper.
Olivia leaned in discretely. ‘Brenda’s having a slight wardrobe issue. Could you go round the corner and pick her up a new top?’ she asked. ‘And maybe a stick of deodorant?’
Gina replied, dead-eyed, ‘Why not? Swiss army assistant.’
Olivia produced a credit card and handed it to Gina. Gina turned to Brenda. ‘What’s your favourite colour?’
Brenda shook her head. ‘I’ll come. You wouldn’t be able to pick my style.’
Gina shrugged. ‘Fine. Come on, then.’
