Page 84 of Reflex
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As predicted, Ash took off the moment they docked in Cannes.Rock Giant and Ronnie vanished not long after on a hot date—“It’s a trip, Alle.”—to Mace Beach.“All the celebrities will be there.Well, not quite all of them.”
“Are you ready for this?”Spook asked, offering her his arm as they exited the limousine.“It’ll be mental.”
“I know,” she agreed.Although, apparently, she didn’t.It was good that the route was all lined out in red, with crash barriers on either side, because the lights and calls of the press, along with the announcements being blasted over the Tannoy and the background blare of decades old popular music made for a disorientating sensory explosion.And, God help anyone who didn’t like crowds.“You said mental, not hell.”
“Just walk, and pose if you have to.”
Obviously, she’d seen the spectacle that was the Cannes Film Festival in various news reports and magazines, but Alle had never paid it any attention.To suddenly be thrust into the middle of a catwalk was daunting.
Petrifying.
Why the hell did anyone do this out of choice?
At least she was dressed appropriately.
As promised, Xane had delivered suitable evening attire.More impressively, he’d got her size right without asking, and sent a matching handbag, shoes and jewellery.
“If he wasn’t a musician, he’d be working for Vogue,” Spook had offered up as a sort of explanation for his friend’s skills and thoughtfulness.“Xane loves costumes and clothes.And glitzy glamour.I’m not saying that most of the time he isn’t a T-shirt and jeans guy, or that he doesn’t enjoy the carnival of the macabre, but there’s a reason one of his homes is in Monaco.”
True enough, Xane Geist was seriously rocking his tuxedo.He might not be official royalty, but he was definitely rock star royalty, and he owned the red carpet as he sauntered along it towards the steps of the Lumière Theatre.White shirt, black bow tie and his inky hair flowing in a sleek sheet down his back.He was every cover artist’s wet dream.On top of that, he was doing the walk with both Luthor and Dani at his side.Hence the immediate frenzy of activity amongst the assembled journalists, photographers, and TV crews.
Dammit, that man knew how to turn heads.
Thanks to the likes ofBang!Magazine,his fluid sexuality was known to the world, and he certainly wasn’t hiding it.One arm sat casually draped around Luthor’s shoulders, the other looped around Dani’s waist as they posed for the obligatory photographs.
Spook, in contrast, hung back a little, keeping within the body of the crowd.
“Your friends are hot,” Alle muttered.
“Mm hmm.Though I hope that doesn’t mean your attention’s wandering.”
“No.You think?No.”She only had eyes for him.
His smile lit up his blue eyes with merriment.“I’m not panicking, Alle.Are you?”
She shook her head.“A little.I’m not really sure what the heck I’m doing here.Is he deliberately out to cause a scene?”
“Probably.There’s a reason I own this crazy expensive piece of tailoring.It’s a necessity for keeping a certain someone out of trouble.Don’t for a minute believe this is my scene.I’d rather be rocking a pair of shorts on the beach with Paul and your mate Ronnie, but someone has to keep Xane from self-detonating.”
“You don’t think that role falls down to his… paramours?”She nodded her head towards Luthor and Dani.
Spook sighed.“Things are definitely calmer than in the past.There’s less worrying about whose bed he’s going to wind up in, but I’m not sure they’re necessarily good at keeping him out of trouble.I’m sure you’ve seen all the internet vids.”
“They’re bogus.”
“Are they?”
What?They weren’t?“Really?”
“I’m not saying many of them aren’t faked, but… He’s an exhibitionist, Alle, in case you hadn’t noticed.”There was a whole bank of photographers pointing cameras at him.“Also, an addict.And, why the fuck is she here?”His attention tracked off to one side.“Well that has the potential to ensure things go seriously tits up.”
“Who is that?”Alle asked following his line of sight to the mob of journalists jammed against one of the barriers at the far end of the open air, glass roofed corridor.
“Ava Leigh.Seriously, is there a reason why that woman can’t just fuck off and die?”
“Wow,” she responded to the venom in his voice.She’d never heard him be so vehement in his loathing of a person.Not that Ms Leigh didn’t deserve it.Alle knew who she was, or at least she was aware of her rep, and was also intimately familiar with the special Black Halo exposé she’d been behind.
