‘You hid that well, Mum.’
‘And I never thought Tina was good enough for Will either,’ Grace rushed on.
Kate was torn between extreme irritation and gratitude. Her mother was infuriating, but she couldn’t help feeling touched that she didn’t automatically take it as read that Will was out of her league, as she knew many would – Rachel, for instance.
‘Well, I’ll be seeing Will later on. I’ll give him your love, shall I?’
‘Pleasedon’t say anything, Mum.’
‘Better yet, why don’t you come with us?’
‘I don’t think that’s a good idea.’
‘Well, I suppose you’re right – it would probably be best to wait until all this blows over.’
‘Mum, have you actuallyseenwhat they wrote about me?’ she asked in exasperation.
‘You mean the way they keep getting your age wrong? I know it’s annoying, darling, and it’s a shame they printed that awful picture of you before you’d lost all the weight.’
‘No, I don’t mean that. I mean the things they said about me. They made me sound like a conniving bitch?—’
‘Or a man-eating slut,’ Grace conceded.
‘I can’t ever go out in public again!’ Kate whined.
‘Oh, don’t be silly, darling,’ Grace said. ‘It’ll be forgotten in no time. Besides, you know what they say – there’s no such thing as bad publicity.’
‘Mum!’ Kate groaned in exasperation. ‘That may be true for people whowantpublicity in the first place. I don’t.’
‘Nonsense, darling! Everyone wants publicity nowadays. It’s the latest thing.’
‘Well,Idon’t. What would I do with it?’
* **
Of course, Conor had the answer to that one. ‘The public aren’t all going to be on Tina’s side by any means,’ he told her. ‘Everyone loves to see someone like her get her comeuppance – especially other women. There’ll be a backlash and you can use it to your advantage, if you play it right.’
‘But I don’twantto be on a reality-TV show.’
‘It doesn’t have to be that.’
‘Or do a kiss and tell,’ she said flatly, ‘or endorse a range of kinky underwear for fat girls, or write a sex column or have my own cookery show on TV.’
‘Well, there are plenty of other things you can do,’ Conor continued, undaunted. ‘You really should get a publicist…’
Kate sighed, hardly listening any more. At least she didn’t have to worry about her family feeling she’d shamed them, she thought wryly. They seemed to regard it as the next best thing to winning the lottery.
Later in the day, she was surprised to get a phone call from Louise. ‘Kate, I’m sorry about all this hassle you’ve been getting in the press,’ she said. ‘I know how miserable it must be for you.’
Kate was momentarily taken aback by Louise’s apparent omniscience, but then she realised that of course she would be aware of anything in the media concerning Will.
‘I wish I could say it’ll get better, but I don’t think it’ll go away for a while yet, not with Tina involved. She’s sure to milk it for all it’s worth. You know she’s a client of Dev Tennant?’
‘Yes, I know,’ Kate sighed. Dev Tennant was the most powerful publicist in Britain, revered and reviled in equal measure for his Machiavellian ability to manipulate the media and public opinion.
‘We haven’t made Will aware of any of this stuff yet,’ Louise was telling her. ‘Obviously it’s not such a big story in England, so he’s not likely to see it. And even if any of the English tabloids pick it up, I’m sure Antonia Bell would never get them.’
‘No, I don’t imagine she would.’
