‘Which is a narrative thread we can develop down the track,’ Carrie said.
‘We arenotdoing a Season Eight narrative.’
In Season Eight, masterminded by our old boss Tony, Juliets had been cast in pairs – sisters, friends, cousins, a mother and daughter – to compete for the same Romeo. Lily and I had argued strongly against the gimmick, but we’d been overruled. The end result had torn a lot of close female relationships apart, and had been such a misogynist disaster that even Fucking Greg had been able to see it.
‘I’m not suggesting a Season Eight narrative,’ Carrie said. ‘The opposite, actually. There’s the potential for a beautiful friendship story with Dylan G and Amanda. We could tell a story about how romance isn’t the only important relationship you can find onMarry Me, Juliet.’
‘I love that,’ Suzette said. ‘And it’s only going to make the audience connect to Dylan G more, which is what we want.’
I closed my eyes for a moment and exhaled through my nose.
‘I think we’ve got some great combos here,’ Carrie said. ‘Naya and Kanda do Archie. Parisa and Kumiko doThe Graduate.Lily and Marija doMy Best Friend’s Wedding,and Amanda and Dylan G doPride and Prejudice.’
‘Parisa’s going to hate being cast as Mrs Robinson,’ Suzette said. ‘She’s already said a hundred times she doesn’t want to be pigeonholed as a cougar.’
‘Sell it to her as getting the age difference conversation out of the way,’ I said, my brain making the narrative move automatically. Parisa was thirty-eight, the oldest woman in the Villa, making her seven years older than Romeo-Dylan. ‘Something to be addressed in Episode Two which we can then move on from.’
‘Copy that.’
‘We’re making a mistake putting Amanda and Dylan G together. I’m telling you.’
Carrie and Suzette both groaned.
‘How about we lean into it today?’ Carrie said. ‘Rightinto it. Let’s put Amanda and Dylan G into a situation where, if there is a spark, it’ll be incredibly obvious. That way, at least we know what we’re dealing with.’
I gave up. If I had to prove it to them, I fucking well would. ‘Fine.’
Suzette looked at her watch. ‘We’ve got to set up for the date card reveal now, or we’ll be behind schedule.’
‘On it,’ Carrie said. ‘Murray, go have a shower and eat something before you fall over.’
She disappeared, but Suzette hung back. ‘What?’ I said, standing up and stretching.
‘Lily.’
‘What about her?’
‘What’s the deal, Murray?’ Suzette said. ‘And don’t just fob me off with the bullshit you said in the crew briefing yesterday. What the hell is going on?’
I buckled my utility belt back on. ‘You have exactly the same information I do.’
She rolled her eyes. ‘Fine. Be that way.’
‘What do you want me to say, Suzette? We all knew the network had sent a ringer. I found out it was Lily when she turned up at pre-show interviews. What other secret information do you think I have?’
‘Is she all right?’
‘Your guess is as good as mine.’
‘Areyouall right?’
I put my earpiece back in and checked that my radio was on.
‘Murray,’ Suzette said gently, putting her hand on my arm, ‘I know how you feel about her.’
I looked pointedly at her hand until she removed it.
She sighed. ‘If you don’t want to talk to me, that’s fine, but you should talk to someone. Bottling whatever the fuck is going on up will only—’
