Page 78 of Unapologetic Love Story

‘Oh,’ Raina moved her empty plate from her lap to the coffee table. ‘Hello.’

‘Congratulations on your nominations! We’re so pleased to have you on our shortlist this year!’

Raina threw an embarrassed glance at Tom, but he was smiling. He looked quietly proud and it almost unnerved her. She was so used to his subtle suspicion. Now he was so at ease around her. ‘Thank you.’

‘I’ll pop most of the specifics of the night into an email but I just wanted to touch base and make sure you’ll be attending?’

Raina could see the large room in her mind. She could feel her body tensing at the thought of all the many sensory attacks that would hit her.

‘Yes, I’ll be attending.’

Some things were worth the sting.

‘Fantastic! And you don’t have to know this right now, but do you have any idea of how many people you’ll be bringing with you?’

Raina and Tom stared at each other. The same thought was clearly passing through both of their minds. Would this, whatever it was, still be going on by the time the award ceremony arrived or would they be at one another’s throats.

‘How many people can I bring?’ Raina asked.

‘Oh, we would ask you keep it to less than five. But we understand social media stars love their entourages.’

She laughed chirpily, but Raina was unsure of what was funny. She was no such thing. She had no entourage and would never describe herself as a social media anything. She wrote scripted videos for camera, twice a week, and interacted with subscribers and interviewees. It was no different to television or radio, just run with fewer crew members and broadcast on a different platform.

‘Me, plus three people will do then,’ she told the woman.

‘Lovely. Down for four. As I said, I’ll email along more details and I just want to reiterate how happy we are that you’ll be joining us in person this year.’

Raina’s defences softened, appreciative of the woman’s warmth and sunniness in comparison to yesterday’s call from the sneering journalist. ‘Thank you.’

The call ended and Tom’s hand slipped onto her thigh, gently stroking. ‘You all right?’

Raina tossed her phone away and put on a show. Eye contact and wide smile. ‘I’m great.’

Tom watched her with concern, his own smile fading. He reached out and brushed his fingers against her smile, the one she’d mastered into a perfect disguise over the years. His gentle touch caused her to falter for a split second. She turned her head, letting her hair fall to mask her expression.

‘You got important writerly plans for this evening?’ she asked him, trying to mimic the same cheeriness she’d just heard on the other end of the phone.

‘The agent has me booked in for Morning Papers.’

‘Is that where they talk about tomorrow’s headlines late at night?’

‘Sure is. It’s a proper ball-ache and never achieves anything of value, but it reminds editors and bookers that I still exist.’

‘Well, I’ll stay up to watch you.’

‘Well, in that case . . .’

He pulled her into his lap, which earned him a genuinely delighted laugh from her. Raina settled against him and rested her forearms on his shoulders, her fingers gently stroking the back of his neck. ‘Yes?’

‘Every time I say “with respect”, I’m actually saying, “Raina, I can’t wait to get you back in bed and . . .”’

Raina shrieked and giggled as he whispered wicked things into her ear, while pulling her taut against his body. She pressed her face into his neck and shook with laughter, before they both fell back against the sofa again.

CHAPTER NINETEEN

Raina was sitting between Solana and Pepper on the very same living-room sofa (now cleaned), sipping a hot cup of jasmine tea and pretending that she was flicking through the television channels absent-mindedly. Solana had just dropped in after spending the night with a girlfriend in Hoxton, and Pepper was quizzing the younger Lewis sister about her love life.

Raina knew exactly which news broadcaster she was looking for, and precisely what she wanted to watch. She was wearing a pair of short shorts and a camisole, perfectly relaxed while her best friend and sister moved on to arguing about who they were voting for on a reality television show. Their passion and enthusiasm made Raina mildly curious about the show, but not enough to do a television detour.