‘You mean the Eternal Sunset role?’ Olivia said.
‘No . . . me!’ Ivy grinned.
Olivia laughed. ‘You are the best.’ She waved and clicked away in her silver heels.
Ivy looked around the green room. The Killer Bees had disappeared, maybe to get ready to present an award, but Ivy caught sight of Jessica Phelps – wearing a blue dress with Olivia’s shark-bite skirt – surrounded by a gaggle of admirers.
Ivy growled under her breath. She knew Jessica was up for the Brightest Star award, and it was almost inevitable that she would get it.
A man with a slicked-back ponytail, all clad in black, bustled through the green room crowd and whispered in Jessica’s ear, pressing a small package into her hands.
Jessica’s eyes lit up and she dismissed her hangers-on. Ivy’s spidey-sense tingled. She’s up to something.
Jessica slipped through the crowd, flashing smiles left and right. Ivy stood up and discreetly followed as closely as she dared.
She had to duck under a catwalk model shaking out her hair and around a dance group bopping in unison despite there not being any music.
Jessica left the green room and made a bee-line for a bank of monitors and video equipment, where four engineers were busily pushing buttons and shouting cues to each other.
She sidled up to one and caught his attention. Ivy couldn’t hear what Jessica was saying, but she could see that the diva was laying on all her charms. The engineer was pushing his glasses back up his nose and leaning closer and closer.
Jessica stood on her tiptoes to whisper into his ear, deliberately putting her hand on his arm.
He seemed to resist her suggestion for a minute but then she took out a pen and wrote something on his hand – probably her phone number. He nodded and Jessica pressed the packet the ponytail man had given her into his hand. The engineer nodded again and Jessica strutted off.
Ivy ducked behind a spare podium and watched the engineer open the packet to find a DVD inside. Jessica had passed him something to play during the awards.
On a nearby monitor, Ivy saw that they were just announcing a tribute to their host, Jackson Caulfield. Ivy narrowed her eyes. Something bad was about to happen. She had to find Olivia.
‘Pardon me,’ Ivy asked a runner. ‘Where is camera six?’
‘On the other side.’ He pointed and Ivy ran as fast as her chunky books would take her.
Olivia had a great view of the stage. Jackson was smiling, cracking little jokes and being his usual charming self.
She was so proud to be his girlfriend. She just wished she didn’t have to hide it any more.
‘He’s doing great,’ Amy whispered. She was wearing a gold cowl-neck dress, with her red hair loose over her shoulders.
‘He is,’ Olivia agreed.
‘And now . . .’ an announcer’s voice boomed over the auditorium speakers, ‘a tribute to our wonderful host, Jackson Caulfield!’
The audience went wild and there was a close-up of Jackson at the hosting podium smiling and turning to watch the huge screens behind him.
Instead of Jackson’s face, Jessica’s face filled the screen.
‘What’s this?’ Amy said. ‘This isn’t what we approved!’ Amy whirled around to the nearest stage hand. ‘Who put on this video?’
Olivia watched as Jessica’s image filled the screen. ‘Hi, Jackson, sweetie!’ She blew a kiss at the camera. ‘I couldn’t let them do any old boring tribute – and we’ve gotten so close . . .’ she paused for emphasis and Olivia wanted to throw something at the screen, ‘that I wanted to do something a little special to say thank you for making filming The Groves so much fun.’
Olivia glanced over at Jackson at the podium and he looked confused. He caught her eye in the wings and gave a helpless shrug.
Photographs started flashing up on the screen of Jackson and Jessica filming scenes at the Meat and Greet, picnicking in a park and holding hands by a lake. It looked to Olivia more like it was a tribute to them as a couple.
‘Don’t worry, girls,’ Jessica’s voice came over the images. ‘I’m not taking credit for taming America’s most eligible bachelor . . . because someone called Olivia beat me to it!’
Amy gasped and Olivia felt her stomach twist. She had to take a deep breath to stop from retching. Jackson’s mouth was set in a grim line, steeling himself for whatever was coming next.
Then a video clip started of someone clearly filming through a bush. It was Aunt Rebecca’s ranch. On the huge screen for everyone to see, Jackson got out of the Daniels’ van, rushed over to Olivia, scooped her up and gave her a big kiss.
And, just like that, the secret was out.
Olivia had wanted the world to know, but she didn’t want Jackson’s fans to find out like this – especially right before she had to face the cameras for the newcomer award.
There was loud booing from the audience.
‘Who is that?’ one girl shouted.
‘Jackson stealer!’ called another.
So much for being a star at the awards like Harker wanted, Olivia thought. I’m promotional poison!
The film was still playing out behind her, and there was a glimpse of Ivy on the screen – the first time anyone had seen Ivy and Olivia together in a film.
‘They tried to keep that secret from us!’ someone cried out. Olivia couldn’t believe it. How many more things was she going to get attacked for?
Just then, Ivy burst into the wings. ‘Olivia!’ she called.
‘What is going on?’ Amy raged at a stage manager.
He looked terrified and shouted into his headset. ‘Commercial break! Go! Now!’