‘Sorry, Philippe,’ Lillian said. ‘I could –’
But he waved his hand in her face. He strode over and started yanking people up from their tables and rearranging them. Ivy realised he was the director and perhaps needed a good six months at a yoga retreat to find some inner peace. Philippe was like a grumpy fly, buzzing at everyone.
He marched over to Charlotte’s table. ‘You, in that blue!’
‘Moi?’ Charlotte sounded like she thought he was going to give her the starring role.
‘Take it off!’
‘Wh-what?’ Charlotte spluttered.
Ivy and Sophia – along with several other extras – leaned over to see what was happening.
‘Non, non. You will distract the eye.’ He snapped his fingers and pointed at a grey jacket on the back of his director’s chair. The man with the headphones scurried over with it and Philippe tossed the jacket at Charlotte. ‘Put this on and come with me.’
A miserable Charlotte did as she was told and scooted out of the booth. He grabbed her hand and dragged her to a different table, as she stumbled and tried to keep up.
Ivy looked away but not in time. Charlotte caught sight of her and shot a death stare that Ivy would have been proud of . . . if she hadn’t been on the receiving end of it.
‘Uh oh,’ Sophia said. ‘Busted.’
‘She can’t do anything now,’ Ivy whispered back. ‘She wouldn’t risk it.’
Once Charlotte was installed at the next table over, grey and drab, the director clapped his hands. ‘Where are my actors? Where? Where?’ He threw himself into his chair and covered his eyes with his hands.
The diner door opened again and Jackson strolled in right on cue, script in hand. There was no sign of Olivia; Ivy wondered what that meant. Maybe their private tour had been awful and Olivia decided she wasn’t interested after all. That would bring a swift end to Ivy’s matchmaking disaster. I hope she’s OK, Ivy thought.
Philippe leapt from his chair, gesticulating at Jackson. ‘This! I do not believe this. Don’t you know your lines?’
Jackson slapped the papers into Philippe’s flailing hand. ‘Like a warlock knows his spells. I’m completely off-script.’
‘That’s vamp slang,’ Ivy hissed.
‘I’d call that wizard slang, really,’ Sophia whispered back.
‘But he was so calm,’ Ivy argued. He was keeping his cool, just like a vampire.
‘He must be used to all kinds of crazy directors,’ Sophie countered.
Jackson noticed them staring and gave a little wave to her and Sophia. What if he heard us talking about him with his super vamp hearing? Ivy thought. Hmm. I could test him.
‘Sophia,’ Ivy whispered as quietly as she could, keeping a close eye on Jackson. ‘I heard Jackson gets manicures.’ She was making it up, but she thought it might get a reaction if he overheard.
‘What are you talking about?’ Sophia asked, but Ivy was watching Jackson.
Did he flinch? Ivy couldn’t be sure. But he kept his cool with the director, maybe he was using his acting skills to remain straight-faced?
He continued to run through some lines with a stand-in. Ivy cursed the fact that vampires could blend in so easily – she couldn’t tell if he was or wasn’t just by looking at him. And she could hardly trail him until he went to the BloodMart – with his legions of fans, he would have iron-clad avoidance tactics.
Sophia pushed a napkin over, with a little cartoon scribbled on it. There was an angry-looking man with a goatee shouting at a group of frightened stick figures. Ivy snorted when she saw an eager-looking stick person wearing a feathered dress.
For the third time, the door swung open and a collective hush fell over the set. A girl a little older than Ivy paused in the doorway, looking every inch a movie star in dark jeans, an off-the-shoulder top and a large moon-shaped pendant necklace. An entourage of people with make-up, refreshments and cell phones waited nervously until she had finished surveying the room and stepped inside. Ivy saw two of the entourage breathe a sigh of relief, almost as if they’d been expecting something bad to happen.
‘So far so good,’ one of them whispered as they passed Ivy and Sophia’s table.
‘Jessica Phelps!’ Sophia whispered.
People didn’t get more famous than Jessica and Jackson. They were at the tippy top of the A-list.