‘Oh, of course you are,’ Andrea put a consoling hand on Sam’s arm. ‘But it’s about getting the opportunity in the first place, isn’t it? I mean, there’s no shame in it. You have to make the most of anything you can use to get a foot in the door, so good for you.’
‘I did audition…’ Sam said.
‘My sisters and I aren’t even involved in casting decisions,’ Sive said furiously. ‘Mimi and I auditioned ourselves. And Sam got that part fair and square because he deserved it.’
‘There’s no need to be so defensive,’ Andrea said. ‘It’s not that long ago that the casting couch was considered a perfectly acceptable route into the business.’
‘Casting couch!’ Sive fumed, aghast, while Sam blushed. ‘If you’re suggesting—'
‘Of course not,’ Andrea said with a tinkly laugh. ‘Don’t mind me. I’m just joking.’
‘I don’t see what’s funny about implying my sisters and I are—are—' Sive stuttered, feeling her face burn with indignation.
‘I’m sorry, I honestly didn’t mean any offence. I forget that not everyone has my sense of humour.’
What sense of humour was that, Sive wondered – the unfunny kind?
‘Oh, there’s Nina,’ Andrea said, glancing across the room at the director ofPrivate Lives. ‘I must go and say hello.’
‘Yes, “stand not upon the order of your going,”’ Sive mumbled under her breath, quoting Lady Macbeth as Andrea walked away.
‘Phew!’ Sam wiped his forehead with the back of his hand.
‘Wow, I knew Mimi didn’t like Andrea, but I had no idea what she’s had to put up with the last couple of months. The cheek of her, implying that Mimi’s some kind of awful predator, making people sleep with her for parts,’ Sive spluttered indignantly.
‘Well, to be fair, Mimididbribe me to date her in exchange for putting me up for young Scrooge,’ Sam said with a smirk.
Sive laughed. ‘Oh god, that’s true.’
‘It was just pretend, though. It’s not like I had to make the ultimate sacrifice,’ Sam said melodramatically and Sive giggled.
‘Just don’t let Mimi hear you referring to sleeping with her as the ultimate sacrifice.’
They were interrupted by a loud tinkling and turned to see Rocco and Mimi standing in front of the fireplace, Mimi tapping a fork against her glass to command attention.
Sive turned to Aoife who had materialised at her side and they looked at each other, eyebrows raised. This was unexpected. They’d none of them ever been given to speech-making at parties.
‘Sorry to interrupt,’ Mimi said, her voice carrying through the room as conversation fell off and a hush descended over the assembled guests. ‘We won’t keep you long. Don’t worry, we’re not going to start speechifying, but we have a quick announcement to make.’
‘First of all, thank you all for being here,’ Rocco said, raising a glass.
‘We have news, and we wanted you all to be the first to hear it.’
‘I asked Mimi to marry me,’ Rocco said, slipping an arm around Mimi’s waist and looking at her adoringly.
‘And I said only if he’d marry me back,’ Mimi said, and the quiet was broken by a ripple of laughter.
‘And we both said yes!’ Rocco grinned.
‘So, long story short, we’re engaged!’ Mimi held up her left hand, showing off a ring that definitely hadn’t been there before. There was no way Sive would have missed that.
There was a moment’s stunned silence, broken by clapping and shouts of congratulations as glasses were raised. Then the pair of them were surrounded as everyone rushed forward to hug them and examine Mimi’s ring in a flurry of kisses and questions and more congratulations.
‘Well, that explains why they insisted on having the whole family here,’ Sive said, turning to Aoife, who’s eyes were welling up as they joined the throng around Mimi and Rocco.
‘Congratulations!’ they chorused when they finally got their turn with the happy couple, hugging them both in turn before Rocco was engulfed by another of his siblings.
‘I’m so happy for you,’ Aoife said. ‘Let’s see the ring.’
