I freeze. ‘Why because of Tori?’
‘Uh, well, I thought you two—’
‘We’re just friends,’ I interrupt.
Eleanor’s left eyebrow climbs in slow motion.
‘And she’s with Valentine,’ I add, more bitterly.
‘True.’ Eleanor sounds just as sombre. ‘But I guess that doesn’t change how much you like her.’
My ears go hot. ‘She’s my best friend,’ I say.
‘The chemistry between you two is out of this world,’ Eleanor says, as if she hadn’t even been listening to me. ‘And I’m sure Val can see that too. He can be very difficult if he doesn’t get what he wants.’ Eleanor glances at me, then continues without waiting for me to reply. ‘I regret having been with him. God knows what that was all about. He’s got charisma, and he can really turn on the charm when he wants to. But if you wind him up, things get nasty. Which they did when I realized I didn’t feel the same wayabout him as about Sophia. Sometimes I feel like I should warn Tori about him, but I know it’s none of my business.’
‘Me too,’ I say, not quite knowing which I mean – the warning-her part or the none-of-my-business part. A bit of both, probably. ‘But, sadly, I can’t talk to her about it without it turning into a fight.’
‘So, you do like her?’
I shut my eyes, and then, for the first time, I nod. Slowly, but it feels good. To finally admit to the truth.
Eleanor’s silent. Then: ‘Does she know how you feel about her?’
‘Of course not.’ I laugh. ‘She thinks . . .’ I hesitate ‘. . . she thinks I’m into you.’
‘That shows,’ Eleanor says, to my surprise.
‘Great.’ I sigh.
‘And are you planning to tell her how things really are?’ Eleanor sips her coffee.
‘I don’t know,’ I say.
‘What’s stopping you?’
I raise an eyebrow. ‘Valentine Ward?’
‘Oh, please.’ Eleanor laughs. ‘I get the impression it’s more about your feelings.’
‘We’ve known each other so long,’ I say slowly. ‘If it was meant to be, it would have happened a long time ago.’
‘How can it if you’re both waiting for the other one to take the first step?’
OK, face the facts. Eleanor can see through the whole business between Tori and me from a mile off.
‘But, anyway, it’s none of my business,’ she adds. ‘I just wanted to be open with you about it. We can discuss stage-kissing technique instead if you’d rather.’
‘You mean . . . fake kisses?’
‘No, wait.’ Eleanor glances around, then leans forward and puts both hands on my cheeks. Her fingers are warm from her glass and all I can think about is Tori’s lips on mine. Eleanor puts her thumbs on my lips. I hold my breath. She comes closer to my face until there’s only a hand’s breadth between our mouths. ‘And if we turn away from the audience slightly, nobody can tell the difference.’
She lets go of me. ‘Would that be better?’
I nod. I’m boiling.
‘Sorry, I didn’t mean to jump on you like that.’
‘No, it’s OK.’ I clear my throat. ‘But . . . Yeah, maybe it would be better if we did it like that.’
