‘I can’t believe Nate Jackson is on his way over. That is totally crazy,’ Savannah shrieks, buzzing with excitement.
‘Holly, you do realise it’s a quarter to seven, right?’ Ashley flicks her wristwatch up to the screen.
‘What? No way!’ The hours have flown by. ‘Shit. I need to have a shower.’
‘You most certainly do!’ Savannah wiggles her eyebrows.
‘And a shave,’ Ashley adds unhelpfully.
‘Laser all the way,’ Savannah and I say in unison.
‘Dare I ask how things are going across there?’ I probably shouldn’t, but like watching a car crash unfold, I can’t help it.
Balancing the phone on another easel, I strip the overalls off where I stand. Walking paint through Savannah’s show home-worthy villa is simply not an option.
I seriously need to find a lingerie shop around here. The tiny lace and silk scraps Savannah packed are not exactly practical for painting in. Or walking in. Or doing anything in except… well…
The two beaming smiles on the screen in front of me drop.
‘What is it?’ Panic swells in my chest. I look down to see if my boobs are out again. This ebony lace two-piece also does a poor job of supporting the troublesome double DD’s. Still, at least it’s only my friends watching and not the entire world and its wife today.
I glance down. Boobs are still safely tucked away, even if the material is utterly transparent. The girls have seen it all before.
And so has the rest of the world now.
Maybe I should move to a nudist colony? But then I’d have to let my vagina out too, and that’s something I’m not entirely comfortable with. Well, in public anyway.
‘It’s no worse than the first, I suppose…’ The way Ashley’s anxiously chewing her lip does nothing to reassure me.
‘Tell me.’ I roll the overalls into a ball and clutch them to my chest.
‘He released another video.’ Savannah’s tone is apologetic, the corners of her eyes creasing into a wince. ‘And a matching photo meme.’
No need to ask who.
It appears Dan wasn’t joking when he said he was going to ruin me.
Morbid curiosity outweighs the urge to bury my head. Marginally, at least. ‘Shit, what now?’
‘Shall I send it to you on WhatsApp?’ Ashley asks.
‘Yes.’ It’s the last thing I want, but there’s zero point hoping this will blow over when Dan is breathing life into the dying embers of what little dignity I have left.
The message pings through and I open it with bated breath.
The same video pops up. My eyelids half close, struggling to watch the horror show on my screen. The Mariah Carey song has been replaced with a choir like version of ‘Tis the season to be jolly, fa la la la la la la la la.’ but the words have been changed to ‘Tits the season to get trolleyed, fa la la la la la la la la.’
Fuck. Now the world is going to assume I have a drink problem as well as a predilection for exposing my boobs.
Nausea rises in my chest. ‘Do I even want to know how many views this thing has had?’
Savannah tuts. ‘Twenty-two million and counting.’
‘For goodness sake! Is there nothing we can do to stop him? There has to be a way to shut Dan down.’ Bile hovers at the back of my throat.
‘I spoke to the Guards. It’s a grey area because it was filmed in a public place. Also, given his family’s wealth and influence, I got the impression the Guards would rather chew off their own hands than get involved. I’ve reported Dan’s TikTok account and I’ve put out a call on my blog page for other women to do the same, but I guess TikTok is reluctant to remove it when people are eating it up like candy.’
Fuck. My. Life.
