I can’t work out if Merlyn is pausing for effect or if she can’t remember. But I’m quite invested by now.
‘Twenty years younger.’
‘Specifically twenty?’
‘Specifically twenty. Which will makeyoulook mid-twenties of course.’
‘This sounds… insane,’ I say. ‘Totally insane.’
‘But in a good way, don’t you think, my dear?’
‘I’m not sure, Merlyn. I mean how would people even recognise me if I suddenly looked that much younger?’
Merlyn purses her lips. ‘Do you think anyone recognises you tonight?’
Good point. As I take it all in, Nandy reappears.
‘Hello ladies, have you finished chatting? Who’s up for a shimmy?’ Nandy always ends up enjoying herself.
Merlyn laughs as Nandy spins her around. ‘I’m definitely not too old for that.’ As they head off, Merlyn looks over her shoulder at me.
‘Think about it my dear. Yuvana Labs have got some promo ideas that could earn you some really decent money. And WULT® is going to cost £250,000 when it’s launched, so this might be your only chance – unless you’ve got some savings up your sleeve…’
I very much do NOT have any savings, to the point where I even went through some old coats before I left this afternoon tosee if I could find a tenner. Instead, I found some Extra Strong Mints, a Clinique Chubby Stick and what was either a shopping list with just ‘bread’ on it, or some kind of ‘note to self’ simply stating ‘dread’. Who knows? And now, here I am, sweating under my omelette, watching Cassia out of the corner of my eye with her giant Hermès Birkin on her knee, holding court. Ahead of me, on the dancefloor, Nandy is teaching Merlyn some Bollywood moves, which go surprisingly well with the decidedly un-Bollywood music.
Twenty years younger? Holy crap.
