‘No. Er… no.’ He cleared his throat. ‘We’re just friends.’
‘Cruisingfriendsthen, is it?’ she asked, knowingly. Was that a thing? Maybe we could use it in the pitch. My brainwhirred into action.Friends who cruise together… and booze together… fuse together. There wasn’t time to be lazing around in the sick bay – Heidi and I needed every spare minute to work on the presentation and come up with a winning idea.
‘We’re on the cruise together,’ Leo said, slowly, searching for the right words. ‘But we’re nottogether, together.’
Claire tutted. ‘These apps have got a lot to answer for, if you ask me.’
‘They’re with Brooke,’ Dahlia interjected.
‘Ohhhh. Gotcha.’ She nodded. ‘Head office VIPs. Well, if this is a test, she’ll get nothing but top-class treatment from me, don’t you worry. Now, out you go, both of you. Who shall I call when she’s ready to collect?’
I listened in while pretending to be asleep.
‘Me,’ Leo said, handing over his business card. ‘My mobile is on there. I’m in room 1085. I’ll pop back in half an hour or so though and see how she’s doing.’
Claire took it from him with a smile, then closed the door. ‘Right then, lovey, I’m all yours. Now let’s get some arnica cream on that eye, shall we?’
***
‘For crying out loud,whatis going on?’ I could hear Heidi bellowing in the reception. ‘Can I not just come in and see her for five minutes?’
‘I can’t stop you, but I’d prefer Ms Brennan to rest a while longer if possible,’ Claire whispered urgently, racing after Heidi as she barged in.
‘Kat? Are you awake?’ Heidi called, loudly. Her bedside manner needed some work.
I opened one eye and nodded. The bruising was already coming through on the other eye, so it was best to leave it shut.
‘What have you done to yourself?’ she gasped, scanning my face over. ‘You can’t look like this for the pitch.’
‘Go easy on the sympathy, won’t you? I got smacked in the face by a ball.’
‘Did you! What ball? Where?’ She looked around the room as if she was expecting one to fire at her from the ceiling. ‘Are you OK?’
‘Yeah… it was an accident.’
‘Who did it? You should claim on their travel insurance for assault!’
‘Leo. But he didn’t do it on purpose.’
She looked apoplectic. ‘I bet. Trying to sabotage our chances, no doubt.’
‘I moved at the wrong moment and got in the way of the ball. It looks worse than it feels.’
‘Well, it’s how it looks that matters.’ Heidi huffed. She was raging. ‘Appearances are everything in PR, Kat, as you know – especially in a pitch sitch. I don’t want the Excalibur exec team thinking we’re a pair of street wrestlers.’
‘At least I’ve still got my teeth,’ I said, baring them for her.
‘And you haven’t broken your nose… have you?’ She stared at it and I shook my head. ‘Let’s see how you look in a few days and workshop it then. We can always wear matching sunglasses and do aBlues Brothers–themed presentation.’
Claire appeared at Heidi’s shoulder with two glasses of water. ‘The arnica cream is triple strength and workswonders on bruising,’ she soothed. ‘This time next week you’ll barely notice it.’
‘See? Plenty of time to get myself back together ahead of the presentation.’
‘Thank you, Nurse,’ Heidi said. ‘That’s reassuring. Well, in that case, let’s use this as thinking time. If you’re bed-bound for the day, maybe you can sketch out a few ideas?’
I opened both my eyes at that, and Claire and I stared at her.
‘Or… not.’ She shrugged, then quickly changed the subject. ‘Actually, Nurse, while I’m here. Could you have a look at my shoulder? It feels out of whack; I must have slept on it funny. Are you trained in shiatsu by any chance?’
