Today had ended up being a really good day, against all odds.
First, when they’d arrived, Ivy managed to convince Olivia that she really didn’t need to walk down the red carpet with her. Jackson had arrived at the show early to prepare for hosting, so Olivia had walked down the red carpet – the skirt of her gorgeous, full-length turquoise dress intact – with Mr Vega and Lillian.
Ivy had snuck behind the crowds to a roped-off area by the entrance. This was for people who didn’t want to face the cameras. She flashed her badge and was let into the building, with just enough time to glance down the carpet to Olivia. Her twin had been turning in her silver heels, looking just like a model. She’d had her hair pinned up in an elegant bun with chandelier earrings and all the photographers had been desperate to get her picture.
By contrast, people could easily have mistaken Ivy for backstage crew. She was wearing a black T-shirt that said Black Hole and black cargo pants.
After they’d met in the lobby, Ivy and Olivia had been shown to the backstage area while the adults headed for the audience. They’d passed a dozen B-list celebs, including the tanned guy from Shop Hopping and the dog-training lady from Barking Mad.
Now, in the green room, Ivy was perched next to her sister on a black leather sofa with snacks and drinks spread out all over the glass coffee table in front of them. Ivy couldn’t stop watching her favourite band.
James looked up and smiled at her.
‘Oh, my goodness. James just looked at me!’ Ivy scrunched her toes up in excitement. ‘Was that a smile? Did he just smile at me?’
‘Calm down!’ Olivia whispered. ‘What happened to unimpressed, goth Ivy?’
‘Well,’ Ivy replied, ‘she’s staring at the most goth-tastic band alive. It would only be right and proper to get a little weak at the knees.’
Then a group of VIP fans came in, waving autograph books, blocking her view.
‘Would it be unprofessional if I throw things at them until they move?’ Ivy asked innocently.
‘Don’t you dare,’ Olivia replied. ‘I’m nervous enough as it is!’
There were three awards before Olivia was supposed to be ready in case she won the Bright New Star award.
‘Whether or not I win, I have to make sure I keep smiling because the cameras will all be on me,’ Olivia said. ‘And then if I win, I have to make a speech and introduce the winner of the Brightest Star award!’
‘You’ll do great . . . especially with Jackson right up there next to you.’
Olivia smiled.
‘Olivia Abbott?’ called an officious-looking woman with a clipboard.
Olivia took a deep breath and stood up.
The woman nodded. ‘We need you in the wings by camera six until it’s almost time for the nominations to be announced.’
Ivy gave Olivia a hug. ‘You are the brightest new star, no matter what. Don’t forget, you’ve got something they don’t have.’
‘You mean the Eternal Sunset role?’ Olivia said.
‘No . . . me!’ Ivy grinned.
Olivia laughed. ‘You are the best.’ She waved and clicked away in her silver heels.
Ivy looked around the green room. The Killer Bees had disappeared, maybe to get ready to present an award, but Ivy caught sight of Jessica Phelps – wearing a blue dress with Olivia’s shark-bite skirt – surrounded by a gaggle of admirers.
Ivy growled under her breath. She knew Jessica was up for the Brightest Star award, and it was almost inevitable that she would get it.
A man with a slicked-back ponytail, all clad in black, bustled through the green room crowd and whispered in Jessica’s ear, pressing a small package into her hands.
Jessica’s eyes lit up and she dismissed her hangers-on. Ivy’s spidey-sense tingled. She’s up to something.
Jessica slipped through the crowd, flashing smiles left and right. Ivy stood up and discreetly followed as closely as she dared.
She had to duck under a catwalk model shaking out her hair and around a dance group bopping in unison despite there not being any music.
Jessica left the green room and made a bee-line for a bank of monitors and video equipment, where four engineers were busily pushing buttons and shouting cues to each other.
She sidled up to one and caught his attention. Ivy couldn’t hear what Jessica was saying, but she could see that the diva was laying on all her charms. The engineer was pushing his glasses back up his nose and leaning closer and closer.
Jessica stood on her tiptoes to whisper into his ear, deliberately putting her hand on his arm.
He seemed to resist her suggestion for a minute but then she took out a pen and wrote something on his hand – probably her phone number. He nodded and Jessica pressed the packet the ponytail man had given her into his hand. The engineer nodded again and Jessica strutted off.
Ivy ducked behind a spare podium and watched the engineer open the packet to find a DVD inside. Jessica had passed him something to play during the awards.
On a nearby monitor, Ivy saw that they were just announcing a tribute to their host, Jackson Caulfield. Ivy narrowed her eyes. Something bad was about to happen. She had to find Olivia.
‘Pardon me,’ Ivy asked a runner. ‘Where is camera six?’
‘On the other side.’ He pointed and Ivy ran as fast as her chunky books would take her.
Olivia had a great view of the stage. Jackson was smiling, cracking little jokes and being his usual charming self.
She was so proud to be his girlfriend. She just wished she didn’t have to hide it any more.
‘He’s doing great,’ Amy whispered. She was wearing a gold cowl-neck dress, with her red hair loose over her shoulders.
‘He is,’ Olivia agreed.
‘And now . . .’ an announcer’s voice boomed over the auditorium speakers, ‘a tribute to our wonderful host, Jackson Caulfield!’
The audience went wild and there was a close-up of Jackson at the hosting podium smiling and turning to watch the huge screens behind him.
Instead of Jackson’s face, Jessica’s face filled the screen.
‘What’s this?’ Amy said. ‘This isn’t what we approved!’ Amy whirled around to the nearest stage hand. ‘Who put on this video?’
Olivia watched as Jessica’s image filled the screen. ‘Hi, Jackson, sweetie!’ She blew a kiss at the camera. ‘I couldn’t let them do any old boring tribute – and we’ve gotten so close . . .’ she paused for emphasis and Olivia wanted to throw something at the screen, ‘that I wanted to do something a little special to say thank you for making filming The Groves so much fun.’