Page 125 of Jessica Beam is a Hot Mess
Leo grabs my hand. ‘Looks like it’s time. Good to see you again, Summer.’
Summer’s confident smile drops slightly. ‘Yes, definitely. I’ll come find you guys later.’
Not if I have anything to do with it.
With a last stony glance at Summer, I follow Leo to where we hurriedly take our seats as an air of excited anticipation settles over the room. There are two empty spaces at our table. Peach and Gavin’s spaces. I squint, scanning the rapidly emptying dance floor for them. Where the hell have they gone?
‘Wow, I’m actually a little nervous,’ Leo laughs, squeezing my hand under the table.
‘You’ll be great,’ I say in the soothing voice. ‘Good luck.’
‘Luck has nothing to do with these things!’ Rufus Frost sniggers from the other side of the table, signalling over to one of the stewards for more champagne. I throw Rufus my most subtle withering glance. Leo kisses me on the neck. I lean into him and rest my head against his shoulder.
Summer, about four tables away, stares at me as I do this, one eyebrow raised. I lift my head back up instantly. Shit. She’s totally gunning for me. As soon as the awards are announced, I’m going to have to come up with some way to get Leo out of here, and fast. I can’t risk Summer talking to him again. Or Peach. Or Gavin, for that matter, wherever they may be. This is Def-Con 5 and I have to rescue our mission.
We sit through thirty minutes of really boring awards for things such as Best Use of Typography and Best Utilities Branding. The lights are dimmed, so no one notices as I drift off a little.
‘And now we come to the award for Print Campaign of the Year . . .’ the host booms into the mic. I feel Leo sit up a little straighter beside me and that pulls me out of my daze. I wipe away the little bit of drool that has puddled at the corner of my mouth.
‘This is it!’ Leo whispers.
The host opens up a folded red card, and reads the result.
‘And the winner of LAAA’s Print Campaign of the Year goes to . . .’
Leo squeezes my hand even tighter.
‘Leo Frost at Woolf Frost for Drive Alive!’
How? How?
Despite my befuddlement that anyone could think that that advert is anything other than ridiculous, I cheer and clap along with the rest of the room.
Leo pulls me up from my chair and bends me over his arm for an extravagant Hollywood Kiss that leaves me breathless, before jogging to the stage area to collect his award.
‘Wow,’ he laughs into the microphone, examining the silver trophy. In his hand. ‘Not in a million years did I think I’d be winning this. Especially not when I’m up against such incredibly talented competition. Thank you so much to the incredible team at Woolf Frost for your hard, smart work and huge thanks to the LAAA judges for voting for me.’
We all clap.
Leo takes a deep breath.
‘I’ve actually had quite a journey these past few weeks. Some revelations about my work and, well, about the direction of my life, I suppose. Some of you, well, most of you, will know me as something of an eternal bachelor.’
There’s a polite laugh from the audience and a shout out from the back by someone who says, ‘That’s putting it bloody lightly!’, which gets an even bigger laugh.
‘All right, all right!’ Leo holds up his hands, grinning, his eyes searching me out.
‘Three weeks ago, at a client funfair, Lucille Darling jumped into my dodgem car, and, at the risk of sounding cheesy, into my heart.’
The audience goaaaah. I turn a bit red and take a sip of my drink.
‘Not many people can stand up to my father,’ Leo continues, getting another laugh from the audience. ‘But Lucille is one of them. She’s also unusual and creative, a passionate philanthropist who’s not afraid to be herself, to be different from the crowd. It’s a complete bonus that she’s also the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen in my life. What I suppose I’m saying is that . . . Lucille, you’ve changed me. You’ve lit me up. And in front of the press, in front of my peers, in the interests of being as bold and as honest as you . . . I want to tell you . . .’
What . . . What does he want to tell me?
‘That I . . . I think you’re kinda terrific.’
I throw my head back and laugh out loud. ‘I think you’re kinda terrific’ is a line fromGrease 2.
