‘Who’re Candy Threat? I’ve never heard of them.’
Ash drags his attention back to me. ‘You won’t have. Yet. It’s a female trio. Their first single, “Don’t You Lie-Lie, or I’ll Cry-Cry”, is climbing the UK charts. Think bubblegum punk with pop synth beats and a tambourine. A little bird tells me they’re gonna be big. Stick with me, and you’ll be witness to musical history, baby.’
Should I burst his bubble and tell him they never actually made musical history? Perhaps not.
‘Great. They sound like fun,’ I say cheerily.
13
SEBASTIAN
I’mrelaxingonJade’sbed in Levi’s 501s and a white T-shirt when she walks in. Immediately, I notice the frown forming on her face when she sees me with my hands propped behind my head; and from that, I should probably be on my best behaviour. Still, it doesn’t stop me from chirruping, ‘Welcome home, honey. How was your first day?’
Jade shuts her bedroom door and stands there with her hands on her hips. She looks so cute in her all-black outfit, though she could use a pop of colour.
‘Fuck you, Sebastian.’
OK, she does have colour, but it’s coming from her language.
‘Oh dear, first day not good?’ I ask, feigning innocence. It was always going to be a risk sending her to that magazine, but I thought she might get a kick out of it seeing she wants to be a journalist.
Jade bursts into tears.Uh-oh. This is worse than I thought.
My intention to ‘show her who’s boss’ flies out the window. This calls for more delicate handling.
I pat the side of the bed. ‘Come here and tell Uncle Seb all about it.’
She swipes at her cheeks and heaves a sigh but approaches the bed. ‘You are not my uncle by any stretch of the imagination.’
‘True, but I’m the one who put you here, so feel free to offload on me.’
Jade kicks off her shoes and sits against the headboard, her knees drawn up. Her scrunched bare toes are painted bright pink and look like candy. I resist the urge to lick them. With the mood she’s in, I might get a slap round the ears.
‘Sooo,’ I prompt, ‘what happened? Was someone mean to you?’
She shrugs her shoulders. ‘Kind of.’
I clench my fists. ‘Tell me names, and I’ll have them dealt with.’
The hint of a smile plays across her lips. ‘So you’re a hitman as well as a devil?’
‘I can be whatever you want me to be,’ I drawl.
She rolls her eyes. ‘Not helping.’ So I lose the flirty attitude. If Jade needs sympathetic Sebastian, I can be that for her.
‘OK, start from the beginning.’
‘I’m not coping with this era. Everything’s so ... basic. AndPopTraxis crazy. It’s noisy, chaotic, and everyone smokes. It’s given me a headache breathing in all that nicotine poison.’
She rubs her eyes, which admittedly are rather bloodshot, and her hair does reek of smoke. ‘Hmm, working conditions are not ideal. Noted. Anything else?’
‘There’s this guy. Ash Delaney. The special features journo. I’m shadowing him, but he seems to want to get in my knickers.’
I tense at that.
‘What?’ I growl. ‘Did he touch you?’
She shakes her head hurriedly. ‘No, no. Nothing like that, but he’s a massive flirt. I get the impression he’s slept with most of the girls in the office, and I’m fresh meat.’