‘Let her go with them, then,’ I said.
‘Mrs Lewis mentioned a shopping expedition,’ said Dad.
‘I’ll do it,’ said Pia. ‘Come on, Jess, it’ll be fun.’
I shot her a filthy look then had an idea. Maybe this was my moment. ‘Thing is, it would be awful, Dad. Can you imagine? They’re loaded and I only have fifteen quid left in my savings account.’
‘Ah, yes, about that. I was going to say. It’s your birthday soon. How about I give you your present early? Rather than me pick something for you, I thought I’d give you cash so you could choose something yourself.’
Bribery! He had taken the bait. This was going very well. ‘Maybe, but Dad, I don’t think she likes me. You saw the way she flounced off before.’ I wasn’t about to fill him in on how rude she’d been to me nor where I’d bumped into her previously.
‘It’d be a favour to me, Jess. I need to make a good impression. We all do. I’m sure you could take Pia along. I think Mrs Lewis wants Alisha to meet normal English teenagers.’
‘Pia’s not normal. She’s mad. She was captured by aliens over the summer and they ate her brain.’
‘It’s true, Mr Hall, ergle burgle spoink,’ said Pia, and she made herself go cross-eyed. ‘It’s very sad.’
Dad laughed and looked at me for my answer. I knew Pia wanted to go and she deserved a trip out to take her mind off the situation at home. Despite Mrs Carlsen’s best efforts to find a new place for them to live, so far, she hadn’t found anything suitable. I couldn’t let her down.
‘OK,’ I said. ‘We’ll do it. It’ll be difficult to pretend that we’re normal, but we’ll try.’
‘And to make it up to you,’ Dad continued, ‘I was thinking that you could have a small birthday party here. Just a few of your girlfriends from school or the old neighbourhood. People you trust, of course, and who you can rely on to be discreet.’
It was getting better by the second. Already I was making a list. The kudos. A party at Number 1, Porchester Park. Strictly A-list. Everyone would want to be on it!
‘Deal,’ I said and put out my hand to high-five him. ‘I will be the perfect tour guide.’
Pia gave me the thumbs up.
‘What do you want to do on your birthday?’ Pia asked as we took a last minute make-up check in the school cloakroom before going into the fundraiser.
‘What do you think? The usual? Pizza. DVD, sleep-over?’
‘Can you invite boys?’
‘Doubt it. Dad said girls, didn’t he?’
‘Yes. Just . . . I wondered . . . with Henry living next door. He knows the rules at Porchester Park so would be cool, I’m sure.’
‘And you love him even though you’ve only met him once.’
‘I do. With a love that’s true, which is why I need an opportunity to spend a bit more time with him. And Charlie will be there, won’t he? Wouldn’t he want a few boys for company?’
‘Don’t kid yourself, P. Charlie would love to be the only boy in a room full of girls. I’ll ask Dad if we can have a few boys, though – Henry included – just for you. I can’t stand in the way of true love, can I?’
On the way out of the cloakroom, we saw Tom and Josh coming along the corridor. Tom was looking gorgeous, dressed all in black. He looked right at me and smiled.
I checked over my shoulder to see if he was looking at someone else but no, the smile was directed at me. Say something, said a voice in my head.
‘Mff,’ came out of my mouth, as he approached.
‘Hey. How’s life in the fast lane, Hall?’ he asked.
‘Oh, same ol’,’ I said in my best casual voice. ‘In fact, I was just chatting with Alisha and JJ Lewis before I came out.’
‘JJ?’ asked Josh.
‘Jerome. His friends call him JJ,’ I replied. ‘They, er . . . want to hang out.’
‘It’s true,’ said Pia. ‘We’re going shopping with them.’
‘And will you be doing your zombie routine for them?’ Tom asked as, on cue, Josh went into a zombie shuffle behind him. He bumped into Pia, who shoved him off in disgust.
‘I only save that performance for special people,’ I replied, and for a second, he looked right into my eyes and I felt a rush from my toes to the tip of my head.
He felt it too, I could tell, because his mouth curled into a half-smile. ‘In that case, I’ll consider myself honoured to have witnessed it,’ he said as we got close to the assembly hall where the fundraiser was being held. ‘God, I’m dreading this. Let’s go in together, shall we?’
‘OK, cool,’ I said, and continued in a posh voice. ‘One ought to have an escort when attending public events.’
‘Or we could go in like the zombies in Thriller,’ said Josh as he continued his zombie walk. Some boys just don’t know when to move on, I thought, but Tom nodded and went into an excellent moonwalk à la Michael Jackson.
‘Impressive,’ I said, ‘but you need to work on your facial expression. You look too normal.’ I made my eyes cross and stuck out my tongue.
‘Hmm. Sexy,’ said Tom, and gave me a quizzical look.
Oops. Maybe some girls don’t know when to move on, either, I thought as I immediately pulled my face straight. Sometimes I forget that boys like girls to be pretty and girlie.
Josh put his arm around Pia and squeezed her tight. ‘And tonight’s your lucky night, babe,’ he said. ‘You can go in with moi!’
Pia shrugged him off. ‘Dream on. I don’t think my boyfriend would like it if he saw you trying to drape yourself around me.’
‘What boyfriend?’ asked Josh. ‘I haven’t seen you with anyone.’
‘He lives at Number 1, Porchester Park,’ said Pia. She looked at me to back her up.
‘True,’ I said. ‘So back off or he might come after you.’
‘Like I care,’ said Josh, but he did let go of Pia.
As we went through the doors, on the other side of the room, Mrs Callahan, our headmistress, spotted us and began to make her way over.
‘Ah, time to be bright and interesting and an example to the school,’ said Tom. ‘Here we go. Good job I do drama.’
‘Er, yeah. Um, actually, before you go . . . I’m having a party in a couple of weeks time and we . . . we need a few spare boys. Strictly A-list, of course.’
‘That would be me, then,’ he said and he looked right into my eyes again, ‘because there’s someone there I’d like to get to know better.’ My stomach did a double flip and as we walked across the hall, I could feel every girl in the room staring at us.
As I watched Tom go and chat to Mrs Callahan, I wondered if he had meant he’d like to get to know me better or one of the A-listers at Porchester Park. I so hoped that he’d meant me and wasn’t using me to get in with the rich and famous.
The rest of the evening was a blur of chatting to various parents and teachers, sipping lukewarm orange juice and handing around limp ham sandwiches. I didn’t care. Every now and then Tom would glance over at me from across the room to check where I was and who I was talking to. Things were definitely looking up in the love department!
Later that night, I lay awake planning my birthday. Maybe eight people, maybe ten? Charlie, Henry, Tom . . . and I’d probably have to invite Josh, too. He told Pia that Tom had asked him for my phone number at the fundraiser. Huzzah. So. Pia, me, Flo and Meg would make up the girls. I knew I could count on them to be cool and I knew that Flo had a crush on Charlie so as well as being party hostess with the mostess, I’d also be matchmaker extraordinaire. Maybe the girls could stay over for my first Porchester Park sleepover. That would be cool. Maybe we’d have dancing. I would ask Charlie to put together a CD of romantic songs so we could all pair off.
I fell asleep with images of me and Tom in the courtyard, wrapped in each other’s arms under the stars. He would look into my eyes, lean down towards me and his lips would . . .
Zzzz.
13
Living the Lux
‘Where shall we take
them?’ I asked Pia as we stood at Reception the following Saturday morning, waiting for the Lewises to appear.
Pia shrugged. ‘Westfield? TopShop? Everybody loves Topshop.’
I nodded. ‘Or shall we stay local? Harrods. Harvey Nicks. Sloane Street? Flo suggested Notting Hill. She said there are some gorgeous vintage shops there.’
‘Not sure. Alisha doesn’t look like she’d be into vintage.’
‘Will we take them on the tube?’ asked Pia.
‘God, I don’t know. I bet Alisha’s never been on a bus, never mind a tube. Dad didn’t say how we get anywhere, just we’ve to take them around. Maybe I should run and ask him.’
Just then, Mrs Lewis and Alisha appeared from the lift and came over to us. I waved and Mrs Lewis gave us a bright smile, then went out to talk to a couple of middle-aged men who were hovering near a black Mercedes waiting out the front. Pia nudged me to look at the car while Alisha gave us the briefest of nods. I could see she was no happier with this arrangement than I was, but I smiled all the same. We didn’t have to be besties. I was doing it purely like a Saturday job – like some girls wash their dad’s cars, and others dig the garden, I act as a tour guide for my dad’s posh residents. A girl’s got to make a living and I was determined to do it well and to be friendly, a good example of a London teenager – besides, I liked Mrs Lewis. She had a nice open face and didn’t seem snooty at all. Pia nudged me to look at Alisha’s feet and I saw that as well as both wearing jeans, we were wearing the same coral-coloured Converse sneakers.
‘Snap,’ I said to Alisha.
‘Meaning?’ she asked.
I glanced down at our shoes. She looked horrified.
‘We’re wearing the same,’ I explained.
‘I can see that. But why snap?’ she asked.
‘It’s a card game. Don’t you have it in the States?’ asked Pia. ‘Each player has a pile of cards face down and you turn them over until you have a card that matches someone else’s and then the first person to say “Snap” wins.’
‘Whatever,’ drawled Alisha, ‘though we try to be individual where I come from.’
‘Um . . . are we going in the limo, then?’ I asked.
Alisha looked at me as if I was mad. ‘How else?’ She went out to the forecourt and got into the waiting car.
‘Bus. Tube. Walk. Horse and cart,’ Pia whispered to me.
‘Whatever,’ I mimed, and she giggled, followed Alisha and got into the car.
Didier winked. ‘Your carriage, madam,’ he said and held the car door open for me.
‘Thank you, my man,’ I said. I slid over to sit beside Pia. One of the men who had been chatting with Mrs Lewis got into the passenger seat. He was well-built with a closely shaved head and was dressed in smart casuals. I had seen him around a few times with the Lewis family and Charlie had told me that he was one of their minders. The other man got into the driver’s seat. He was dressed in a suit, very Men in Black.
The back of the car could have comfortably seated six people and smelt of leather. I shot Pia a grin and settled back to enjoy the ride. The engine whispered into life and we moved off. So far, so good. I could get used to this, I thought, as I looked out. I just wished the people outside could see us living the lux, but the windows were tinted. We could see out but no-one could see in.
‘Er, Pia and I weren’t really sure where you’d like to go,’ I said to Mrs Lewis. ‘Dad said that we were to show you around a bit. Um. Pia and I like Westfield Mall and TopShop and Selfridges has everything, but it depends on what you’re looking for.’
‘Mall?’ said Mrs Lewis. ‘TopShop? That’s very sweet of you, Jess, but . . . no, not today. Too many people, you see, and . . .’
‘We don’t do anywhere with crowds,’ drawled Alisha. ‘We’d last five minutes and someone would be after us for a photo that they could sell to the papers.’
‘Oh right, of course,’ I said. ‘I should have thought. Um. Harrods. No. Um. Probably too busy as well. Er . . . where would be best, then?’ Inwardly, I cursed myself. I should have thought the trip through better. Of course they couldn’t mingle like ordinary people. I should have asked Dad for ideas, but he’d been in such a hurry to get off to his office after breakfast, I hadn’t had the chance.
‘Don’t worry, honey,’ said Mrs Lewis. ‘I have a few places in mind. They’re expecting us and really, we just wanted your company. Alisha hasn’t met many people of her own age here so far.’
I glanced at Alisha. She looked like she’d just sucked a lemon.
After about five minutes, the car stopped.
‘What’s up?’ I asked Mrs Lewis. ‘Did you forget something?’
Mrs Lewis shook her head. ‘No. We’re here.’
I glanced out. We were outside the shops at the Knightsbridge end of Sloane Street. We could have walked the distance in almost the same time but after what Alisha just said about not being able to go out like ordinary people, I was beginning to get the picture.
In a flash, the minder was out. He checked the street, then opened the door for us.
‘I’m Sergei,’ he said. He sounded Russian. ‘I’ll be keeping an eye on you today. I von’t ever be far avay but try not to vander off.’
‘OK, Sergei,’ I said. I liked the idea of having our own minder, very A-list. I couldn’t wait to tell people at school. ‘Though if anyone kidnapped me, I doubt they’d get much. In fact, my dad would probably pay them to keep me.’
Sergei chuckled. ‘I’ll keep zat in mind,’ he said.
At the shop entrance, the beefy black doorman snapped to attention, whispered into his lapel radio mike and, seconds later, opened the tall bronze door to us with a smile. Pia and I trooped in with Mrs Lewis and Alisha, while Sergei followed discreetly behind.
As soon as we crossed the shop’s threshold, a wave of slim, impeccably-dressed, young shop assistants surged towards us.
‘Good morning, Mrs Lewis,’ said a blonde one.
‘Welcome. I’m Usha, head of personal shopping,’ said a beautiful Indian girl. ‘Do let us know if there’s any way we can assist you and if you’d like to go to the private area.’ She beckoned a girl with short dark hair forward. ‘Anya will get you any refreshments you’d like.’
Anya stepped forward. ‘Coffee?’ she asked, in an accent I couldn’t place. European. Not French. ‘We presently have twelve blends,’ she said, ‘or would you prefer tea?’ And she reeled off a list of teas and then soft drinks and water.
Mrs Lewis politely refused all offers and glanced at Alisha to see if she wanted anything. She shook her head. ‘No. I’m ready to roll, Mom. Let’s focus.’
Mrs Lewis turned back to the assistants. ‘We’d like something for a special party,’ she said ‘But Pia, Jess, would you like something to drink?’
‘Er . . .’ I began. I’d have liked a Coke but I wasn’t sure if that would be OK, seeing as Mrs Lewis and Alisha had declined.
Anya handed me a menu and smiled. ‘Have a look and just let me know when you’re ready.’
I nodded, took the menu, then Pia and I followed Mrs Lewis and Alisha, who were being ushered by Usha into a lift. Usha the usher, I thought and stifled a nervous giggle.
When we arrived at the personal shopper’s suite on the second floor, Mrs Lewis settled herself on a grey velvet sofa and addressed the gathered assistants. I wasn’t sure what to do with myself. I felt awkward and I could see that Pia did too. I walked over to a display of shoes and studied them carefully so that I didn’t look too stupid. Pia followed me and pinched my arm. In pinching language, I knew that meant, ‘Argh, this is so uncomfortable.’ I pinched her back to say that I agreed.
Behind me, I heard Mrs Lewis say, ‘It’s my daughter’s birthday next month and she needs something really special.’
I turned to Alisha. ‘Oh. Really? So you must be a Sagi.’
A flicker of interest registered on Alisha’s face.
‘Sagittarian,’ Pia explained. ‘Jess is too.’
Alish
a raised an eyebrow, as if to say, so? She walked over to a rack of dresses and began flicking through them.
‘When’s your birthday, Jess?’ asked Mrs Lewis.
‘December third,’ I replied. ‘When’s yours, Alisha?’
‘November twenty-sixth,’ she replied, without turning around. ‘You’re into astrology?’
‘We like to read our horoscopes,’ I replied, ‘but I don’t know much about it except that Sagittarians are supposed to be sporty and like travel.’ I picked up a pair of high-heeled black sandals with a diamante strap. The price tag said £895. I put them down fast and picked up another pair. £1,450. ‘Hmm, they’d be good for hiking.’
‘We have our own astrologer back home, don’t we, Mom?’ drawled Alisha, as she flicked through another rail. ‘Everyone in Hollywood consults him. He told me that no two Sagittarians are alike. It depends on your rising sign, your moon sign, where you were born, so . . .’ she sighed heavily, ‘though we might share the same birth sign, I doubt we have much else in common.’
‘Except for your taste in shoes,’ said Pia. She looked pointedly at our sneakers.
Alisha didn’t reply and turned to inspect a handbag. I grinned at Pia and gave her a thumbs up. Not that I wanted to be like Alisha. I didn’t like her attitude – like, we are so not alike, sister.
‘What are you going to do for your birthday, Alisha?’ I asked. I didn’t suppose she knew many people in London yet so if she was nice to me, I thought that I might make an effort and invite her to my sleepover. I’d read somewhere that Sagittarians are meant to get on together and, given time, she might warm up.
‘We’re having a small party. About two hundred people, isn’t that right, Mom? So my dress,’ she took a long black evening dress that a smiling assistant handed her, ‘has to be fabulous. I want it to be my Beyoncé moment. I want there to be smoke when I come out, like a diva. I want everyone at my party to want to be me.’
Pia and I glanced at each other. I knew what she was thinking.
‘Two hundred! I wouldn’t call that small,’ she blurted.
Million Dollar Mates Page 10