That thought sparks an idea, and I subtly pull my phone out from the inside pocket of my suit jacket. Positioning it at my thigh level, I start recording, just in case Buzz and his foul mouth isn’t finished.
As I focus the camera on him, Evie blurts out, ‘I’ve had enough of you speaking like that to me, Buzz! Okay? It’s extremely inappropriate and unprofessional.’
The director’s brows leap up. Kiara, our location manager, slips beside Evie and takes her hand. Buzz cuts in front of me, aiming a finger in Evie’s face.
‘You!’ he snarls at her. ‘Who are you calling unprofessional? You don’t get to talk to me like that—I don’t give a shit who your daddy is. Which you should have fucking told me about, by the way!’
‘It wasn’t your business,’ she says shakily.
‘You know, I’ve had enough of your riddles and your teasing,’ he huffs at her, making no sense at all. ‘You’re lucky I ever took you seriously as an actress. You’re just a … a talentless piece of ass.’
My vision distorts with loathing for this prick. I glance around to see if I’m the only one filming this outrageous outburst. But the rest of the party guests still appear tobe locked in a gobsmacked trance; nobody is moving a muscle.
‘You know … I can make you look very stupid in this movie,’ Buzz spits at Evie. ‘I would insist on having you fired, but the truth is that I don’t think anyone would come and watch my movie if your ass wasn’t in it!’
‘To be honest, Buzz,’ she says in a loud wobble, ‘I think you’ve already nailed making people look stupid in this movie.’
‘Huh?’ His brow contorts.
‘Movingis a romantic, commercialdance movie,’ she says, speaking slowly and clearly, even as her face remains flame-red. ‘It’s not a neo-noir thriller or an avant-garde arthouse film. It’s a story about a little girl with a dream of being a dancer, a girl who lost her mum and believes her dad doesn’t love her. All that’s keeping her from giving up on life isdance.’ She holds up a finger. ‘And you only shot one dance sequence for the entire movie! Probably because you were too busy looking for any opportunity to boast about your infinitely more talented uncle.’
Everyone watching on looks like they want to be swallowed up by the earth. Buzz is squinting hard at Evie.
Me? I nearly bite my bottom lip off trying not to smile.
‘We all want this movie to do well, Buzz,’ Evie goes on. ‘But with you directing it? Well, we better start praying because only direct intervention from a higher power could save it now.’
Fuck yes.
A chuckle I can’t help slips out of me, and hot pride blooms in my chest as I stare at this goddess who had the gall to say what no one else—including me—would.
But Evie’s not smiling.
Her mortified face scrunches up, and she snatches her purse off the bar and pushes her way out of the party.
CHAPTER 16
Evie
Blood pounds in my ears as I race into the foyer and frantically push the lift button over and over again. Despite my having made a few friends on the set ofMoving, the only person who chases after me is Kiara. Whether or not the people in the ballroom agree with what I just said to Buzz, I wasn’t exactly polite about it, and they’re still on the payroll for his production. In this industry, one job leads to the next, and I’ve learned that most people will do anything to avoid unemployment, even if it means pandering to a foulmouthed tyrant like Buzz.
Meanwhile, I’ll probably never work on a film set again, at least not in Australia. For all I know, my little outburst—minus the behaviour that provoked it—was caught on someone’s phone and will be all over the internet tomorrow for Gabriel Dean to stumble upon and have a good laugh at.
My eyes fill up with tears, and Kiara slips an arm around my shoulder.
‘Thank you,’ I say, giving the back of her hand a pat. ‘I’ll be okay. I think I’m just going to go to bed and try to sleep before I get the call from my agent tomorrow telling me I’m fired.’
‘You’re not going to get fired,’ Kiara assures me, which is sweet because that decision isn’t hers to make. ‘What Buzz said to you …’ Her voice trails off like she can’t even repeat it.
The lift arrives, and I ask if she would be willing to go back to the party to assess the extent of the damage, and report back to me so I know what to expect.
Kiara nods and blows me a kiss, her eyes round with concern. I press the number for my floor and fish my phone from my purse, hoping it’s not too late to ring Rafael. Before I can even check the time, the lift doors start to close, and a tall figure smelling of expensive men’s soap pushes inside.
‘Kye,’ I warn. My voice is shaky, unsure what it even wants to say.
‘I just want to know if you’re okay,’ he says as I slip my phone back into my purse.
‘You’re about five days too late for that.’
