Olivia and the Movie Stars Read Online Free

she loved the first day of term, but it had been a very stressful afternoon. For a start, there had been the threatening phone call, with the anonymous voice at the end of the line trying to persuade her yet again to sell the Swan for a ludicrously knock-down price. Today’s call had been the most menacing yet. The sensible thing would be to go straight to the police butthere was something about the caller’s voice that made Alicia feel frightened. She was certain he would have no hesitation in carrying out his threats.
    It had certainly been a most exhausting day. Getting the Wood twins into the building via the river entrance to avoid the photographers had proved difficult enough, and made Alicia realise that having them at the Swan might prove more disruptive than she’d imagined. She just hoped that after the press conference tomorrow morning, where the details of the production and its casting would be announced, that interest would dissipate and the photographers would decamp elsewhere. The twins’ minders were another problem she hadn’t anticipated. It was like having two human Rottweilers on the premises. Some of the younger children were quite scared of them. Alicia wondered whether they could be persuaded to smile occasionally and at least take off their sunglasses when they were inside the Swan.
    But she had far more pressing things to worry about than the twins’ minders: seeing Cosmo and Cosima act was a sharp reminder of what a long, hard job it would be to get themready for their West End debut. Despite what she’d said to Cosima, she wasn’t convinced that they’d ever be truly ready.
    And they certainly wouldn’t be if this dreadful noise kept up. Alicia felt as if she’d been spun around in a concrete mixer all afternoon. There could be months of disruption ahead from the building site next door. She had to deal with it and find a way to limit it. She just hoped that whoever had bought the building would be reasonable and willing to discuss the situation with her. Then, as she reached the front door of the Swan, the noise suddenly stopped.
    The silence was exquisite for a few seconds and then it was filled by the clang of the bell marking the end of the Swan school day. She waited for a moment, expecting the building site noise to resume again but all was silence except for the chirp of a blackbird and the sound of two hundred and fifty children heading home. Alicia turned on her heel and started to climb the stairs towards the flat. Maybe that was the end of the disruption? If it happened again tomorrow she’d respond, but her nerves were too stretched for any further confrontation today.

Chapter Four
    The tea party in Alicia’s flat was not going well. In fact, thought Olivia, it was a disaster, unfolding like a slow-motion car crash before her eyes. She kept looking at the clock in the hope they’d get through to the end without anyone getting seriously hurt. Cosmo and Cosima seemed to have had some kind of argument and kept glaring at each other, and the Swans found themselves unexpectedly shy when faced with the famous Hollywood twins. Tom, who was normally so sunny and funny, was stiff and formal, and Georgia and Aeysha were unusually subdued.
    Only Eel was her usual self, prattling on about dancing and asking Cosmo about his favourite ballet, a question that Cosmo didn’teven deign to acknowledge, let alone answer. He refused all food and just chewed gum noisily all the way through tea. He kept texting and checking his iPhone, which the others thought was very rude. Cosima sat looking miserable, eyes downcast, nibbling on the corner of a sandwich. She reminded Olivia of a nervous and very pretty squirrel.
    It was made worse because while Alicia and Sebastian had tactfully withdrawn to give the children a chance to get to know each other, the twins’ minders stood in the corner glowering and looking suspiciously around as if they were convinced that the tea party wasn’t a tea party