How Not to Shop Read Online Free Page B

dress. Although it was worn with a self-conscious teenage slouch and some badly applied eyeliner, to Annie, Lana still looked beautiful.
     
Ed had made a huge effort. Somehow, he'd brought his unruly mop of hair under control and he'd replaced his usual baggy, tweedy, woolly look with the stylish jacket, shirt and tie that Annie had picked out for him long before she'd even known she was in love with him.
     
'Hey you,' she said softly, brushing his lips for hello, 'you look seriously cute.'
     
He smelled good too.
     
'Aha,' he agreed, 'I had to live up to your dress.' He ran a hand down her back.
     
'Total Annie magnet. It's OK, go out there and mingle. We'll be fine. We know we get you back at the end of the evening.'
     
'Have you seen the snacks?' Owen pointed to the trestle table, which was now covered with food. 'Awesome!'
     
Suddenly Annie's face – Bobbi Brown, Botox and all – was buried in the amply warm and friendly bosom of Delia, the second floor's cleaning lady.
     
'Annie Valentine,' she boomed in English accented with deepest Jamaican, 'what's I goin' to do witout choo? If you be needing any cleaning on them fancy TV places, you let Delia know right away, you hear? I don't think Mr Geoff here is goin to mind me saying that, are you?' Delia gestured to the head of personnel. 'If there was a job for him on TV, he'd be the first to go, wouldn't choo Mr Geoff?'
     
Geoff obliged with a loud laugh.
     
Annie felt the lurch of unease again. This was supposed to be her big, big moment. The sort of exit from the everyday that everyone dreamed of making. All these people that she'd worked with for so long were so excited for her, so pleased for her and really, she was walking off into nothing. Into £3,600 for a digital channel. Some show no-one would ever hear about. She felt as if she should press pause on this party or at least put out the word that she might be coming back. Think of this as temporary, she wanted to go around the room saying: it might not work out!
     
'Oooooh!' one of the floor assistants exclaimed with excitement, 'isn't that Connor McCabe over there?'
     
Annie turned to catch her first glimpse of Connor for several months. It was enough to make the sick feeling recede slightly. Whatever her problems were, Connor usually had a way of cheering her up.
     
She scrambled through the crowd towards him, but he was already surrounded by a group of fans, shaking hands, or just staring at him with intent, excited looks on their faces. He was a big TV star now and had recently done a movie, so he was really well known. He'd just featured in a double-page spread in Hello! for goodness sake!
     
'Connor!' Annie greeted him, 'you came.'
     
'Oh yeah, at the sight of you,' he joked, treating her to a bear hug.
     
'You look fabulous,' she told him, and it was true. Bronzed, buff, dark hair, twinkly movie star eyes and big broad shoulders, teeny tiny waist. He was gorgeousness personified. But oh, so tragically, for the women anyway, he was gay.
     
'Can I just speak to you for a micro-moment?' Annie asked, holding her thumb and forefinger millimetres apart.
     
'Yup, where can I put my bag anyway?'
     
She ushered him slightly away from the buzz of the party and into her tiny office.
     
'This is so great,' he told her as they crammed into the bare white space together, 'I am so proud of you. A major new development!'
     
'OK, a little less Hollywood please,' she warned, 'this is me you're talking to now. Not some snazzy producer.' She scanned his face.
     
'How are you?'
     
'I'm fine,' he said, smiling reassuringly.
     
'And Hector?'
     
'Great,' Connor answered for the partner he'd taken out to LA with him: 'getting even buffer and browner than me.'
     
'It's fantastic to see you,' Annie couldn't help telling him. 'I miss you. Spend every free minute you have over the next few days at my house. OK?'
     
Connor nodded his agreement.
     
'But there is a problem,' Annie went on immediately, knowing she