Star Struck by Jane Lovering Page A

put up with his moody self-contemplation for very long. In fact, sod feisty, she’d have to have passed sainthood and been heading towards deification if this morning was anything to go by.
    â€˜Hey, I’m sorry, Lissa. But you’ve always known what I’m like! You of all people … But you didn’t have to come, I did. And, yeah, I know I owe them, the fans … I know it’s important to them. I know I have to show that I’m grateful for what they’ve done for Fallen Skies but … it’s hard for me.’ He lowered his voice to a still-audible-if-I-put-my-ear-to-the-crack mumble. ‘And I know what you’re going through, Liss, honestly. I appreciate it, I really do, but … You and him, what happened, it’s history now.’
    â€˜Huh! History for you, maybe,’ came from the direction of the lift. It was annoying, I could only look in one direction once I’d established my position by the door, and the hinges only showed me the man – Jack, she’d called him – standing half-outside the room in pyjama bottoms and a different top from the one he’d worn earlier; this was a faded T-shirt. His hair was wild as though he’d been running his hands through it. Or she had.
    â€˜I can’t help the way I am.’
    â€˜And how come this fucking lift is broken again?’
    â€˜Ah, whatever else you’re pinning on me, that is not my fault.’
    There was another ‘huh’, and the expression on his face changed, indicating that the woman had moved to the staircase next to the lifts and started a picturesque descent. It relaxed, further and further, until, by the time she must have reached ground level, he was almost smiling.
    I stayed totally still. Watched him walk leisurely along the corridor towards the stairs, bare feet sticky on the functional grey flooring, until he was opposite me, when he turned round and stared directly at the point where I was standing, peering between the door and the wall.
    â€˜Hey.’ And the single, flat syllable sounded like home. ‘One little tip I picked up here from one of the camera guys, if you want to stay invisible, watch your shadow. By the way, nice work this morning. Takes something to get chucked out of a diner the calibre of the Broken Hill Motel. What happened, they find crack in your luggage?’
    I was so astonished at being addressed through a hole in the wall that I answered. ‘They thought Felix was … y’know, well, under the table.’
    A broken stutter of a laugh. I could only see half his face but it looked genuine. ‘Genius. I presume he wasn’t?’
    â€˜Oh, no. Misunderstanding, that’s all.’ A pause. ‘Why aren’t you downstairs?’
    Another laugh. ‘No-one wants my autograph. I’m not one of the pretty boys in front of camera. What’s your excuse?’
    I could just feel the very faint Valium-induced haze pulling down across my mind. Nothing much, a whisper of net-curtain between me and the prurient world. ‘I was … tired. Early morning, y’see, oh, of course, you were there. Fell asleep and Felix went down without me.’
    He moved, shifting his weight, but suddenly I couldn’t see his face any more. ‘You could go down now, you won’t have missed much.’
    I shrugged, hoping it made me look as though I wasn’t really bothered, rather than vulnerable and pathetic, which was what I felt. ‘Maybe in a bit.’
    His face creased into something that wasn’t a smile. ‘Look. This morning. You took off so suddenly … listen, I didn’t mean to upset you, I only – I could see something had happened; when you said it was an RTA I thought, hey, point of contact. Guess it hit you badly, yes?’
    â€˜No, I was in the back of the car.’
    â€˜I meant, my asking. Stirred you up. The way you shot inside, I thought I’d