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‘Not after what they said about your first novel!’ Greg Blake grinned, and soood stopped it dead

‘Can we not talk about your private lives, you two? And listen good, everyone – keep your eyes open for anyone who keeps turning up when you don’t expect them’

There was a silence; everyone looked sideways at someone else, their faces blank

‘Steve Colbourne’s around a lot, have you noticed that?’ offered Greg, not altogether seriously but just to say so He felt compelled to rush in whenever a silence fell; silences embarrassed him They felt unnatural

‘Are you crazy?’ snapped Jack Beverley ‘The guy’s a TV commentator The more interest he shows, the better His father’s a friend of Mr Ramsey’ He looked for confirmation from Don Goho nodded

‘That’s right’

‘I’d forgotten that,’ Greg said ‘And Colbourne is good at his job Gets good ratings He writes well, too Too well It really gets up my nose I want to despise the media, not wish I could use words as well as they do’

‘Careful, Greg, you keep telling the truth this way and your career will be over,’ Jeff said, and got another scowl froood

‘Not funny, Hardy One day you’ll say that in front of someone who’ll print it and then it will be you who’s out of a job’

Jeff flushed and said nothing

Brushing his untidy hair back froain to cover his friend’s silence ‘Who’s the blonde with Colbourne today, anyone know? I noticed her at the press conference, couple of days ago Well, I guess we all noticed her’ He grinned round at theed he talked on fast, ‘I just love those icy blondes, don’t you? The kind who give you the drop-dead look if you come within a foot of them’

‘Nohat does that tell us about you?’recovered his cool ‘You’re a sick rowth, remember Sadism is the only safe sexual perversion’

There were stifled snorts a the others

‘Hitchcock had one in every film he made,’ Jeff said

‘Perversion?’