Page 164 of Guilty Pleasures

‘So how does it feel being the new owner of Alliance?’ asked Cassandra, glad she had worn the winter-white dress.

‘There’s a lot to do, but of course it’s exciting.’

‘Well, the Feb issue is already flying off the newsstand,’ she said.

‘I’m sure,’ said Pierre coolly.

His tone of voice put Cassandra on guard.

‘Cassandra, we need to talk,’ he said, putting his glass on the white tablecloth.

‘About Grand magazine. Yes we do,’ said Cassandra. She lowered her voice. ‘I’m sure you’ll agree I kept my side of the bargain.’

‘Actually, I want to discuss Rive.’

He paused and put the palms of both hands on the table.

‘I believe the UK and the US editions were supposed to run simultaneous covers of the Georgia Kennedy shoot for March? As it is, the UK edition has gone early with it, leaving the US issue high and dry for one of their most important issues of the year.’

She felt her throat dry and took a swift sip of water.

‘So Glenda has got to you.’

‘This is not playground one-upmanship,’ said Pierre icily. ‘Her March issue is about to go to press and they have no cover.’

‘They’ll cope,’ said Cassandra tartly. ‘And if they have to use the Georgia cover in March, so what? Glenda is exaggerating the situation for her own ends. She’s quite happy for US Rive to run a month early with a cover the same as ours without thinking twice about our credibility.’

‘Your ego is fucking with your business sense,’ said Pierre in a low voice. The tables were close together and Cassandra glanced around, paranoid they might be overheard. It was really the most public, inappropriate place for a dressing-down.

‘Every minute of every day I think about nothing but UK Rive,’ she hissed back. ‘I devote my life to it. I have turned it around and made it the hottest, most profitable fashion magazine in the country. Wanting the very best cover for Rive- an exclusive that I spent months successfully brokering myself, incidentally – has nothing to do with my ego and everything to do with consolidating our position in the market. Anyway, you wanted me to out-gun US Rive. That was the brief, wasn’t it? Well, that’s what I have done.’

‘Yes, but at what cost?’ said Pierre.

The meal arrived. Pierre looked at his plate before reaching into the inner pocket of his navy suit and pulling out a neatly-folded letter. He put it onto the table between them without a word.

‘What’s this?’

‘A press release that will be going out to the industry tomorrow.’

Cassandra picked it up and scanned it quickly. Her mouth dropped open.

Girard-Lambert incorporating Alliance magazines are sad to announce the resignation of Cassandra Grand as editor-in-chief of UK Rive magazine. Cassandra, who has been with the title for over four years, is leaving the company to pursue other interests. Her replacement is to be announced shortly.

‘What’s this?’ she said, unable to stop the croak in her voice. ‘I hope you’re going to tell me this is a way of getting me off Rive so I can start Grand?’

‘There will be no Grand magazine,’ said Pierre coolly.

Cassandra looked around again to make sure no one was listening to this grotesque pantomime.

‘We had an agreement,’ she snarled.

‘We did,’ he said flatly. ‘One that was checked out

by your lawyer. He was apparently happy that my obligation would be null and void in the event of your gross professional negligence.’

She felt as if her lungs had been punctured.

‘And in what way have I been negligent?’