Your Lying Eyes

Your Lying Eyes Chapter 52

"There's been a mix up with the seating plan unfortunately," Nina smiled at him.  "This was the only place for me to sit."

"You're not sitting here next to me," Howard told her firmly.  "Tell them to go and unmix it!"

"Sorry it can't be done.  I'm going to have to eat my meal here with you guys," Nina told them.  "Anyway don't create a fuss, people are looking."

Howard glanced around.  She was right.  People were looking and wondering what was going on, especially when he'd raised his voice.

"Looks like we've no choice," said Gary.  "She'll have to sit here."

Nina smiled at them all and raised her glass to her lips, glancing around the table as she did so.

"Oh I see there's no sign of Jason and his girlfriend yet.  Wonder what's holding them up!" she giggled.  "New relationships are always so intense aren't they?  Spend so much time in bed don't you?" she smirked at Howard.

"Right you can just cut out remarks like that too," said Gary, annoyed.  "Any more from you and you can go."

Nina shrugged her shoulders and took another drink from her glass.

"Oh shit!" muttered Mark from the other side of the table.  He'd just spotted Jason and Anna come into the room and start to head over to their table.  Howard, Gary and Nina were sat with their backs to them.

Anna's eyes came to rest on the back of Howard's head, her heart beating faster as she realised that he would be sitting opposite to her and Jason.  She hoped that they would be able to spend the next few hours together without too many awkward moments.  Jason touched her elbow and they moved forward towards the table.

Nina saw the look on Mark's face and turned to see what had caused it.  She smiled as she saw Anna and raised her hand to wave at her, her other hand lightly stroking across Howard's shoulders as she did so.

Anna came to a standstill as she saw her.  She felt her blood run cold at the sight of Nina.

"No way am I going to sit through a meal with her," she whispered to Jason.  "How long has that been going on?"  she asked him.  "Why didn't you tell me Jay?"

"I didn't know anything about it," Jason told her, equally surprised to see Nina at the table.  "Honest hun.  I would have told you if I'd known."

"I'm not sitting with her."  Anna turned and started to walk out of the room, closely followed by Jason.

"Anna" Jason called after her as she walked quickly back out into the hallway.

Gary had seen what happened and came out of the room, calling both of their names.  He caught up with them at the lifts as they waited.

"Hey you two, where are you going?" he asked them.

"I'm going to eat in my room," Anna told him.  "I'm not sitting with her.  What's she doing here anyway?" she demanded.

"She and Norman did the photo shoot for the album so she was included by the management on the guest list.  There was nowhere else for her to sit," Gary tried to explain to them both.  "There's been a mix up over numbers or something."  He reached out to Anna, taking her hand and pulling her towards him.  "Come back.  We want you with us.  It's a special night tonight.  All the band should be together," he pleaded with her.

Jason looked at Anna, concerned about her reaction.  This just doubled the chance of trouble.  

"Come on love.  Don't let her see that it bothers you," said Jason, putting an arm around her and hugging her.  "We can always leave straight after the meal if you like."