‘I’m just wondering,’ Monica asked, ‘if you practise safe sex—’ She seemed to be off on another tack now.

Laura gulped. Dermot looked confused, as did most of the audience.

‘I mean,’ Monica went on, ‘a lot of young people read your books . . .’

Where did Monica get that from? Maybe she had read the book herself, after all.

‘I don’t quite see—’ broke in Dermot, but Monica was set on her course and wouldn’t be diverted or stopped.

‘Don’t you think it’s important that you set a good example?’

‘Of course—’

Monica interrupted before his audience could find out if Dermot was agreeing with her on the subject of good examples or was just going to say something else entirely. ‘When did you last use a condom?’

It all came out in a rush and Laura wanted to die.

Silence fell over the audience as everyone tingled in expectation. It was a very rude question, and if Laura hadn’t known her friend had asked it only for her, she would have thought it unforgivable. Supposing the crowd turned on Monica? Would she be able to save her?

‘I have to say,’ said Dermot, not at all put out, ‘that that is a question possibly better suited to a more intimate setting, but since you ask, it was about four months ago. Next question?’

Laura edged her way out of the crowd to the door and escaped. It was a freezing night, her friend had humiliated herself and she still didn’t know how far things had gone between her and Dermot the night before. Monica soon joined her.

‘Thanks for trying, Mon,’ said Laura before her friend could apologise. ‘I know you did your best. I don’t think we’ll ever know. Let’s just assume nothing much happened, shall we?’ A recollection of what had gone on came back to her suddenly. It didn’t seem like ‘nothing much’ really, it had been fantastic – with or without full-on sex.

‘I’m not giving up until I know for a fact,’ said Monica. ‘You’ll never have any peace of mind if you don’t know. We’ll go to the pub now, get the drinks in before the rush, and I’ll ask him a supplementary question. That is what they’re called, isn’t it?’

‘Maybe,’ said Laura dolefully, ‘but you might get us both thrown out for harassing the star! You were quite – er – upfront in there.’

Monica bit her lip, possibly in remorse. ‘I know. But I had to be.’

‘I feel such a total idiot for not noticing –’

Monica stifled a giggle. ‘For not noticing if you had sex with one of the sexiest men on the planet? There’s such a thing as being too unworldly, you know.’

Laura groaned in frustration at herself.

Monica patted her soothingly. ‘Now let’s go and get some Dutch courage – we’re going to need it!’

‘I thought we said—’