‘Couldn’t be better.’ Zoe’s face contorts into a smile, making Darcy feel a little queasy. She should stop drinking. ‘I’m making some real changes at Smith Street. The network are really happy with my work.’

The group responds with silence. Darcy knows Ellie, currently being slammed as a travel coordinator on a film, and Tara, doing her third season on a game show, do not really want to hear anything about Zoe’s success as a producer on the country’s most successful television serial. At uni, they’d all found comfort in assuring one another that no one in their right mind would hire Zoe, that she was too annoying, too self-righteous.

‘I’m surprised you have the time to socialise,’ Ellie comments.

‘You never had the time at uni,’ Darcy adds.

Ed throws her a look as if to say settle down.

Her jaw clenches.

‘There’s always networking opportunities.’ Zoe glances at Ed, a genuine smile on her face. ‘I just offered Ed a job, actually.’

Darcy almost laughs at the idea of Ed agreeing to work for Zoe. But then she gauges Ed’s reaction and her heart drops to the floor. ‘But you already have a job.’ She stares at him hard, stepping a little closer, demanding he look at her. ‘Love Lens—your business?’

‘Yeah, thanks Darce, I’m well aware of my self-employed status.’ He’s unusually short with her. ‘It doesn’t hurt to mull things over and weigh up my options.’

‘A couple of years editing on Smith Street and Ed would be in demand to do features,’ Zoe chimes in.

Edit feature films. That had been Ed’s dream job when they were at uni. Darcy hadn’t forgotten, but she hadn’t thought about it in a while. Love Lens started off as him shooting a wedding for one of his mum’s friends when he was on uni holidays. That one led to another, then another. Soon he had bookings for most weekends. When they finished university, Ed had gone back to Sydney and dug himself deep in his business while everyone else partied for the summer.

‘Like I’ve been telling Ed, I’ve got some great connections now,’ Zoe offers with another hair toss.

Darcy has to fight the urge to scoff in her face. How can Ed even be contemplating working for her?

‘I’m after someone who can offer me a new spark and I’d be happy to help a friend out.’

Oh my God. Is she hitting on him? And referring to him as a friend? Darcy looks to Ellie and Tara, who seem just as shell-shocked as she feels. She exchanges glances with them. This hasn’t been as fun as they’d been hoping. Ellie and Tara make excuses to leave for the bathroom, but Darcy can’t bring herself to walk away. She wants to shake some sense into Ed.