Page 28 of The Wedding Forecast

‘I’m not saying that.’

‘It sounds like you are.’

Mac slides his chair back a little as Joel leans further over him. Joel will never drop an argument, especially if he thinks I’m not grasping the point he’s making.

‘I think you are perfectly capable of creating characters, in fact I know it, which is why I was confused that you didn’t.’

‘Which character are you referring to, specifically?’

‘The character of Julian.’

‘I know it’s hard for your ego to hear this, but you’re not in my book.’

Joel is a neuroscientist who works for the University of Melbourne; the character of Julian works in construction. Joel has Chinese and Greek heritage, resulting in the most luscious dark hair you could imagine; Julian has blond hair with a receding hairline. They have no characteristics in common.

‘Okay, my ego. Sure. But this Julian and the main character, I’ve forgotten her name—’

‘Rose.’

‘Julian and Rose have an argument that we once had.’

This is true. Sort of. Joel and I were dredging up a few of our longstanding arguments at the time I was writing the book, and some of those themes might have found their way in there.

I’ll never get over the raw vulnerability of having published a book. It’s like giving people a tiny little window into your soul, except they look in and see things that aren’t really there. And with Hayley and Luke and Joel it’s a little bit worse, because there are things, bits and pieces like that, they might find. Just because I’m a magpie who grabbed a few shiny memories doesn’t mean it’s about them in any real sense, but it’s hard to explain that.

‘No, they don’t, but even if they did, so what?’

‘That part wasn’t in the draft I read—’

‘You read a bit of the first draft, no not even the first, you read some of draft zero, and there were nine drafts—’

‘Look. I’m not saying it was bad. I’m just saying, I was a bit shocked. And offended.’

‘Why?’

‘You obviously wanted the reader to side with Rose.’

‘Oh, so it’s the fact you think your side of the argument wasn’t represented accurately.’

‘No. Well. Partially, yeah.’

‘They are having this argument while dragging a dead body into a cave.’

‘The details don’t matter.’

‘I think they do. And I’m the author.’

‘Well, I’m excited to read this book now,’ Mac says, clearly trying to lighten the mood.

Joel and I both ignore him.

‘A reader can’t form their own interpretation?’ Joel says.

‘Did you read the whole book or just skim it for bits to use to make accusations?’

‘No one is making accusations.’

Mac pushes his chair back a bit further, and puts his knife and fork together on his plate. I see over Joel’s shoulder that Bianca has left the table altogether.