He huffed. “Could be worse.”
She nodded because she understood. They’d both lived through the darker moments of life, and it seemed Zee had a way of appreciating the sweeter things.
He tried to see the land through her eyes. The mountains rose sharp and green, their peaks cutting into the clear sky. Sunlight glared off the rock faces, and Zee lifted a hand to shade her eyes.
As he drank in the view, the scent of her perfume—light and warm—filled his nose.
A shout from behind seemed to break her trance. They turned to the set.
“Ready for this?” He searched her face.
“How bad can it be?”
A faint wince pulled at the side of his mouth, which made Zee laugh.
And hearing Zee laugh caught him off guard. The sound was rich and easy—and far too distracting for a man who needed to stay focused on the job.
“Let’s go check in with Nigel.”
They set off across the expanse of grass, the taller blades swishing around their legs. As they approached the set, Nigel appeared, weaving through the crew to meet them.
“Mr. Upchurch.” He offered a quick nod. “Glad you’re here. And this must be your wife.”
“This is Zee.” He started to reach for her, thinking to place his hand on her back, but he lowered it to his side instead.
“Zee. A pleasure.”
“Nice to meet you. Thank you for inviting me to the set. It’s very exciting.”
As she spoke, he watched Nigel’s face light up. Clearly, her natural charm worked on everyone.
“We’ll start with a quick walkthrough before filming begins. Miss Collins is in makeup.”
Church fell into step beside him, Zee keeping pace easily on his other side.
Nigel pointed out different sections as they moved through the busy clearing. “Wardrobe trailers are here.” He pointed. “Catering is set up behind the equipment trucks if you’d like a refreshment.”
They stopped in front of a long white trailer near the center of the activity. “Makeup,” Nigel said, opening the door. “Miss Collins is inside preparing for her first scene.”
Church ducked his head and stepped inside with Zee right behind.
Bright lights lined the mirrors along one wall. The actor sat in a tall chair, a makeup artist leaning over her as she worked on the star’s eyes with a thin brush.
The actor glanced up in the mirror when they entered. “Mr. Upchurch. Good to see you again.”
He nodded once. He’d met her the day before when he returned to tell Nigel that his wife would be joining him on set.
Miss Collins was young. He’d be surprised if she was even twenty years old, but after reading more about her, he knew she had sixteen movies under her belt, starting from childhood. She was pretty, but her beauty was the brand he’d seen all over the screen. She had the look that the world wanted right now.
And she was nothing at all like Zee. Her features weren’t perfectly created by a surgeon’s scalpel. But they were the kind that lingered in a man’s mind.
Matt had often talked about how beautiful she was, and he was right.
The makeup artist paused mid-brush to study Zee openly. “She seems a little old for take-your-daughter-to-work day.”
He felt Zee stiffen beside him.
“This is my wife.”
