“Thanks,” I said awkwardly, pulling away from the hug, keeping my voice low.“Those questions, Ollie.They were—”
“I know.”He grimaced with a shrug.“Production really pushed for the beauty routine angle, the femininity stuff.I told them it was too much, but—”
“It was degrading at some points.”
His face fell.“Lily, I’m sorry.Really.I fought for better material, but for the pilot episode they wanted to play it safe, appeal to a broader audience, or whatever corporate nonsense they fed me.”He shook his head.“I hated every second of it.”
I studied his expression, the genuine regret there.He’d warned me the questions would be cheesy.And he did look uncomfortable asking some of them.
“Look,” he said, reaching for my hand, “let me make it up to you.Dinner tonight?Just us, no cameras, no producers telling me what to say.I’ll even let you pick the place.”
“Sure,” I heard myself say.“That sounds nice.”
Ollie took my hand, giving it a squeeze.“You handled that with so much grace.I mean it, you were incredible.”
Before I could respond, he leaned in and pressed a kiss to my cheek.“Can’t wait to see you later.”
Warmth flooded my cheeks.I withdrew slightly, striving for what I hoped resembled an authentic smile instead of the awkwardness that I felt.“Yeah, same here.”
He released my hand, still beaming, and I resisted the urge to touch where his lips had been.Not because it felt particularly meaningful, but because the gesture had caught me off-guard.
“Such a gentleman,” I said, aiming for light and teasing but landing somewhere closer to strained.
Ollie’s smile widened, clearly taking it as a compliment rather than the observation it was.“My mother raised me right.”
He squeezed my shoulder once more before heading toward the producer, already launching into conversation about the next interview slot.
I stood there, suddenly aware of the studio chaos around me again.The crew packing up equipment.The bright lights that had made me sweat through my makeup.
And Henri, still watching from the doorway.
Ollie’s smile returned, bright and relieved.“Perfect.I’ll text you?”
“Yeah.Sounds good.”
Chapter Fifteen
Henri
I watched Ollie kiss her cheek, his hand lingering on hers a beat too long.The easy affection between them, the way she smiled up at him—uncomplicated in a way we’d never been.I hadn’t asked Lily about her relationship with Ollie.Probably because I didn’t want to know.But as I watched them together, I knew there was something forming between them.Something we couldn’t have.
Lily gathered her things, said something to the makeup artist, and headed for the exit.She passed within feet of me but didn’t look my way.
I wanted to stop her.Ask if she was okay after that ridiculous interview.Tell her she’d handled it better than most would have.
But the words never appeared, and then she was gone.
The production assistant finished clipping the microphone to my collar and stepped back, giving Ollie a thumbs-up.
“We’re all set,” she said, then she disappeared behind the camera setup.
I’d done dozens of these interviews before.Promotional content, documentary pieces, behind-the-scenes footage—it was all part of the job.Usually, they were harmless.A few questions about racing philosophy, team dynamics, what I ate for breakfast.Easy content that made the sport feel accessible to fans.
But something about the way Ollie watched me made my shoulders tense.Or maybe it was just him in general.
I hated that the team had decided to use him in the upcoming Hermes documentary, but there was no getting out of this one.Hermes was turning seventy-five this year, and F1 had agreed to air a special documentary on their streaming app about the team.This interview would be one of those soundbite ones they’d spread in throughout the series as they talked about different races.Of course, this segment was on the pressures of racing and how Hermes helped their drivers compete at a high level.
The irony wasn’t lost on me.
