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‘It sounds incredible and I’m definitely taking you up on your invitation, Alex. I’ll be sure to drop in next time I’m in Oxfordshire. Now it’s back to Daisy and Jax with your lunchtime fix of celebrity gossip …’

The cameras switched to Jax and Daisy, as a crew member came over and unhooked Fliss’s microphone. Jo gave her a brief thumbs up and Fliss grinned, the familiar rush of endorphins racing through her bloodstream. Most days she stayed to watch the rest of the programme, remembering her days as a runner when she was around for the whole show, and today was no exception. But as she moved to the side of the set, she saw a familiar face.

‘Kit!’ she whispered delightedly, mindful of the need to stay quiet as she threw her arms around him, her face lighting up. ‘I didn’t know you were coming.’

‘I thought I’d surprise you,’ he grinned, and Fliss’s heart leapt at the sight of him, looking handsome and laidback as ever in his trademark jeans and leather jacket.

‘My favourite kind of surprise!’

‘You were brilliant today – like always,’ he told her, joking, ‘I can’t believe that I get to go home with that hot girl off the telly!’

‘And I get to go home with that hot actor from Espionage,’ she laughed, referring to Kit’s role as a spy in the incredibly popular TV drama series that the nation was addicted to. There were still talks of reviving This Is Us on the West End or Broadway, just as soon as the four actors’ schedules allowed, but for now it hadn’t happened.

After the huge fight at Tara’s party, Fliss had moved out of the house she shared with the girls. It felt too awkward to carry on living in Tara’s parents’ property, and moving in with Kit felt like the natural next step together. But lately, the two of them had been like ships in the night, both busy with their careers and barely getting the chance to see one another. So Fliss was overjoyed that Kit had surprised her today.

He turned to her, giving her that look that still thrilled her, sending shivers of anticipation right through her.

‘Come on,’ he winked, taking hold of her hand. ‘Let’s get out of here.’

‘You’re going to love it,’ Fliss grinned, as she took the DVD of It’s a Wonderful Life from its case and slid it into the DVD player.

‘Am I?’ Kit asked doubtfully.

‘Of course! It’s a classic,’ Fliss insisted, as she came across to the sofa in the little flat they shared, lying down in front of Kit and curling into his arms.

After she had finished work, Kit had taken her out for a late lunch at the Duke of Wellington, one of their favourite pubs near their flat. It was so long since they had taken time together like that, enjoying a relaxed meal over a glass of wine, catching up and reconnecting.

For the first time in a very long time, neither of them had any plans. They had stocked up on snacks on the way home and planned a movie night. Now two wine glasses sat on the coffee table, alongside bowls of tortilla chips and fat, juicy olives. Outside, the rain was lashing against the windows, and it felt wonderful to be inside, warm and cosy and in one another’s arms.

Hoxton, where Kit’s flat was, though up and coming from its working-class past, was a world away from fancy, upmarket Ladbroke Grove. They had talked about getting somewhere new together – something bigger, and more centrally located – but they had been so busy they hadn’t had time to go on viewings; still, Fliss had done her best to make Kit’s bachelor pad feel more like home, putting up some pictures and buying houseplants, making the sofa comfy with the cushions and throws that they were now snuggled beneath.

Kit’s hand crept round her waist, pulling her closer to him, their bodies pressed together on the narrow sofa as his hand snaked beneath her jumper to rest on the bare flesh beneath. Sparks fizzed across Fliss’s skin, her body reacting instinctively to his touch.

‘I can’t remember the last time we did this,’ she sighed happily, wriggling round to face him. She wound her fingers through his soft, dark hair, then kissed him languidly.

‘Me neither. We need to do it more often.’ Kit kissed her in reply. ‘I mean it. You know I love you, but I’m worried we’re neglecting us.’

‘I know,’ Fliss sighed. ‘It’s great that you’re doing so well, and that my presenting seems to be taking off, but I don’t want to lose sight of us.’

‘We won’t. I love you, Fliss.’

‘I love you too. I missed you like crazy when you were away.’

Fliss heard the note of reproach in her voice. She hadn’t intended it to be there, but it had crept in nonetheless. He heard it too, and she saw something flicker across his face, a brief flash of annoyance at the perceived criticism.

‘I missed you too, of course I did,’ he said carefully, ‘but it’s something we’re going to have to get used to.’

Kit had spent three months in Sicily, having been cast in a supporting but pivotal role in a swords-and-sandals drama about the Roman Empire. He’d spent a lot of time in the gym beforehand, bulking up until his stomach rippled with a rock hard six-pack and the photos he had sent Fliss from the set had only intensified how much she wanted him; Kit, standing in the Valley of the Temples, wearing a leather skirt that showed his muscular bronzed legs, a piece of red cloth draped loosely across his broad chest. She had managed to fly out to see him for the occasional weekend, and despite all the incredible tourist attractions in the area they had barely left the hotel room. They couldn’t get enough of one another. Fliss smiled at the memory, the weeks of loneliness forgotten.

‘You’ll have to model that leather skirt for me again,’ she smiled, as Kit grinned. His hands roamed over her body, pulling her closer.

‘Anytime.’ They kissed again, with sighs and moans as it grew more intense.

‘We’re missing the film,’ Fliss reprimanded him.

‘I don’t care …’

Kit’s kisses made it hard to think straight, but a thought was niggling at the back of Fliss’s mind. They had danced around this conversation so many times before, and they needed to get it out in the open. ‘It’s just … hard, when you’re away,’ Fliss began, pulling away from him and propping herself up on one elbow to look at him. ‘I know there are so many temptations, and what happens on set stays on set, all of that …’