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A lopsided grin spread across his face, and she couldn’t help but admire how handsome he was in the dim light of the car interior. The gruffness of his beard, the strength of his long neck, the width of his shoulders. She wanted to stare at him for hours. Well, she’d get to do that on this road trip, but maybe it wouldn’t be wise. After all, she didn’t want to encourage him. Or did she?

‘It’s pretty wild. Which is good for me. Lots of stunts.’

‘They didn’t send me a script, but I’ve got the book on my Kindle.’ She tilted her head wistfully towards her essentials bag.

‘Nope, you’ve got to stay with me,’ said Caleb firmly, and she sighed with exaggerated disappointment, although she knew staring at him was hardly a chore.

‘Jackson sent me the risk assessments for the first two days. Plus the shooting schedule, and a couple of the upcoming call sheets. But it all seems a bit of a mess to be honest. Is that normal?’

Caleb frowned. ‘You should have more than that. Especially with the risk assessments. I’ll check with Jackson when we get there. But usually, all this stuff is carefully planned in advance.’

‘Cool. Maybe he only sent me the basics for the first few days.’ Caleb nodded in agreement but was still frowning so she changed the subject. ‘The book’s very popular. I’m sure the film will be a success.’

‘That’s good, means it’s already got an audience.’

‘Have you read the script?’

‘Most of it, yes.’

‘What do you think of it?’ she asked curiously. She hadn’t read it herself, but she’d heard it had a beautiful romance at its centre – amongst the crazy mash-up of eras, fantasy and ancient cultures.

Caleb shrugged. ‘Doesn’t matter what I think. If I get paid, I don’t mind. I’m happy as long as it’s full of action. Means I’m here for longer.’

Hannah swallowed. ‘More time here means more pay, right?’

‘Exactly. Bigger budget action films mean more stunts and money for me. Unless they decide to use CG, but even then, they like to combine it with real stunts, otherwise it looks too fake.’

Hannah had braced herself for the answer and was secretly pleased when she wasn’t hurt by his response. See, she could compartmentalise too! It wasn’t personal, it was just business. ‘Makes sense. I don’t suppose you’d let me read the script? I’m curious how it all slots together.’

‘Sure, I’ll get it out at our first rest stop. But you can’t be posting anything about it. They’re very strict about that sort of thing.’ His firm tone made her feel like a naughty school girl – in a not entirely unwelcome way. She squirmed in her seat, realising it had been a depressingly long time since she’d been this playful with a man.

‘I promise to be good!’ she said, fluttering her eyelashes.

Bloody hell, why had she said it like that?

Even Caleb seemed a little startled as he swallowed so deeply, it made his Adam’s apple bob.

‘Sorry, that was a bit weird,’ she said, closing her eyes and sinking into her seat – hoping the plush leather might swallow her whole.

‘I liked it,’ he said with a chuckle, and she sighed with relief.

The greasy bag was beginning to call to her, offering a distraction to her disturbingly hungry advances. She picked it up and peeked inside. ‘What’s for breakfast, then?’

The corner of Caleb’s mouth lifted slightly with a knowing smile. ‘Bacon and egg or smoked salmon and cream cheese bagels. I’m happy with either, so pick whichever one you prefer.’

‘I’ll go for the salmon,’ she said, pulling out one of the foil-wrapped bagels with the salmon sticker. ‘Want yours?’

‘Sure, can you unwrap it for me?’

She took out the other bagel. ‘It’s still warm. How did you get these so early?’ She put both on her lap using the bag as a makeshift napkin.

‘One of the concierges told me about a twenty-four-hour café close to the harbour. They use it for late-night snacks. It’s meant to be pretty good.’

She took a big bite of her bagel and then set it down on the bag while she unwrapped his. ‘Mmmmh.’ She nodded enthusiastically. ‘Yum!’

Caleb laughed and leaned towards her. She offered up his bagel, and after a moment of hesitation he took a bite, his lips and teeth biting down only an inch away from her fingers. It was oddly intimate. Only when she lowered the half-eaten bagel did she realise he’d had his hand out waiting.

Heat rushed up her neck. ‘Oh! Sorry! I thought you wanted me to feed you!’