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Caleb groaned. ‘You’re ruining my diet!’

‘We can share it.’ A daydream of her feeding him again flooded his mind. This time, he wouldn’t be driving, and he’d have his hands free. He’d cup her breasts and lick her neck, nibbling away any loose crumbs or drops of frosting…

He gestured for her to go first, and their bodies collided with one another as the minibus jolted to a standstill.

Her breasts crushed against his chest, and her stomach slammed against his lower body, reminding him forcefully that he wanted her desperately, and for more than bakery goods.

‘Oh sorry!’ she gasped, her hands on his waist as she awkwardly steadied herself. Colour flushed her cheeks, and her pupils were blown wide as she stared up at him.

Visibly flustered, she took a step back, dropping her hands and adjusting her big bag on her shoulder before hurrying down the aisle with a self-conscious pat of her bouncy hair. He was probably imagining it, but he could have sworn he smelled buttery crisp pastry and rich hazelnut chocolate in the air as she walked away.

Delicious.

A different kind of hunger rushed through him so fast that he had to grip the headrest of his seat tightly and take a deep breath.

How could she floor him so easily? It wasn’t as if they lived in each other’s pockets. But maybe that was part of the problem? To have enjoyed so much of her company at the start, only to be weaned off of her so abruptly.

He prayed she’d hurry up and change her mind about their relationship. At this point, it felt like water torture waiting for her to give in to her feelings.

‘You’ll be the death of me,’ he muttered, and he wasn’t talking about cronuts.

Chapter Nineteen

The next day, they picked Zach up from his shared apartment and drove to Lucas’s beach house in the most affluent area of the Gold Coast. Every house they passed sat on its own large plot, nestled next to pale sandy beaches and cresting waves. An idyllic location that combined city living with stunning nature.

Hannah couldn’t believe the beauty of the place considering they were only a few minutes’ drive from the city centre.

They were waved in by a security guard at the gate as soon as Caleb rolled down his window. The house was a sprawling, whitewashed modernist building made up of a variety of concrete boxes stacked on top of one another. The aesthetic was softened significantly by the beautiful terracotta roofs over each of the architectural boxes and the landscaped gardens around the circular driveway.

The wide front door pivoted open as if it were floating on air, and Emma bounced forward. ‘Welcome, guys! Bianca and Lucas are already at the beach; they can’t wait to meet you.’

‘Bianca De Montfort’s here?’ Hannah mumbled in awe, more to herself than anyone else.

Bianca De Montfort was the female lead in the film, not that Hannah had seen much of her yet, except on paperwork. But she had seen little of Lucas either. Stunt rehearsals were mostly practiced with the stunt team alone, with talent joining them closer to filming.

Emma gave her a reassuring smile. ‘Hi Hannah, good to see you again. And you must be Zach – don’t believe we’ve met.’ She shook Zach’s hand enthusiastically, before ushering them in.

Hannah had met Emma at one of their online production meetings, ahead of the lead actor’s arrival; she was Lucas’s personal assistant and was an odd mixture of terrifyingly efficient and relentlessly cheerful. She had a lovely wacky sense of fashion that seemed in complete opposition to her fierce organisational skills – more nursery teacher than Hollywood PA. But Hannah had seen her reminding a producer firmly about contract T&Cs in one of those Zoom calls, and she’d quickly realised not to underestimate her.

Today, Emma had her copper-red hair up in space buns and was wearing a green stretchy jumpsuit with a cowgirl print that flowed over her curves nicely. Hannah thought her taste was delightful.

Hannah was beside Caleb as they entered, so she heard him ask Emma quietly, ‘Are they an item – Bianca and Lucas?’

Emma’s lips pursed. ‘Not yet, but it’s on the cards. I’ve tried to warn him about that particular can of flying worms. But…’ She gave a helpless shrug of her shoulders.

‘The heart wants what the heart wants?’ Caleb asked with a teasing smirk.

Sadness clouded Emma’s expression for a moment. ‘I guess.’

Caleb patted her shoulder. ‘I know you want what’s best for him. But he’s a grown man, he has to make his own decisions.’

Emma nodded and her sunny expression returned. ‘Come on, he’ll be wondering where we’ve got to.’

Caleb and Emma walked ahead, with Zach and Hannah behind. They walked through the stunning double-height entrance with its glass and dark wood with open mouths. A magnificent wooden spiral staircase led upstairs, and bright modernist paintings decorated the white walls. Everything gleamed as if it were brand new.

‘So, Bianca and Lucas are soon to be more than co-stars?’ whispered Zach enthusiastically. He’d had already admitted to Hannah that one of the reasons why he liked working at the studio so much was for all the salacious celebrity rumours.

‘I always thought actors did that for publicity,’ she replied, keeping her voice low so that Emma and Caleb wouldn’t hear them gossiping.