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She gripped his shirt and tugged him towards her with a hard jerk, completely different to the drunk girl, but equally unsettling. ‘I know that! But he’s also our friend. We watch out for our friends, Caleb.’

Her words hit home, not only about Lucas, but about Hannah. Yes, they weren’t together, but he didn’t want to hurt her deliberately. He needed Hannah to know he wasn’t an asshole – he had to make things right. But he’d already lost sight of her.

Caleb took Emma’s hands gently in his own. ‘I’m sorry. Give me a minute to talk to Hannah, and then I’ll help you get Lucas out.’

‘Thank you,’ Emma said with a sigh of relief. ‘She went upstairs, by the way, in search of a bathroom. The hall bathroom is currently occupied by Bianca’s sister.’ The wrinkle of her nose was enough to tell him that he’d also be avoiding the hall bathroom. ‘The one by the pool is a mess. And, well, none of us have a clue where the other ones are. This place is a labyrinth!’

‘Thanks.’ Hurrying into the hall, he headed up the wide staircase that led to the next floor, ignoring the hacking and coughing sounds from the hall bathroom.

Taking two stairs at a time, he walked down the corridor, checking rooms. A couple of the crew were hooking up in one – as they weren’t actually staying here, he didn’t feel the need to apologise for barging in on them and quickly retreated before they noticed.

It appeared that even at a party in a mansion, there was still a queue for the bathroom because, as he turned down a corridor, he noticed a line of people leaning against the wall, including Hannah, who was tapping on her phone.

‘Hey!’ he said, a little out of breath, as he slumped against the wall beside her. Straightening up, she lowered her phone.

‘Oh, hi.’

Well, that wasn’t the reaction he’d expected. He’d imagined tears, accusations – anything but a slightly bored hello. He glanced at the queue; there were several people, all talking idly or engrossed in their phones – most he didn’t recognise. ‘Bianca’s friend, that woman a minute ago, she fell on me.’

Hannah searched his face for a moment, trying to gauge the truth of what he’d said. ‘Okay.’

‘I caught her. In fact, I think she fucked up my shoulder a bit.’ For added effect, he rolled his shoulder and winced.

‘I see. Want me to take a look?’

Did she think he was asking for medical advice? A flare of irritation ignited in his gut, and he took a deep breath and tried to shrug it off. ‘I’m sure it’ll be fine. You know that’s not why I came to find you, right?’

Was it his imagination, or did her expression relax slightly?

‘I understand,’ she said with a light nod.

‘Erm, are you having fun? I haven’t really seen you – I was stuck chatting with Lucas and Franco most of the night.’

‘It’s certainly been interesting,’ laughed Hannah, and she began to chat as if she weren’t in the least bit bothered about what had happened with the woman in the kitchen. He wasn’t sure whether to be pleased or insulted. Did she not care? ‘I got some footage of one of your stunts this week, I thought you might like to post them on your feed. I wanted to check with production first that it was okay to post stuff. I managed to get a meeting with Jia this afternoon.’

‘Oh, what did she say?’ Caleb nodded enthusiastically, but really, he was still confused as to whether he was in trouble or not. The lack of concern made him feel a lot like when he’d asked his mother about going with Baz to the States. Part of him had hoped she’d be upset, but she hadn’t been, she’d helped him pack.

Perhaps he wasn’t the type of guy you missed or got upset over? None of the other women he’d previously dated had minded; they’d always felt the same about ending things, as they’d had busy, chaotic lives of their own.

Did he want Hannah to be upset? That was fucked up.

Hannah’s voice forced him to focus on their conversation. ‘Yeah, she said behind the scenes is okay. Not too many though, and they have a few rules they’ve given me, like no photos or readings of the script, and to only use talent photos with permission. Which is only you with the stunt stuff. They even want me to use the film’s hashtag. Apparently, the book fans are desperate for info about the film, and Jia thinks I’ll help create a buzz.’ She smiled cheerfully. ‘I’ve posted the stunt you did and put you as a collaborator, so it will show up on your feed too. You’ll need to accept me.’

‘Accept you?’

Her cheeks turned pink. ‘As a collaborator, it will come up when you next log in.’

‘Oh. Cool.’ He sounded like a dinosaur.

There was an awkward pause, and then Hannah said, ‘I was going to get a cab with Zach in a minute. He’s also a bit worse for wear and I want to make sure he gets home okay, and well, it feels like the party’s vibe is changing.’

‘It is. I think Bianca’s friends are a bit wild.’ Emma was right; they needed to go before Lucas was hit with any bad press or, worse, connected with a police arrest. Franco and some of the high-ups had said they’d be leaving soon, and that was always a clear sign that the vibe was indeed changing – and not for the better.

‘I drove here. I can give you a lift once I’ve helped Emma get Lucas in his car.’

‘Don’t worry about us! Help your friends.’ She paused as someone left the bathroom and the line shuffled up. ‘You don’t owe me a lift, or an explanation, or anything, really.’ She swallowed and looked down at her sturdy Doc Martens and scrubs. She’d not even changed before coming here.

Had she been as eager to see him as he’d been to see her? He wished they’d found each other sooner and gone home together.