“Shelby—”
“Please.”
“Shelby is right,” Douglas interjected. “She would be a good addition. You can speak together.” I glared at him, then saw Everett and Cassidy nodding in agreement.
I huffed, knowing when I was outnumbered. “Fine. But not until she’s stronger.” I frowned at her, almost daring her to argue with me, but she nodded in agreement.
“I’ll set it up and explain the ground rules,” Cassidy assured me. “I’ll be there to run interference if needed and so will Everett.”
“Okay. Next?”
“The studio wants you back.”
I knew that was coming, but still, I groaned. I wasn’t ready to leave Shelby yet.
“I’m fine.” She assured me. “Your mum is here. Caroline is close.”
“You only have three weeks to go, Liam. David has been great working around your understandable absence, but you’re needed to finish,” Everett urged me. “You need to complete this movie. It’s all being shot here, so you’ll be home every night. Then you have a couple of weeks of promos for Nighthawk. After that, I’ve cleared your schedule for the next month. I even got them to have Megan and Seth handle the out of country promotion for Nighthawk. You only have to make appearances here and in New York.” He grinned. “By then, Shelby will be up to going with you, if you want. You’ll have a bunch of interviews and two red carpet appearances.”
I felt Shelby tense beside me. This incident had left her with her own fear of crowds now. Everett noticed and hastened to assure her. “I’ll be right beside you. No one is going to get to you with me there.”
She relaxed. “Okay. Good.”
“All right,” I agreed. “I’ll go back next week.”
“Great.”
“No more projects for a bit, right?”
“Nope. You’re done for a while until you find something you want to do. I’ve got some scripts at the office for you to look over.”
Beside me, Douglas cleared his throat and handed me a thick script he took from his messenger bag. “I’ve got something as well. I want you to look at this, Liam.”
“What is it?”
“My next movie—something I’ve been working on for a couple years. I’m excited about it—so excited, in fact, that I’m putting my own money into it. I want to control this one. You’d be perfect for the lead.”
“You never said anything.”
“No. I’ve been keeping this close to my chest. I found the book in a used bookstore—not exactly a best seller—but it blew me away. I tracked down the author and bought the rights. She was amazing, and I even had her help write the screenplay. She also thought you were perfect for the part.” He winked. “She looks forward to meeting you.”
I frowned as I looked at the script. It was huge. “When?”
“Spring, maybe early summer. And I’m filming back home. It’s going to be massive. I’m thinking about a four-month shoot, minimum. My team is scouting locales now.”
“England?”
“And Scotland.” He grinned. “Aunt Liz’s cottage is gonna be one of the locations I use. It’s perfect. It’s a historical piece. Read it. It’s a great script.” He leaned back. “Epic, if you ask me.”
I thought about the cottage we used to go to when I was younger. Right by the water, in a small village—there were a lot of great memories there for me. The cottage was over one hundred years old and had been in my mum’s family the whole time. It would make a great backdrop for a historical film. Beside me, Shelby was flipping through the pages, pausing occasionally.
Four months. Four months away from here, back home where things were less intrusive—especially off the beaten path. I could even add on some extra time at the end and take Shelby to all the places I knew she wanted to see. Show off where I was born, let her see where I grew up, and meet more of my family and friends back home. Make it a vacation for us.
Shelby moved closer, her eyes gleaming with mischief as she pointed to a page in the script. “There’re dukes,” she murmured. “Swords.”
“Liam would be playing a Scottish lord. A laird,” Douglas offered with a wink.
Her smile grew wider. “A kilt, Liam. You’d have to wear a kilt.”
Everett and Douglas chuckled at the glee in her voice.
I nudged her with my elbow. “Like that idea, do you, Beaker?”
Her cheeks colored slightly, even as she shot me a cheeky wink. “As long as you wear it…properly, Oscar.”
I started to laugh, pulling her against me. “Fancy a trip across the pond then, lass?”
Her eyes were bright with excitement. “I’d love that!” She tapped the page and mouthed “kilt,” at me again.
I kissed her before turning back to Douglas. “I’ll read it.”SHELBYA Month LaterMovement caught my eye, and I looked over, smiling at Liam. Lowering my book to my lap, I watched him sleep. He had one arm tucked under his head, the other lying across his bare stomach, his fingers twitching as he slumbered. He slept more peacefully these days, with me beside him—his days of dragon-slaying rare, but tonight he was more active than normal. Leaning over, I caressed the hair falling over his forehead, pushing it back and grinning when it fell right back into disarray across his face. He needed a haircut again but refused to have it done until I could do it. He was looking a little shaggy but steadfastly declined.