Page 33 of One Kind Hand

“Happy to hear that.” He gave her a little bow. “I think we’ll work together nicely, Charlie. We’re not shooting the first helicopter scene for a while, but if you have any questions, here’s my card.” He slid her a business card and they shook hands before he got pulled away by another stunt person.

Charlie slid Iggy’s card into her back pocket and enjoyed the little flutter of excitement that rippled through her over the fact that her beloved chopper would get her time in the limelight. This was one of the craziest things she’d done, but she was glad she’d taken the chance. Again, she owed Isabel big time.

Thinking of Isabel, Charlie grabbed her copy of the script and snapped a pic of the cover which basically only had the title Hunting Justice on it. She’d had to sign an agreement saying she wouldn’t take photos or video that would compromise the movie, but stills that didn’t reveal much were allowed. She sent the photo of the script cover to Isabel and got an instant reply.

Isabel: You’re on a real movie set!!!

Charlie: And it’s the bustle of activity we dreamed it would be.

Isabel: Are you dying watching Austin in action?

Charlie: A little, but I’m more dying because we kissed after breakfast this morning!

Three little dots wavered indicating Isabel was typing a response. Charlie pictured her bestie absolutely losing it over the kissing news.

Isabel: I’m losing it over here! See? The curls worked! ☺ How was it? Where was it? Did you die?

Charlie: It was amazing. In his suite after I nearly tripped on his Chihuahua.

Isabel: Is ‘tripped on his Chihuahua’ a sexual reference?

Charlie nearly barked with laughter. Only a hand over her mouth kept her amusement quiet.

Charlie: No. Trust me, nothing on that man is Chihuahua sized.

Isabel: Whew. LOL.

Charlie snapped a pic of the nearest camera person and sent that.

Charlie: How lucky these cameras are to be pointed at Austin.

Isabel: How lucky YOU are to be pointed at him too. LOL.

Charlie: I’ll get you a pic of Austin later today.

Isabel: XOXO

Charlie put her phone back in her pocket and flipped the script back to the scene they were currently filming. Austin had to lower into a deep manhole from a harness. She didn’t envy him. Tight spaces underground held absolutely no appeal. She preferred the wide-open expanses of the skies.

Leaning forward, she watched as Austin ran down what looked like a deserted street, his powerful legs taking him swiftly toward the camera. She could barely see the harness as it was all black and so were Austin’s clothes, but thick cable streamed from behind him. He bent over the manhole, his arm muscles rippling as he tore the cover off it.

Don’t groan. Don’t groan. She was so used to watching Austin with Isabel and they always groaned aloud when his arm muscles rippled. She’d look like a psycho superfan if she did that on set now.

The cover made a loud metallic scrape as he slid it to the side. Austin cast a glance around him, looking for bad guys. Charlie could tell he was absolutely in the zone right now. That street, that manhole, everything was real to him. He was deep into his character and the story and it was amazing to watch him become . . . shit, she didn’t even know the character’s name. She’d been so focused on everything else she was experiencing today. Shooting a look to her lap, she scanned the open page of the script.

Dalton Rush.

Yeah, okay. That was definitely a sexy name.

When she looked back up, Austin dropped into the hole, the cable rapidly unspooling as he descended. Charlie’s chest got a little tight, but she told herself to calm down. According to the script notes, three remote cameras had been positioned below the fake street to continue filming, but not seeing Austin made her anxious for some reason.

Charlie got up and walked over to the remote camera operators. Peeking over their shoulders, she exhaled a breath of relief when Austin filled the small screens. The lighting was dark as it should be in a sewer-like space. Austin flipped on a flashlight, however, and things got a little brighter. Charlie still didn’t care for the view. It felt stuffy and cramped, especially for a man of Austin’s size. She’d feel better when these scenes were over.

And why was she worrying about Austin to this degree? They weren’t anything special to each other. They’d kissed. Once. Big fucking deal.

And yet . . . she felt tethered to him as much as that cable was clipped to his harness right now.

Austin wove his way through a network of tunnels that had been constructed for the movie, his tall form hunched a bit to keep his head from hitting the ceiling. The walls were wet and slimy, the air slightly misty and foggy. Charlie could almost smell the air as Austin inhaled on the camera. His flashlight beam illuminated the area immediately in front of him and as a connoisseur of Austin’s films, Charlie expected a bad guy to come around a corner at any moment. All the scene needed was the intense music that always accompanied such scenes.