Page 68 of Rescued Heart

He left.

Bianca twisted her hair to one side and wrung it out. He’d left to do his actual job. Which wasn’t to babysit her.

Water dripped down onto her soaked shoe. And that’s when she realized she was missing her left tennis shoe.

Grace gasped. “You’re missing a shoe. Let’s get you back to your trailer. A good hot shower will get you feeling like normal again.”

Bianca wiggled her shoeless toes in her sock. Without Eddie there beside her, it suddenly felt like she was missing more than a shoe.

FOURTEEN

Eddie lifted the travel mug in his hand to shield the sunrise climbing over the set’s food tent. “I’ll do it.”

The director, Carter, and a blond, mustached assistant named Aiden stopped their not-too-quiet conversing. All three men whipped around from their huddle over a bucket filled with ice and water bottles.

Once yesterday’s death of the construction worker and Bianca’s stunt had both been ruled accidents, the mayor had pushed for the movie to forge ahead. Apparently, the best thing for his reelection campaign would be for the film crew to finish and leave. Which had put everything back on schedule, until Eddie had overheard the conversation before him.

Not that he blamed Carter’s stunt double for quitting.

After a moment, Aiden nodded as if all had been decided. Leo tilted his head, but it was Carter’s calculating grin that made Eddie square his shoulders and lower the travel mug in his hand. Earlier, he’d heard the wordpolicefrom one of them, but once their words had turned to center around the film, Eddie had planned to head to the police station and show Conroy what he’d just found in the dirt by the debris.

Until he’d heard Bianca’s name, which had led Eddie to opening his mouth.

Carter slipped his arm around Eddie’s shoulders. “Excellent. See, problem solved.”

Leo still had his face puckered in confusion. “What exactly are you willing to do?”

Eddie shrugged out of Carter’s touch, a much looser hold than when Eddie hadhelpedCarter out of the ambulance yesterday before a call had pulled him away. “Carter’s stunt double refused to do the next scene, correct? I’ll do it so the production can move forward.”

Not for the film crew to leave town, but so Bianca could fulfill her contract.

Eddie ran his knuckles along his shaven cheeks. Somehow, he could still feel her tender touch from the river. The moment they would have kissed. It was probably a good thing Chip had offered his help when he had.

Leo narrowed his eyes and slid his hands into his jogger pockets. “You agree without even knowing the stunt?” Then he shook his head. “We’ll need to go through the union and?—”

“Whoa.” Carter sidled up beside the director. “If the firefighter volunteers, let him. He’s perfect for the fire scene anyway. Plus…” Carter stepped back over by Eddie and motioned between them. “He favors me. Sure, he’s a little taller. He can hunch as he’s rescuing Bia.”

The memory of carrying Bianca out of the water made his knees lock. Perhaps he should offer to be in all her stunts. He still didn’t see how the wrong harnesses and weights had been used. However, the special-effects guys’ stories and alibis all checked out.

“I’ll have no problem doing a fire scene, sir.”

Carter whistled to another assistant that walked by and motioned for a drink. “Of course he’s going to do it. He knows how important this is for his crew. Just think, the Last Chance County fire department can get its name in the movie credits. You know that can be arranged.”

Eddie should have rolled his eyes, but he refrained. The guy was trying to prove himself. He’d panicked after coming into the ambulance thinking the police were going to stop the filming.

This wasn’t only about getting more money for the youth center. It was also about helping Bianca. A woman who was bound and determined to see the movie to the end to help others.

To help him.

Eddie checked his phone. “What time are the scenes?”

Leo rubbed his chin. “That’s just it. The police still haven’t given their official release to start filming near the collapsed building yet.”

Carter crossed his arms. His white T-shirt stretched thin enough to see his collarbone. “We won’t touch that mess. We only need the house across the path.”

Eddie glanced over his shoulder to where there was empty roofline. The cleanup crew had finished cleaning up the spot yesterday. But walking past the taped-off section five minutes ago, Eddie had found a truck key with a smashed plastic keychain where the rubble had been. It could be a clue or something the cleanup crew had accidentally left or lost.

Either way, he had to give it to Conroy as soon as possible.

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