Page 23 of Catch Me
That thought lights me up. It’s been six months since I last saw Ari and I miss her dearly.
Now that I’m getting a regular paycheck, I mentally add to the list of tourist attractions I want to drag Ari to once she gets here. Mya hates doing anything remotely touristy.
“I hope that smile is for me.”
The voice washes over me like a fresh, hot cup of coffee on a Northeast winter morning. It enlivens all of my senses.
“Oh my God,” I blurt out before covering my mouth upon realizing that I’d actually coughed out a mouthful of food. Directly onto Andreas Knight’s light blue T-shirt.
Gasping at the stain forming on his shirt, I instantly put my plate down on the food table and search out some napkins and cold water.
“I’m so sorry,” I say while dabbing at the stain. My movements are hurried and just this side of frantic. “Is this shirt for the next scene? We should have an extra in the closet,” I tell him.
“Calm down.” He covers both of my hands with one of his, halting my movements.
An electric current races through my entire body.
What the hell is that?
For way too long, I stare at Andreas’ hand over mine. The urge to flip my palm and press our palms together, allowing my fingers to curl into his, is almost overwhelming. Way too intense.
I start to pull my hands away from his body, but he tightens his hold. My eyes shoot up to meet his.
“It’s fine. This is a T-shirt I threw on while eating during our break.” He punctuates his comment with a squeeze of my hands, which, yes, he’s still holding.
“That’s excellent news.” I push out a breath.
“Is it?” he asks with a quirked eyebrow.
“Yes.” I nod sharply. “Our staff spent two hours this morning making sure everything was cleaned, steamed, and in the exact condition needed for each of today’s scenes.”
“The design team works hard.”
“Everyone on set works hard, I imagine.” I look around the room at the cameramen and lighting guys who’ve begun trickling back in from their break. They’re checking their equipment and getting things set up for more filming.
“True.”
Andreas’ comment brings my attention back to him. Dropping my gaze, I find that, yep, his hand is still covering mine.
“Um,” I say before pulling my hands free of his, which requires a little more effort than it should have.
“That must include you as well, right?” Andreas asks.
“What includes me?”
“Everyone’s working hard. Are you including yourself?”
Why is he asking about me?“No harder than anyone else.”
I allow my eyes to meet his again.
“I imagine the actors and director are working the hardest out of everyone. Next would be the crew. I heard you all have been here since about five this morning.”
“Six,” he corrects. “But it’s not anything most of us aren’t used to. What are you doing after today’s filming?”
My eyebrows spike. “Today?”
He nods.
