Page 84 of Love Unscripted
They lingered over dessert, forks clinking softly against porcelain, the conversation slipping into something easier, more intimate.
“What’s your favorite place to travel?” he asked.
“The Caribbean. South America. Africa. Asia.”
He nodded thoughtfully.
“Any place warm,” she continued. “I need warmth. I don’t do cold well.”
“Your father’s Italian. Haven’t you been to Italy? It can get quite cold.”
“As a child,” she said. “But mostly in summer.”
He hesitated, then said, almost casually, “Would you be shocked to know I have Caribbean heritage?”
Her eyes widened. “Really?”
“Through my mother. Her grandfather was Barbadian.”
“No way!” Camille exclaimed, leaning forward. “That’s remarkable. I love Barbados. I’ve only been there twice, but it’s such a beautiful, amazing place. I’ve been planning to visit again.”
“My family has property there,” he said easily. “I could set you up anytime you’d like.”
She leaned in, bright with interest. “How about immediately after filming?”
He burst out laughing. “I see you’d like Ray to have my head. Right when promotion intensifies, I whisk off his lead actress to the Caribbean.”
“Ray is worse than a worrisome old woman,” she said with mock seriousness. “I’m sure that would pack theatres better than anything else.”
He laughed—but then his expression shifted, sobering, something more grounded settling over him.
“Yeah… but we don’t want the focus to be on our romance, Camille. We don’t want to distract from the movie. I put a lot of effort into this movie. I wantEstherto be the focus, not us.”
She met his gaze, softer now. “I know.”
He smiled faintly. “Which reminds me—we’re here to study the final chapters of this great Book of Esther.”
She dabbed her lips with her napkin and returned his smile. “Then let’s retreat to the lounge area and study the Word.”
They left the dishes behind and moved into a well-lit sitting area. Two armchairs faced each other with a small wooden table between them. Their Bibles were already laid out, along with notebooks and pens.
He glanced around, impressed. “It seems you really did intend for us to do more than kiss, flirt, and eat.”
She laughed—bright, unguarded, alive. “I’m glad you’re finally acknowledging my sincerity.”
~*~*~*~
Later that night, Camille stood at her bathroom mirror, smoothing moisturizer over her face.
She had just shown Aaron out.
It had been very tempting having him there—so close, so warm, so strong. Their goodbye kiss had lasted several minutes and left her breathless, her heart racing long after the door closed behind him.
She was madly, crazily in love with him.
And because of that, she knew what she had to do. She couldn’t allow this movie to be threatened because of her. Not after all of Aaron’s effort. She couldn’t let it happen.
She picked up her phone and dialed.
