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brought her face close to mine and said in a low tone, ‘I will not tolerate fraternisation on my set. If you so much as hold hands with one of the dishwashers while on board this ship, I’ll sack you, and sink your career so deeply you might as well book a ticket on the Titanic. Do we have an understanding?’
    â€˜Yes, ma’am.’ She was truly terrifying, a devil-woman.
    â€˜Excellent. Now, I’ll introduce you to Beau.’
    â€˜Great.’ Can’t wait to meet the pompous a-hole lady-whore.
    Maxine led me across the vast deck, but my eyes caught a blurry glimpse of a black-and-white shape streaking away behind us. I could have sworn that dog looked familiar …
    A man lounged on a deck chair, shirtless, with a cowboy hat drawn low over his face. A photographer snapped away at him, while a gaggle of makeup and hair ladies swooned nearby. I had to admit, the man had abs forever.
    â€˜Perfect! God, you’re a pleasure to shoot, Beau. The camera loves you!’ the photographer cried, practically wetting himself in excitement.
    â€˜Beau?’ Maxine called out. ‘May I borrow you for a moment to introduce you to the last of your production assistants?’
    The man stood, his hat still covering his face. He moseyed towards us, thumb through the belt loop of his jeans, the confident swagger of a man who knew the world was watching.
    As he reached us, he tipped his hat back and my world stopped. ‘Tanner?’
    Maxine spoke. ‘I see you’ve done your research. Maddie, this is Beau Tanner, star of Ship of Lust .’

Chapter 5
    After so many years of dealing with dramatic actors flouncing about the set causing issues over the slightest inconvenience, I’d acquired a default pattern when it came to conflict. Smile, nod and act as if nothing was out of the ordinary.
    It was a skill that came in handy at that moment. With the biggest grin I could muster plastered over my face, I stuck out my hand and said, ‘G’day, Beau . It’s nice to meet you.’
    Tanner, on the other hand, was speechless. In a daze, he grasped my fingers and shook them weakly, then donned the shirt proffered to him by the wardrobe supervisor.
    I had to concentrate to keep from staring at Tanner’s fingers, the ones that only a few hours before had been dancing over my most intimate places. Forcing myself to look at his left ear rather than his confused eyes, I trilled, ‘I’m so excited to be working with you. I’m afraid I’ve just come on board, literally, so as soon as I’m up to speed with my duties, I’ll check in with you. Sound good?’
    â€˜Uh … I’m not sure …’ Tanner was flummoxed; he’d flipped from the suave TV star to the bumbling teen I’d known in less than ten seconds.
    It wasn’t like I was doing any better; I was just better at hiding it. Inside my body, wars were being conducted—joy at seeing him again, shame for leaving him. Anger at discovering his so-called career, lust for the sexual tension that stretched between us.
    Fortunately, Maxine seemed to buy my act. ‘Lovely! I’m so glad the two of you have hit it off. Actually, Beau, if you don’t mind, I’ve arranged for a cameraman to meet you in your room. Maddie, can you please walk Beau back to his suite and conduct his pre-interview? We’ve got a lot to get through before the deck party tonight.’
    She handed me a tablet with a list of questions on it and a choice flashed before my eyes; ram it down her throat, run for the railing, hurl myself overboard and swim back to Sydney, or suck it up and do the job I’d been hired for. Crushing all my feelings down, I said, ‘Certainly. Beau? Shall we?’
    I arched an eyebrow at him, congratulating myself on being so cool, calm and collected. Then, I turned to go and crashed straight into the makeup lady’s trolley.
    The three-tiered trolley smashed down and