Chapter 2
TASHA
‘If you’ve finished, I’d like to make the most of this break from filming,’ Riley said, frowning. His chiselled features softened into a bright smile. Tasha looked to see who this show of charm was for and saw Lettie and a gorgeous man coming their way.
Her breath caught in her throat and her pulse raced. Who was this man? He was gorgeous enough to be an actor, but she didn’t recognise him from anywhere, so doubted he must be.
‘Hi, I hope we’re not interrupting anything?’ Lettie asked.
‘Of course you’re not,’ Riley said, ruffling Isla’s wavy hair, making her giggle.
‘Oh good. I wanted to introduce you to a family friend. This is Callum Preston. He’s a radio DJ with his own show.’
Tasha noticed Callum briefly give Lettie a concerned sideways glance but he didn’t contradict her.
‘Callum, this is Riley Sharp. He’s the lead in Sam Thorne Investigates and this is his brilliant PA Tasha Dodds.’
‘Good to meet you, Callum,’ Riley said, looking him up and down before shaking Callum’s hand.
Tasha wasn’t surprised to see Riley doing it and was sure this signature move of his was designed to make men he saw as competition feel uncomfortable. It often worked, she had noticed, but she enjoyed seeing that Callum didn’t seem at all fazed.
‘It’s a pleasure to meet you, Riley.’ Callum looked from Riley to Tasha, and yet again she felt as if she had been thumped in the chest.
‘Nice to meet you, Tasha.’ He smiled at her. ‘How are you liking being on the island?’
‘I haven’t seen too much of it,’ Riley said, always having to be the one to reply. Tasha wasn’t surprised he always assumed people were addressing him; after all, he was the celebrity, but she had met other famous people who were much more polite and humble than Riley could ever be.
‘How about you, Tasha?’ Lettie asked. ‘Although I suppose you’ve probably been busy with work while you’ve been here.’
‘I have.’ She wished her voice hadn’t come out so high-pitched. She saw Riley give her a confused look and knew she needed to calm down. She was a professional and used to working with charismatic people.
‘There he is,’ Tasha heard Lindy Torel’s voice. She loved the farmer’s wife and especially enjoyed her delicious baking. She knew Riley had a soft spot for her too.
Riley turned on his heels and opened his arms wide. ‘My favourite lady. What delights have you brought to tempt me today?’
Lettie grimaced, making Tasha want to laugh, but Lindy seemed amused at his efforts to charm her.
‘Well, there’s the usual Victoria sponge, a carrot cake…’ She raised a hand to the side of her mouth and lowered her voice. ‘I know you’re not keen on that flavour, but the director specifically requested it.’
‘And the dark chocolate cake?’ he asked.
‘I’ve a piece kept by for you in the food trailer, if you want to come and eat it while you have a free minute or two.’
‘You don’t have to ask me twice,’ he said, immediately walking away with her without bothering to say goodbye.
Tasha smiled politely. ‘He loves your mum’s cakes,’ she said for something to say to fill the awkward silence.
‘She’s over the moon that he does,’ Lettie said. Isla wriggled, wanting to get down, and Lettie lowered her to the ground. ‘I’m going to need to take her for a walk so she doesn’t start whingeing. Isla doesn’t have much patience for staying still, I’m afraid.’
‘I’m sure most of us didn’t at her age,’ Callum said.
Tasha noticed Lettie give Callum a slight nod. ‘Callum has something he wants to ask you though, so I’ll leave you two to talk business.’
Intrigued, Tasha waited for him to speak.
He stared at her for a moment, and she wasn’t sure whether she should say something.
Then Callum said, ‘Sorry, I don’t mean to ambush you.
I thought that as you keep Riley’s diary maybe you were the person to ask whether you thought he might consider coming on my show for an interview and if he would, when he was free to do it. ’
‘I see,’ she said, trying to work out how difficult it might be to persuade Riley to do as Callum asked. ‘It’s difficult to say without speaking to him first and checking his availability, but I can let you know either way sometime tomorrow, if that suits you.’
He seemed surprised for a moment. ‘That would be perfect. Thanks, Tasha.’
‘Do you have a preferred contact number, or should I phone the radio station direct?’
Callum shook his head. ‘No, I’ll give you my number.’
‘Hey, Callum.’
Tasha and Callum looked over to the tall, sandy-haired man striding towards them, who Tasha now knew to be Lettie’s partner, Brodie, who was also the local vet. He slapped Callum on the back.
‘How’s things with you?’
‘Good, thanks.’
‘Hi, Tasha,’ Brodie said. ‘How’s everything going? Only two weeks of filming left, isn’t it?’
She nodded, sad at the prospect of leaving the pretty island. ‘I wasn’t pleased at first to have an extra couple of weeks added to the schedule, but the weather has been amazing and I’m hoping the added time here gives me the opportunity to see a bit more of the place.’
‘I hope you do get to see more of it. There’s a lot to see despite the island only being nine miles by five in size.’
‘If you do have any free time,’ Callum said quietly, ‘I’d be happy to show you a few of my favourite places.’
‘There you go,’ Brodie said. ‘I know Lettie would offer, as would I, but there’s so much going on at the veterinary practice and of course here. And there’s Isla.’
Touched by their willingness to make her visit as enjoyable as possible, Tasha raised her free hand. ‘I completely understand.’
She smiled at Callum, wanting to accept his offer but unsure whether it was a good idea if the effect he had on her after such a brief meeting was anything to go by.
It wasn’t as if she would be staying here much longer, let alone her promise to herself not to get involved with anyone unless there was a real chance of the pair of them having a future together.
She had been caught out like that with her last serious relationship, with Toby, and that break-up took her far longer to get over than she had expected.
It was part of the reason she had left the bank where they had both worked for five years and gone into a completely different line of work.
‘No need to make up your mind yet,’ Callum said, seeming to sense her reticence. ‘But you have my number now if you do want to take me up on the offer.’
It was kind of him to let her off the hook so easily. ‘Thanks, I’ll do that.’