“You don’t have to, though.” I’ve been thinking this through, and there is only one way we can guarantee she’ll be left alone. That we both will. “We only signed on for the pilot and the house is nearly done. We can walk away.”

Her boldness from earlier seems to have slipped away and is replaced by something more tender. “Cam,” she starts softly, leaning forward and placing her hands on my shoulders. “I thought you loved the show. Plus, you already turned down Nat Geo for that doc.”

“I love you,” I say simply. “And, yeah, I do like the show. But not if it means you get dragged through the dirt at every turn because your ex has a chip on his shoulder.”

“What would you do if we didn’t have the show?”

I grimace. “Not sure. I’m going to stay in one place for a while and see how that goes.” Shelby’s cheeks flush a wild pink, pleased.

“Well, I’m pretty sure my dad would hire you on in a heartbeat, if you’re not completely turned off house flipping. That said, I’m not ready to walk away from the pilot,” Shelby says. “Don’t get me wrong: Lyle is the worst, but I’m tired of letting him dictate the things in my life. It’s more obvious than ever that he’s only been interested in sabotaging us, but I’m not sure it’s working.”

“But the article—”

“Was gross, sure, but our crew deserves to see it through. And they support us. So does our community and my dad and our friends … there’s a whole world outside of Hollywood Hotwire and Lyle.”

“Except he’s the showrunner, Shelb. And if by some miracle the network orders an entire season, he’s still the one pulling the strings.”

She rolls her eyes lightly. “I know. He’s going to keep effing around with us. I realize that. And yet, so far, we’ve managed to handle everything he’s thrown our way.”

I meet her grin, turning sideways on the deck. “That’s true.”

“It’s just…” She makes a face and huffs. “It feels like this is a good thing we’re doing, you know? Like the positive outweighs the negative. My dad’s already getting offers for future projects, not to mention a generous consultant fee as long as we keep going. And this is still a really awesome opportunity to bring good press to the area. Remember our first talk? Boost tourism, fight gentrification, make houses pretty for generations of families?”

I consider this. “Okay. But at what personal risk to you?”

Shelby shakes her head. “Nothing I can’t handle.” She must read the defensiveness in my expression because she narrows her eyes and holds up her hand.