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Back Just for December Save as PDF
Chapters (54)
  1. Cover
  2. PRAISE FOR LAURA JANE WILLIAMS
  3. Dedication
  4. 1
  5. 2
  6. 3
  7. 4
  8. 5
  9. 6
  10. 7
  11. 8
  12. 9
  13. 10
  14. 11
  15. 12
  16. 13
  17. 14
  18. 15
  19. 16
  20. 17
  21. 18
  22. 19
  23. 20
  24. 21
  25. 22
  26. 23
  27. 24
  28. 25
  29. 26
  30. 27
  31. 28
  32. 29
  33. 30
  34. 31
  35. 32
  36. 33
  37. 34
  38. 35
  39. 36
  40. 37
  41. 38
  42. 39
  43. 40
  44. 41
  45. 42
  46. 43
  47. 44
  48. 45
  49. Acknowledgements
  50. Publishing Credits
  51. Keep Reading …
  52. About the Author
  53. Fiction by the same author
  54. About the Publisher

As they head back to the trailers, Duke gently tugs Evie to a stop. ‘Hey,’ he says. ‘Is there anything I can do to help?’

‘You’re cute,’ she says, dismissively.

‘Don’t push me away,’ he says, calling her on it. ‘I mean it. Telling me what’s up when I ask you is one thing, but I’m rapidly learning that you don’t actively ask for help very easily.’

She pulls a face.

‘Evie,’ he says. ‘You don’t need saving – I know that. And I also know if I tried to rescue you, somehow, from your own humanness, that you’d hate me. But girrrl?’ He uses a silly voice now too, like he gets the only way she’ll be able to hear him is if he takes out the emotional weight. ‘You gotta use your words to tell other people how they can be there for you whilst you’re busy rescuing yourself from this humanness. Okay?’

She giggles, another distraction for him.

‘Well?’ Duke presses. ‘Is there anything I can do?’

She pauses, clearly mulling it over. ‘I don’t think so,’ she says. ‘You’re right though – I should ask for help more. I was just thinking I wish Magda was here, so maybe I can text her to ask if we can FaceTime a bit more, so I can share all this as it happens.’

Duke smiles. ‘More FaceTime with Magda sounds very doable,’ he says.

‘Yes,’ she says. ‘It does. I’ll text her, ask if we can talk tonight.’

22

Evie

Evie shadows the content team of Willow and Dream all morning and features on camera herself a little too. She talks about the idea for the book, how it feels to see it get made, and then Duke, Daphne, and Brad are all interviewed with the cameras and equipment for that afternoon being set up in the background, talking about their roles and how exciting it is to all be working together. They finish with all three of them laughing about the mad dash to finish before Christmas so they can all get home to their families, but when Dream says she’s got everything she needs their three faces fall, the smiles slip away, and the director can’t leave quick enough.

‘Brad—’ says Daphne, but it’s already to his back.

‘No, thank you!’ Brad shouts over his shoulder, and it makes Evie furrow her brow in question. It’s none of her business, and yet …

‘Stress,’ Daphne says to them all: Evie and Dream and Willow. But the way she exchanges a look with Duke betrays her. It’s just a flash, half a second, but Evie sees it. They’re in cahoots somehow.