The camera was so close to Sophia’s face that Victoria’s body gave a little sympathy shiver. How could any person stand stock-still under such scrutiny? Was it some deep-seated confidence or pure defiance? Perhaps Sophia knew on some fundamental level how commanding she was as she stared out the window, unblinking, as the photographer hovered so close his breath stirred the little wisps of dark curls along the nape of her neck. Either Sophia was the most talented actress in the world, or she simply carried a level of self-possession Vic could only fantasise about.

She turned away under the guise of checking a few knick-knacks they had moved onto an end table to unclutter the shot. She hadn’t meant to use the words Sophia and fantasise in the same thought, but that’s what she’d done over and over for several days. She picked up a porcelain thimble and placed it over her thumb just to have something to do with her hands other than wring them together, which is what she’d done ever since she closed the door on Sophia and their ill-conceived date.

So much for casual.

She set the thimble down and picked up the refrain she’d carried around in her brain for days. She’d done the right thing that night. She’d said the right things. She’d been honest and extracted herself quickly as soon as she realised they’d crossed a line into a place she didn’t want to go. More importantly, she’d stayed away ever since. Thankfully, Sophia hadn’t pushed, which allowed both of them to focus on their work, but there was no escaping the fact that their work now threw them in each other’s path frequently. One of them seemed to be handling the new roles much better than the other, and spoiler alert, it wasn’t Vic.

She’d been a ball of tension bouncing back and forth between regret, and sadness at feeling that way. She should have been stronger or cooler. She would have even settled for resigned. She had plenty of practice with all of the above. Instead, she was full of nervous, fidgeting energy. The contrast of Sophia’s fortitude under professional pressure only reaffirmed why Vic had been right to step back.