After the many apartments she and her mom had left behind—late on rent, with the utilities turned off—she had found immense comfort in being with someone so sure-footed. There would always be a bit of a nomad in her. Traveling from movie set to film festival to LA meeting was still her preferred life. She knew that. But she also knew that a small part of her craved if not a permanent home, then someone to come home to. Maybe John could be that person, or maybe he was just an on-set fling. She wouldn’t know unless she tried.

Chapter Twenty-One

Anna viewed the monitor under the cover of a tent. Today, they were filming in the castle exterior set. The rain added a needed dreary gloom to the scene, but she preferred to stay dry. Two weeks into the shoot, they were only one day behind. Considering the hurdles they’d already faced, she felt optimistic.

Looking up from the monitor, Anna watched Jenny and Reed chat while Reed waited for the next take. He leaned against the exterior wall, laughing at something Jenny said while she gesticulated wildly.

Anna was happy for her friend, as reluctant as she was to admit it. Reed gazed at Jenny like she was something precious, something he wasn’t sure he got to keep, but wanted to hold on to and never let go.

Anna glanced over to where John stood talking to the production assistant about the remaining schedule. When Anna woke, she knew she wasn’t going to stop herself anymore. She didn’t know when she had become someone who hesitated to reach for what she wanted instead of just grabbing it with both hands, but she was done waiting.

Anna called cut to give the actors a break from standing in the rain. She blew out a breath.

As John walked up to her, she had to consciously school her emotions.

“Anna?” John asked. “Did you hear what I said?”

“Can you repeat it?”

“You need to sleep more,” he scolded gently.

“I’ll sleep when we have more vampire fangs.”

“You realize I’ve scoured all of Europe for every plastic fang in existence.”

Anna took a deep breath. “Do you want to have dinner with me?”

“What?”

Anna resisted the urge to put her head in her hands. “Um, do you want to get dinner, sometime, the two of us?”

“Am I not doing a good job?”

“No, you’re doing a great job.” Anna stared at the monitor, even though they weren’t filming anything at the moment. “I thought we could eat.”

“We eat together all the time. We had leftover pasta for breakfast.”

“I mean like a meal where it’s only the two of us, maybe in the evening.”

John’s poorly contained laughter caused her to raise her head.

“I hate you,” Anna muttered.

“I’ve heard there are some specific things you like about me.”