Total pages in book: 73
Estimated words: 69621 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 348(@200wpm)___ 278(@250wpm)___ 232(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 69621 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 348(@200wpm)___ 278(@250wpm)___ 232(@300wpm)
“Interesting choice of words,” Heath says from my other side, and I jump as he lunges at me with his mouth open wide. But he’s only fucking joking. He nips at my shoulder, then pulls away, taking a handful of popcorn on his way.
I can’t help but be kinda disappointed.
Josh is right, I am sucked in by the new series. The episodes zoom by, and I fire questions at Heath like there’s no tomorrow every time the credits roll. I am right back in Kington Springs, watching the tension between Polly and the Count grow and unfold now she knows the truth.
In this new round of episodes he ghosts a whole load more visitors in the woodland, and reveals the sacred past of Mackay, and by the time the finale approaches and the outside hunters arrive to interrogate Polly, she chooses crazy loyalty for the man who makes her bleed for fun. Because he does make her bleed for fun. A lot.
I groan when the end scene appears, knowing how the next cliffhanger is going to unfold.
The hunters have Polly as a ransom. Of course they do.
And will the Count surrender, really?
How the fuck is he going to rescue her from the swarms of bounty hunters in the village if he doesn’t?
“No spoilers,” Heath says before I get the chance to ask him. “The next part of the plot is strictly confidential.”
“Just a clue! Please!”
He shakes his head, and damn him, he’s insanely smoking hot in his Count getup. I’m as devoted to him as the woman on the screen.
“Come on, Heath, just a teaser!”
He zips his mouth. “My lips are sealed.”
I groan, because there’s no way he’s going to reveal anything. His adherence to confidentiality is as solid as Josh’s.
“Bloopers, then. You said there were outtakes. Come on, I’m desperate!”
“You really want to watch the bloopers after the grand finale of the series?”
“Um, YES.”
Josh leans in. “Heath, that’s the most ridiculous question I’ve ever heard. She’d watch every scene from every possible angle if she could.”
Heath laughs. “Yes, I can see that, genius. Maybe I’m just keen to hear her enthusiasm.”
“Hear her beg, you mean?”
“I’ll beg,” I butt in. “Happily. No problem.”
“Let’s save any begging for later.” Heath flicks the remote. “Outtakes it is.”
It’s so bizarre to see scenes with the word cut sounding out amidst the action. I’ve watched plenty of online videos of people on the set, with candid snippets, but nothing as professional as this. These are outtakes from the actual filming.
I almost piss myself laughing when Heath trips up on a woodland branch, going sprawling into the undergrowth, fully suited. He scrambles to his feet, and his pristine shirt is covered in mud. The way he swipes it down as the cast laugh around him is spectacular. Fuck sake, everyone, it’s not you who has to go back to wardrobe!
There are plenty of blooper scenes where people goof up their lines, or get the giggles, but there are a set of them that have me transfixed. One of the woodland scenes where Polly Anna falls into the Count’s arms.
Hmm. She seems to fall too hard on quite a few occasions, although she passes it off as slipping on her heels. I see the way she looks at him – still in the character of Polly while Heath straightens her up. She giggles a tad too much. Giving him the eye like he’s still the Count, drawn to her for all eternity.
“She fancies you,” I say. “You do know that, right?”
“Katie? Yes. I know that.”
I raise my eyebrows. “Are you not tempted? She’s absolutely gorgeous.”
“No, I’m not tempted.”
“Really?”
Josh squeezes my knee. “There are plenty of stunners on set, Ells. I’m sure they’re all out to tempt the Count, not just Katie Ryan. He could be a very busy boy if he wanted to.”
I examine the Count at my side. There’s no doubt that he must be a megastar of magnetism on set, not just off it. Yeah, he could be a very busy boy indeed, but here he is, isolated in France, with two hookers.
“You don’t fancy anyone on set at all?” I ask him. “What about Victoria Pewter? She looks quite like me. Or Peter Harold? He’d look like Josh if you squinted.”
“It’s not that I don’t fancy them, I don’t want them,” Heath says, and there’s an edge to his voice. Almost defensive. “I spend my life living out drama through filming every day, I don’t want any drama outside of it.”
Ouch. Something has spiked him. Josh nudges my foot and I let go of the conversation, taking another handful of popcorn and turning my attention back to the screen.
“Sorry,” Heath says, out of nowhere.
I smile at him. “You’ve got nothing to be sorry for. I shouldn’t be asking. It’s none of my business, I just get excited by Whispers. Everyone onscreen is amazing. Especially Polly. And you, of course.”