"This is my big scene," Althea said, sounding very sure. "I'm going to be in it."

"Okay. Well, things may go… differently tonight." Lucy pasted a smile on. "So, while I know the storyboards call for you to wear this only as a safety, you might actually have to use it in case you have to rappel over the side."

Althea looked at her, eyes wide. "What's going on?"

"We're shooting a scene that could go wrong," Lucy said. "But Bryce will be there to take care of you."

Althea looked at her doubtfully.

"And J.T."

Althea still looked doubtful.

"You can trust them, Al. For tonight, there are two men you can trust." Lucy tapped her own chest. "See, even I'm wearing a harness. You and me in matching outfits. Except yours is a size two."

Althea thought about it. "Okay," she said and stripped off her camisole.

J.T. looked over and then looked away.

Nothing to see here, Lucy thought. That he hadn't already seen. Oh, screw that. All that mattered was getting Pepper back.

"Lucy?"

"Right." Lucy helped her get the harness on. "Okay," she said when Althea was rigged and clothed again. "Go over and have Nash check it and then have J.T. double-check that."

"What's wrong with Nash?" Althea asked.

"Nash is a bad guy," Lucy said. "We don't trust him."

"Oh." Althea blinked. "Is this the lying thing?"

Lucy hesitated and then thought, Truth can't hurt. "He kidnapped Pepper and he's holding her hostage until we finish this stunt."

Althea went white. "He what?"

"He's doing something crooked, and he needs to make sure the stunt goes off, so he had someone take Pepper into the swamp. And now we have to make sure the shoot goes off as planned so we can get her back. If you don't want to film-"

"That son of a bitch," Althea said, swinging around to stare at Nash, and Lucy drew back.

"Yeah, we think so, too." She looked at Althea closely. "You okay?"

"Yeah," Althea said, recovering. "I was just really happy because Bryce and I are getting married, and this is just ruining my mood."

"Wonderful," Lucy said, not so sure. "Well, Bryce and J.T. are right over there, so if you want-"

"I think Us is going to want the pictures," Althea said.

"Good," Lucy said again, wondering at Althea's lousy pronoun use and then recognizing the name of the weekly. " Us is a great magazine." Did you just hear me say Pepper's been kidnapped'

"Cutting edge," Althea said. "I was really happy. And now this." She looked furious.

"The guys are over there," Lucy said, and thought, I'm worried about Pepper and she's upset because the news is a buzz kill.

Althea headed for Nash, looking grim, and Lucy took a deep breath. Getting close to showtime. She looked back out at the grain towers and then the port cranes. Pepper could be there. Pepper could be anywhere.

Hang in there, honey, she thought. We're coming for you.

Wilder had looked over at Lucy helping Althea in time to see Althea strip to the waist. Oh, Christ, he thought, and turned to Bryce to finish explaining Rappelling 101. When he was done, he said, "So you got it?"

Bryce swallowed hard and nodded, taking a quick glance over the edge of the bridge at the dark water below.

Wilder continued. "I've already prepped two ropes on the outside of the railing, double-secured with snap links. My own ropes, not Nash's. This is only just in case. You most likely won't have to do it."

"Right," Bryce said, trying to project confidence and failing miserably.

"You always have to have an emergency escape plan," Wilder said. "Remember, we talked about that at Bragg when we trained together."

"Right."

"Althea's counting on you," Wilder said, trying not to feel guilty. It seemed like a thousand years since he'd gone back to his hotel room to find Althea in his bed. He looked over and saw her with Nash now, getting her harness checked and also evidently bitching him out. She looked furious, and he looked stone-faced. Well, anything that fucked up Nash's day was good by him. He looked back at Bryce. "I think she's tense. You know. She's going to depend on you."

"Right," Bryce said soberly.

"Okay, then." Wilder took out his cell phone. "I've got to make a call."

"Right," Bryce said.

Wilder peered at him. "You all right?"

"I'm not a hero," Bryce said. "I'm an actor."

"Tonight you're both," Wilder said.

"Yeah?" Bryce began to look hopeful.

"Yeah. Remember the bar fight? You were right in there, you were my wingman."

"Right," Bryce said, hope fading. "Except I screwed up."

"You won't screw this up. Althea is counting on you. Lucy is counting on you. I'm counting on you."

Bryce nodded.

"Anything else?"

"It's okay about you and Althea," Bryce said.

Fuck.

"It was my fault, screwing around on her. You didn't know about us."

Oh, crap. "Bryce-"

"We're getting married," Bryce said.

Wilder clapped him on the shoulder. "That's great." You poor son of a bitch.

"People and InStyle are interested in the wedding."

"Uh huh," Wilder said, not a clue what he was talking about. What people?

"I thought you could be my best man," Bryce said. "I mean, if you wanted to be."

Not really. "You bet, buddy. Now you remember the drill here, right?"

"Right," Bryce said. "Maybe after the wedding, Althea and I could rappel off a bridge onto our honeymoon yacht."

"Good idea," Wilder said. "Mention it to her." Before you shove her off the bridge when and if the shooting starts. "Now, I really have to make this call."

"Not a girlfriend, is it?" Bryce said.

"What?"

"The last time, you said it was your girlfriend, but it wasn't. You're on a mission, aren't you?"

"Yes," Wilder said, surprised Bryce was that acute.

"Army stuff?"

"No," Wilder said, and thought, What the hell. "CIA."

"Whoa." Bryce nodded. "Is that who you're calling? The CIA?"

"Yes," Wilder said. "Anything else you need before I go?"

"No." Bryce squared his shoulders. "Anything I can do for you?"

Wilder looked across the bridge to where Nash was punching numbers into his cell phone, his anger back under control. "Just follow orders and don't go near Nash."

"Right." Bryce looked over the rail at the ropes again.

"Hi, baby," Althea said, coming to stand beside him. She looked mad as hell.

"I'm going to take care of you, Althea," Bryce said in his best leading-man voice.

"I know, baby," Althea said and looked past him, fury in her eyes.

Wilder turned and saw Nash talking to Lucy.

"Could you check my harness, J.T.?" Althea asked.

"Uh, yeah." Wilder did the fastest check he'd ever done, essentially making sure it was securely attached to her body and she wouldn't slide through it. Her breasts would help in that matter: good anchor points. "You guys are good to go, then," he said and headed for Lucy, phone in hand.

"Lucy, you have to get Wilder off the damn bridge," Nash said, and Lucy turned around from watching Wilder talking to Bryce and Althea and said, "No."

It was amazing how normal Nash looked standing there, a little tense, but he was always tense before a stunt, that's why his stunts always went well. He didn't look like a soulless, babynapping bastard at all. God, I hate you.

"This is crazy, Lucy," he said, leaning in closer. "This guy, he's got you so paranoid, you're working with no crew. This is no way to make a movie, you can't possibly get-"

"Don't tell me about making movies," Lucy snapped. "It's never been about making movies for you, it's always been about you, you showing off, you getting the girl, you being the fastest gun in the West. I'm sick of it and I'm sick of you." She leaned closer to him. "And I will do whatever is necessary to get Pepper back. If that includes sending you to hell, I will do it with a song in my heart."