His eyes sparkled withughter as he looked at her, a smile ying at the corners of his lips.


    Fagan dropped them off at a cozy little bistro downtown.


    Inside, the two of them grabbed a table and ordered lunch together.


    As they waited for their burgers and fries, Calliope started telling Ss about the Jewell family drama.


    She''d meant to handle it on her own, never really nned on involving Ss, but since he''d asked, she figured, why not let him in on it?


    "They''re trying to frame you and take everything you''ve got?" Ss frowned, concern etched on his face.


    "Yeah." Calliope shrugged, picking at her sd. "But joke''s on them. Grandpa didn''t leave me much anyway. Most of what I have is either from my mom, my brothers, or stuff I earned myself."


    She took a sip of her iced coffee, her tone calm and steady. “Trust me, I''ve got this under control."


    "They''re probably going to hold some big press conference," she went on, a wry grin forming. "I''ll just show up with the evidence and ruin their little show."


    She looked up, her eyes twinkling. "You don''t have to get your hands dirty in this one. If you want, just sit back and enjoy the show. I''ll have it handled in no time."


    Ss considered her words, then nodded. "Alright. But if you need me, you know you just have to say the word."


    "Of course. If I need you, I''ll definitely call." She smiled warmly. He was her husband, after all, no shame in leaning on him if she really needed to.


    "So, do you have any ns this afternoon?" Ss asked.


    "Yeah, I''ve got a casting session for a TV show," Calliope replied. "Now that I''m done with the Jewell family mess, I can finally focus on the show again."


    "Will it keep you busy?" Ss''s brow furrowed.


    "A little, yeah."<fn7b68> Content originallyes from f?ndnovel</fn7b68>


    "Any traveling?" His expression grew a touch sour. He clearly didn''t love the idea of being apart from her.


    "Some," she admitted, looking up at him. "Part of the job. But you''re not going to forbid me from going, are you?"


    "I''ll miss you, that''s all," Ss said, his frown deepening.


    "Hey, absence makes the heart grow fonder." Calliope teased, all mock- seriousness. “Don''t worry, I won''t be gone forever!"


    "Come home for dinner tonight," Ss said, softening a little. "I''ll cook. What do you want?"


    "I love anything you make," Calliope replied sweetly, shing him one of her brightest smiles.


    "Really?"


    "Really. Cross my heart." She looked


    up at him,


    reyes full of moset,


    "Don''t be mad, okay? If you''re upset, 14 be sad, too."  s


    "I''m not mad," Ss sighed, unable to stay annoyed when she looked at him like that.


    He was crazy about her. Whatever she wanted, he wanted to give. Especially when it came to her dreams, he''d always be her biggest supporter.


    "Good," Calliope grinned. "Let''s eat. I''m starving!"


    After lunch, Ss headed back to the office, while Calliope made her way to the studio for auditions.


    The show should''ve gone into production months ago, but a bunch of setbacks had put everything on hold Now finally things were back on track.  s


    Most of the main cast was already set, but they still needed to fill a few key supporting roles. With such a big-name director and a killer script, a lot of A-list and B-list actors were eager to give it a shot.  s


    As the screenwriter, Calliope was, of course, part of the selectionmittee,


    ready to help find the perfect fit for her story.