Page 14 of Heat Force

“Ready?”

She gave a hesitant nod.

Hawk called to Dan. “Okay, let’s go.”

A moment later, the director, Rex, called out, “Action!” The cameras started rolling.

Lexi froze. Completely. She stood like a statue, those soft lips slightly parted, eyes darting between Dan and the camera like a deer caught in headlights. Hawk could almost feel the panic rolling off her.

“Cut,” he said gently. Dan lowered the camera.

“I’m sorry,” Lexi murmured, covering her face with her hands. “Maybe we should get Robert?—”

“You’ll be fine,” Hawk said. “What’s the first thing you do when you get to work?”

“I wash up, then check on the gorillas.”

“Then, go through the motions. Don’t look at the camera. Pretend you’re showing me, like yesterday.”

Dan added. “We’ll wait for you to start. Just give us a nod when you’re ready.”

Lexi blinked, swallowing hard, and Hawk could see the effort it took for her to pull herself together.

“You’ve got this.”

She nodded to Dan, then turned to the sink. Slowly, deliberately, she began washing her hands, the familiar motions helping to ground her. Hawk stayed back, out of the camera’s line of sight, but he didn’t take his eyes off her.

When she was ready, Lexi led the crew down the hall to the recovery room, where the two orphaned gorillas were waiting with Patrick. The scene unfolded smoothly from there—Lexi worked with calm precision, checking Mto’s vitals and changing his dressing like she wasn’t being filmed. Hawk stayed just out of frame, but he could see she had it now.

She moved with a quiet confidence, her hands steady and sure, her focus entirely on the animals in front of her. It was almost like she’d forgotten the camera was there. He could see the connection she had with them, the way Mto relaxed in her arms, his soft noises of contentment filling the room.

Misha, the older of the two gorillas, was less cooperative. The little female wasn’t feeling well, and Hawk noticed the way Lexi’s expression shifted—concern creasing her brow as she took the gorilla’s temperature and prepared medication. She didn’t just care about these animals, shefeltfor them.

When Dan finally called, “Cut,” Lexi let out a breath she’d clearly been holding and gave Patrick more medication to administer later.

“That’s a wrap,” Rex said, glancing at his footage.

Dan grinned. “You did great, Lexi. Seriously. You’re a natural.”

She grimaced. “I felt like I was about to faint the entire time.”

“It didn’t show.” Hawk stepped forward, cutting Dan off. “You were impressive. Really.”

Her eyes flicked to his, skeptical but faintly pleased. “Thanks. I guess it wasn’t as bad as I thought once I got into it.”

Hawk saw his opening and took it. “Now that you’re warmed up,” he said casually, signaling to Dan, “how about a quick interview? Just a few words about the clinic, what you do here.”

Her eyes widened. “Oh, I don’t know?—”

Before she could back out, he pulled a small microphone from his pocket. “Nothing heavy. Just the basics. You’ve got the best perspective on the work you do here.”

She hesitated, weighing her options. “I thought Robert was supposed to handle this kind of thing.”

“We’ll interview Robert later,” Hawk said smoothly, clipping the mic to her shirt himself. Damn, it was a mistake to get this close. He smelled her shampoo, warm and enticing, her heat, her warmth. Those forest green eyes staring up at him.

He cleared his throat. “This is your chance to talk about what matters to you. I promise, it’ll be painless.”

She rolled her eyes. “Fine. But I’m blaming you if I sound like an idiot.”