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Chapter three

They stayed like that, the sweetness of holding each other close tinted but not tainted by the knowledge of their coming separation. She'd be leaving in two days for a meeting abroad with the makers of her next film, a big action franchise. So this time together was even more precious.

Tomorrow the world would claim them again, make demands on their time and energy, but today belonged to them. They'd spoken of going out, meeting friends or family, but they didn't do any of that. Instead they spent the day in bed. Talking, watching movies, eating pizza straight from the box. Laughing and loving, holding each other close and shutting out everything else. They'd each sent a message to their assistants in the morning asking them to hold all calls, then turned off their phones for the day.

Evening found them curled up together in a single large easy chair on her balcony watching the sun go down over the sea. "This was a perfect day," she murmured. He hummed in agreement, face buried in her neck. She laughed and he raised his head to look into her eyes. "I didn't think it was possible to be so relaxed," she said, smiling at him. He pulled her in for a kiss, their tongues tangling and lips caressing each other. She slipped her hands through his hair and massaged the nape of his neck and he moaned into her mouth. She hummed in pleasure when he shifted his arms around her to hold her even closer, his fingers stroking gently over her skin. They continued to trade slow, drugging kisses as the sun set and the stars came out above them.

Eventually they headed to the kitchen to make dinner. They worked side by side to chop vegetables and chicken, boil noodles, and saute everything into a quick stir fry. He set music to play on his phone so they danced and sang and laughed as they cooked. Every so often he'd lean over and drop a kiss on her cheek or shoulder or whatever part of her he could reach. She'd laugh each time and turn to catch his lips with hers. The noodles were a little overcooked and the stir fry a little burnt because of their preoccupation, but neither minded.

After dinner he cleaned while she got out ingredients to make brownies. "Chocolate chips? Nutella swirl? Or ganache frosting?" she asked him.

"Uh... All three, obviously," he said, and she rolled her eyes.

"Why did I even bother to ask," she said.

He laughed. "Can I help?" he asked once he was done rinsing the dirty pans and dishes.

"Hmm... Could you set the oven to heat, please?" she asked as she mixed up the batter. She could make this recipe in her sleep, with the number of times she'd made it - especially since she'd started dating him. He loved her brownies and she'd taken to mixing surprising things into them just for him to guess. This time, she added a pinch of black pepper, a little cardamom, and a few strands of saffron while he wasn't looking.

When she turned to him she caught him dipping his fingers into the jar of Nutella. "At least use a spoon!" she scolded.

His eyes twinkled mischievously. "Where's the fun in that?" he said, then reached out one chocolate-covered hand to her. She squealed and tried to escape, but he caught her and painted a streak of chocolate onto her cheek, then leaned over and licked it off.

"Eeww, that's disgusting!" she shrieked and rubbed her cheek against her sleeve.

"Mmm, delicious," he said, an evil glint in his eyes.

She held out the wooden spoon she'd been using to mix the brownies in front of her. "No brownies for you if you do whatever it is you're thinking of doing," she threatened.

He looked at her, considering. "Hmm... Alright, make the brownies," he said, taking a step back.

She kept a wary eye on him as she scraped the batter into the tin and put it in the oven. "I still need to make the ganache, so don't get any ideas," she warned him.