a sofa and the remaining two draped across armchairs—to a man they were looking at Babs as though she had suggested something faintly indecent.
‘Just look at them, will you?’ groaned Babs, trying unsuccessfully to hide her amusement. ‘They’re useless! Mind you, I blame Carla—Sandro’s production secretary—she mothers them as though they were all three-year-olds! By the way, where is Carla?’ she asked, addressing the director. ‘I thought she was due here this morning.’
‘She was,’ sighed Sandro, approaching the trolley with the air of one condemned. ‘But she’s gone down with this wretched flu—as have Gina and Andy, half the grips and our continuity clerk, to mention but a few.’ He gingerly lifted the lid of the hot-water jug and swore as he burned his fingers. ‘Who’s for tea and who’s for coffee?’
‘Oh, for heaven’s sake, let me do it!’ exclaimed Babs, shaking her head but grinning broadly as she got to her feet ‘And while we’re on the subject of being short-handed, you know I have to leave tomorrow and that one of my assistants was to take charge.’
‘Was to take charge?’ enquired the director, glancing cursorily in Tessa’s direction.
‘Yes, was,’ said Babs. ‘She’s also been stricken by this flu, which is why I’ve had to rope in my cousin. The trouble is that she’s had no experience on set, so I was relying on Carla keeping an eye on things—especially the crowd scenes.’
‘Your cousin?’ muttered Sandro, this time not even giving Tessa a cursory look.
‘Yes—Tessa Morgan,’ stated Babs, again with emphasis, as she busied herself at the trolley.
‘I’m resigned to the fact that things will be chaotic here without Carla,’ stated Sandro gloomily, not so much by a flicker of an eyelid acknowledging Tessa’s presence, ‘and that our being so short-handed will only make a bad situation worse. Paolo’s due to start something in Florence in ten days and anyway my schedule’s too tight for any changes…so it looks as though I’ll have to scrap the additional medieval crowd sequences.’
‘So much for the trailer arriving any minute now, with costumes for two or three hundred,’ chuckled Babs, handing him two cups of coffee. ‘But at least Tess shouldn’t have any problem coping with the rest.’
‘The only wardrobe we’ll need will be for the scenes with the old man and his sons,’ said Sandro, looking down at the cups in his hands as though uncertain what to do with them. He glanced behind him and promptly handed one of them to the man nearest him, then removed himself to the chair Babs had just vacated and began drinking from the second.
‘Come and get it!’ called out Babs, flashing the unconcerned director a murderous look before picking up two cups of tea and handing one to Tessa. ‘You don’t mind if I perch here, do you?’ she asked, her pointed words bringing no discernible reaction from the man at whom their sarcastic content had been directed as she sat herself down on the arm of Tessa’s chair.
‘Would you like me to hand round the food?’ offered Tessa, once the men had helped themselves to drinks.
‘Over my dead body,’ growled Babs, then began chuckling to herself as two of the younger men stirred themselves and started passing the laden plates around.
‘You see,’ murmured Sandro after a while, amusement glinting in those extraordinary eyes of his as they homed in on Babs, ‘we’re not completely helpless without Carla.’ Then he added with a morose sigh, ‘At least, not as far as handing around a few plates goes.’
‘Surely you can learn to cope without her for the short while you’ll be here!’ exclaimed Babs unsympathetically.
‘You know perfectly well how invaluable she is to me,’ he protested. ‘It’s like losing my right hand!’
As he went on to extol his missing production secretary in lavish terms, Tessa listened with only half an ear, her ego reeling from the completeness with which she had been ignored…and was still being ignored! Though that was a bit like wanting to have it both ways, she admitted reluctantly to herself. She was the first to complain when, as frequently happened, she found herself on the receiving end of far too enthusiastic interest from men she barely knew. In fact, she reminded herself with a squirm of embarrassment, there had been times when she had treated ogling strangers in pretty much the same way as Sandro Lambert was now treating her!
‘For heaven’s sake, Sandro, you can’t start importing secretaries!’ exclaimed Babs, her incredulous laughter distracting Tessa from her discomfiting thoughts. ‘Why don’t you try roping in Angelica? I’m sure she’d be only too pleased to be able to help.’
‘This isn’t a joking matter,’ snapped Sandro. ‘How am I supposed—?’ He broke off as the hotel porter approached.
‘Miss Morgan?’
‘Yes?’ said Babs, turning.
‘The trailer’s arrived with your costumes.’
‘Thanks, I’ll be right out,’ she replied, draining her cup as she rose. ‘Come along, Tess, duty calls.’
Tessa rose and returned her cup and saucer to the trolley, then she followed her cousin to the door.
‘Heck, why didn’t I think of it?’ exclaimed Babs, leaning over to peer round her approaching cousin as she called out to the director who was staring morosely down into the contents of his cup. ‘Sandro, I suggest you try talking nicely to Tess…she’s a whiz-kid when it comes to shorthand and typing!’
Tessa gave her cousin a look of stunned incredulity.
‘Is that true?’ demanded Sandro, appearing as though by magic at her side and now interest personified as he gazed down at her, a megawatt smile adorning his hand-some features.
‘Sandro, not now,’ groaned Babs, grabbing Tessa by the arm and pulling her through the door. ‘I have to show Tess exactly what you’ll be needing from the trailer, otherwise you’ll have even more problems than you already have.’
‘And what, exactly, was all that about?’ hissed Tessa as she followed in her cousin’s rushed wake through the rear of the hotel and out to the car park housing the equipment trailers.
‘Sandro’s fretting because he won’t have Carla to tie his shoe-laces for him,’ retorted Babs with a laugh. ‘Though, as Carla never stops taking notes while he’s on set, he probably does need secretarial assistance of some sort—and I’d jump at it, if I were you.’ She opened up one of the trailers and motioned Tessa to follow her inside.
‘I wouldn’t have the faintest idea what a production secretary does,’ protested Tessa.
‘I’m sure Sandro’s perfectly capable of explaining what he needs,’ chuckled Babs, turning on a light and casting a critical eye around the neatly packed interior. ‘It’s just that getting three men costumed up isn’t exactly going to occupy much time and I know for a fact that Sandro would pay you top rates if you stood in for Carla.’ She turned and gave Tessa a reassuring smile. ‘At least give it some thought while we root out what you’ll need from this lot’
* * *
‘So, have you had any thoughts?’ asked Babs as they ascended the main staircase to their rooms an hour later.
‘It’s not as though I’ve been offered anything yet,’ stalled Tessa—but if she were, it would be a golden opportunity, she thought with an inevitable pang of guilt.
‘Look, Tess, you’re obviously aware how fond I am of Sandro,’ said Babs gently. ‘This is the third of his films I’ve been involved with and I’ve nothing but admiration for his incredible talent and also his professionalism.’
‘But?’ demanded Tessa wryly as they reached the door of her room.
‘But he can be extremely difficult where women are