"He wouldn't be upset." Althea looked back at Wilder. "He's doing one of the makeup girls. Mary somebody. Do you think J.T. likes me?"

"Everybody likes you," Lucy said grimly, as Pepper came running back with the apple.

"I had to look for a Gala," she said, presenting it to Lucy. "They were mostly Red Delicious. That's not as good, right?"

"Right." Lucy took the apple while watching Althea, who was still zeroed in on Wilder. "Thank you, Pepper, you did exactly right." And now I have to eat another apple.

"So," Althea said, "J.T.'s, like, in the Army?"

"You're welcome," Pepper said, frowning at Althea.

"Evidently," Lucy said. "Bryce seems to have found him at Fort Bragg."

Althea licked her upper lip. "What do you know about him?"

"Absolutely nothing." Lucy bit hard into her apple.

"He looks like a guy you could count on, you know?"

Lucy swallowed. "Althea, if you're looking for dependability, don't go to men. If you've-" she looked down at Pepper, who was listening intently, "dated seventy-three of them, you must have noticed that they often leave."

Althea transferred her interest back to Lucy. "You think Nash is going to leave? Is that what happened the last time? When you were young?"

Lucy looked at the twenty-something actress with distaste. "No. When I was young, he lied to me and I left."

"J.T. doesn't look like a liar," Althea said, going back to her first interest. "But I don't think he's really warmed up to me yet."

"J.T. is not a liar," Pepper said.

Lucy followed Althea's eyes to Wilder, standing alert and still in the middle of chaos, watching everybody with those flat, cold eyes. "I don't think Captain Wilder warms up to anybody." Although it certainly would be interesting to make him try.

"I can make a man warm up," Althea said, and Lucy felt a spurt of irritation that was as legitimate as it was hypocritical. "And he looks dependable. He might be marriage material."

"J. T. Wilder does not strike me as the marrying type," Lucy said with complete sincerity. "Now, about this next scene-"

Althea turned obediently back to her mark. "Do women count?"

"What women?"

"The women I've… known," Althea said, keeping an eye on Pepper. "Because if they don't, I'm only at seventy-one."

"They count," Lucy said.

Althea nodded, and Lucy looked back at Bryce and his new buddy and felt like kicking them both. She didn't want to fight for Bryce- the dumbass was doing the makeup girl, she'd have left him, too- but she only needed four more days. And she'd have them if J.T. Wilder would stop dazzling Althea, damn it.

"Gators do not eat apples," Pepper said.

Althea smiled down at her, probably recognizing a kindred spirit in somebody who would say anything to get attention. "You know a lot about gators."

Pepper nodded. "They're my Animal of the Month."

"Oh," Althea said, and Lucy thought, And now she'll want an Animal of the Month, too, and thought of Wilder.

"Tell me something scary about them," Althea said to Pepper, evidently gearing up for more terror.

"They can outrun a horse," Pepper said solemnly. "Although not for very long. You couldn't race them or anything."

"And they have sharp teeth," Althea said.

"No," Pepper said sternly. "They have dull teeth. They don't bite, they clamp down. And then they thrash their victims to pieces."

Althea's eyes widened.

"Okay," Lucy said cheerfully. "Enough gator lore. Why don't you go wait for me at the monitors?"

"Okay," Pepper said without moving. "I know what I need. You know, what you asked me? I need a Wonder Woman Barbie. I have all the Super Hero Barbies except that one and I should have them all so that when I have friends, we can play with them."

When I have friends? Lucy looked at her, appalled. Pepper didn't have friends. Well, she wasn't in school, Daisy tutored her, so how could she have friends? That's got to change.

Meanwhile, Pepper had stopped, perplexed. "You know, SuperGirl has white mittens. I don't get that."

Lucy smiled at Pepper. Get her into school later, make her happy now.

"A Wonder Woman Barbie. I'll look into that. But for right now, go back to video village, baby. Tell Gloom I'll be right there."

Pepper nodded and walked away, her little shoulders slumping.

"Sorry about the gator lecture." Lucy peered at Althea. "You okay?"

"Well, I don't like Moot so much anymore," Althea said, but then she stopped, her eye caught by something behind Lucy.

Lucy turned and saw J. T. Wilder, looking stone-faced and dangerous.

Althea wiggled her fingers at Wilder.

Wilder looked at Althea as if she were Moot.

You'll never outrun her, Lucy thought, she's faster than she looks.

"I'm ready for my close-up now," Althea said, still staring at Wilder.

"I'll tell Mr. DeMille," Lucy said and went back to the monitors, more annoyed than she should have been.

Wilder watched Armstrong head back to video village under the lights or the set, attacking another apple as she went, and thought, Apples and women. Not a good history there.

The night wind picked up and blew back her shirt, exposing her curves in that white T-shirt again.

Course, he'd never been any good at history.

His satellite phone vibrated in his pocket and startled him out of staring. He turned and walked away from the set into the darkness as he pulled the phone out. Nobody had his number except Group and an ex-girlfriend who was so ex she was probably married with four kids by now and who wasn't supposed to have the number anyway since it was an Army-issue phone. Which meant this was an alert.

Fuck, Wilder thought. Alerting him on leave meant a real mission. He glanced at the display before answering: blocked.

"Captain Wilder," he snapped into the phone, and Bryce looked up from playing with the clasp on the knife sheath, impressed.

The voice on the phone said, "Captain Wilder." what the hell? He'd just said that. He waited and there was nothing but static for several moments, which Wilder recognized as a scrambler being used by whoever was calling him. That, combined with the fact that the call was bouncing through secure military satellites, confirmed that whatever was coming was going to be bad news.

"Captain Wilder, you have been seconded to the CIA and you need to make a meet. One hour. A diner in a small shopping mall in South Carolina right after you come off the Talmadge Bridge. Eddy's."

The static ended and Wilder pulled the phone away from his ear and stared at it. What the hell?

He put the phone away and caught sight of Bryce, looking serious, mouthing, "Captain Wilder," with different expressions, evidently trying to get the same look Wilder had just had.

If I really look like that, Wilder thought, I'm going to stop answering the phone.

Bryce caught him watching and flushed.

"Okay if I take a break?" Wilder said. If he says no, I have to quit. Fucking CIA.

Bryce grinned at him and nodded at the phone in his hand. "Girlfriend?"

"Uh, yeah," Wilder said. Me and the CIA. We're close.

"Take all the time you want." Bryce winked.

Wilder nodded back toward the set. "What about Armstrong?"

"I'll take care of her, buddy." Bryce winked again.

"Thanks." Wilder walked away before he got a third wink, almost grateful for the call.

He headed for his Jeep and then caught Armstrong watching him with a look he couldn't quite make out. Not my day, he thought. She hadn't wanted him, and Bryce had forced the issue. Might be a smart idea to take a couple of minutes, try to mend things. Hell, he could practically see where the meeting was to be, just north of the bridge. He had an hour to get there. He could check out with the boss lady, make her feel like she was in charge, scope out the T-shirt. Plus, he was in no rush to make this meeting. Anything, even being on this screwed-up set, was preferable to a meeting with the CIA.