Chapter 395
Hogan ran a hand through his hair, finally making up his mind. He turned the car around, headed back to the office to pick up his things, and drove home.
A week might not seem long, but with hundreds of people working tirelessly on set, it felt like both an eternity and the blink of an eye.
Tonight, they would shoot the final scene of *Whispers of Winter*. Once the cameras stopped rolling, the production would officially wrap.
After months of non-stop work, Amara felt a mix of relief and excitement.
She had written a few scripts before, but this was the first time she’d been involved with a show from start to finish, pouring her heart and soul into every detail. She had high hopes for it, and now, with the end in sight, she couldn’t help but feel both bittersweet and eager for what was next. She couldn’t wait for the series to be released, to see how audiences would respond.
But not everyone was as relaxed as Amara. Take Liliana, for instance-she’d spent the last few days swinging between moments of relief and waves of anxiety.
Hogan had given her a week to come clean to Finnian about faking her pregnancy; if she didn’t, Hogan would tell him himself. By now, knowing Hogan’s temperament, he should’ve come knocking on her door to pressure her again, but he hadn’t. Maybe he’d given up?
Under Liliana’s careful maneuvering, rumors about Hogan being in love with Amara had spread like wildfire through the Wye social scene. She’d heard that people were scrambling to trace the source, but it was impossible to pin down. Eventually, everyone seemed to just accept it as fact.
If Finnian bought into the gossip, he’d never trust Hogan again. Even if Hogan tried to reveal the truth in a fit of desperation, Finnian probably wouldn’t believe a word he said. Liliana assured herself that Hogan must have realized this, which explained why he’d left her alone.
She ran through the plan in her mind over and over, convinced she’d tied up every loose end-there was nothing left to go wrong. At last, she let herself relax.
What Liliana didn’t know was that Hogan really had abandoned the idea of telling Finnian the truth-but for reasons she couldn’t have guessed. And she also couldnt Imagine that the Secret would eventually come out anyway; it just wasn’t time yet.
Two days after the series wrapped, Cedric decided to host a wrap party-a kind of “last supper” for the cast and crew.
As the show’s lead writer, Amara was, of course, invited. She arrived with Keith, and the two of them found a cozy spot tucked inside one of the restaurant’s private dining rooms.
Everyone knew how close the two were, so nobody batted an eye when they sat together.
Soon enough, Finnian and Liliana arrived. They were another well-known couple and naturally took seats together-directly across from Amara and Keith, as luck would have it.
The round table was huge, easily
fitting thirty people, so even though they sat opposite each other, Amara
and Finnlian were comfortagfy faitsiss
apart Amara was more than pleased; at that distance, things couldn’t possibly get awkward.
Dishes began to arrive, one after another. Amara barely had to lift a finger-Keith kept piling her favorite foods onto her plate, making her look like a little hamster diligently stockpiling snacks for winter.
He didn’t stop there, either; he was constantly refilling her water glass, making sure she had everything she needed. His attention to detail bordered on doting.