Page 33 of Highlands Summer Wedding

“Of course you have,” I said earnestly.

Then a second sheep appeared. A third followed.

I lowered my phone. The sheep were wandering perilously close to the cliff edge.

Dropping my script, I sprinted toward them, only scattering the animals farther. I’d never dealt with livestock before. Would instinct keep them from the edge? Images of lemmings plunging to their deaths flashed through my head.

“Help!” I called, like some little old lady.

Max shot me a panicked look, then saw the sheep. “They’re just sheep.”

“They might wander off the cliff!”

“They won’t—will they?” He shrugged and moved on.

I caught his eye as he walked past. Just a second. But long enough to feel the quiet understanding that used to pass between us—me, clutching a clipboard, trying frantically to outthink every disaster before it happened, while Max was out there enjoying life without worrying about any of the things that I found paralyzing. And yet, my pre-planning was usually what kept things from falling apart.

Maybe I didn’t know sheep very well—but I still knew Max.

Hair, makeup, and wardrobe arrived moments later. Two stylists lugged racks of costumes into a hastily pitched tent—no trailers at a site like this.

I turned my attention back to the sheep. This was not what I pictured when I’d offered to be Max’s assistant for the day.

For the next hour, I did little but shoo sheep. I eventually recruited a few extras to try and corral them, until I started thinking about union rules.

Max shook his head, chuckling. “Honestly, I love having sheep in the scene. It’s perfect.”

A few minutes later, the actors emerged from wardrobe and gathered near the set.

Max lifted his megaphone. “Okay, everyone—PICTURE’S UP!”

Actors took their marks.

“QUIET ON SET!”

“ROLL SOUND!”

“Speed!” came the response.

“ROLL CAMERA!”

“Rolling!” the cinematographer called.

“BACKGROUND ACTION!”

Extras began milling through the field.

“MARKER!”

Clap

“And… ACTION!”

I didn’t move.

They nearly made it through—until a sheep wandered between the two leads.

“CUT!” Max barked. “Locations, get that sheep out of frame!”