A New York Love Story (9 page)

Perhaps it was a big mistake to let down her guard with him like that. By the next day Cade probably would barely remember the hours they had spent together. And of course, at the end of the holidays he would return to California without hesitation. However, she would remember every single minute with bittersweet nostalgia.

When they were almost in front of her gate, she forced herself to look up with a normal, detached expression. She didn't want to show any of her feelings. Most of all, she didn't want him to know how much she was impressed by this evening. She wasn't used to receiving so much attention, so it really had been a fairy tale evening for her! She was sad because the day was now over. That was all.

“How is your knee?”

Clover sneaked a look at Cade's profile in the dark of the car. She shrugged, “I almost don't feel it any more, but I'm sure tomorrow I will have a big bruise.”

“Put some ice on it. This is advice from someone who knows something about bruises.”

“Please, tell me you are clumsy too and fall all the time, and you'll make me happy! Someone perfect like you must have at least
one
embarrassing flaw to give some balance to this unfair world!”

“Sorry to disappoint but no, I don't easily stumble, but at school I was the victim of two bullies. Now are you happy?”

“Very…” she giggled. “But I can imagine how envious they are now, having discovered that you have become a big star.”

“Yes, in a way. It was my mother who took care of it. She had her revenge many years later, with my movie star success. Several times she had tried to stop those boys from bothering me, but without great success. She's stubborn, but she wouldn't hurt a fly. And she looks too innocent and fragile to intimidate anyone.”

Cade's voice reflected the great affection he felt for her. Clover was touched, “Will you spend the Christmas holidays without your parents, or will you return to LA?”

“Actually, my mother has organized everything. They will all be in New York to be with me. She knows I need some peace after all that mess out there, and didn't want to force me to go back to California. Yet the idea of Christmas missing one family member is inconceivable for her, so here they come!”

“It must be beautiful to have such a close family.”

Cade pulled into the garage and stopped, but didn't get out of the car. “Don't you have a close family?”

Clover tried to change the subject. “Did you see the sky? I think, – I hope – we'll have some snow soon.”

“Good side step!”

“Listen, I don't have that much to say about my family. I have a few relatives, several nephews and nieces that I never see… in a few words: we don't really get along.”

“So, will you spend Christmas all by yourself?”

Clover opened the car door and got out, seriously hoping he wouldn't ask her to join his family. She could enjoy his kindness, but she couldn't bear his compassion. So she lied.

“I'll be seeing them in a few days for my birthday. Then, they will invite me for Christmas Eve dinner, but I won't go. I'll have a much more fun dinner at a friend's house.”

“So, it's your birthday soon?”

“Yes – in exactly a week.”

Cade jumped out of the car to catch up with her. He took her arm to hold her. The asphalt was icy and slippery. At her perplexed glance, he shrugged and said, “You've already fallen three times. It would be good to prevent another fall.”

“My self-esteem is grateful to you!” Then, in front of her door, she sighed deeply and added, “Thank you for the fantastic evening.”

“It was a pleasure.”

There was a moment of silence; they both seemed embarrassed. Clover had dreaded this moment, when they would have to part. She expected to see Cade disappear in the darkness of the garden path, but he was still there – waiting for her to go in the house.

Men and their gentlemen's conduct!

She opened the door, stepped in, and her heart skipped a beat when he called her name.

“Clover, will you have some time for me in the next few days?”

And when the hell wouldn't I ever have time for you!
she thought.

“Hmm… yes, maybe. Why?”

“As I told you, my family will be coming to New York in a few weeks and I haven't even thought about their Christmas gifts. Would you help me find something special for them?”

Clover blinked – confused for a moment. “Oh, yes, I guess I could… but you still have plenty of time to shop – why do you need
my
help?”

“I'm not exactly sure I want to tell you how I solved my family's gifts for the last four years…”

“No – o – o! You mean you gave them money?”

“Well, you know, I'm always very busy.”

“Bullshit!” Clover was leaning in the doorway, with her arms crossed. “Your kindness tonight almost fooled me… you're bad! To be busy is never a good excuse for not finding a special gift for our loved ones! It's what I love best about Christmas – it's the chance to make those we care about surprised and happy.”

“My checks were pretty generous…” Cade still had that smirk.

Clover wasn't sure if she felt more like slapping him or kissing him. “Jesus! It's not the same thing, Cade! It's not a question of money, but of love.”

“Thank god you aren't the person in charge of the economic destiny of the country!”

Clover sighed with resignation. “You're hopeless. Ok, I'll help you. Who do you have to buy gifts for?”

“Mom, dad, brother, sisters…”

“How many siblings do you have?”

“There are four of us, including me.”

“Wow! Congratulations to Mr and Mrs Harrison…” Clover was wondering if they were all as attractive as Cade.

“So, when will you have time to help me?” He came up another step and a little closer.

Don't look at me like that… it's unfair!
“What about Tuesday at three? Come to Giftland. I won't be very busy that afternoon, so I will be available…”

“Perfect!” Cade smiled, and Clover moved away quickly from this irresistible man.

“Goodnight.” She stepped into the house.

“See you soon!” As he left, Clover was already dreaming about spending more time with him.

“Oh, shit! Clover, I'm afraid you're in trouble…” she mumbled to herself.

“Oh my god! I'm going to faint…” Zoe was emphatically fanning herself.

Eric looked up from the computer. “What's going on?”

“I think Cade Harrison – that Adonis! – has arrived early.”

Eric stuck his head out of his office and immediately noticed the tall and handsome man in front of the shop door. “I think you're right, Zoe. He's well camouflaged, thanks to his winter clothes, but undoubtedly it's him.”

“Think of the full impact he would have on women wearing his summer clothes, if he can be this sexy when he's bundled up like the abominable snowman!” Zoe sighed, looking in a mirror to fix her hair.

Eric looked at her, puzzled. “What are you doing?”

“Well, I'm going to ask him if he needs any help… so I can get a close look at him.”

“Even if Clover didn't give us lots of detail, she has been really anxious, and kept repeating over and over again, that Harrison would come here today. This has to mean something!” Eric finished up on the computer and was ready to follow Zoe. He continued, “It must mean she feels something for him, so therefore, you'd better watch your step. Do you know what I'm saying?”

“Hey – it's not like I want him to ask me out. I'm just curious to see what kind of person he is, and anyway, until Clover gets here, someone has to take care of him, right?”

Even before she opened the door, Cade instinctively understood the girl wanted to check out the Hollywood actor.

“Hello,” the girl said with an intense gaze and a well-modulated voice. “Don't stay outside. It's cold. Come on in, please.”

“I have an appointment with Clover O'Brian.”

“She's not back yet. She should be here any minute, but we can call her…” The girl leaned on the door of the office behind her, “Eric, can you take care of finding Clover?”

“Already done. She's coming.” Cade saw a guy with glasses coming into the room. He stopped to adjust some stuff on a shelf that didn't appear to need adjusting, and he hung around close by. Cade wondered if this guy was also checking out the famous actor, or his colleague, the brunette beauty.

“By the way, my name is Zoe Mathison, I am a friend of Clover's… nice to meet you, Mr Harrison!” The girl offered her hand, smiling at him.

Cade shook it, observing her. She was very attractive and aware of it. She seemed like a woman who knew what she wanted and how to get it. He wasn't a hundred percent sure if he was the object of her interest, for her attitude seemed ambiguous. She must confuse and delude many men with her seductive ways – a real
femme fatale
. Cade didn't know if this was intentional or not, but whatever the reason, the result was that she emanated a powerful sensuality.

However, this was one time in his life that he wasn't interested in getting too close to any woman. To be honest, he wasn't especially attracted to
this
woman, although most men would find her beautiful. Recently, he had begun to understand that there were other things about a woman that intrigued him.

He looked around the store with curiosity. Giftland was a two story shop packed with light, color, and a dizzying range of objects. One could find everything possible on shelves and display tables: frames, toys, small appliances, books, eccentric accessories, CDs, DVDs, all sorts of stuff. A big colorful sign behind the cashier described several custom services the store offered such as photo-books, video-stories, personalized little poems and of course, Clover's personal shopping service.

He had waited for this appointment with a certain trepidation. A few times he had felt the impulse to visit Clover, to knock on her door, but he assumed she was very busy with work. Most of all, he hadn't wanted to give her the impression that he was too eager to see her again. But actually he was. This was a new feeling for him and it made him wonder…

Of course he remembered what it was like when you started to warm to a girl, yet it hadn't happened to him for a long time. His last relationship, although it had lasted several months, hadn't made him happy – at least not happy like a child in front of a mountain of gifts under a Christmas tree. Yet this was exactly how he felt with Clover O'Brian. She must have cast a spell on him with all her talk of Christmas magic!

“So, I understand you're Clover's neighbor…” Zoe's voice woke him from his reverie.

“Yes, at least for a little while.”

“I always thought celebrities spent their holidays in places more trendy and interesting than Staten Island.”

“I spend most of my time in fashionable places, so – when I can – I prefer the
luxury
of returning to real life.”

“Gosh, it's funny…” Zoe giggled. “You think you want to know a lot about movie stars, and have a gazillion questions to ask them; yet, when you find yourself standing right in front of one, flesh and blood, all of a sudden you don't know what to say.”

“That's because everyone thinks of movie stars as being larger than life – sorry to disappoint you – but we are simply human beings.” Cade put his hands in his pockets. “However, you should ask your friend Clover for a list of embarrassing questions for movie stars. She's pretty creative like that.”

“Clover is unique,” Zoe smiled. Her gray eyes were so intense they were almost unsettling. Cade didn't have time to wonder what this might mean. Just then, Clover opened the door and burst into the room like a tornado.

“Here I am!” She was breathless. Her woolly hat skewed, a scarf sticking out messily from one of her pockets and her cheeks pink and glowing.

Cade thought she was adorable. “I didn't want to rush you. Sorry…”

“Rush? Not at all. I just had to run to warm myself up. It's as cold as hell outside!” Then, grabbing Zoe's arm without too much ceremony, she said to Cade, “I'll be right back.”

Once the two women disappeared behind a door, Cade found himself staring at the very serious Eric. He felt some empathy with him. “Are you the only man here?”

“How can you tell? Do I look that stressed?”

“A little bit!” Cade laughed. “I don't know about your third colleague, but if she is anything like the other two, you're in big trouble, dude.”

“I would say that Liberty is actually the most normal of the three… that pretty much says it all!”

“Ah – is Zoe your girlfriend?”

Eric suddenly appeared guarded. “Why? Do you want to invite her out?”

“No. I only noticed the way you were sort of watching over her…”

“Zoe doesn't realize it, but she has the ability to provoke just about every man who comes into the store. She's a real flirt, so I have to keep close check on her.”

He's crazy about her
, Cade thought, and instinctively felt sympathy for him.

A woman entered the store and Eric went to help her. She looked at Cade with a lot of curiosity and he was afraid she would recognize him any minute. Thank god Clover came back.

“Shall we go now?”

“Yes, please! Get me out of here or I will be forced to sign an autograph – and I'm not sure
where
it will be!” He whispered in Clover's ear, burying his face in her hair.

Clover looked around and saw the woman staring at them. She grabbed his arm, leading him towards the door. “For god's sake! I certainly don't want to watch you branding cattle here in the middle of the store!”

Cade couldn't help but laugh.