We’re walking in the direction of
Sophia
’s apartment and the awning over the entryway is in sight when I realize that I have no idea what he meant. “Face the music?”
“You don’t think I’m
letting you
explain
to
Sophia
Pearce
while you’re still hanging out with me a day later, do you?” He shudders.
“
In addition to
everything else she is…” He
murmurs something else under his breath that I’m pretty sure isn’t a compliment.
“She’s the worst gossip I’ve ever met. And my newly established movie star status, no matter how fleeting, has caught her interest.
She can’t handle the thought of anyone else having something that she even thinks she could possibly want. Sending you in there alone is the equivalent of throwing you to the wolves.”
“To the wolves?” He’s painted a pretty accurate picture, I think, surprised. I had always assumed that every guy on the planet was lost to her charms and blind to everything else she is, but he’s laid her out in an unflattering light.
He sighs
. “I really didn’t want to have this conversation right now, but I think it’s unavoidable.”
A million thoughts, none of them
particularly pleasant
, race through my head before he looks deeply into my eyes and smiles.
“
For all of the people in it,
New York is a
pretty
small place.
Sophia
and I had a brief and ill-fated fling years and years a
go when we were in high school. T
he reason I went to
her
party was to see her.”
Of course.
I was hoping that
by some mir
acle, they had never hooked up. It would have been too much to hope for. I’ve
already
been preparing
myself for the almost inevitable fact that they had.
But I am
really
wondering why he feels like it’s necessary to tell me all of this.
“Ok,” I say, because he’s checking for something in my own face.
Seemingly relieved, he moves on. “I had a massive crush on her.”
I’m insanely
jealous
, but still unsurprised. “And…”
“And you managed to knock that completely out of my head the second that I saw those flip flops peeking out from under the booth at the diner.”
“What are you talking about?”
“I came to take
Sophia
’s mysterious friend around New York because I was hoping it would be you.
”
My jaw is on the floor. “I really don’t understand.”
“You captivated me. You s
wept every thought of
Sophia
Pearce away. That’s something that
I’ve been trying for a long time to do. I was
always
going to see you again, one way or the other. I just hoped I wasn’t going to have to hunt you down.
”
“What are you talking about?”
“Well, I’m telling you that my plan was to stalk you. But
it seem
s like everything worked out ok, some minor stalking aside.
”
I’m staring at him
in disbelief
.
He’s laughing now. “You’re always doing that.”
“What?”
“
Selling yourself short.
Forgetting how
incredibly
beautiful you are.
”
I really don’
t know what he’s talking about
. “You are so
ridiculous
. I don’t need to hear all of thi
s. I really don’t.
Sophia
…
”
“
I don’t give a shit about
Sophia
. I’m telling you all of this because you need to know, because she’s your f
riend and I’ve seen the way she
treat
s
her friends.
We will go to Sam’s party because you’re staying with
Sophia
Pearce and she is the most stubborn creature on the face of the planet. If we don’t go, she will cry and beg and plead and make your life a living hell. Especially given the fact that she was already dreaming about which dress she would wear to
which
of my
movie premiere
s
, and that’s completely out of the realm of possibility right now.
I’m telling you all of this because
I don’t want you wondering about her and me.
Ok?”
He moves
my head up and down with his hands because I’m stunned into silence, which is becoming a regular occurrence. Apparently. “I also want to go to Sam’s party with you because the view is incredible and after we spend five minutes making small talk, we can escape. Say ok.”
Partly because he is completely in command at this exact moment, and partly because I’m still stunned at the total honesty he’s just displayed, I nod my head. “Ok.”
“We are going upstairs now, and yes, I am coming with you.”
“Ok.”
“I also need your phone number, since that’
s one thing
I’ve neglected to get from you. Among other things.”
H
e leans down and kisses me again and nods in satisfaction.
“
The plan was not to let you out of my sight, but since events have made that impo
ssible for the moment, I need your number. N
ow.”
“You’re totally asking for my phone number,” I squeal, poking him in the stomach.
“I am most definitely asking you for your phone number,”
he replies
, grabbing my phone and punching numbers in. “Ok. Now you can send me naked pictures of yourself. Really dirty ones.”
“Hate to disappoint you, but I’m really just not that kind of girl.”
“
Now, that’s a shame
.
”
We fall
silent in
the lobby and on the elevator. B
efore we enter the apartment, which I’m still dreading, he turns to me and
smiles, which bolsters my spirits
. “You. Me.
Deserted rooftop
.
A view of the city.
”
“That sounds pretty nice
.”
“Yes, it does sound pretty damn
nice
.”
I use the key to open the door
.
Chris’s arm is wrapped possessively around
my waist
and I try to shake myself free, but he just wraps it more tightly around me
.
“
Hallie
!”
Before we can even get in the door,
Sophia’s voice
echoes through the apartment. “
I cannot wait to tell you about what I just heard. You are totally going to die!” She’s running into the room when she
stops dead in her tracks. “Christopher.”
“
Sophia
. It’s good to see you.”
His arm doesn’t move from my waist
as he gives her a measured look
.
I can see her brain trying to figure it out
as she takes both of us in
.
She gives me a puzzled glance and
I shrug in response
.
“Release my friend, Christopher,” she says, giggling. “We need to get dressed
for Sam’s and I’ve been waiting all day for her
.
You were supposed to be my hired tour guide, not a total friend thief.”
D
espite the gigg
les, her eyes are flashing dangerously
.
“Just had to make sure I delivered her safely back into your care. It’s temporary, though. I’ll reclaim her at Sam’s.
I think I’ll be applying for more of a permanent tour guide position,
”
he adds, squeezing me and staring at her.
There’
s a battle going on.
The tension between the two of them is palpable, and
I’m wondering whether Chris’s earlier honestly was a masquerade, whether
the history
between the two of them
ran deeper than I feared
.
“We’ll have to see about that,” she murmurs, reaching for my arm.
“No, we won’t
.” He’s certain, pulling
me in and giving me a long kiss that leaves little doubt in my mind as to whether or not I’ve been claimed. “That was for her benefit,” he whispers into my ear
before lea
ning down to kiss me again
. “This is for mine.” I’m drowning. He’s out the door with a wink for me and a
too-
casual wave at
Sophia
and I stare after him.
I stand in the foyer
, snow melting in
my hair and all over my clothes. I’m still
shaking from his kiss
when Sophia turns to me
.
“What the fuck was that?”
I’m not sure how to answer, because
I don’t want to talk about him. It seems silly, but I’m afraid that any words will just bre
ak the magic of the past two days, that he’ll disappear, kind of a reverse
Rumpelstiltskin
.
But
I know that she’s just g
oing to keep asking, so I
muster up a response.
I honestly don’t know what we are, so the words are true. “I don’t know.”
“Oh my
god, you totally slept with him.
”
She’s circling me, inspecting my clothes and hair and face.
“I didn’t, actually.”
The words pop out of my mouth.
She looks genuinely surprised now. “But he
always
…
With girls…
”
I don’t want to hear the end of that sentence.
“
We spent the last couple of days together. That’s it.”
“No way. You are not getting off that easy.
And you’re lying to me, because h
e totally mau
led you in front of me. That kiss was not nothing. We need wine a
nd I need details. Now.
”
She’s ushering me to the couch
, and I sit down next to her warily.
Thoughts of both
Chris’s words of warning
and the whole
Sophia and the Todd incident cross my mind, and for a second, I wonder what scheme she’s cooking up.
But then
I remember the
Sophia
from the morning before and the
lost little girl look in her eyes when
she had described her New York friends and I remember the dozens of mornings we’ve spent discussing her latest conquest
over coffee
and long a
fternoon sunbathing on the quad.
I push thoughts of duplicity aside
, because if nothing else, I could use her advice, no matter how misguided it sometimes was
.
“So, we might have spent the past two days trying not to rip each other’s clothes off.
” I put my face in my hands and correct myself. “Or, I spent the last two days trying to rip his clothes off while he tried to stop me.”
She’s confused
and I try to answer. “
He’s got some weird moral
hang-up and said he didn’t want to screw things up
.
”
“Chris Jensen is
trying to
stay out of a girl’s pants?
” She clucks her tongue and
there’s an incredulous look on her face. Her next
words and the skeptical tone in her voice
drive a dagger into me. “
I don’t believe it.”
“Yeah, I don’t know.”
“Well, people can change. I guess even Chris Jensen.” Her face is still saying that she doesn’t believe it.
I shrug, trying to make myself as casual as possible. “Maybe he just doesn’t want me.
It’s happened before. I’m the queen of the friend zone, remember?”
She brushes it off. “Don’t be so ridiculous, Hallie. The friend zone is for boys, not girls. And
even if you were the queen of the friend zone, which I’ve told you a million times that you aren’t
, I don’t think Chris Jensen has any intention o
f keeping you there
.”
The next words slip out. “I might be crazy, but I think he actually likes me.”
“He probably does,” she says, but there’s hesitation in her voice.