The Pretend Girlfriend (35 page)

Beatrice put her hands on her hips, her elbows pointed out defensively. And then she bowed, lowering the top half of her body. "Why thank you, your majesty. That makes it all better."

Mouth agape, Gwen didn't know what to say. How could you apologize if the other person refused to listen? Aiden's absence ate at her. He would know what to say or do, putting on that professional veneer of his and somehow just knowing the right words to put the other person at ease.

But at the moment, Aiden stood in a small group closer to the entrance doors, shaking hands and smiling like a mayoral candidate on campaign.

And then Beatrice started walking away. Reaching out, Gwen snagged her friend's elbow. When Beatrice spun to confront her, a look of betrayed anger tinged her pretty features red.

"What?" Beatrice said, tugging at her arm, trying to free it.

People around them started taking notice. A woman with platinum hair and a pearl necklace so big it was a wonder she didn't fall forward from the weight indicated them with her hand to the tall guy she was with. "Isn't that Aiden's fling?"

Gwen ignored the stares, or tried to, at least. This might be the only chance I get to make my case to her! Gwen thought.

"Can't we just talk? I know it was wrong to keep it from you, and I'm sorry. I really am. I wished I'd told you right away. Can't you forgive me? You mean too much to me to lose."

Beatrice's struggles relaxed a little, the anger in her face softening. For a moment, Gwen dared hope, letting her fingers loosen around B's wrist.

With a yank, Beatrice pulled herself free. They had quite the audience now, everyone looking at them askance, their conversations muted and forced as they did their best to eavesdrop. Nothing beat some juicy gossip, it seemed.

Beatrice practically basked in the attention. Meanwhile, Gwen's throat started closing at the same time as her heart tried to climb up through it.

The relative silence of the crowd snagged Aiden's attention. She could see him from her peripheral vision, trying to get her attention. Probably trying to get me to stop, she thought. She ignored him.

"I don't think I can, Gwen," B said, turning to head for the doors. The crowd began parting around her.

Throwing caution aside, Gwen said, "So why did you call him to help me, then?"

"Because I think you two deserve each other, that's why," Beatrice replied. She accepted Liam's outstretched hand just as an usher opened the door and said that people could begin seating themselves.

Aiden fought through the current to get to her. "What's going on? It doesn't look like you two managed to make up. Come on; if we want the good seats we need to get going." He grabbed her hand and started guiding her to the doors, holding out those silver tickets so that the usher could tear them and give back the stubs.

"My publicist tried to get a hold of Billy Crystal to do an introduction, but apparently he wasn't available..." Aiden said, clearly trying to cheer her up. He continued the trend by buying her popcorn (no one else got any) and a diet soda to wash it down.

The seats were hard and old (though Aiden did get her favorite spot, three rows up from the front and right in the middle), and Gwen kept shifting around, but couldn't get comfortable. Someone had given the place a thorough clean, judging by the heavy lemon-cleaner scent that just barely masked decades' worth of stale popcorn. And she didn't see much of the movie, mostly just flickering lights and colors that tugged at her attention but never managed to seize it.

Most of her attention focused on a pair of seats in the left side of the front row, where Liam sat with his arm draped around Beatrice's shoulders.

Gwen had really wanted to watch the movie closely, so that she and Aiden could talk about it after. Instead, she kept trying to think of ways that she could make Beatrice understand.
And besides, what did it mean when she said that Aiden and I deserve each other?

If Beatrice's goal in coming had been to get into her head, she'd succeeded.

At least she didn't tell everyone about the contract,
Gwen realized. Guilt tinged her thoughts. She shouldn't be suspicious of Beatrice like that, she knew. Maybe that was why B wouldn't forgive her or accept her apology. Her friend could tell what she was thinking.

How can I make this up to you, B?
Gwen wondered, squeezing Aiden's hand.

T
he movie ended. Aiden went to the front of the theater and thanked everyone for coming and donating. The audience applauded, then began filing out. In the general press, Gwen didn't bump into Beatrice or Liam. She didn't know whether to be happy at missing another possible awkward moment, or upset at losing another chance to set things right.

She squinted and blinked against the harsh New York sun as she and Aiden stepped out of the theater. That daylight jarred her. It always felt strange to go to a matinee like that. You go and sit in a dark room for a while and come out into broad sunlight. Somehow, she always expected it to be just as dark outside.

Normally, she might have found it rejuvenating after getting used to it. Going to see a movie you really got into takes a lot out of you emotionally, she always found. Except she hadn't really watched the movie at all. And a dull ache throbbed in the small of her back. And the air conditioning had been too cold inside.

Really, she looked forward to going home (either to her place or Aiden's) and just spending more time alone with him. There was one thing they could do that might take her mind off her Beatrice problems.

"Will you give me a moment? There's a call I need to make," Aiden said, touching her shoulder. She gave him the requested moment grudgingly, and he went back under the shade of the marquee as he dug his cell out of his pocket.

Finally, he came back over and guided her to the waiting Town Car with a hand on her back. The warmth of his touch melted away some of that dull throb from the crappy theater seating.

"My place or yours?" Gwen said, smiling at Aiden while the driver signaled and pulled out into traffic.

"Actually, I thought something else might be a bit nicer," Aiden replied.

She let her hand rest on his thigh, running the tip of her index finger slowly and sinuously against his slacks. "You know, I really think we'd have more fun alone," Gwen said. Trying to make her point extra clear, she let her hand move a bit higher up his leg.

"That sounds nice—incredibly nice, even," Aiden said, "But I think you'll really appreciate this. I expect extra points." He put his hand on top of hers, arresting the stroking of her finger.

"You do know I mean..." Gwen started, giving the driver a glance, then leaning in close so she could whisper to Aiden, "You know I mean sex, right?"

There,
she thought.
I said it.
Guys really could be so dense, no matter how great they seem. Sometimes, you just have to spell it out for them.

Except Aiden didn't give her the expression of shocked realization she expected. He smiled warmly at her and gave her a kiss on the forehead. "Yes, I know what you meant. I do understand subtext, you know. Harvard educated and all that."

"Then what could possibly be better than that right now?" Gwen said, exasperated.

Grinning at her, Aiden turned to the driver, "The Empire State Building, if you please."

"Yes, sir," the driver replied, switching lanes so he could make a left and bring them deeper into Manhattan.

***

L
ike many other classic New York adventures, the Empire State was another experience Gwen wanted to do but never quite got around to. From her experience watching various movies and shows, she expected a long wait to get onto the elevator and go up to the observation deck.

Except when they got into the lobby, there was no line. And no one in the elevator aside from them. It was a long ride up, too. Gwen had never spent so long in an elevator. If Aiden hadn't been in there with her, she wasn't sure she could have made it to the top. She kept gripping his hand harder and harder, sure his fingers must be numb, telling herself to relax, but unable to. To his credit, Aiden didn't flinch, or tell her she needed to loosen up.

Some of her anxiety stemmed from excitement, too. This was one of the most romantic spots in the whole city. Couples waited in line for hours for the chance to spend a few minutes up there looking across the skyline. It was a location in countless movies and shows.

The elevator chimed and the door slid open, Gwen holding her breath as they did, revealing the observation deck. Gwen noticed the fences first, and the pay binoculars at regular intervals.

Aiden flourished with one hand, "Voila! Come on out; it's okay."

She barely noticed the warmth of his hand on her back as he urged her out of the elevator. He guided her right up to the rail, and Gwen whistled appreciatively at the view.

Even though the Empire State was no longer the tallest building in the city (far from it, Gwen thought, looking at some of the more modern nearby skyscrapers) the view was incredible. It awed her. And it was still plenty tall enough to give her a case of vertigo when she peered down at the street, and the tiny dots moving around on the sidewalk that she knew were people.

Aiden contracted some of her enthusiasm. "Amazing."

Except he wasn't looking at the skyline. He looked at her. She blushed and turned away from him. "That was super corny," she said.

"You love corny."

"Shut up," Gwen replied, trying to sound serious, her grin belying her tone. It was true. This was amazing. And corny. Amazingly corny. And it did earn him points. Lots of points.

Aiden stood behind her and held her close, his hands clasped just above her navel. She leaned her head back against his shoulder and closed her eyes, just enjoying the steady rise-and-fall rhythm of his breathing.

"You were so upset back at the theater. My sole purpose as soon as I noticed was to make you feel better. And with just finishing the movie, I thought of all the other famous romances from the 80s and 90s. Is it working?"

Gwen held up her hand, making a small gap between her thumb and index finger. "A little. Like this much."

They went over to a set of binoculars. To Gwen's surprise, Aiden fished some quarters out of his wallet and fed them into the slot.

"What?" he said, noticing.

"I didn't think rich people had small change. I thought some change to you guys were $50 bills or something."

"Well I'm glad I can break the mold and surprise you. Now, those were my only quarters and I think this thing's on a timer," he said.

They took turns looking through it, pointing out familiar buildings, parks, anything that caught their eye, really. While trying to find the Carbide Solutions building, the binoculars went black.

That didn't spoil the fun, though. Holding hands, they walked the large rectangle of the deck. Gwen glanced up at the spike-like top of the building, getting another wave of vertigo as she wondered what it would be like to be up there, swinging around like King Kong. She forced her eyes down. This building was in way too many movies.

And that was when she really noticed they were alone. She'd been aware of it, somewhere in the back of her mind, but hadn't really given it any thought until now. "Are we really by ourselves up here?"

Aiden pulled up his cuff so he could glance at his watch. "For the next twelve and a half minutes."

She thought of asking him how much that cost, but decided against it. Best to leave it at a sweet gesture. That gave her another case of the heart flutters. He rented out the Empire State Building to make me happy, she thought.

"Is it worth it?" she asked as they came up to the rails on the opposite side of the building from which they'd used the binoculars.

Aiden pulled her close, his hands on her hips, and kissed her. Maybe it was the thin air up there, but Gwen's fingers and toes started getting tingly and numb.

"Every penny," he replied when they finished.

"So," she said, an earlier desire accompanying her good mood, "What did you think of the movie?"

Aiden shrugged, "I enjoyed it. A bit sentimental for my tastes..."

She gave his arm a slap, "Don't you dare say that!" Then, switching gears so that she could drive at her true point, "And what about the debate?"

Aiden gave her a blank look.

"Don't tell me you don't know what I'm talking about," Gwen said.

"Okay, I won't," Aiden replied, a roguish smile tugging at one corner of his mouth.

She waited for him to relent, to say he'd been mulling it over this whole time or something, but he didn't. Gwen gave an exasperated sigh, then launched into it. "The debate. The argument. You know, 'Can men and women be friends,' that one?"

She almost expected a laugh or a scoff. Instead, Aiden stroked lightly at his chin while staring glassily out across the city.

"Yes..." he started. Gwen began to scoff, but he cut her off with a raised hand, "Unless at least one party experiences some sort of non-platonic attraction towards the other."

Of course he would say it that way,
Gwen thought, all philosopher-like. But she still bounced happily. "That's exactly what I think! Well, not in those words. But the same idea."

Yes, he definitely was a keeper.

They watched the descending disc of the sun change the color of the horizon a deep, reddish orange, rather like the flesh of a blood orange. Gwen's heart couldn't take much more of this.

Leaning against the rail with him, Gwen thought about how much her life had changed so recently. And all because of the man next to her. It was hard to believe, bringing to her mind the fairy tales of all those Disney movies she watched growing up.

Yet, as Gwen closed her eyes to better feel the caress of the breeze against her cheeks, she realized it wasn't a fairy tale or a dream. It was her life. And, if you didn't count a few problems, she wasn't sure how it could possibly get any better at that moment.

She wished the two of them could just stay there forever, suspended in time to always experience that perfect, tranquil New York sunset. His hand slid across the rail to overlap hers, and she knew he felt the same way.