by Ellie Hall
"Maybe she has her reasons." Emma resumed typing on the keyboard.
"I've dated with no strings attached, but this is something else which makes me worry about her intentions."
"Perhaps she's had difficulties with men in the past and is wary."
"If only she'd open up." He leaned in, hoping to provide her the opportunity to talk about it without pressure. It's not that he was nosy; he wanted to help relieve her burden.
"Maybe you need to make the first move." As she spoke, she kept her eyes on the computer monitor.
A thrilling zing rushed through Will's stomach. "Do you think she'd be okay with that?"
"That depends on whether it's something real or if you and this girl have some kind of arrangement."
"Well, we did. That's how it began but I'm starting to feel like it could be something more." He chose his words carefully, not wanting to scare her off.
His gaze floated to meet hers and lingered there until she cleared her throat. "Starting as friends is usually the best approach. It's important to build trust." Her cheeks flushed.
She returned to her work but Will watched, intrigued, enthralled, and like the hollow feeling that had haunted him for so long was starting to be filled up by something far more delicious than a protein drink.
Will clicked off his computer and his phone beeped. He read the message and got to his feet. "About that date. Are we still on?"
"If you're speaking to your assistant right now, then I don't think that's appropriate. However, the girl you're using to improve your image says yes."
He thought he'd broken through the barrier but perhaps she was actually speaking to him before in a hypothetical way. "In that case, pick me up at seven."
"Where?"
"My front door."
"Considering our housing arrangements, do you mean your bedroom door?" she asked.
"That'll do." He gathered his coat. "Are you coming?"
"I'd like to finish up this report."
"Earning your keep."
"This is my job, remember?"
"Right. You never told me what to wear."
She brushed him off. "Whatever you want. Your birthday suit for all I care."
"What kind of date are you taking me on?"
"It's an expression. Get your mind out of the gutter, Mr. Wheaton."
He smirked. "Don't get too excited. You're taking me on a date and it's wholesome, remember?" The smirk turned into a wide grin after he left the room.
Will skipped the car service and had Benson wait for Emma. He walked the few blocks, feeling like he'd turned a corner, flipped a page. Something in him or between him and Emma was changing. He wasn't sure what it was but it stirred something in him that put a little skip in his step.
He stopped by his sister's flat and finally gave his niece the snow globe he'd brought from New York. They chatted for a few minutes and she asked if he'd look after her daughter because she had to work the following day and school was still on winter recess.
"With everything on my mind, I keep forgetting what day of the week it is. Are you sure it's not too much trouble?" his sister asked.
"You know I'd do anything for you guys."
"Including take a day off work?"
"Absolutely. We may have to pop into HQ for a minute. It'll be like Uncle Will takes his niece to work day. Other than that, we'll have a grand time. Won't we, Birdie?" He ruffled his niece's hair.
She passed him a couple of chocolate candies wrapped in silver foil. "For you. It's from Santa, but I thought he'd want me to share."
"Thank you and thank Santa," Will said.
She shook her snow globe then dashed off to put it with the others in her collection. "Thank you, Uncle Will!"
"I should get going. I have a date."
"William, be on your best behavior. You'll be looking after my daughter tomorrow."
"I can assure you she's different. Sweet, wholesome, someone to bring home to Maman."
They both looked away. Will blinked a few times and his sister wiped her eyes.
"In that case, Sydney will have to do," Will's sister said, referring to the only family member they had.
"Have you been by?" he asked.
"Every day."
"With Rupert?"
"Of course." She smiled, but it was thin, sad.
Will pulled his sister into a hug. "You're a good person."
"You are too."
Will shrugged.
"You are. Don't let Veronica get in your head."
"She already set up camp, long ago and hasn't gotten the message it's time to leave." She'd crushed him and despite all the time spent building himself back up he still didn't feel he could trust women even though he wanted to, desperately.
"You need to kick her out."
"But I'm the one who left. I left Maman, I left Veronica."
"You can't blame yourself, Will. And you haven't left Birdie or me."
"I never will."
"Look at us, getting all emotional." She playfully whacked him on the shoulder. "Don't you have a date?"
"Right. She's picking me up at seven."
"Wow. She is different. Usually, you're the one showing off, whisking women off to Paris for lunch."
"Dinner and that was the other night. It's her turn."
"I hope she's the one, Will."
He closed the door behind him and without realizing it until it was out of his mouth, he whispered, "Me too."
Emma knocked on Will's door at exactly seven. Bundled up in her coat, hat, and scarf, she had a basket in her hand. "Hi," she said.
"Hi. Want a Kiss?"
Emma tucked back her head. "What? That's a bit forward, isn't it?"
He held out the candies Birdie gave him. "A candy?"
"Oh, sure," she said, flustered.
His fingers drifted over hers.
"Do we need the car?" he asked when they reached the front door.
"Can I ask you a question?"
"Is it personal?"
"Sort of."
"Only if I get to ask one in exchange."
"Fine, but I reserve the right to decline in which case you'll have to come up with a different one."
Will nodded in agreement, finally feeling like was making progress.
"Do you know how to drive?"
He squawked a laugh. "Of course. In fact, I was a guest at the Monte Carlo two years ago." He'd been driving since he was a lad.
"Did you crash?"
"No, I won. But I prefer my motorbike. You call them motorcycles, but it's too cold. And Benson does a great job chauffeuring me around. He knows the best routes and he's good company. We talk football."
"Soccer?"
"Right. Why'd you ask?"
"You have a driver."
"Texting or talking on the phone isn't safe while behind the wheel. In the backseat, I get a few extra minutes to work between destinations."
"That's efficient of you."
"I'm not sure if I should thank you for a compliment or not. My turn to ask a question?" Will had countless questions he wanted to ask Emma. There were too many. "Actually, can I save it for later?"
"Like you're saving that other Hershey's Kiss?"
"Do you want it?" He held it out.
"I'd love a kiss." She popped the candy in her mouth. "You don't know what you're missing. It's delicious."
Will had an inkling that he was missing something but not the chocolate. She was driving him mad. He couldn't tell if she was flirting or if she didn't realize the effect her words had on him.
Emma led him along a lantern-lit path through the park to a clearing. Lampposts illuminated the space. She spread out a blanket and took sandwiches from the basket.
Will sat down beside her.
"I've never had a moonlit picnic before," she said.
"I've never been on a picnic period."
"You've never been on a picnic?"
"For a photo shoot once, but not for real." Even though their date w
as officially part of the agreement, it felt real enough.
As they scooted closer to keep warm, the pop of a flash came from the bushes. Another followed.
"Did you tell Jared where we are?"
Will shook his head. "They must have followed us. Just ignore them."
After a few awkward minutes, Emma stuffed the rest of her sandwich in the basket as though she'd resigned herself to a long day at the office. She got to her feet. "Next."
"Already?" Knowing the photographers lurked in the bushes was unsettling and he imagined even more so for Emma.
They walked to the other end of the park. An ice skating rink surrounded a giant tree covered in colorful lights.
"I've never been ice skating," Emma confessed.
"Me neither. It's a night of firsts."
"Then this should be interesting, especially for the cameras," Emma said, thumbing them over her shoulder.
Two men in black, carrying cameras with long-range lenses, tailed them.
Will and Emma laced up and teetered onto the ice, holding each other for support.
"If I go down, you go down, Jones," Will said around a laugh as Emma clutched his arm for dear life.
"How do people do this?" she asked as a little girl whizzed past them.
"I think we have to bend our knees."
"I think we have to be brave."
Will glanced at her. "I think we do."
She eyed the cameras as they snapped. The two of them made fools of themselves, but he glimpsed a smile growing on her lips.
They made it around the rink once and then a group of teens took to the ice, laughing, joking, and weaving in and out of the crowd. Will finally had the hang of it when he and Emma were separated. As he looked for her, he spotted a young guy careening toward a woman wearing a hat with a giant pom-pom.
"Emma!" He called her name to warn her then practically ran across the ice when the guy bumped into her, she wavered backward, swung her arms to keep balance, and then started to pitch forward.
He slid in her direction, launching himself underneath her to pad her fall. He winced as the ice chilled him but took most of the impact.
They lay there on the ice as skaters whizzed around them. Emma panted, catching her breath and his heart hammered in his chest. He recalled her comment about her fear of landing when they were on the plane. "You landed. That wasn't so bad was it?"
Emma's eyes crinkled. His eyes drifted from there to her lips because he couldn't deny the transformation. She was smiling and it lit up her eyes.
"Thank you for catching me."
"My pleasure. We should do dangerous things like this more often if it means that." He pointed at her lips.
"What?"
"Never mind." He didn't want to spoil the moment of seeing her smile.
As they got to their feet, the paparazzi took more photos.
"Okay, moving on. We have one more stop," she announced.
They walked back onto the main street. Emma consulted a piece of paper and then led Will to a little shop with a light pink awning. Steam fogged the windows and the delicious scent of chocolate met their noses as they stepped inside.
"I called ahead and they can make hot cocoa out of your chocolate protein shake."
"So thoughtful of you," he said, genuinely grateful.
She motioned to a woman behind the counter who presented two mugs. One was topped with whipped marshmallow cream and chocolate shavings.
They took a table in the window of the quaint café. Sitting across from her, he thought perhaps he was getting over Veronica. A smile blossomed, unbidden, across his face.
"What?" Emma asked as she took off her hat.
"I'm glad to be here." He meant it, despite her comment. It was as if he craved her presence, her attention, and now, especially her smile. "Also, your hair."
She smoothed her bob as the cameras outside the window made their presence known. "When I agreed to this I wasn't expecting so much photographic evidence. Now, I'll be known as Electric Emma or something." She shook her head. "Not that I care."
"You don't care what the media and public think?"
She tilted her head as though pondering this. "Nope. They can think what they want."
Will took a sip of his chocolate protein shake. It wasn't half-bad warm.
Emma extended her arm and wiped some from the side of his lip. "You had a smudge."
He caught a drip of the fluffy mixture from her cup and then wiped some on the tip of her nose.
"Hey!" she said.
"You said you don't care what the cameras reveal."
They both laughed. His preoccupation with appearances started to fade away, no longer mattering. But she mattered. He moved to wipe the cream from her nose but she flinched.
"As I said, I don't care." She licked the cream from her finger.
Will's phone beeped. He read the message. "Jared said we should kiss. Only a kiss."
Chapter 13
Emma
Fog covered much of the window but Emma supposed the paparazzi could manage an image of their silhouette. "How does your agent even know where we are?"
"I don't know. He's always watching though—eager for the photo opp."
Emma shifted uncomfortably in her seat.
Will cleared his throat. "We can start by holding hands." He reached for hers and their fingers twined naturally. He tilted closer in his chair. "Just pretend you're licking marshmallow cream from—" His gaze dipped.
She bit her lip.
He smiled, revealing his dimple.
Her heart fluttered.
Then their lips brushed.
He was sweet yet minty.
His lips were soft yet strong.
His kiss was gentle yet demanding, as though he wanted more.
Tingles started in Emma's toes and crept up, all the way to her chest. Will's lips were perfect and warm and everything she needed. Then bright flashes bounced off the glass window as the cameras lit up.
If only she could press pause or if they were somewhere else. If only if things were different and they stood half a chance as a couple. It was all for show, yet it was surreal.
Suddenly, Will toppled out of his chair, knocking into the table, spilling the drinks, and landing on the floor. "I tilted too far." He groaned.
"Are you okay?" Emma gasped.
Will patted himself. "Fine, just my pride is damaged." He quickly got to his feet. "My pants seem to have taken the worst of it. Great, it looks like I took a wee."
She stifled a giggle. "I'll walk in front of you."
"Do you mind if we call Benson to pick us up?"
"Sure. Let me get some towels."
Will followed her toward the back of the shop. He texted to have Benson meet them at the service entry so he didn’t have to walk past the paparazzi drenched in liquid chocolate.
Emma passed him a towel. "Look. There's an old-fashioned photo booth. Let's take a picture to make up for it. Waist up only."
Will glanced at his phone. "Benson won't be here for about five minutes. Sure."
They squeezed into the small space and Will closed the curtain.
Emma tried to sit on the round stool, but ended up partially on his lap, though she avoided the wet area.
He fed the machine a bill. "Hey, you still owe me the answer to a personal question."
"Now?"
He nodded. "Will you smile again?"
"Right now?"
"For the photo. You smiled earlier and you looked—"
"I smile all the time. In fact, my grandmother used to call me Smiley.
He shook his head. "Well, I'd like to see it more often because you look—" He paused to find the word. "Radiant." Will's eyes sparkled.
"I can't force a smile. Tell me a joke or—"
Will clicked the button to take the picture and then tickled Emma's sides until her lips lifted in a grin. The second photo was more of a cringe as he continued to tickle her. The third was her sticking her tongue out at him
. The forth was him leaning in for another kiss, but the machine snapped the photo before their lips touched and Will's phone beeped with a text from Benson.
The SUV waited in the alley and they both hurried to the car. As they maneuvered onto the street, a motorcycle pulled alongside them. It remained there for a few stops and turns.
"Looks like we've got company."
"I'll lose them," Benson said.
He took numerous turns, revving through traffic lights and leaving the motorcycle in the lurch. All the while, anxiety rose in Emma. She wasn't afraid of what they'd post but that they were so persistent. She couldn't help but worry someone was going to get hurt if the paparazzi went through such lengths following them.
When they finally arrived at Will's building, she stepped out of the SUV. A motorcycle flew down the street toward her. She froze for a moment before rushing onto the sidewalk, but it was too late. The bike went through a puddle and splashed her with filthy, cold water.
Will rushed over, comforting her. "Are you okay?"
"Now we're both drenched. But I'd rather the chocolate."
"Did you get the plate?" he asked Benson.
"I'm sorry, Sir. It went by too fast."
Will stiffened and a low growl came from his throat.
Early the next morning, Emma's sister called. They each filled the other in on everything going on in their lives. Emma skirted most of the details surrounding her agreement with Will.
"You sound different?" Penny said before they got off the phone. "Lighter, happier. I'd almost think the London gloom agrees with you."
Emma was glad she didn't say fizzier. She wasn't sure how to navigate the layers of their relationship: boss and employee, fake boyfriend and girlfriend, friends? She was open to that but…
Will called her from the other room.
"Is that him?" Penny asked.
"Yes, we're headed into the office."
"That sounds so romantic in a nerdy kind of way."
Emma was about to protest but her phone beeped. "I'm getting some kind of alert from my cell company. I'll talk to you soon." They said their goodbyes and then Emma saw an overage alert. The calls and data she'd used the past few days had cost a fortune. Her palm slapped her forehead. She didn't think to get an international plan. She powered down her phone so she wouldn't be tempted to use it. Her credit card was to the limit and she didn't have a dime to spare. Hopefully, she'd be able to make the monthly payment before the phone company automatically deducted the charges. She tried to remember when all her bills were due but she'd left the info at her sister's and didn't dare check the app on her phone.
