by Sian Ceinwen
“Hello?” Heather’s croaky morning voice came through the telephone.
“Oh, I’m sorry, did I wake you?” Ariana asked.
“No, no, that’s fine. I’m awake. What’s up?”
“I didn’t mean to wake you up; I’m so sorry. I was just wondering what you were doing today.” Ariana felt awful for interrupting Heather’s sleep.
“It’s fine, darling, I was just drifting off after Harrison left, but I should get up anyway. I was planning on doing some sightseeing today, do you want to come along?” She sounded genuinely pleased to have some company.
“I’d love to. I didn’t really want to be wandering around New York City on my own.”
“I didn’t particularly feel like it, either.”
Heather suddenly gasped at the other end of the line.
“Heather? Are you okay?” Ariana was concerned.
“Are you calling me from Gabriel’s room?” Heather asked with a smirk in her tone.
“Um, yeah, maybe. So when do you—” She was cut off by the sound of the dial tone in her ear.
Ariana was shocked; she hadn’t expected Heather to hang up on her. She was just thinking that it was a bit rude of Heather to do that when someone knocked on the door of the room.
Ariana got up and made her way over to it, expecting that housekeeping was coming around to clean the rooms. When she opened the door, it was to find Heather grinning wildly at her. She had bedhead and was wearing pajamas but still managed to look gorgeous even though she’d just been roused from her slumber.
“Well, well, well,” Heather raised a perfectly manicured eyebrow at her, “good girl gone bad, huh?”
Ariana blushed, “it’s not like that.”
“Sure, it isn’t, a young girl caught in a compromising position in an older rock star’s hotel room?”
Heather walked into the room, and Ariana shut the door behind her.
“I’m not that young!” Ariana exclaimed.
Sure, she was four years younger than Gabriel, but it wasn’t that big an age gap.
“And this is hardly ‘a compromising position.’”
“I don’t know, you’re wearing his bathrobe,” Heather was still grinning.
“It’s not his, it’s a hotel bathrobe,” Ariana pointed out.
“That doesn’t mean a thing; it came from his room. Therefore, it’s his.” Heather poked a tongue out at her. “Ooooh, I’m going to have so much fun with this.”
“Stop being mean,” Ariana fake-pouted at her.
“Oh, I’m sorry, I promise I won’t be mean. I just came over to catch you in the act. I’m going to go get dressed, want me to come down to your room in half an hour, and get you, or do you want to come back with me?”
“If you don’t mind coming down to my room, that’d be great.”
“Okay, I’ll see you then.”
Heather waved and walked out of the hotel room. Ariana straightened the covers of the bed before leaving. She knew room service would come in and clean the room, but old habits die hard, and she was brought up to always make the bed in the morning.
She retrieved both her room key and the key to Gabriel’s room from the table where she had left them last night and walked out of the suite, heading to the elevators and back to her own room.
When she got there, it felt like a shoebox compared to Gabriel’s suite. Ariana pulled on a pair of jeans, a soft, blue T-shirt, some socks, and a pair of sneakers. She wanted to be comfortable while touring the city. At the last minute, she grabbed a gray hoodie and threw it on over her T-shirt just in case it was windy outside.
She was lying on the bed, ready to go and flipping through channels on the television when there was a knock at her door. Ariana opened it to see Heather standing on the other side and looking a lot trendier than the last time she’d seen her.
Heather had styled her hair so that it fell in shimmering blond waves down her back, accented with a diamanté butterfly clip pulling it back on one side. She was wearing black leggings with black ankle boots and a white, collared shirt with an open black vest over it.
Ariana could never imagine looking so stylish in a million years. All in all, it was a look that very few women could pull off, and Heather was lucky enough to be one of them.
“Wow, you look amazing!” she told Heather.
“Thanks, you look gorgeous,” Heather replied, sounding sincere.
“Did you really pull that together in—” Ariana looked at the clock “—twenty-seven minutes?”
“Well, actually, it was more like twenty-three, it took me a couple of minutes to get down here.” Heather winked at her.
“I can’t even fathom that I’m blown away.”
“Tricks of the trade, darling,” Heather said and tapped her nose dramatically.
Ariana laughed at her outlandish reply, and Heather grinned.
“So, are you ready to tour New York City?” Heather asked her.
“Sure, I can’t wait. Where do you want to go first?” Ariana asked as they left the hotel room. She double-checked that she had her room key and grabbed her handbag as they headed out the door.
“I was thinking maybe the Empire State Building?”
“Sure, that sounds like a plan.”
The women got into the elevator and took it to the lobby. They got into a limousine, and Heather instructed the driver to take them to the Empire State Building.
Ariana was amazed by the sheer volume of people in the city. Having lived in Chicago all her life, she thought she knew big cities, but Chicago simply didn’t compare to New York.
From one street corner to the next, you would see a new amazing sight. They were driving along Fifth Avenue now, and Ariana looked away when they passed Saks. The clothes Gabriel had bought yesterday were still sitting in his hotel room; she’d seen them there this morning but hadn’t wanted to take them.
She might pick them up later; it would make Gabriel happy. As they were coming up to Thirty-fourth Street, Ariana could see the big building looming, and she squealed with excitement.
“I can’t believe that I’m actually going to the Empire State Building,” Ariana told Heather. “This is so cool.”
“I’m pretty excited, myself,” Heather grinned at Ariana’s enthusiasm.
The limousine pulled up outside the building, and they got out, thanking the driver as they did so. They walked up to the entrance and stood in line with the rest of the tourists. When they reached the doors to go inside, they submitted their bags to be searched and walked through the X-ray machine to enter.
They walked forward to the lifts and queued up again. While they were waiting, Heather spotted a cocktail lounge and squealed with delight.
“Oooh, the Empire Room! I’ve heard about that place; it’s supposed to be amazing. Want me to go see if we can get in for lunch?” She asked Ariana.
“Sure, why not?” Ariana smiled at her.
Heather walked off, and Ariana was left on her own. She was still feeling a little emotionally torn up from yesterday. She knew that Gabriel wanted her to stay on the tour, which was something, but knowing now that she was in love with him was terrifying.
He could hurt her so badly, and a part of her didn’t want to risk that. She knew that it would be safer for her to pick up and leave now. Wouldn’t it be better to sustain some minor damage now than to find herself completely broken beyond repair down the track?
It was a moot point, though. Ariana knew in her heart that she wouldn’t leave, so there was no point in thinking about it. Heather was walking back to her now with a smile on her face, and Ariana worked on clearing any uncertainty from her expression.
“We’re booked in for eleven. It’s a bit early for lunch, but we’ve been up since the crack of dawn, and it’s the only time I could get in. Even then, it was a stretch, but they managed to fit us in.”
She grinned, and Ariana guessed that Heather had used all of her charms to wrangle them a reservation.
“Fantastic
.”
Ariana wasn’t too worried about where they ate, but Heather was obviously excited.
“The best part is that it’s after ten so we can drink cocktails,” Heather winked at her, and Ariana laughed.
They took the elevator up to the top of the tower, and Ariana marveled at the view in front of her. New York City looked like a miniature village. The people moving about on the street below were smaller than ants, and the cars looked like tiny children’s toys.
Ariana and Heather took turns looking through the binoculars and had a stranger take their photo together with Heather’s phone. Ariana was terrified they would run off with it, but they didn’t.
“Are you okay if I post this pic online?”
Ariana flinched. She didn’t want to be a cow and say no, but she also knew that plenty of people looked to Heather’s social media for clues about the band.
“I’d rather you didn’t.”
Heather nodded, took a selfie in front of the amazing view, and posted that instead.
After they’d had their fill of sightseeing, Heather looked at her watch, and it was ten forty-five, meaning they had fifteen minutes to get down to the restaurant for their reservation. Ariana reflected that there was a lot of lining up involved in sightseeing as they queued a third time for the elevator back down to the ground floor.
They arrived at the Empire Room at eleven on the dot and were seated almost immediately. Ariana was surprised by this; she’d been expecting to have to wait again. The bar was a throwback to the twenties; all the food and cocktails were from a classier time.
Heather and Ariana had been seated in a comfortable booth with mohair covered seats. They gave their orders to the waiter who came back with their drinks a few minutes later.
“To sightseeing!” Ariana said, and they clinked glasses before taking a sip. “So, you and Harrison have been together since high school?”
“Kind of, people love to call us high school sweethearts, but we actually only met in high school. We didn’t end up getting together until later on. It’s been over seven years now, though,” Heather smiled fondly, obviously thinking of Harrison.
“So do you find this whole fame thing weird, then?” Ariana asked, but Heather knew what she was getting at.
“I’ve been along for the ride from the beginning, so Harrison hasn’t changed for me. He’s still just the same old Harrison. You had the unfortunate circumstance of meeting Gabriel after he was famous so to you he’ll always be that famous rock star, but I’ve known him since the start, too, and he hasn’t changed either. He’s a good guy; you’re lucky to have him.” She smiled.
“I don’t ‘have,’ him,” Ariana protested.
“Like I said. I’ve known Gabriel for a very long time, so trust me, darling, when I say you’ve got him, you’ve got him.”
Ariana felt a glow of pleasure at Heather’s words; she was curious about what their relationship looked like to the people who were closest to Gabriel and had known him for so long.
“What makes you say that?” She couldn’t help probing.
“He’s doing things differently,” she shrugged, “I’ve seen him with other girlfriends, and there’s never been any that I think he would’ve brought with him on tour—not that there’s been a tour before so I can’t say for sure. He just seems really attached to you from what I’ve seen. What makes you think it’s not true?”
Ariana looked surprised that Heather could guess what she was thinking.
“You’re pretty easy to read.”
“I don’t know; I guess I’m still trying to process all of the trappings of his celebrity. When it’s just him and me, everything is fine, but then something will happen, and it’ll all come rushing back to me.” Ariana frowned.
“You need to get over the whole celebrity thing soon, Ariana, or it’ll never work, and you might as well just go home today.”
Ariana was surprised that Heather had hit the nail on the head. It had been her exact line of thinking this morning. She didn’t know if she could truly get past Gabriel’s celebrity, but she knew that she couldn’t leave without trying. Going home now would feel like giving up, and it would hurt her too much to leave.
“I guess I’ve got a lot to think about,” she told Heather, “so, back to you, when do you think Harrison will propose?”
“According to the magazines, he’s already done it,” Heather smiled at her, “to be honest, though? I’m happy with our life together. I don’t need a ring to know that Harrison loves me. If I had to guess? I think he’ll do it on our ten-year anniversary; maybe we’ll make everyone wait another ten years for the wedding!”
Both of the women were laughing as their lunch arrived. The conversation moved on from the guys in the band to each other’s backgrounds. Ariana told Heather about her business degree, and Heather told Ariana about her secret desire to be a fashion designer, which in turn led to Ariana telling Heather about her passion for writing.
They spoke about topics that were wide-ranging and over the course of one lunch really cemented their friendship. It wasn’t until they were in the limousine heading back to the hotel that Heather brought up Gabriel again.
“So, what was Gabriel pissed off about yesterday?” Heather asked.
“Huh?” Ariana stalled, taken aback.
“We saw him going into his room yesterday. He definitely saw us, but he just glared at us for a second and then turned away to go into his room. It was totally bizarre; normally, he’d say hello.”
“Oh, that. We, um, had an argument,” she told Heather.
“Really?” Heather was surprised. “What about? If you don’t mind me asking.”
Ariana weighed her words carefully and decided to go with the truth. Heather had been nice to her, and she thought that she could use someone in her corner. In all honesty, it was nice to confide in someone.
“We fought about me going home,” she said, and it took Heather a second to reply.
“Why would you go home?” Heather asked.
Ariana felt uncomfortable replying. She didn’t want to lie to Heather, and she knew that she’d just decided to confide in her, but she changed her mind. Maybe another day when she was feeling stronger and more sure of herself.
“It was silly, not even worth talking about.”
Heather nodded, and Ariana liked that although she was probably curious, she didn’t press her for any more information than Ariana was willing to give. As the elevator doors opened at her floor, Heather gave her a hug.
Ariana smiled at her as she left the lift. She had barely had time to sit down in her room and pick up the remote to turn the TV on when the phone next to her rang.
“Hello?” she said as she picked up the receiver.
“Hi, Ari. Harrison told me Heather was back, so I figured you would be, too.”
Ariana almost melted at the sound of Gabriel’s voice, and she realized just how much she’d missed him today.
“That was quick,” she noted. “I only just got in.”
“I told him to tell me as soon as she walked in the door.” Gabriel laughed. “Want to come up and see me?”
Ariana felt a jolt of electricity shoot around her body; they had the entire afternoon free before they went out to dinner with everyone tonight. If she went up to his room now, she knew what would probably happen, and she knew it was exactly what she wanted and needed after yesterday.
Her chat with Heather today had made her realize that at some point, she had to let go of her inhibitions, enjoy right now, and hope to hell that she wouldn’t get irreparably broken in the process. If she did get hurt, though, it would probably be worth it just to have this time with Gabriel.
“I’ll see you in five minutes,” she told him, her voice coming out unintentionally husky.
“Great, see you then,” he said before they hung up.
Ariana took a deep breath, then walked into the bathroom and brushed her hair out, ensuring there were no tangles. Kicking off her sneakers, she
removed her jeans and pulled on a flowery, knee-length skirt, then switched her T-shirt for a white sleeveless top.
Slipping on some ballet flats, she appraised herself in the mirror. She didn’t think she looked too bad. Grabbing both key cards again, she headed up to Gabriel’s suite.
By the time she got to his door, butterflies were flying around her stomach, and she felt an exhilarated excitement mixed with nerves. She debated knocking but then decided just to let herself in.
It seemed so intimate entering his private domain without his express permission, and, to her, it set the tone for their afternoon. She walked into the bedroom to find him reclining casually on the bed, watching the television with an arm behind his head and dressed in the same outfit from that morning.
“Hi,” was all she could manage to say, her heart pounding in her chest.
“Hi,” he replied, “want to join me?” He glanced at the empty space next to him on the massive bed.
“Sure,” she said and walked over to the bed. She kicked off her shoes and climbed up next to him.
“Hi,” he said again, looking down at her as he put his arm around her shoulders and pulled her closer to him.
“Hi,” she mimicked him.
He leaned down then and kissed her. She kissed him back eagerly and reached her arms up to snake around his neck. He had one arm around her shoulders already, and he used the other one around her waist to pull her against him.
Their movements became more frenzied as Ariana pulled his shirt over his head and paused to marvel at his muscled chest, drinking in the sight of him.
They discarded the rest of their clothes, and Ariana lay back with her head on the pillows. Gabriel ran his hands over her body before slowly parting her thighs. He kissed and licked them as Ariana panted, eager to feel him reach his goal. She groaned as his mouth covered her mound. He set to work on her clit with his mouth and pushed two fingers inside her, stroking back and forth. She bucked wildly as her orgasm overtook her, and he raised his head with a smile.
He moved his body over hers and pushed his cock painfully slowly inside her, inch by inch until he was all the way inside of her, and then he lowered his mouth to hers and began to fuck her.
