“Oh! Hello,” Tia replied, realizing that Eli must have told the man that she was coming.
“Mr. Bird is waiting for you upstairs. Just take the elevator to the Penthouse level.”
“Alright, thank you.” Tia did as the doorman instructed and couldn’t stop the nervous flipping in her stomach as she rode in the gilded elevator up to the top floor. She gasped when the elevator doors opened to a dim, glittery restaurant with views of the ocean through huge windows.
Tia scanned for Eli and found him sitting in a corner booth under a window, staring out at the inky black water. He rose when she got near him and pulled her into his arms. Her concerns over the evening quelled for the first time since he’d invited her. Why did she always forget that? That everything was less scary from Eli’s arms. That being with him was the one thing that kept her safe from the ramifications of their relationship.
“What is this place?” she whispered in Eli’s ear.
He grinned at her and pulled her down to sit across from him. “It’s a private club. Well, actually, it’s sort of a privacy club?”
“Huh?”
“It’s for people who want to go out but maintain a level of privacy. See?” He motioned around and Tia noticed that though the ceilings were high, giving the restaurant an open feel, all of the booths and chairs were high as well, providing each occupant anonymity. “It’s always this quiet and calm, and they have security all around the perimeter so that paparazzi can’t catch you going in or out.”
“Wow.” Tia wasn’t sure what exactly she could say besides that. It was a really cool concept. But she was still bummed that it was necessary to go to all these lengths for them to have a simple night out.
Eli’s face was so hopeful though, that she refused to let her mood dampen the evening.
“It’s really lovely,” she conceded. “The view and the restaurant.”
He seemed to relax a bit after that, but Tia could still feel a strange wave of tension coming off of him. It was unusual, considering that Tia had only ever known Eli to be calm and effortless.
He cleared his throat as he fiddled with something in his pocket. “I, uh, wanted to bring you here tonight for a couple reasons. The first, I guess, is to show you that we can still do a lot of stuff together, normal stuff, like going out for dinner, even with the paparazzi after us.”
Tia glanced around. She didn’t want to argue, but as lovely as this restaurant was, it was a far cry from normal.
“Ok.”
“And I just want to show you that I’m going to do everything I can to keep the tabloids off your back and—”
“Sorry to interrupt, folks, I just wanted to make sure you have your drink menu—Elijah? Oh my gosh! Long time no see!”
The waitress stood there in black slacks and a black top and somehow looked like she’d just stepped off the runway. Her skin was the color of polished mahogany, her makeup was perfect, and her body was fit and curvy all at once. She was stunning.
Tia’s stomach absolutely plummeted.
“Becca! Hi. I, uh, thought you’d gotten a job as a paralegal or something?” Eli said, his eyes flicking quickly toward Tia.
That was just about all the evidence that Tia needed to know that they had been together at some point and that Eli had thought she no longer worked here.
“I did, but seriously, I couldn’t pass up the tips from this place, so I came back. Saving up for law school.”
“That’s great, really great. Uh, this is my girlfriend, Tia Camellia. Tia this is an old friend, Becca Hauser.”
Becca’s eyes widened just a little bit at the word girlfriend but her smile remained friendly enough. “Nice to meet you, Tia.” And then, taking in Tia’s expression, she did some quick thinking. Obviously, Becca was a smart girl. “I wish I could take care of you guys for the evening, but unfortunately, my shift is almost up. So, I’ll send your server over in just a second. But it was great to see you, Elijah, and nice to meet you, Tia!”
Becca gave a friendly wave and hurried back toward the kitchen.
Tia turned to Eli, not bothering to school her expression at all, and was obliged to see him looking a little sheepish. “I didn’t think she worked here anymore. Or else I would have made sure not to sit in her section.”
“You better make sure she sees some of whatever tip you’re leaving, seeing as she’s giving up a perfectly good table just to avoid her ex-boyfriend’s new girlfriend.”
Eli winced. “Yeah. Tia, she was never my girlfriend. You’re the only girlfriend I’ve ever had.”
Tia nodded. “I know. Sorry, I know you didn’t plan for that to happen. Still, it doesn’t feel good to get confronted with your past out of the blue like that.”
“I know. I didn’t like seeing Owen come out of your office that day I visited.”
Tia considered that. “I can understand that. But at least you’ve pretty much met my entire past now. Ocean City is still crawling with yours.” She didn’t know why she was arguing. She was uncomfortable in this stupid dress. The restaurant was too dim. And she’d just looked at the prices on the menu and they were utterly ridiculous.
“Sure,” Eli replied carefully, realizing that they were well and surely into their first real fight. “But you were engaged to Owen, Tia. Don’t you think that bothers me? Gets under my skin? I may have messed around with a lot of women, but you’re the only one who matters to me.”
Tia sighed. His eyes were honest and friendly and sad all at once. He sat there looking so handsome and so Eli. And she was being a jerk. “You’re the only one who matters to me too.”
His face softened and his hand snaked across the table to take hers. Another waiter came over and Eli put in an order for sparkling water for them, Tia being on call and all. They let a silence fall over them and Tia was grateful for it. She looked out over the black ribbon of the ocean, the small bobbing lights of night cruisers out on the water. Slowly, she calmed herself down. Allowed herself to see the sweetness in all of this. That Eli was doing all of this in order to show her how hard he’d work to make her life alright with him.
A few minutes later, after he’d put in their food order, she finally turned back to him, stroked her thumb over his hand and let him have her eyes. Cool and calm, no longer sparking with bitter heat.
“Ok, I calmed down,” she said.
Eli smiled at her. “You’re really something to look at when you’re calming yourself down, Tia Camellia. You go from all irritated and hot heat to smooth and calm as glass.” He raised her hand and kissed her fingers. “Sometimes you’re so beautiful it hurts my chest.”
Tia smiled at him and indulgently rolled her eyes. “Well, now I’m really over it.”
He grinned. “You wanna tell me how beautiful I am just to make sure that I’m really over it too?”
She chuckled and tugged on his hand a little bit. “You were saying? When I first got here, about why you wanted to bring me here?”
“Oh, right.” Nerves immediately danced over his face again and put Tia on alert. “I wanted to talk to you about some decisions I made. Look, Tia, I know that you hate the spotlight. And the public eye. So I’ve been thinking about some things I could do to kind of control the story we’re putting out there.” He cleared his throat and yanked at his tie a little bit. “I had a few ideas. One of them is that we could put the truth out there. About us. I think the tabloids are making up stories because they just want something to talk about. So, we could give them the truth.”
“The truth? Meaning that we’re dating and serious?”
“No,” his eyes furrowed. “Meaning that we’re together and building a life with one another. And that I’m not still making up my mind about you.”
Tia sat back in her chair, realized that it could be construed as pulling away, and leaned forward again. She felt like she could barely breathe. Like this dumb red dress was slowly shrinking, constricting her. “Is that what we’re doing?”
Eli’s brow drew even further down. “Well, I c
an’t speak for you, but I know that’s how I feel.”
Tia’s stomach flipped and pulled tight all at once. Her voice was small when she spoke. “You’re building a life with me?”
Eli stared at her, his gold eyes almost frozen, but his hand still fiddled in his pocket. “Baby, I love you. I’m in love with you. I’m in. I’m in this 100%.” He paused, looked down at his drink for a second and looked back up. “I’m getting the feeling that you’re not on the same page as I am. Seeing as you look like I’ve just announced I’m moving to Mars.”
Tia glanced around at the restaurant. She couldn’t see anyone’s faces, but she could see the glitter of fancy dresses and shiny jewelry, long swings of hair and white teeth. The beautiful people.
“I know how I feel about you, personally.” It hit her then that she’d never told him. Never said the words out loud. She wondered if he was waiting to hear them. But she didn’t think she could do it here, in this glitzy restaurant high above the city. Instead, she plowed on, gesturing around at their surroundings. “But about this? This life? The tabloids and the women all over town? That part really confuses me. I want to build a life with you, Eli, of course. How could I not? You’re kind and charming and smart and a hard worker. You treat me well and tenderly. You lay on the ground and play with my dog. You talked sports with my mother.”
She took a deep breath, willing herself not to get too upset. It wouldn’t do to get too upset. “But my life was stable when I met you. Deeply stable. And integrating you into it has made it really unsteady.” She opened her eyes and was horrified at the pain that flashed across his face. “Again, it’s not about you personally. But I’m a little unsure what to do about all the hoops that come with you.”
He took a deep breath. “Alright, well that’s what I’m saying, T. What if I could take some of those hoops away? Would it be easier that way?”
She squinted at him and wished she’d worn her glasses. Her eyes felt itchy and irritated. “Well, I wouldn’t want you to change, Eli, that’s not what I mean.”
“I don’t mean change myself, I mean change our circumstances.” He took both of her hands in his and he looked tense and exhilarated all at once.
“How?”
He opened his mouth to speak, but his eyes flicked over Tia’s shoulder, widened and then flattened. When he looked back to her, he spoke with a low, insistent voice. “Baby, I don’t want to blindside you, but there is another woman heading our way right now. Her name is Monica. I’m telling you to give you a little bit of warning, okay?”
Tia felt her mouth drop open. Twice? Twice in one fucking night she was gonna have to deal with running into some of Eli’s baggage? For the love of god! How much was she to be expected to handle?
“Elijah,” a smooth, sultry voice said over Tia’s shoulder.
Tia hastily clapped her mouth closed, but she couldn’t stop the headache that was forming behind her eyes.
“Monica,” Eli said, by way of greeting. Tia waited for him to introduce her, but it didn’t come. She looked up to see a very pretty woman with waves of long brown hair and tan skin. She stood in a short blue dress that Tia might have liked very much in a different circumstance. She had a look on her face like she’d just swallowed a tack. She didn’t bother looking at Tia.
“I haven’t heard from you in a while,” the woman said.
Eli’s face was neutral. “I’m in a relationship with a woman who I love. And I was very clear that I wouldn’t be reaching out to you again, Monica.”
The woman finally dropped her gaze to Tia and curled her lip back. But she didn’t waste time before slamming her eyes back to Eli. “Good luck with this one, sweetie,” she said, apparently to Tia. “He’s a snake in the grass. He’ll make nice just long enough to get you comfortable enough not to see him making nice with someone else.”
With that, she turned on her heel and stalked back across the restaurant.
“Goddamn it.” Eli pressed the heel of his hand against one of his eyes.
“Yeah.” Tia slid her napkin off her lap. “I think I’ve had enough for tonight.”
“You’re leaving?”
Tia heard the plaintive pain in his voice, she understood that he was asking more than one question at once. And as pissed and confused as she was, she didn’t have it in her to leave him hanging. “Yes, I’m leaving. You’re welcome to come with me. But I’m leaving.”
Eli’s face cracked with relief when she invited him to come along. She wasn’t leaving him. She was just leaving the restaurant. He tossed some bills on the table and followed after her, sliding into the elevator doors just as they slid closed.
“Tia—”
She held up one hand. “Can we not? Just no more explanations for tonight? We can pick it up again in the morning. But for the rest of the night, I just want to take a break from it all, okay?”
His eyes searched hers, he wanted badly to drag her into his chest. But something held him back. “Okay.”
The silence in the elevator deepened until it was shattered by the shrill ring of her phone.
Tia dug in her small purse and whipped out her phone. “That’s the hospital.”
“You’ve gotta go in?”
“Yes.” She looked up at him. “I know it’s really bad timing. I hate to leave it like this. I wish you could come over and watch a movie with me and Ham.”
Her sweet words had him lifting a hand to her cheek. “Me too.”
She stepped off the elevator and hurried out the back doors before the doorman could even rise from his seat.
“Mr. Bird! I can have someone pull your cars around if like.”
“That’s alright, Brian.” He waved at the man and hurried after Tia, who had already turned the corner of the building.
“Tia! You didn’t park out back?”
“No, there weren’t any spots.” She strode forward. “Is that a problem?”
“Not necessarily. Unless…shit.” There were paparazzi camped out around her car.
“Oh my god,” she gasped as they perked up and pulled out their cameras. There were four or five all leaning against Tia’s car, obviously having had followed her here. But worst of all, they had parked their own cars to block her in. Obviously in an effort to stall her long enough to get an interview. “I’m blocked in!”
“Elijah! Tia! Wait! Wait up!”
Tia turned toward Eli in horror and he grabbed her hand. “Come on, I’ll drive you to the hospital.”
He turned with her and sprinted back in the direction of her car.
“Wait!” she yanked his hand. “My scrubs and shoes and overnight bag are all in my car. I can’t go dressed like this.” She gestured down at her red dress.
He took her keys and gave her his. “Go get in my car, and I’ll get your things.”
Tia turned without another words and sprinted toward his car. She slammed into the passenger’s side and seconds later, Eli was there, turning the car on and passing her the things she needed to get ready for her shift.
Adrenaline coursed through Tia’s veins and her breathing came fast and hard as Eli pulled out of the parking lot, through a back entrance, and effectively lost the paparazzi.
Tia was jittery and shaky and when her breath exploded out of her, she was terrified it was going to be a huge sob. But to her surprise and delight, it was laughter that exploded out of her.
Eli turned and looked at her. His eyes said she was insane, but his mouth was already smiling. “What’s so funny?”
“Oh. My. God.” Tia brushed at the tears of laughter in her eyes and gasped for air. When she spoke, she sounded more like Laura than Eli had ever heard before. “I CANNOT believe all of that just happened. That was terrible! Like, off the charts awful.”
Eli couldn’t help but chuckle along with her. “And that makes you laugh because…”
“I don’t know. It was so clear that you were trying to make some kind of point about being able to keep our lives low profile and private and then no
t one but two exes come out of the woodwork. And then my car gets parked in by paparazzi. Jesus. That couldn’t have gone worse than if you’d planned it that way.”
Eli merged onto the highway and sped toward the hospital, chuckling a bit himself. “Well, I’m glad you see the humor in it because I was worried I was toast in there.”
Tia brushed at her eyes again. “You mean you were worried that I would leave you over all that?”
Eli shrugged casually, but she could see the tension in his shoulders.
“Oh, Eli,” Tia let her head drop into her hands, and she couldn’t be sure if she was laughing or crying. Honestly, Eli wasn’t sure either. “I’ve really screwed this up.”
“What?” He exited the highway and started winding through streets toward the hospital. “What do you mean? I thought I was screwing this up?”
“No.” She waved her hand through the air. “I’m pretty sure it was me. Or it was both of us.” She glanced down at herself. “For starters, it was letting my sister talk me into this awful dress.”
“I like that dress. You look gorgeous.”
“Eli, you think I look gorgeous in leggings and an old sweatshirt.”
“That’s true.”
Tia smiled, tears streaming down her face. Her feelings were totally tangled up in knots. “I’m just saying that leggings and a sweatshirt and take out on the couch? That’s me. Creepy dinner in the private club with exes du jour? Not me.”
Eli laughed outright. “Fair enough.”
“I don’t need you to pull out the stops to change your reality for me, Eli. I’ll get used to it. But only if I’m being myself. I can’t worry about what the tabloids are going to print about me. It got under my skin because they immediately undermined my standing as a surgeon, and that’s what I’m most confident in about myself. After that, all I could do was pick apart my flaws and wait for some member of the gossip brigade to find them.”
She turned to him as he pulled into the staff lot of the hospital. He’d gotten her there in record time, so she actually had a few minutes. She turned to him. “You never complain when I get called in to the hospital.”
He drew his eyebrows. “Of course not. It’s your job.”
Bachelors In Love Page 23
