by Rachel Astor
A tiny thought that maybe Leo like the idea of ‘winning’ a girl as if it were some sort of sick competition or something flitted through my head, but I dismissed it as fast as it came. No, Leo seemed much too upstanding of a guy to do anything like that.
There was nothing left to do but go face him and pretend like nothing ever happened. Because, you know, nothing actually did.
I did, however, finish the Cinnamon Twist because seriously, I could see why Leo liked them so much; they were to die for.
With my belly full and my head clear of all the silliness, I headed back to Gatesbury.
I needed to make things right with Leo, and more importantly, I wanted to give my boyfriend a call and tell him how much he meant to me.
~ 12 ~
The one thing about having a super famous boyfriend who is super busy with filming, and rehearsing, and charity work, and appearances, and tons of other stuff… is the fact that they are really hard to get a hold of when you really want to talk to them.
And it wasn’t like I had any sort of emergency or anything where I had to talk to him, so I was stuck just not being able to reach him at all.
Very maddening.
Especially when you haven’t been able to get a hold of him for a day or two and you really, really miss him.
But I took a deep breath and told myself everything was okay. He was just busy. He was one of the world’s most famous actors, after all. And besides, I was busy too, right? Yes, I said to myself, nodding once. I had a job to do here and if I was ever going to write this damned book, I needed to get to my Prince and get the story.
So I went wandering.
But Lord, the castle was still as huge as ever and honestly, I had no idea where Leo might be. God, I was supposed to be his autobiographer, to be him, and here I was in his house, having known him for a weeks now… and I had no idea what he might be doing.
I had no clue what hours he worked, or if he even did work for that matter. Obviously, he must work… or at least plan appearances or something, but then… why did he have Miranda? Did she do all his work for him? And if she did, then, what the heck did he do with all his time?
So I kept wandering, asking each person I saw (except for Miranda, of course) if they had seen the Prince anywhere.
Most of them just shrugged and shook their heads like they hadn’t even understood what I’d said. I guess they’d all been trained to keep things on the down low. Which was weird, I thought, since, the only people they would be talking to would be people who were actually at the castle in the first place, so, wouldn’t they be privy to where the Prince was anyway? Unless, apparently, you were just the lowly ghostwriter.
The fresh morning had started to turn into a damp, gray afternoon, which seemed to nicely fit my mood. I kept wandering the ever-darkening castle until my cell rang.
I answered.
“Oh. My. God.”
“Hey Mattie,” I said, fining a bench in one of the random hallways.
“What are you doing over there? Do I have to come to England and chaperone your ass?”
I sighed. Apparently the story about Leo clubbing last night must have hit the US papers too. “No Mattie, I’m doing just fine on my own, thank you very much.”
“Uh huh.” He said, though he sounded anything but convinced.
“Really, Mattie, everything is fine.”
“Well, I’d believe you if I wasn’t sitting here staring at a picture of you—a you that looks somewhat different, I’ll give you that, but a you none the less—out on a date with a certain Prince… except that I know it cannot be you since you are already dating a very well known actor.”
“Shit, you could tell it was me?”
“Honey, I am your best friend in the world. Of course I can tell it’s you.”
“Damn. The girl at the coffee shop this morning had no idea.”
“The disguise isn’t bad, but come on. Anyone who knows you well is bound to pick up on it.”
“God, I hope my mother doesn’t figure it out. Of course she has no idea what I’m doing in England, and hopefully she doesn’t read the tabloids, although I have a sneaking suspicion she might have started after the whole Bridesmaid thing began.”
“Look, you’ll probably be fine, but have you thought about what Jake’s going to say?”
“What do you mean? Why would he even read the tabloids?”
“Well, considering he’s on the front page of most of them, I’d bet he picks them up every now and again. I mean, does he even know who the subject of the book is?”
“Yes. I mean, I wasn’t even supposed to tell you but you both have a way of… breaking me.”
“Yes, I know,” he said, seemingly quite content about that fact. “But, if he does see it, have you thought about what you’re going to tell him?”
“No.”
“Exactly. If I were you, I might just let my famous boyfriend know it if there was a chance he might see me in a tabloid or two with another man. And you know, tell him not to worry since it was only for a job and there was absolutely nothing else going on.” There was a bit of a pause while Mattie switched gears. “And there is nothing else going on, right?”
I decidedly did not like the gears he’d switched to.
I sighed. “No Mattie, there’s nothing else going on.”
At least from my end, I thought, but didn’t dare say anything about the Leo weirdness to him. It would only send him into a tailspin of made up dramas. And if there was anything Mattie liked, it was weaving a good drama. Honestly, it didn’t much matter to him whether or not it might be true.
“Good,” he said, in a matter of fact way. “Because the last thing I want to see is my best friend getting hurt. And I just so happen to have a best friend who has a real knack for getting in over her head.”
“Gee, thanks for the vote of confidence, best friend,” I said, emphasizing the last words to point out how very un-best-friend-like he was being.
“Okay, I know I come off kinda harsh sometimes, but I’m just worried about you, that’s all,” Mattie pouted. “I hate that you’re all the way across the whole world and I don’t get to be there to have your back.”
My heart melted a little. I actually was pretty lucky to have a best friend who would worry so much about me. I mean, I’d had a best friend before who I thought I could trust, and boy was I wrong. But with Mattie, I knew he’d stick by me no matter what. I mean sheesh, if he stuck by me after my most embarrassing moments were fed to the world via newsprint just for a couple of bucks (thanks a lot old best friend), then there was pretty much nothing else he wouldn’t stand by me through.
“Thanks Mattie. I know you just want the best for me. And speaking of… how are things with your love life since I left?”
We chatted for a few minutes about Gary, his new squeeze. Apparently Gary was stuck on a job driving around some snotty teenage starlet these days and was none too happy about it, even wishing he was still on my Bridesmaid driving duty.
I kind of felt bad for the guy, he was really nice and didn’t deserve to have to go rushing around the entire city just to find someone who sold Wild Cherry Slushies—not cherry, but Wild Cherry—but I had no doubt that Mattie was doing his very best to help him wind down at the end of the day.
I was sad to hang up. I hadn’t really realized it, but I’d been so busy with everything around the castle, and Spain, and London and everything, that I didn’t even notice how little I’d talked to him, not to mention I’d hardly even spoken to my fellow bridesmaid and new roommate Jennifer, and she’d just moved into my apartment. God, sometimes I was such a bad friend, no wonder Calla turned her back on me and betrayed me like she did.
Okay, strike that, there was absolutely no excuse in the world for her selling all my deepest, darkest secrets to the highest bidder. But still, I was going to have to seriously work on my friendship skills.
I tried the house, but Jennifer must have been out. I quickly checked my watch, making sure
I hadn’t accidentally called her at like three in the morning or something, but no, it was still a reasonable time, so I quickly dialed Jake too.
No answer.
It had only been a couple days, but it felt like a year since I’d talked to him. Maybe it was all the weirdness with Leo that had me longing to hear his voice, and maybe there was a little guilt there too. I had after all, told myself that I was going to do anything to get the story and I had consciously engaged in a little flirting, but it was all totally innocent.
Or so I thought until last night on the hill.
And this morning at the bakery.
Ugh.
Maybe I shouldn’t go looking for the Prince after all.
Of course, there was that niggling little issue of you know, writing a friggin’ book about him.
I knew what I had to do. I had to go find Leo and set the record straight. Make damned sure that he knew the scoop about me and Jake, and that things between he and I had to remain strictly professional.
Eventually, I made it toward the North wing of the castle, pulled by the faint sound of voices.
And that’s when I proceeded to barge into the dining room where, unbeknownst to me, Leo was entertaining company. I know, I know, the voices in conversation should have been a tip-off, but honestly, there hadn’t been a single visitor since I’d arrived at Gatesbury, so the thought hadn’t even crossed my mind.
“Oh my gosh, I’m so sorry,” I said, pulling the pocket doors back shut in front of me as quickly as I could.
“Josie!” Leo yelled from beyond them.
Which was really kind of awkward because there I was, having just rudely interrupted and in no way wanting to go back in there, but obviously I heard Leo shouting, so I had to go back in there, but with as red as my face was, I really, really didn’t want to.
I cringed, then put on my best smile as I slowly opened the doors again, just a little, to peek inside. “I really didn’t mean to interrupt,” I said, sheepishly, noticing now who Leo’s guest was. An older lady. A very familiar looking older lady. But why she might be familiar, I had no idea.
“Josie, there’s someone I’d like you to meet. I looked for you earlier, but you must have been out.”
The spread of baked goods covering the table was almost as ridiculous as it was large. There was no way two people would ever be able to eat all of it. Of course, I supposed the employees would likely get a chance to indulge after the Prince was through.
“Josephine McMaster, this is my mother, Lady Worthington.”
Well that explains the familiarity.
“Very nice to meet you,” I said, resisting the urge to curtsey.
“I had been hoping you could have joined us for brunch,” she said.
“Oh!” I said, sadly not doing a very good job of hiding my shock.
I mean, why on Earth would Leo want me to join him and his mother for brunch? Unless… good God he does have a thing for me, so much so that he already wants me to meet his mother!
My face began to flush. “I’m sorry, I didn’t realize…. If I’d known…”
For some reason I was having a bit of trouble forming complete sentences.
“Well, why don’t you sit down for a bit dear,” Lady Worthington said, motioning to a chair. “I do have to get going soon, but I’m sure I could sneak in a little story or two about my little Leo before I have to rush off.”
I let out the whoosh of air that had been building in my lungs. The book. They just wanted to tell me stories for the book. Thank God.
“Great!” I said, probably far more chipper than was appropriate for the situation. “Please, tell me everything!”
Leo’s mother gave me a bit of a curious look, not that I was unused to those or anything, then began telling me all about Leo’s childhood.
How he always had so much energy that she could hardly keep up with him, but how he also had a quiet, introspective side, always on the lookout for a baby bird who had fallen out of a tree, or a bunny who had lost its mama. Apparently, at one point, he had quite the animal rescue farm going in one of the old barns on his grandparents’ farm. Of course, the workers were none too happy that they had to care for the litter while Leo was in the city during the week for school, but they knew better than to complain or, Heaven forbid, let one of the animals get lost or die.
Leo smiled the entire time his mother was speaking, looking at her with the utmost love and respect, only turning his attention away from her to gaze at me.
Unfortunately, I couldn’t get it out of my head that his gaze lingered on me just a little longer than was necessary to be polite, and the goofy smile that he gave his mother, turned to a slightly different, though almost as admiring, when he bestowed it on me.
Just as I was thinking it was probably getting close to time for Lady Worthington to get going, my cell rang.
Jake.
Ugh, I finally hear from him and I’m sitting here talking to a real live royal Lady. I mean, I couldn’t just excuse myself to go talk on the phone… could I?
But I hadn’t talked to Jake in so long. “Um… do you mind if I take this? I’ve been waiting on this call for a while?” I asked, hoping I wasn’t breaking any royal laws or anything.
“Of course dear, I was just leaving anyway.” She smiled and actually got up as I stood, giving me a little peck on the cheek.
I couldn’t help but wonder if I was supposed to like, give her a kiss on the cheek too, or one of those little kiss-kiss thingies on each check the way people do in movies, but if I took any longer, I was going to miss my call. And this was definitely not a call I wanted to miss.
“Thanks so much for brunch,” I yelled on my way, practically running out the double doors.
“Hello?” I answered, rushing around the corner so I wouldn’t bother Leo and his mother with my call.
“Hi,” Jake said. “I thought you weren’t there.”
“Sorry, I had to rush out of the dining room to take the call. Leo had his mother over.”
“Oh, so you’re meeting the parents already?” Something in his voice sounded off.
“She just had some old childhood stories to tell me, you know, for the book.”
“For the book,” Jake said, sounding a little skeptical.
“Uh huh,” I answered slowly, wondering what the weird attitude was all about.
“And that’s it?”
“Um, yeah. Wait, what do you mean?”
“I saw you in the paper,” he said, and it did not sound like he was going to compliment me on how good I looked all dressed up in disguise.
“Oh yeah, that.” I cleared my throat. “Well, Leo just wanted to, you know, head out on the town… show me what a day in the life of a Prince was like or whatever. It was nothing.”
Jake sighed. “I’m sorry, it’s just that I was so shocked to see the paper. I mean, I thought you were supposed to stay under the radar or something. And then I see this… and I just thought….” He let out a breath of air. “I don’t know what I thought. I guess maybe I was a little jealous.”
In spite of the situation, I couldn’t help but let a smile creep across my face. Jake Hall, movie star extraordinaire, was jealous that I might be interested in another guy.
“Don’t worry. There is nothing going on. And there never will be anything going on. I’m with you. Completely.” It was more than a little surreal to imagine that I was the one needing to convince Jake that everything was okay between us.
“I guess I just miss you,” he said, delivering the words like the true movie star he was, and effectively melting my heart.
“I miss you too,” I said, clutching the necklace he’d given me, smiling.
“And I don’t have to like it if you’re out gallivanting with some other guy, no matter how platonic or professional it is. Remember what it was like when you saw that picture of me and Mitzi dancing?” he asked. “Now I feel even worse about putting you through all that,” he said.
I did remember. An
d it was horrible. Had Jake actually felt the same way? “Ugh, I hadn’t thought of it that way. I’m sorry.”
“Shit,” Jake said. “I gotta get going.”
“Already?” I pouted.
“Sorry, they’re calling me for the shot,” he said.
“Okay, but call me soon, okay?”
“Of course,” he said. “I love you.”
I was so shocked at the words that I didn’t even get a chance to say them back before he hung up. I mean, I totally loved him too, but I just thought it was too soon or whatever to say them out loud. I really, really hadn’t wanted to mess anything up by saying it too soon. But now that he’d said it, I wanted to shout it from the rooftops. Okay, really I just wanted to say it back to him, but the stinkin’ guy hadn’t given me a chance.
The nerve!
I wondered if he was worried I wouldn’t say it back. Which, of course, was ridiculous. Honestly it was shocking how unsure a super star could be deep down inside. Which just made him all that much cuter, in my opinion. Who ever heard of a humble movie star?
Sigh. And I had him all to myself. I don’t know how long I stood there, clutching my phone to my chest with a dorky content face plastered on, but it wasn’t long before I was interrupted. “Everything okay in romance-ville?” Leo asked, coming so stealthily around the corner that I had to wonder if he’d been standing there all along.
“Oh, uh, yeah. Great!” I said, now clutching my chest in more of a ‘you just gave me a heart attack’ way.
“Great,” he said, though his plastic smile seemed to indicate things weren’t actually all that great at all. “Well, uh, I guess I’ll leave you to it.”
“Um, okay,” I said, not really sure what he was leaving me to do. I suppose I could have gone back to daydreaming about my awesomest of awesome boyfriend, but that just kind of seemed silly now, so instead I went back to my room to grab my computer in hopes that I could get some work done on the book.
I headed out to the pool, and, after having more of the local bakery’s oh-my-God-to-die-for goods, and the fabulous conversation with Jake, I found myself a little tired, not to mention in kind of a dreamy state, so it wasn’t that long before my intentions to work my butt off, became a lazy afternoon nap.
