by Alexia Praks
Alex just stood there, staring at the walk-in-wardrobe. Those were Jay’s clothes? What the heck were they doing in there? Oh shoot! Her brain hurt. Her head hurt. She can’t think anymore.
She raided through her luggage, found the things she wanted, and rushed into the bathroom.
She took her sweet time showering. The warm water soothed her aching body, and after shampooing and conditioning her hair and cleaning her face and body, she felt a lot better. She dressed herself in the skinny jeans and white T-shirt and then did her make up. Once all set, she rushed out and found Jay sitting on the now made-up bed, waiting for her.
“Feeling better?” he asked.
She nodded, suddenly feeling very conscious of her shabbiness what with her inexpensive jeans and t-shirt that she had bought from Glasson on sale price.
Jay got up and came to stand right in front of her. He touched her temple again with his fingers and thumb and gave her gentle massages.
Alex bit her lip shyly, her eyes downcast.
“Not hurting as much?” he asked.
Alex shook her head. “Uh-huh. I always feel better after a good, warm shower.”
“Good.” He moved to grab the aspirin on the bedside table. “Here,” he said, the medicine in hand.
Alex stared at the two tablets as though those things were going to bite her if she wasn’t careful.
“Go on.” He brought his hand higher.
Alex shook her head. “I’m feeling better now, thank you. I don’t need them.”
Jay tried very hard to hide a smile. He could see that she was afraid she really had to take those tablets. He wondered what she’d do if she had a fever or one of those yearly flus back in New Zealand. Would she rather suffer or would she take medicine.
“Go on. It won’t hurt. Just swallow.”
Alex shook her head again and started to dash away.
“Oh no you don’t!” he chuckled, grabbing her arm. He pulled her back, and to prevent her from running, he placed one hand behind the nape of her neck. “Right, come on.”
Alex could feel a nice, warm liquid pleasure where his hand was touching her. Her stomach felt all fluttery. He was making her feel things she had never felt before. To hide her emotion, she glared up at him. “You’re not my dad,” she snapped a bit too sharply.
He chuckled. “No, I’m not. But since you’re here and I’m responsible for you – you, missy, will do as I say. I don’t want Peter or your dad to hunt me down and torture me if anything were to happen to you.” That said he pushed the aspirin tablets in between her lips.
Alex kept her mouth shut. Jay was determined that he took the medicine and pushed the tablets into her mouth.
Alex could taste the bitterness, and she groaned in disgust. She signalled for him to get the glass of water for her – her finger pointing and her face all scrunched up.
Jay chuckled as he quickly grabbed the glass. Alex downed the whole lot in at once – water and aspirin. Once she finished she shut her eyes and covered her mouth.
“There, not that bad, right?” he chuckled, watching her.
Alex opened her eyes, saw him smirking and slapped his arm. “Stupid man,” she murmured and placed the empty glass back on the bedside table.
“I’ve got something for you,” he said.
“More aspirins?” she teased. When she turned, she saw him on the other side of the room, retrieving something.
He laughed. “Of course not.” He came to stand in front of her and said, “Here.”
Alex glanced down and saw a BlackBerry in his palm. She eyed him in confusion.
“It’s for you. Thought you want to ring home.”
She watched him grinning, her inside turning liquid warm. Her first gift from him? Oh my Gosh! She couldn’t believe he was so sweet. Then she thought that she couldn’t really accept his gift – if it was really a gift. “But I’m only going to be here for a couple of weeks.”
“In case you got lost and couldn’t find me. In case you got bored and wanted to text me, Facebook me, twitter me, email me. Whatever. My number is in there already.”
“Oh,” was all she could say.
“No worries,” he chuckled. “So are you up for it?”
Alex glanced at him, her thought still on the BlackBerry. “Up for what?”
“Meeting my family.”
“Oh, right. Yeah, I suppose, let’s do it.”
“Sure?”
“Uh-huh. Though I am rather nervous.”
“Nothing to be nervous about. Come along.” He grabbed her arm. Alex placed the BlackBerry on the bedside table before she shut the door.
At the hallway he said, “Don’t forget. Endearment.”
Alex, who was staring wide eye with marvel at her surround, said, “What would you prefer? Jay darling? Or Jay honey?” Then she laughed.
Jayden chuckled. “I like both.”
“Your house is big,” she commented as they came down the grand stairs. She felt like she was in a celebrity’s house – all so glamorous with marble floor, huge glass window that overlooked an immaculate garden, crystal chandeliers, fancy drapes and expensive, luxurious furnishing.
Jay made a noise as though he was agreeing with her as he pulled her closer. Then he placed his hand about her waist as they walked toward the drawing room.
Oh dear, Alex thought, this was not at all what she was expecting. This girlfriend thing was going a bit too real for her. Jay’s hand about her waist was very warm, and it was sending nice sensations through her body again. There were also butterflies in her stomach. Maybe she was nervous about meeting his family. Well, she wasn’t his real girlfriend anyway, so she shouldn’t worry to much, should she?
The moment Alex stepped into the elegant drawing room she knew she was completely out of place. The three women sitting on that very expensive looking sofa were all dressed in the latest of fashion, which made her feel like she was trash.
Jayden nudged her forward. Alex nervously glanced up at him, her eyes showing him clearly that she was not very comfortable.
Jay smiled at her in reassurance and guided her towards the arm chair. She stiffly followed him.
Granny Beth frowned at the couple, her blues eyes sharp. Gracie smiled, nodding at them. And Kelly just clamped her lips together as she waited for the two people to take their seats.
Only there was only one seat where Jay was leading Alex to. Once he had taken that seat, Alex wondered what she should do. Stand or find somewhere else to sit. Her decision, however, was taken out of her hand when Jay pulled her down and made her half sit on his lap and half on the chair.
“Grandmother, Mother, Kelly,” Jayden began, “this is Alex or Alexandra Stewart, my girlfriend. She’s from New Zealand.”
At this point Alex didn’t know what to do. What did one do exactly when one first got introduced to one’s boyfriend’s family?
“Hi,” Kelly said.
“That’s Kelly, my sister. It’s going to be her wedding soon,” Jay supplied.
Alex smiled nervously and nodded at Kelly. “Right,” she said to Jay. “Hi,” she said to Kelly.
“That’s Mum, you can call her Gracie.”
“Hi,” Alex said.
“Nice to have finally meet you, Alex.” Gracie leaned forward and grabbed Alex’s hand. They shook. “Can I call you Alex?”
“Yes of course,” Alex replied, laughing nervously.
“I like your accent,” Gracie said. “Jay has been telling us so much about you.”
“Oh, thanks.” Alex’s eyes met that of Jay’s. He gave her a wide grin and winked at her. Alex blushed. She wondered what kind of things he had been telling his family about her. The bad things or the good things. The true things that had happened in her life or the things that he had made up to make her look good. Oh dear. She had better ask him when they were alone.
Granny Beth frowned. She didn’t seem to like what she saw and said, “So what do your parents do?”
“Um,” Alex began,
looking at Jay for help.
“Her dad has retired. Her mum is a sales manager,” Jay said as he pulled Alex onto his lap fully. “Sweet heart, are you feeling better? That aspirin working?”
Alex blinked. Had Jay just called her sweet heart? Oh my God! Jay had just called her sweet heart. ‘Okay,’ she told herself. ‘It was only part of their acting. It was nothing real. ‘Calm down, Alex.”
“Yes, my head doesn’t hurt as much now. Thank you,” she said, smiling at him tightly.
“I hate travelling too,” Gracie said. “I get headache sometimes.”
Alex nodded in agreement.
“So where abouts is New Zealand?” Beth asked, picking up her delicate Wedgewood china and began to sip her tea.
“Down south. It’s a small country. We call it Aotearoa in Maori. It means land of the long white cloud.”
“Sounds romantic,” Kelly chuckled.
“Maybe we should all go outside. It’s such a lovely day,” Beth interrupted. Though her voice was soft and gentle, there was a hint of order that no one dared to disobey.
“Yes, I agree.” Gracie stood up.
“Oh, Britney is coming for the dinner party tonight, Jay. You remember Britney Marcelo, don’t you?” Beth asked, looking at her grandson.
“Britney? Oh yes, I remember her,” Jayden said somewhat reluctantly. Just then he remembered that he hadn’t told Alex there was going to be a welcoming party for her yet.
“Yes, she is coming. Such a nice girl, Britney is. Her dad is Mr. Marcelo. You remember Mr. Marcelo, don’t you?” Beth continued.
“Yes, I remember him. One of dad’s good friends. Haven’t seen him for a long time,” Jay said, glancing at Alex, wondering if he should mention about the party now.
“They just got back from Rome,” Beth said excitedly. “Such a lovely girl, Britney is.”
Alex looked at Beth and knew instantly something was up. She knew the old woman didn’t like her. Aw, poor Jayden. Beth must be match-making him with this Britney Marcelo woman. No wonder he was trying to get away from it all. She patted his arm to show him her understanding.
Jay chuckled and winked at her.
“Come along now, we shall continue our tea in the garden,” Beth said, elegantly waltzing out the door.
“Oh, it’s so nice to have finally met you,” Gracie said and hugged Alex.
“Yes. So good to finally meet you, too,” Alex said. Once she had moved back, Kelly rushed in and hugged her as well.
“Good to meet you, Alex. We’ll have to find you a dress for my wedding,” she said.
“Oh, right,” Alex commented, moving back.
“Don’t worry. I know lots of designers. They’ll be begging you to wear their dresses. It goes into high fashion magazine, you know, this wedding of mine.”
“Really?” Alex said, shocked. She didn’t expect that. High fashion magazine? Top designers? Oh dear.
At the door Kelly said to Jay, “Don’t forget we have things to talk about, brother.” Then she laughed as she and Gracie walked arm in arm down the hallway.
“They won’t be taking pictures, will they?” Alex asked Jay, looking up at him.
“For the wedding?”
Alex nodded.
“Yes, they will. Don’t worry you don’t have to be in it if you don’t want to.”
“Of course I don’t.”
“Come on then,” he said, pulling her towards the door.
As they strolled down the hallway, Alex said, “I haven’t forgiven you yet, by the way.”
Jay glanced at her. “What about?”
Alex squared her small shoulders and replied, “You forcing those aspirins down my throat.”
“I’ll do it again you know.”
“No you won’t.”
“Yes I will. And beside, the next time you’re sick, you’ll be begging for those aspirins knowing how effective it is now.”
Alex thought about this and said, “You’re right. I feel so much better now. So thanks.”
“You’re welcome.” He grinned, leading her out into the sunshine. Then he thought to add, “By the way, there’s a party tonight.”
Alex smiled. “I gathered that from what your grandmother said about this Britney Marcelo.”
He glanced at her. He was surprised that she had taken the news quite nicely. He had thought, from what he knew of her so far, that she’d bolt at the thought and refuse to make an appearance.
“You’re the honoured guest. The party is to welcome your arrival,” he added, watching her closely.
Alex widened her eyes in shock. “What?”
Damn! Jay thought. There, not so nicely after all. He surely hoped she was not going to run.
“I’m the honoured guest? The party is to welcome me?” she queried, pointing a finger at herself in disbelief.
“Yup. To introduce you to the neighbourhood,” he said, giving her the apologetic look.
Alex swallowed. “Right. So I will have to make an appearance?”
Jay nodded. “You’ll be fine.”
Alex chewed on her lower lip with worried as they approached the others. Yeah, she sure hoped she’d be okay.
*****
CHAPTER 9
‘HOW DOES ONE work this blast thing?’ Alex wondered as she stared at her BlackBerry. Of course it would be the same as any other cell phone. She searched through the menu, found the call section and started dialling. She brought the BlackBerry to her ear and waited as the ringing noise continued.
A moment later she heard her brother’s voice said, “Hello, Tim speaking?”
Alex smiled. “Hey, Tim, it’s me.”
“Alex?” A chuckled. “Man you sound weird and so far away.”
She laughed. “Of course I’m far away. I’m in America.” Suddenly her stomach knotted. The word America reminded her once again that she was lying to her family, that she was not here for a work conference, but that she was in fact here as a hired girlfriend to a very rich man. Gosh, the whole thing sounded so creepy and weird.
“You got there all right, huh?”
“Yeah,” she replied. “I’m safe and sound here now, staying in a hotel,” she lied, looking at her surrounding and thought —‘no way, this is way better than a five stars hotel’. It was more like a private mansion.
“Cool.”
“Hey, how’s Mum and Dad?” she asked, wondering if her dad was taking things easy or was he up to his old stubborn self again and working hard.
“Dad is taking things easy. Mum makes sure of that.” A merry laugh followed.
Alex sighed with relief. “That’s good. Is Mum there?”
“Yeah. Hold on a sec.”
A few seconds later, Alex heard her mum’s voice through the phone. “Hey, sweetheart. Glad to hear your voice. I was so worry, you know. I know you’re a big girl now but I’m still worried. Anyway, your dad is doing very good, and I make sure he eats well. He went to see Dr. Johnston today. He said your dad is making good progress.”
“Really?” Alex smiled. “I’m glad to hear that.”
Suddenly there was a knock at the door. Alex glanced that way and saw Kelly poking her head in. “Hey, are you ready?”
“Oh, right. Hold on a sec. Just talking to Mum,” she replied, nodding to the phone on her ear.
“Oh. Ok,” Kelly said, walking into the room and took a seat on the side of the bed. “Don’t mind me. Take your time.” She picked up a sport magazine on the bedside table and flicked through them.
Alex turned her attention back to the BlackBerry. “Mum, I’m glad dad is doing well. Hopes he’ll recover fully when I return.” She laughed. “Anyway, love you and dad and everyone at home. Miss you already. Bye now.”
“All right, sweetheart. You look after yourself. Love you.”
Alex grinned and then terminated the call. She sighed. “I can’t believe I miss them already.”
Kelly threw the magazine down and patted Alex’s arm. “Sounds like you really love your family.”
Alex nodded. “Yeah. More than anything.”
Kelly cocked her head to one side, as though she was considering something very serious and important. Then she shook her head and stood up. “Come on, missy,” she said, pulling Alex to her feet and then leading her out the door. “I hope you’re not upset with Beth,” she commented as she led Alex towards her bedroom.
Alex shook her head. She knew Granny Beth didn’t like her very much, but she was not going to dwell too deep about that because she was only Jay’s fake girlfriend. Soon she’d be leaving them, and they’d be none the wiser.
“Nope, of course not,” she replied, thinking back to when Beth had asked her numerous questions about her personal life. Everything seemed to always fall back to her financial status. Did money really mean everything to her, she wondered.
“I think she is just watching out for Jay.”
Kelly turned to glance at Alex with interest. She laughed – that rich, smooth sound that Alex now knew of a woman who lived her life to the fullest and was afraid of nothing. She supposed Kelly must have always gotten everything she wanted, being born into a family as rich as this one. And she seemed to have a very handsome brother who adored her. What about her fiancé? He must be loaded, too. Kelly must really love him. Funny how she felt happy for Kelly. She really liked her, even though they had only met.
“Yeah, she is,” Kelly said, a hint of doubt in her voice.
Alex wondered about this. Was Granny Beth really that worried about Jay’s love life? Did she think it was her duty to find the right woman for him? Well Alex could safely conclude that she was not the right woman for Jayden in Granny Beth’s sharp eyes. First reason – Beth didn’t like her. Then there was her financial status. She was rather poor even though she had always thought she and her family were middle class, having everything that they really needed.
Alex once again couldn’t help marvelling at the richness of this gigantic house and the people who lives in it. They must be billionaire to say the least. She was quite stoked that she had the chance to know them and stay with them. Gosh, the thought really unnerved her.
“I hope at least one of my dresses fit you,” Kelly commented. “Silly of Jayden not to tell you to bring dresses and gowns. After all the party was his idea.”