Make Believe

by Genevieve Smith

  “Whoa, I let him touch me? Are you stupid? I moved as soon as I realised it wasn’t you.”

  “Yep, of course you did, Jess. Let me guess - that’s the same with Hudson?”

  Oh my God. I can’t believe he just said that. I knew there was more to this. The bastard!

  “How the hell can you say that? Is that what you really think? You bastard. I didn’t deserve tonight and I certainly didn’t deserve to be fucking sexually assaulted by that asshole. You’re just as bad as he is. How dare you treat me like this.” By now the tears are uncontrollable.

  “Stop the car, Simon.”

  “No, Simon, don’t. I’m not having her walk alone.”

  “I said stop this fucking car!” Simon brings the car to a gradual halt.

  I fumble for the door handle. Elliott grabs my arm.

  “Please, Jess, don’t do this,” he pleads.

  “Get your hands off me. I want to get out.”

  “Please, let me walk. Simon can take you back to the hotel and you can have my suite. I will bunk in with him.” He looks genuinely sorry.

  “I can walk you know. I’m a twenty-two- year-old grown woman. I’ll be fine.”

  “Jess, I won’t take no for an answer.” With that he opens his door and gets out.

  Simon starts to drive off. I look out of the rear window and watch the sad, lonely figure walking in the distance.

  Chapter 15

  I snuggle under the duvet in Elliott’s suite. The bed is so comfortable. I feel the mattress moulding to my body. As I lay there, I try and force myself to sleep. But who am I kidding? I have no chance of sleeping. Our first argument keeps playing through my mind. Why was he so cross with me? I bet what he said about Hudson was how he really feels. I sense the uncertainty creeping back in. How could he be so horrible? Then the awful image of that solitary figure walking home alone in the rain appears in my mind. He insisted on that because he does care about me, I justify. He’s such a complex character. At least with Henry you knew what you were getting - a moody bugger most of the time. He never had whiplash emotions. Jeez, how much has my life changed in the last few months.

  My thoughts are disturbed by a knock at the bedroom door. Oh God!

  I hesitate. “Come in.”

  Elliott pushes open the door. He’s soaked. His black jacket is dripping. His hair all flattened down by the rain.

  I burst out laughing, trying to stifle it. He looks at me, I’m not sure of his reaction, but to my relief his lips start to turn up at the sides and he joins me, laughing, bottom stomach laughing. He walks over to the bed.

  “Do you mind if I change, Jessica. I want to get out of these clothes.”

  I can’t believe he’s asking me. It’s his room.

  “Of course not, carry on.”

  I watch him as he unbuttons his trousers and drops them to the floor. He then takes off his socks. Even his Ralph Lauren boxer shorts are wet. He pulls off his jacket and then his white t-shirt which has gone transparent due to the rain. He runs his fingers through his hair moulding it back to his normal style. He turns and walks to the drawers. He catches me watching him. He really is perfection, his body toned and tanned. Not an inch of fat anywhere.

  He smirks at me.

  “Enjoying the show, Miss Ing?”

  I nod.

  He leans down and whispers, “Shut your mouth, Jess, you’re dribbling!” and laughs.

  I immediately shut it. How embarrassing. I feel my cheeks turning red. I try to distract myself but the allure to look is just too tempting. My body has a mind of its own; I feel the excitement of seeing him naked. I want him, even though I’m angry with him. The realisation that he’s going home tomorrow dawns on me. How can I stay mad when this is our last night together?

  “What you thinking about, Jess?” he suggestively asks.

  “Wouldn’t you like to know?” I tease.

  “Yes I definitely would. With a look like that in your eyes how could I resist?”

  He climbs on the bed next to me on all fours and crawls up the bed towards me.

  I feel my breathing becoming rapid. Calm Jess, you’ve got all night, I tell myself.

  He leans down and starts kissing my neck, he works his way down towards my vest. He kisses across the top of it. He looks up at me.

  “I’m sorry for embarrassing you.”

  I look at him.

  “It’s not embarrassing, well it is, but it wasn’t that. It was the fact you blamed me! I tried to move but by the time Lou understood what I wanted to do, you were there.”

  He looks perplexed.

  “It’s just…I couldn’t stop Hudson from attacking you and that was a big mistake, which I will regret for the rest of my life. I will never make that mistake again. Believe me. I will handle anyone who gets near you.”

  “It’s all very flattering, Elliott, but Hudson wasn’t your fault, or mine! He’s just some over-powered asshole with no self-control. You couldn’t stop him because you didn’t know, but I did and I managed to twice.”

  “Not before he hurt you though.” His face tenses up.

  “Yes, I’ll give you that, but it could have been so much worse than it was. And I don’t think I did too badly for someone who is half his size.” I smile.

  He brushes his fingers down the side of my face. He looks sad.

  I sit up on my knees and gently tug his arm, pulling him towards me. I feel him relax as I start tracing my lips up his neck towards his well sculptured chin. I kiss him all over. He closes his eyes, his breathing starts to deepen. For once I understand how vulnerable he is. He’s dropped his guard with me for the first time. I feel so empowered by him. I kiss him full on the lips, the passion is so uncontrollable but gentle. He scoops me up in his arms and lays me underneath him. He hands trail all over my body, his touch makes me a quivering mass. As he tugs my vest off, I realise that this is the first time we’ve made love instead of fucking! This can only mean one thing. Love…

  I watch as Elliott’s plane takes off. I try and console myself with the fact that I will be back in the good old USA in just two days’ time, but it doesn’t stop the sorrow of him leaving. I make my way out of the private air strip at Bournemouth’s airport, and I head towards the Ferrari he’s left for me to use. I can’t believe he did that. I click the button on the key and the door opens. Whoa, that’s so cool. I climb in and adjust the seat. I’m so low down. I push my foot to the floor and there’s the rev of the engine. It’s so loud. I gently accelerate and stall. Dawn! I turn the key again. He makes it look so easy. This time I have it. Lunging forward, it flies, throwing me back. By the time I’m on the road I have it all sorted out. I must admit, if I had the money I could get used to a car like this too. The attention it grabs. I can’t wait to drive it back up to London. Part of me wonders if he’s just left it so that Henry couldn’t drive me.

  ***

  I stand at Heathrow, waiting to board wondering where the hell did the last two days go. I didn’t see Henry again, much to my mother’s disgust. Lou made up for her misgivings though by organising a lovely spa day for us. It was totally relaxing; it was exactly what I needed. I hear my flight number called out over the speaker and head towards the gate.

  As I look out of the plane’s window I see the sun above the clouds. I don’t seem to be so scared of flying anymore. I’m not sure if my attack has put things into perspective. The air stewardess walks along offering teas and coffees and today’s newspapers. I opt for the LA times. Whilst I take my tea, the stewardess keeps staring at me. I smile but she doesn’t smile back. Maybe she remembers me from the flight home a week ago? It’s a little off-putting. Once she’s handed out the teas she continues on her way. When she’s finished, I notice her again staring at me with her colleague. I start to feel paranoid. Maybe she’s remembers seeing me with Elliott…I suppose I will have to get use to these kinds of looks. It all seems like make-believe if you ask me. I open the front page of the LA Times and it dawns on me why she’s staring. Th
ere is a half-page photo of me and Henry standing by my bedroom window the night he dropped me home. What the hell? It takes a few moments for the headline to register, “Elliott Tate’s Girlfriend Cheats”. I read on.

  Elliott Tate’s latest girlfriend, Jessica Ing, was having far too much fun on her holiday in the UK. She shared it with an unknown male who she looked like she was getting very cosy with. Jessica stood there in just a top whilst the unknown male was topless. We haven’t yet heard from a spokesperson with regards to Elliott, but we are sure Jessica’s regretting cheating on the most eligible bachelor in America.

  My mouth falls open. I can’t believe someone has taken pictures of Henry and me? They’ve turned an innocent photo into a dirty lie. Shit, what’s Elliott going to say? I need to talk to him, but how can I at 34,000 feet? Shit, shit, shit. No wonder everyone’s giving me dirty looks. It’s not me feeling paranoid. Oh my God, poor Elliott, how the hell am I going to explain this to him? He was so angry when he discovered that Henry was even there. What if he doesn’t believe me, but believes what the papers say. I can’t control my emotions and the tears start to fall down my cheeks. Who would have done this to me? I don’t understand how they even got the photo. They must have had a long distance lens and been watching me the whole time I was there. But how did they get us both in the window at the same time? It must have been a fluke? My mind starts working overtime and I start to question who I can trust. I wipe the tears away but I need to get to the loo to sort myself out properly. I push past the other woman in my row. She scowls at me. I keep my head down as I walk down the aisle, hoping no one recognises me. Why am I not wearing a hoody? I always bring one on the plane with me in case I’m cold. Instead I decide to be all girly and bring a pretty cardigan. I rummage around in my bag to see if I have a hair tie. Thank God I do. I stand in the toilet trying to put my hair up into a bun but it’s so cramped. I dust my face with cool water and give myself a pep talk. Right Jessica, you just need to get through this flight. Don’t look at anyone, just head down and back to your seat.

  As I head back down the aisle the air stewardess beckons me towards her. Oh jeez, so much for staying inconspicuous.

  I walk towards her. She ushers me into the kitchen. I look at her with a quizzical look.

  “I’m sorry, Miss, but I’ve been asked to move you.”

  “What? Why?” My voice sounds taught.

  “Um, it’s a little awkward really. Some of the people in this section have seen you in today’s paper. We have a lot of Elliott Tate fan’s on board and we don’t want any un-pleasantries. We still have another three hours left.”

  I’m dumbfounded. They’ve asked me to move because of what they’ve read?

  I roll my eyes at her.

  “Where do you want me to go?”

  “We only have space left in first class. It will probably be better for you in there in any case, as they have screens around the beds so no one will be able to see you,” she justifies.

  I laugh.

  “First Class. Oh, OK then.”

  “Please, I will take you straight down; we don’t want you going back in there. I’ll collect your things.” She smiles.

  She’s doesn’t seem that bad, maybe she was just worried about me.

  The rest of the flight is better. She was right, no one even knew I was there in First Class. I was allowed off the plane first due to the fact they didn’t want any trouble. I collect my bags and head towards arrivals, and I notice Mia immediately.

  She throws her arms around my neck. God, I’ve missed her.

  “I didn’t know you were meeting me.”

  “I thought it would be best as you’re headline news, girl.” She hands me some sunglasses and a baseball cap. “Put these on.” We head out the electronic doors and are greeted with hordes of photographers all calling my name. I try and push my way through but they are not making it easy.

  “So Jessica, are you back here to patch things up with Elliott? Is he speaking to you? What is the state of your relationship?”

  All these questions are being fired at me. I try and ignore them but it’s hard. Eventually I make my way past them and we reach the car, but getting in proves difficult. I don’t know how Elliott does it. Mia tries to drive off but they are blocking her way. She moves, inch by inch, but they still try and stick the camera in the car.

  “See what I mean, Jess, it’s crazy. They have been camped outside ours since this broke yesterday.”

  She edges the car forward nearly hitting one of the photographers, they then move out the way. I turn to look behind and we are being followed.

  “What has Elliott said about this, Jess?”

  “I haven’t seen him or spoken to him. The first I knew about this was on the plane when they asked me to move because I was upsetting people!” I laugh.

  “Well it broke yesterday, so he would be fully aware of it. Have you not heard anything from him?”

  “No, I really hope he’s OK and not really pissed at me.”

  “I think you’re underestimating what he’s dealing with at the moment, Jess.”

  “Why? What?” I feel so guilty just assuming I’m his only problem.

  “Someone screwed up his contracts for his next two jobs. They’ve replaced him because of it. He’s finding it hard to get another decent agent. Hudson’s been spinning the shit wheel and yet another girl has come out the wood work saying Elliott ruined her life. I feel so sorry for the poor guy.”

  “Oh shit. Poor Elliott, I didn’t know. That would explain his immediate departure then. Poor him, and now he has me to deal with on top of all this. Maybe I should have stayed back in the UK.” My heart sinks. My poor, poor, Elliott. How selfish am I?

  I decide to text him to let him know I’ve arrived and I’m safe.

  Hey babe,

  I’m back. Have you seen the paper? I can explain ,it’s all innocent.

  I’m so sorry to add to your problems.

  Love as always Jess xxxxx

  I push Send hoping for an immediate reply, but nothing.

  “Jess, stop looking, he’s really busy at the moment. Work has him all over the place, poor chap. He was in the papers last week for his fight with Hudson. He had to go into hiding because of that. Work isn’t happy with him at all,” she snaps.

  “I’m sorry, Mia. I hope it hasn’t affected you too much.

  “No, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to snap. I just think he needs a break from it all. Last week when I was working on him, just before he came to see you, he was really lost. His fight with Hudson has really hit him. And now you’re in the papers with Henry, I just…….feel sorry for him.”

  “I hope that’s all it is, Mia?” I can’t control my jealousy.

  “Of course it is. I would never do that to you. But what is the story with the half-naked pictures of you and Henry gracing the front of the newspapers?”

  I laugh. “You bitch,” I tease.

  I explain that was the night Mum had made us share a room, and he didn’t even stay in the end. I filled her in on my family’s strange funeral thing and Elliott’s and my night out. Everything we had been up to. I had missed having someone to share stuff with.

  When she pulled into the driveway the photographers are there with their flash bulbs all going berserk. There must have be ten or so photographers waiting. I put the sun glasses and cap on and head to the front door. Why does it always take so long to unlock?

  Mia slams the front door shut. “God, I’m sick of them.”

  I half smile. “I’m sorry you have to put up with this.”

  She walks over and gives me a cuddle. “Hey, it’s not your fault you’re dating the hottest thing around.”

  I take my stuff upstairs and check my phone… nothing. God, I really hope he’s OK. I open my iPad to check my emails.

  My eyes immediately spot his email - it has today’s date on it.

  From: Elliboytate@hotmail.com

  To: Jessicaing@virgin.co.uk

  Hey
Babe,

  Hope you arrived back safe.

  Phone’s died so can’t call. Are you free this eve? About 9-ish?

  We need to talk…See the attachment!

  Elliott

  Xx

  How is it possible to feel so elated one minute and so devastated the next?

  I click open the attachment. It takes a while to load but then there are several photos of me and Henry together. One’s of us at the airport and him hugging me, then in the car on the way home, and one of him holding my hand whilst he looks at the Rolex, some of us going into mums, and several of us standing together in the bedroom window where he has no clothes on.

  My heart sinks. If I didn’t know they were innocent I would think I was guilty. The way they are taken makes it seem like we were together.

  My darling, Elliott, I bet he regrets ever meeting me. He’s lost his agent, his work, and now his pride all because of me. How did he get these photos? Or worse still, who took them?

  I check my Rolex to see how long I’ve got until he arrives. I wonder if he should come here at all. Not with all the paparazzi waiting outside.

  I email him.

  From” Jessicaing@virgin.co.uk

  To: Elliboytate@hotmail.com

  Hey Babe,

  Thanks for the email. Believe me, I can explain. I’m so sorry you’ve had to deal with this alone.

  We have the paparazzi outside our house. Do you want to meet somewhere else?

  Love

  Your Jess xxxxxx

  I push Send.

  He doesn’t reply straight away, which gives me yet more time to ponder and wonder if it’s all been too much for him and he’s going to dump me. My heart constricts at the thought of losing him. How could I have been so stupid? Why did I not say no to my mother and insist on sleeping in the lounge. Even if he does believe me that nothing happened, I’ll bet he’ll always have a doubt! I now know how possessive he can be. Why did I let this happen?

  I check my iPad again and this time I have an email from him.

  From: Elliboytate@hotmail.com

  To: Jessicaing@virgin.co.uk