“Yeah it’s different when they don’t know where I am. Quieter, less hassle. Besides I think the kids are creating a better disguise than I gave them credit for. They don’t expect to see the family man.” He chuckled at the thought of the paps snapping pictures of him feeding the ducks with his niece.
Emma took the little girl to play on the swings once all the stale bread had gone, leaving the boys to push Freddie in the stroller. “So, what got you all churned up this morning? Bad press?” Cameron asked as he tucked the blanket tighter around his son.
It took him a minute to realise what Cameron was asking about but the confused look soon melted away from his face. “Nah, nothing like that. It’s nothing. Just publicity stuff, this magazine wants us all to do this naked shoot thing. I was checking that Iz turned it down that’s all.”
His brother took one look at him before laughing loudly. “That is complete crap! If is not the press then it has to be a girl! They are the only two things that would cause you to look like you did this morning. Come on spill it, who is she?”
It was fruitless to try and hide anything from the man he grew up with. They had always been close; all through school they were inseparable, always watching each other’s backs. He had always turned to this brother for advice from the very beginning when the band first got together, right through his career. When he had a bad feeling about anything he would run it by Cameron first. He usually helped him figure everything out. Biting the bullet, he told his brother all about Grace, sending her the flowers and how she had brushed him off in the email.
“You really like her? It must be really intimidating for her, you know, you being part of the band and all. I mean you’re fucking huge Alex, what normal girl in her right mind would have the balls to ring you? Sure you gave her a number to call, but she’s probably under the impression that you do that crap all the time. She’ll read the hype and believe it, just like everyone else.” Cameron took a long look at his brother who was staring into space nodding vaguely. “Or maybe she just doesn’t like flowers. Why don’t you phone her? If she hasn’t rung you then she probably isn’t going to, but that doesn’t mean she doesn’t want to talk to you. Phone her.” He patted Alex on the back, amazed at how uncertain the man was. This one must have really caught his eye if he was asking his advice. Alex on the other hand, wasn’t sure that calling her was the answer either.
When they arrived back at the house he began his hunt for Izzie’s contacts book. She had disappeared out with a couple of girlfriends for the evening and he couldn’t wait for her to return, he needed to do this now. Almost tearing her room apart he found the tablet under her bed. Opening it he began clicking on random files trying to find where she stored her contacts. God, he wished he paid attention when she spoke sometimes, maybe then he would know what all this shit meant. Eventually finding the right folder he scrolled down the list of contacts until he found the one he wanted. Pulling out his phone he began to dial. All girls liked chocolate didn’t they?
“Hello can I place an order for delivery first thing in the morning? Great I thought I might be too late. Thanks.” Alex reeled off his requirements before reciting his card details. He paid the extra delivery change and added in a hefty tip to make sure his order would definitely arrive tomorrow morning. Feeling rather smug with himself he headed back downstairs to where his family where gathered.
He spent the evening laughing with his dad and brother as they played pool and downed a few beers in the games room. Stripping his sweater off, his dad began to give him hell about the new tattoos he’d had done. “Do you really have to keeping adding to them? Are you done now with them? I think you have enough. I’m not surprised you don’t have a girlfriend, look at the state of your arm. There is more ink than skin for crying out loud!” He grumbled as he lined up his next shot. The brothers laughed at how old fashioned their father was. The man still rose at seven every day, still wore a shirt and tie despite being retired for years. His mum thought it gave him a sense of purpose in life.
“Em has one on her butt dad. They’re not exclusive to guys or even Alex for that matter!” The old man missed his shot as the image of his daughter-in-laws tattooed butt cheek flashed through his mind.
“Jesus H Christ! Does your mother know? Please God tell me it’s nothing crass. On second thoughts don’t tell me anymore, I really don’t need to know.” The man was just thankful it wasn’t on show and nobody need ever know about it. The boys bent double with laughter at the look of disdain on their father’s face.
“I had the band logo on my shoulder too, do you wanna see it?” Alex lifted his shirt allowing his brother to take in the emblem that now sat in the hollow at the front of his shoulder; it blended in to the edges of the tribal design that began at the crest of his arm before flowing down towards his elbow. Cameron smiled in appreciation of the artwork; he always used the same guy for all his ink, the man was an absolute genius. “There are a couple more things I wanna get done and I need to finish the one on my back, but then I’m done Pops.”
The old man shook his head distastefully, muttering some profanity under his breath as he ducked behind the bar, grabbing three more bottles of beer. Handing them to his sons as he spoke. “What you say we make this a little more interesting boys?” Patrick pulled out a twenty from his wallet and laid it on the edge of the table. Taking his bet, they carried on playing into the early hours of the morning with their father managing to win a tidy sum.
Chapter 6
Grace took in the sight of the enormous hamper that sat on the table before her. A wave of nausea flowed over her, why would anyone need that much chocolate? She trawled her way through the gargantuan wicker basket, milk, dark and white chocolate, truffles of every imaginable flavour nestled next to colossal creations all sculpted from expensive chocolate. She was only glad that everyone else had gone home when the delivery guy had turned up. At least now she wouldn’t have the embarrassment of having to explain who had sent the gift. Turning the white card over in her hand she read the simple inscription, which again included a phone number with the instruction to call him. Was this man for real? She wasn’t some teenage stalker that was about to throw herself at his mercy. She hadn’t hung around by the stage door desperate to catch his attention, fainting when he finally noticed her and flashed his panty dropping smile in her direction.
She was a grown woman with a job, a job that she loved and she wasn’t about to let the famous Alex Carter interfere with that. The attention the flowers had drawn to her was embarrassing enough and now this! Huffing loudly she shut the hamper up, turned off her computer and cleared up her desk for the night. She would think of some polite way to tell him enough was enough via yet another email tomorrow.
Thursday brought yet another ostentatious gift, this time it was a fruit basket with the card reading ‘If you don’t like flowers or chocolate then maybe this will do the trick. Please call me, Alex x’. She hadn’t been so lucky with the delivery this time; the fruit arrived smack in the middle of the day giving Sasha and everyone else the opportunity to quiz her, or try to bully her into calling him despite her protestations.
Friday morning sitting at her desk she was relieved to see that there had been no surprise deliveries. Waiting for the ancient computer to load up she chatted to Sasha about their plans for the weekend before opening up her emails for the day. Scrolling through the mundane rubbish, Grace began deleting stuff or moving it to the relevant folders to await her attention. The sharp intake of breath caused Sasha to scoot across to her friends side of the desk, trying to peak over Grace’s shoulder to get a look at what had caused her distress. “Sorry, it’s another email from that bloody awful man, Mr Benson, the one who keeps making completely unreasonable demands for his artist. I can’t bear to read it; he probably wants someone to fan the arsehole whilst they film the interview or something equally as stupid.” Gazing across at Sasha she prayed she had been convincing enough. Narrowing her eyes, she muttered something incohere
nt but did indeed slide her chair away allowing Grace to open the offending email.
‘Hi, sorry if this seems a little intrusive but I am running out of ideas now. What do I have to do to get you to talk to me? I only want to take you out to dinner, so if you could just ring me on 07870 525968, Thanks.
Alex.
Oh and that’s my private number so I would appreciate you not sharing it with anyone! Thanks again.’
Who the hell did he think he was? What did he think she was going to do, post it on the internet for all and sundry to see? What a jerk.
Grace’s hand hovered over the delete button on the email, she should just press the button and be done with it, at least then she could get on with her life. No email – no problem. She wasn’t sure why she perceived dinner with Alex would be a problem, the only justification she had was the uneasy feeling he had created in the pit of her stomach, the impending feeling of doom that sat there like a knot churning her insides. He had only been nice to her, asking her out to dinner wasn’t really the crime of the century, even though there was no way she could ever accept his invitation. He was famous beyond belief and she was just little old Grace, she had no idea what fascination she held for him but she wished it would wear off pretty soon. She had no intention of being the next notch on his bedpost or his latest plaything. As for all the attention that surrounded his every move, she just didn’t want to be a part of that at all. It must be absolute hell having the press hound you wherever you went; surely he had no private life at all.
For some reason unbeknown to her, she filed the email in her personal folder, at least then it was out of sight and she couldn’t ponder over it or have it there tempting her like some cream cake calling to her.
The day had dragged on and on, Grace had been checking the time on the wall clock every ten minutes waiting for her five thirty finish to arrive. It was the weekend and she was more than ready for the frivolity that would ensue. “Right that’s me done Sash, I’m off. See you later and don’t be late, you know I hate sitting in the bar by myself like billy no mates!” As she reached the lift she could hear her desk phone ringing. Well too late, she was outta there. Hitting the lift door button she smiled to herself, it wasn’t that long ago she would have run back at break neck speed to pick up the call, prove her worth to her boss but not today.
“Oh for god’s sake, do you people not have a life, it’s Friday night!” Sasha muttered to herself as she reached over to grab Grace’s phone. She had to stay late to help out with the next week’s scheduling, they took it turns and she couldn’t really argue. “Hello Grace Harris’ desk. Sasha speaking.”
“Oh...sorry I was hoping to catch Grace. Sorry has she left already?” Alex wasn’t expecting the stranger to answer; the woman who had put him through had assured him she hadn’t left yet.
“Just missed her sorry, what can I do for you? Who’s calling?” Sasha recognised the voice but had no idea where from. The deep gravelly sound was so familiar.
“Nothing... nothing. Sorry to bother you. Will she be in on Monday? I don’t suppose you could give me her number could you?” It was a long shot but he reckoned it was worth a punt. He was sure with a bit of charm he might be successful.
“Sorry, company policy, no personal details to be passed on. Who did you say it was sorry?”
“I didn’t. It’s Alex...Alex Carter.” He waited for the gasp, the intake of breath or the squeal that most women did when they spoke to him. All he heard was a clattering sound before she spoke again.
“You mean The Alex Carter from Uni-Fi? The man who keeps sending her gifts? The guy who she chews my ear off about but will still not call? That Alex Carter?” He didn’t think she had stopped to draw breath, the words coming out in a rush.
“Yep, that’ll be me. Are you sure I can’t get her number from you? I promise not to stalk her, I just wanna take her to dinner and she won’t call me or answer my emails. Please?” It was times like this that he wished he was in the same room with the fan, at least then he knew if he flashed his smile he usually got what he wanted.
“Oh shit! Sorry, sorry! Oh My God. I can’t believe she hasn’t called you; I really can’t give you her number though. If it’s any use she will be here late on Monday, she has a late show that she takes care of, you’ll probably catch her at around six thirty, she usually sits at her desk to eat while the prep get’s done. But I haven’t told you that. She will kill me for interfering if she finds out.” Sasha knew she had gone too far, it was none of her business but she also knew that Grace was just being stubborn and stupid.
Alex thanked her; at least he had a firm time when he knew she would be around. After surreptitiously extracting a little more information on Grace’s likes and dislikes he promised the woman he would call Grace on Monday evening. Being famous had its plus points some times.
The weekend seemed endless as he counted down the hours. No amount of time spent on his games console or playing with his niece and nephew did the trick, and he was becoming more and more agitated as the time slowly dwindled past. He just wished he had rung her sooner, then maybe this would be all over and done with. He should have listened to Cam in the first place, she hadn’t even sent a thank you email for the chocolate and fruit gifts, and she still hadn’t responded to his email. Why was it that the ones he wasn’t interested in would throw themselves at him, but yet the one girl he did want to notice him didn’t appear to want anything to do with him. He was damned if he could ever suss out what it was that people wanted from him.
As he watched the clock slowly moving towards the afternoon, he had an epiphany; He wouldn’t ring her, he would fly up to Scotland instead. That way she couldn’t avoid answering him and at least he would know if it was a lost cause or not.
“Izzie! Isobel where are you?” Alex shouted out to his PA, sticking his head out into the hallway. He knew she was around somewhere he could hear her laughing with Emma. “Izzie!” He made his way down towards the Games room, the laughter growing louder as he opened the door. “There you are. Are you deaf? I was shouting you!”
“I heard, but you seem to forget, whilst you are not working I am nothing but your lowly sister. Not at your disposal 24/7. Got it?” Izzie appeared put out but he didn’t have time to grovel right now, he was on a mission.
“Yeah whatever, sorry, look I need to book a flight to Scotland as soon as, oh and I’ll need a hotel near the airport.” Alex turned to leave the room, his mind running ahead of him.
“The number’s on the tablet under ‘travel’. Help yourself it’s in my room.” Izzie went back to her conversation with her sister-in-law.
“Isobel, not now ok? I know you’re upset with me for whatever reason but can you just do your job please?” He looked exasperated.
“Nope, told you I am not working if you’re not. You are more than capable of booking a flight and a hotel.”
“Izzie...whatever!” Cursing his sister under his breath as he left the room, pulling his mobile out of his pocket he dialled Janet’s number. She would sort it for him; she was putty in his hands usually.
“Hey Jan, it’s Alex...” After a few minutes schmoozing his publicist he was back in his room throwing a few belongs in his carry on suitcase.
He stood in the doorway waiting for the car that his publicist had organised for him along with a flight and hotel, his arm around his mother’s shoulders. “I’m only going for a few days, maybe not even that long. Don’t look so sad, you have Cam and the kids to keep you busy. I promise I will be home before you know it.” Alex leaned down to kiss her cheek as the sleek black car pulled up before them. The driver exited the car, opening the passenger door for Alex before his loaded his luggage into the boot.
“Bye son. Phone me when you land.” She blew a kiss to him as she stood watching the car head down the tree lined drive.
Chapter 7
Alex just got to the hotel with enough time to check in and dump his bags before having to collect his hire car and find his own
way to the Television studio. Janet had offered to book him a driver for the few days he was away but he had declined, instead wanting to get behind the wheel himself. He liked to drive and he didn’t get the opportunity much these days to drive himself anywhere. The band were usually chauffeured to their destinations or they had a huge tour bus at their disposal.
He pulled into a parking space just before six thirty. All he had to do now was find out which floor he needed, which didn’t prove too hard once he had smiled politely for a photo and signed an autograph for the night security who sat behind the welcome desk. As the lift door closed he suddenly felt a little uneasy, maybe this wasn’t such a good idea. She hadn’t responded to the gifts or the email. What had made him think turning up unannounced was the way forward? The lift door opened, there was no going back now, he might as well just ride out the storm. Poking his head out into the corridor he tried to get his bearings, walking towards the glass doors where there only light on the corridor shone through. As Alex opened the door he could hear her familiar voice as she talked on the phone, striding towards her purposefully he took in the sight of her as she swayed side to side on her chair.
The woman sat beside her saw him first; with her face flushed crimson she nudged Grace as she nodded her head in Alex’s direction. “Visitor Grace...”
Grace swung the chair around to face a now madly grinning Alex. “Holy shit! Sorry Mr Benson...No, sorry can I call you back? Thanks, no, just a problem in the office I need to deal with.”
“Well that was some greeting!” Standing before her with his arms crossed across his chest, his feet planted firmly apart. He was smirking at how flustered she had suddenly become.
Taking A Risk Page 4