“It’s like that movie with Clark Cable and Claudette Colbert,” I said sliding under the covers and pulling them under my chin.
“What movie?”
“It’s an old classic, About Last Night.”
“I’ll have to watch it. Do they end up together?”
“I don’t remember the ending.” I lied. Of course they did. It was the 1930s. It was Clark Gable.
“Okay, well, sweet dreams, Piper. Thanks for being a sport about my work and my family.”
“Cherie told me you were unencumbered, but I don’t think she had a clue.”
“Probably not. Most people are at least a little more encumbered than you imagine.”
“Not me,” I said kind of wistfully. It made me kind of sad. Here I was, a stranger in a strange land. I had a couple of friends to my name and a handful of employees and that was it. Once I got my business sorted and survived this marriage, I’d be sure to make an effort to go out and make new friends because I had to admit, it was kind of nice having someone wonder where I was at the end of each day.
***
“Breakfast in bed, m’lady.”
I brushed the hair out of my eyes and tried to work out where I was. I had that weird slightly jet-lagged sense of disorientation. I looked through my bleary eyes up at Aaron’s smiling face.
He was holding a tray. I could smell coffee and eggs and, good heavens, bacon. I pushed myself up in bed and he unfolded the trays legs then balanced it across my lap. There was a bud vase holding a single red rose in the corner. It was, tragically, given the giver, the single most romantic moment of my life.
“This is awesome.”
“I figured since you’ve made me a few meals now and I haven’t done anything for you.”
“You’re marrying me,” I whispered. “That’s more than enough. But this is still awesome. Are you going to sit with me?”
“Be right back.”
He returned with his own cup of coffee. “I already ate while I was cooking. I brought the papers, too, in case you’re interested.”
And so it was that we sat up in his big bed, reading bits of the paper and eating breakfast just like an old married couple, and I had to admit it was nice. Until his mother stuck her head through the doorway.
“Isn’t this cozy?”
She looked like she was off to meet the Queen so dolled up was she. It was quite the contrast to my own unglamorous appearance.
“It is. Very.” Aaron raised his coffee cup. “So you’re off then, Mom?”
“Yes.” She was giving me the stink eye. “I’ll be back this evening.”
“Have a good day.” He didn’t get up or even move, just sipped his coffee.
She turned on her heel and clacked down the stairs. It wasn’t a happy walk. Oh well, if only one of us could be happy, I was all right with it being me.
At two o’clock, Aaron decided we had to get up.
“Can’t we stay here all day?”
“Seriously, this is your idea of a perfect Sunday?”
“Well, yeah. Big bed, the papers, good company. Not yours?”
“It would be perfect if you only threw in some sex.”
I swatted him with the comics section.
“I know you find me repulsive. You’ve made that abundantly clear.” He said.
“I don’t… I never said that.”
“Well, if we’re not having sex, we need to get out of this bed, my self-restraint is running low.”
My hair was askew and I was in a big t-shirt. I waved my hands like a game show hostess to highlight my many attractive features and chuckled. “This is very alluring; I can see why you’d be struggling to resist”
Then I hopped out of bed and headed for the shower.
“I’ll be thinking about you in there.” He called from behind me.
I would be thinking about him, too, but I didn’t share that fact.
An hour later, we were walking across Boston Common. Aaron decided we should talk about our wedding. He had a plan to book us flights to Vegas the following Friday so that we could do the deed.
“You just focus on your big business deal this week and I’ll plan the best elopement ever.”
“You’re such a girl,” I teased.
“I know. I’ve been dreaming of this day my whole life.” He batted his pretty eyes at me. Then he paused. “Well, maybe you have. Is there anything you especially want at our wedding?”
“That’s very sweet. It’s not a real wedding. I mean, I know it’s real but, it’s not real.”
His face went sort of strange looking. “But that doesn’t mean it can’t be nice.”
We were marrying in Vegas so I considered what that meant.
“True. So, no Elvis please. If you don’t mind.”
“Got it.”
“And my favorite flowers are daisies.”
“Daisies. Okey dokey.”
“And I really don’t like buffets so if we could not have a buffet for our wedding meal, that would be fabulous.”
“You think I’d take you to a buffet for our wedding feast?” He looked incredulous.
“Vegas is famous for its buffets,” I pointed out.
“Do I look in any way like a buffet guy to you who would take his bride to a buffet?”
He looked like a guy who would find the most expensive restaurant in town to take her. Or maybe a guy who’d have a fancy meal delivered to the suite. A meal that came on trays wheeled in by men in tuxedos who stood there while a string quartet played and then lifted the cloches in unison. He looked exactly like the sort of guy who really wouldn’t be marrying me because my guy probably would take me to a buffet.
I shook my head. “Nope.”
“Okay, no Elvis, no buffet and some daisies for my bride then.” He slung his arm around my shoulder. “And maybe a few surprises.”
This whole experience had been nothing but surprising, I wasn’t sure how much more I could take. I hardly recognized my life after a week with this guy, what would it be like in a year?
I managed to make it home Sunday night without seeing my future mother-in-law again. Apparently, she was leaving Monday night. I had so much to do to be ready for my meeting with the investors on Tuesday that there was no way would I be seeing her again this trip.
“She hasn’t visited for over a year. With a bit of luck, your paths won’t cross again,” Aaron said.
I wasn’t sure how to take that. Was he ashamed of me? Had his mother’s disapproval reminded him that I was, indeed, not marriage material?
As he piled me into a cab to go home, he gave me a searching look and squeezed my hand I was sure he had something to say but what?
“You okay?” I asked.
“Yes. Absolutely. Never better. I’ll call you tomorrow. Focus on the tour and the business deal. You’ll knock their socks off.”
“It’ll be fine. It’s the last hurdle. If I can leap over it, then I’m golden.”
“Go make like a gazelle, then, and leap.” He kissed my forehead and closed the taxi door . He gave the roof two taps.
Giddy-up, I thought. Here we go.
Chapter 10
Lucy and I spent much of our time on Monday making like the Bangles and being manic. We weren’t late and I didn’t dream about kissing Valentino, but we were very busy and focused. Things needed to be efficient and pristine when my investors came by.
Aaron sent me a couple of good luck texts. I tried not to think about him. The truth was, if I screwed this up I probably wouldn’t need to get married. I could sell this business as it stood in a heartbeat and catch a big silver bird back to Sydney. I’d achieved all I hoped for with the business; if the deal went through, though, I wanted to be around to take it to the next level.
As we munched on a lunchtime pie, Lucy asked me about Aaron. “Hot much?”
“Steaming.”
“He seems very into you.”
He’s a very good actor. “Maybe. It’s new, but it’s very, very nice.
”
“I hope it works out for you. You deserve a hottie, Piper.”
I do, but I didn’t necessarily deserve this one. “Fingers crossed.”
“I don’t think you’ve dated anyone since I’ve known you.”
“I must have.”
She shook her head. “I’d remember. I’m a romance junkie.”
“Well. I guess it’s my turn then.”
Apart from that brief interlude, it was work all the way.
I couldn’t sleep that night because I don’t think there would ever be a more significant week in my life. I was, hopefully, taking my business stratospheric, and I was getting married. This was nuts.
Around one in the morning, my phone rang. I wasn’t really asleep, merely in an exhausted fugue. It was my dad.
“Hey, kiddo.”
“Hey, Dad. Are you ever going to get your brain around time zones, Dad?”
“Did I wake you?”
“It’s okay. What’s up?”
“I rang to wish you luck tomorrow.”
He remembered. My heart did a little happy dance. “Thanks, Dad.”
“I know you think I’m a bit hopeless.”
“Dad.”
“Hear me out, Piper.” He cleared his throat. “I haven’t exactly been father of the year material, but I want you to know that I’m proud of you. You should walk tall, kiddo, because whatever you’ve achieved, it’s all on you. You’ve done it. I didn’t know what to do when your mother left, or when she was here for that matter, and you were a girl and so like her--big heart, lots of gumption--that you scared the shit out of me.”
“Thanks, Dad.” I had to laugh.
“In a good way, Piper. I just tried to stand back and let you get on with it. And you have. So I guess I wanted to let you know that your hopeless old dad is pulling for you.”
“Thanks, Dad. It means a lot to me that you called.” It really did. I was so used to expecting nothing that I started to tear up.
“And I know we never talk about it, but your mother would be, too, if she wasn’t such a selfish cow.”
“Way to bring it home, Dad.”
“Sorry.” We were both laughing.
I got back into bed and, funnily enough, I slept really, really well.
***
I was laden with paperwork when I walked into the law offices that next evening. I had contracts and forms and folders of information. I was also wearing a huge smile because my day had been fabulous. Assuming everything in the many pages of legal documentation I was holding didn’t hold any nasty little surprises Pied Piper’s Pies were about to become a national franchise.
I hadn’t called ahead because I wanted to tell Aaron all about it, in person.
Amy greeted me warmly from behind the reception desk. “Hi, Piper. I’ll let Aaron know you’re here.”
I didn’t even have time to put my pile down before he came racing into reception. “I’ve been so anxious all day. How’d it go?”
“It went really, really well.” I was grinning like the Cheshire cat and I didn’t care a bit. I was goofy and I was happy. And the weird thing was, as soon as the investors had left and Lucy and I had gathered ourselves together, the first person I had wanted to tell was Aaron which was why I was here.
“Yes!” He fist pumped the air. “I totally knew you’d blow them away.”
Which was why I had wanted to tell him; I knew he would be as excited for me as I was for myself.
“Give me that stuff.” He held out his arms for the folders. “And get in here so I can give you a kiss.”
It didn’t matter that it was for show. I wanted that kiss. I wanted to feel human contact from someone I liked.
“You guys are so cute,” declared the receptionist. When Aaron turned to look at her, she said, “Oops, did I say that out loud? Sorry.”
“You’re fine.” He laughed. “Come on, Piper. I need to hear all about it.”
We passed Ophelia in the hall. Her icy stare couldn’t even kill my buzz. She eyeballed Aaron and the files. “Taking on a new client?”
“Nah, just carrying my best girl’s books to her next class.”
I liked being his best girl.
I plunked my exhausted yet exhilarated self down on the sofa. “Oh my goodness. It was full-on. I mean, I knew they were keen and this was probably a formality, well, unless I screwed it up, but I was so nervous that I thought I would.”
“I had faith in you.” He smiled. “You’re a smart girl with a good product.”
“I hoped so, but you know it’s hard doing all this stuff alone.”
“And now you don’t have to. You have me.”
“I do.” And that was the thing, I did have him. Yes, he was marrying me out of convenience, but he did care about me. He did want me to succeed, and he was invested in my success. That wasn’t enough for a happily ever after, but it was enough for a happily right now.
He closed the door behind him. “Speaking of I do’s. While you’re here, I thought we should get the pre-nups signed. I took the liberty of making one from you to me, but you can get your lawyer to change it.”
“Pre-nups?” Of course there would be a pre-nup. The guy was a millionaire and I was about to be doing pretty well myself. “This makes it very real.”
“Yeah, I know. Even I was a bit freaked,” he said kindly. “It’s not personal. I wouldn’t marry anyone without a pre-nup. That money isn’t mine. My grandparents gave it to me; I feel like I’m just its steward. And you, you most definitely shouldn’t. You don’t want some Johhny-come-lately taking advantage of your success or your kind nature.”
He was right. “Okay, let’s do it.”
“Make sure you read both of them carefully.” He looked at me. “On second thought, you should just take them with you because, as a lawyer, I feel it would be wrong for me to suggest that you are in the right frame of mind right now. What you need now is expensive champagne and lots of it.”
“Do you know what I’d really like?”
“Spill.”
“Can we go to O’Shaunnessy’s and get beer and burgers? Cherie could meet us and Lucy and maybe a few of my other staff.”
I don’t think he wasn’t expecting me to say that. “Of course! Perfect. I was being selfish. I’ll call and tell them we want the pool room. You go text your people.”
Chapter 11
It was quite a party. Everyone in O’Shaunnessy’s was excited for me. All my staff were buzzed to be along for the ride because they knew I’d be taking care of them moving forward. Some of Cherie’s other relatives came along, including Marie and Vinnie.
I couldn’t remember ever having a party before. The beer flowed and the burgers and fries kept coming.
Cherie slung her arms around me. “You did it, Piper! I knew the day I rented you that kitchen that you were going places, and look at you!”
“Thanks, Cherie. You’ve been my rock.”
“I know good people when I see them.” She planted a sloppy kiss on my cheek.
“You hitting on my girl, cuz?” Aaron asked handing her a beer.
“She was my girl first.” Cherie said possessively. She’d been hitting the beers hard. “And nothing will ever change that. Got it?”
“Got it.” He agreed. “Thanks for introducing us.”
“I knew you two were meant to be. You’re both smart, hard-workers, come from crappy families, and you were both ready.”
“Ready?” I asked.
“To let love in. I knew you’d love each other.”
I looked at Aaron, confused. Were we doing such a good job that even Cherie was buying our act or was Cherie playing us? Had she set us up for real?
“Cherie, you know what this is right?” I asked. “You remember what’s happening here?”
“Perfic, its perfic.” She almost hiccupped it out.
“I think she means perfect,” Aaron translated.
“Yeah, I got that. You know what I think?” They looked at me. “Cherie
has had perficly enough to drink.”
She nodded—a little cockeyed on account of the drink.
We were around the corner from my place so once we closed down the joint, Aaron said he’d come back with me. He was pretty buzzed himself. It turns out, at my own parties, I don’t drink much. It’s too much fun talking to everyone. Plus, I was high on my success. I realized I needed to call my dad back when we got in.
“That was a great idea,” Aaron said in a lazy voice, arm slung around my shoulder where it seemed to feel most at home these days. “You have the best ideas, Piper.”
“Thanks. It was fun. I’m glad we did it. It’s nice to share the excitement.”
“’Course it is. Like college graduation. Well, my parents weren’t at mine, but Cherie came.”
I looked at him. “Why didn’t they come?”
“I’d recently turned in my dad, so he had his trial, and my mom decided to flee the country.”
“She should have come.”
“Yeah, she should have.” He sighed.
I told him about my dad’s call the night before as we headed up the stairs. And then the phone was ringing as I opened the door. “Dad?”
“Hey, kiddo. How’d you do? You wowed ’em, right?”
“I blew their minds, Dad.”
“Go, Piper!” He cheered down the phone line. Aaron was shuffling behind me bumping into the furniture.
“Sounds like you’re not alone.”
“No, I’ve got a friend here. We just had a party at the local pub. You’d have loved it.” The truth was, the man had never met a pub he didn’t like.
“I would have. Is that a girl friend or a guy friend?”
“Guy friend.”
“Now that you’re a big shot, don’t let some putz take advantage of you.”
“Like usual, you mean,” I teased.
“I didn’t mean that. Not all people have your best interests at heart.” This from a welfare cheat and petty thief.
“I’ll keep that in mind. I think this one is enough of a big shot on his own that it doesn’t matter.”
Any Way You Slice It: An Upper Crust Novella (Upper Crust Series Book 1) Page 6