His Hired Girlfriend (37 page)

“He’s only thirty.” Peter
shifted the laptop round so that it faced him. “Hey, Jay. Mr. and
Mrs. Stewart are now yours. Do your best, bro.”

In the screen, Jayden
nodded.

Peter turned the laptop back
toward the couple and nodded for them to proceed. Maly made herself
comfortable as she held onto her husband’s hand. Jacob waited
expectantly.

In the
screen, Jayden took a deep breath and then said,
“Mr. and Mrs. Stewart, I’m Jayden McCartney. I’m
the one responsible for everything that had happened to Alex. She
had only came to New York because I had asked her to. I needed her
help, the type that I’m very embarrassed to tell. I asked her to
pretend to be my girlfriend in exchange that I pay for the full
price of your heart transplant, sir.”

Maly gasped and glanced at her
husband. Jacob tightened his hands about hers as he stared
intensely at Jayden in the screen.

“
However,
once she was here things got a bit complicated and I found myself
falling in love with her. I really love your daughter,
sir.”
Jay looked at Jacob and then
Maly.
“I’m sorry for what happened, but
now I only ask for this. I want to marry Alex. I ask for your
permission and I ask for your help to set things right with
Alex.”

A long silent followed. Jacob
seemed to be in some sort of dilemma.

“
Sire?”
Jayden’s voice echoed
into the silent room.

Peter nodded. “Help him.”

Jacob said, “Answer me this,
Jayden.”

“
Yes, sir?”

“Will you do anything in your
power to make Alex happy?”

“
Yes, sir. I love her. I
will do anything to make her happy.”

“And you will never hurt her in
anyway?”

“
No, sir. I will never hurt
her in anyway.”

Jacob leaned closer to the
screen, as though he was glaring into Jayden’s soul. Then he
grinned. “Then we will help you. Welcome to the family, Jayden
McCartney.”

In the screen Jay sighed with
relief and smiled.

Peter gave out a loud
“Yeah!”

Maly laughed. “Welcome to the
family, Jayden.”

“
Thank
you,”
Jay replied.

***

NEW YORK CITY, USA

IN THE STUDY room, Jay stroked
his finger through his blonde hair in relief. He felt as though
finally the world had decided to go his way.

He looked up from the computer
screen to his family who had been watching and listening to his
conversation with Alex’s parents. Beth, Gracie and Stephanie
squeezed in the small sofa. His father Tom sat on the other side
with Kelly and Sam. Near the side table, Maggie popped the
champagne and everyone cheered.

As Maggie pour wine into
glasses, Tom went round to the computer screen and introduced
himself to the Stewarts. “Hello, I’m Tom McCartney, Jayden’s
father.”

On the other side Gracie came
round and hugged Jayden. “I’m so proud of you.”

Jay chuckled. “Thanks.”

“And you’ll make her
happy?”

“I will.”

“Champagne, everyone,” Maggie
said, going round giving everyone a glasses.

*****

CHAPTER 29

Two weeks later

DUNEDIN, NEW ZEALAND

LIFE FOR ALEXANDRA was
colourless and meaningless. She was not interested in reading
books, food just didn’t taste good, work was a haze of fog, people
was just faces without souls and life was basically just a series
of meaningless events.

Day after day she’d come to
work and do her things. Only her thought was always occupied with
Jayden – the way he smiled, the way he touched her, the way he
kissed her, the way he moved and laughed...

Then she’d
started getting angry the moment she thought about him and Sarah
together. Things only had gotten worse when one night she had been
browsing the net and her eyes caught an article about Kelly’s
wedding in the
‘Your Wedding’
website. It was a feature article and near the
bottom page there was a photo of her and Jayden together. The
footnote said:

Young, handsome billionaire
Jayden McCartney with beautiful girlfriend Alexandra Stewart
wearing a Chandra’s gown. Rumour to be said there was a secret
engagement, a baby on the way, and marriage is just around the
corner.

She had growled then, in anger
and frustration. How she and Jayden had looked good together and it
only brought back beautiful memories that she never wanted to
forget.

Snapping herself from that
thought, she stared up at the clock that was hung on the
cafeteria’s wall. Five to two it said. Time to go back work she
supposed. She gave out a deep sighed and got up, grabbing for her
handbag and half-filled cup of tea. With her head bowed and her
eyes on the new dark grey carpet, she made her way toward the
conveyer.

‘
What
should you do tonight, Alex?’
she
asked herself.
‘Not Facebooking
surely?
You’re not stalking Jayden again.
No. No. Don’t be stupid.’

Of course she hadn’t been on
Facebook since she had gotten back from America. Only Jayden’s
handsome face was still in her mind. She really wanted to forget
about him, but found it so hard, which was rather annoying.

“Oh damn!”
she swore.
Why does it have to be
hard?

Bamb!

She gasped, felt the warm tea
splashing on her front, soaking into her bra and skin. She felt
herself falling of balance, backward.

A pairs of hands grabbed her
arm and pulled her back onto a warm, hard chest.

Alex glanced up and widened her
eyes in shock.

She must be
dreaming.
‘
Yes,
Alex, you missed Jayden so much that you’re fantasying about him
being here for real in New Zealand, right here in front of
you.’

Oh how pathetic she was.

She just stared up at him, her
mouth opened, her heart working hard out and loud in her own
ears.

“So you’re not that clumsy,
eh?” came the voice that was so similar to Jayden’s.

“Huh?”

“How are you going to fix
this?” her fabricated Jayden pointed to his stained Calvin Klein
shirt. “Clean it for me with you bare hands? Or put it in the
washing machine?”

Alex could
only stare at him.
Was she really
fantasying this?
He was so
real.

“Is it guaranteed?” he
continued.

Alex bit her
lip, confused and lost. If he was her fantasy, she thought, when
she touched him he’d disappeared. To test her theory, she brought
her hands up and touched his face. She gasped. He was warm and very
real.
God! He was real!

“Jayden?” she whispered, her
voice shaking, tears brewing in her eyes.

“Yes, Alex, it’s Jayden,” he
chuckled.

“I’m sorry I ruin your shirt
again,” she said absentmindedly as tears flow out off her eyes and
her heart bursting with overwhelming happiness. She couldn’t
believe that he was there right in front of her for real.

“But you’ll fix it, right?” he
teased.

“Yes. Yes of course,” she said.
“If I can’t wash it out I’ll buy you a new one. Well, maybe not
here cos we don’t have the type you want here. But a similar
one.”

“No. I don’t want a similar
one.”

“Then what do you want?” she
asked, wondering why they were discussing about his stained shirt
when he should be kissing her and begging her forgiveness or
something like that.

“This is what I want, Alex.” He
bent down to one knee.

Alex frowned in confusion as
she looked down at him.

“Alex,” he
said, pulling a small box out off his trousers’ pocket. “I want
you. That is all I want.
You.
Will you marry me?”

Alex gasped. Her heart was
pumping so hard she thought it’ll burst out of her chest any second
now. Her whole body was shaking in reaction as she stared at the
princess cut diamond set in platinum sitting in the pale blue
Tiffany & Co box. The exact same one she had tried on back in
New York.

“What do you say, Alex? Will
you be my wife?”

Alex couldn’t breathe. She
nodded her head, crying hard out. “Yes. Yes oh yes, Jayden,” she
sobbed.

Jayden jumped up, grabbed her
face in his hands and kissed her – tears and all.

“Oh, sweet heart, I’ve missed
you so much,” he said, dropping little kisses on her face.

“Me too,” she sobbed.

Jayden slip the ring into her
left finger and gave her little kisses again. Alex felt like she
was alive again and in heaven. Suddenly she heard loud clapping.
She moved back and looked over behind Jayden. She gasped when she
saw Jayden’s family there, including Sam and Stephanie. Peter was
there as well and so was her family. She ran to her mother and
hugged the woman. Everyone started laughing.

Oh God, Alex thought, this was
too much for her. She simply couldn’t believe it.

Later that day they had a
barbeque at her house – everyone mingling, getting to know each
other, and having a good time. She and Jayden went for a walk along
St. Clair beach. The sunset was beautiful in the distant, the air
warm, and the gentle breeze was wonderful.

Jayden pulled her into his arms
and said, “I thought I’ve lost you back in New York.”

“You did?” she asked.

“What you saw, Alex,” he said,
cupping her face in his big hands. “What you saw back in New York
that night was planned. It wasn’t real. I’ve lost my feelings for
Sarah a long time ago. I don’t know when, but I do know that I did.
Since the first day I’ve met you I have feelings for you. Only I
didn’t know it back then because, you know, I’m a guy and that kind
of things are real slow for us to register.”

Alex smiled. “So when did you
think you started to have feelings for me?” she asked
curiously.

Jayden cocked his head to one
side. “I think it was when I saw you in the bathroom at Peter’s
house that night. You were topless.” He chuckled, “All I wanted to
do then was to kiss you and touch you and look at your
breasts.”

“Jayden!” she shrieked. “You
really did?”

“Heck yes, sweet heart,” he
said, laughing.

“But you were supposed to be
gay,” she muttered.

“Yes I was, and a bloody hard
thing to do, too, especially where you are concern. You are such a
temptress,” he said, kissing her nose.

“No I’m not.”

“Oh yes you are,” he
chuckled.

Alex bit her lip, staring into
his eyes. “So, erm, are you going to kiss me now?”

He laughed again, loud and
clear. “Heck yes, sweetheart.” He lowered his head and claimed her
sweet, soft lips.

Alex wrapped her arms around
his neck and they kissed deeply and passionately.

A dog ran up to them, yapping
excitedly and then hopped around their feet as they kissed. An
elderly couple – the owners of the dog – walked by, saw them, and
smiled knowingly. The woman shouted, “Stanley, come on!”

The dog barked and rushed up to
her as they walked further away.

Jayden and
Alex were oblivious to this. Finally Jayden released his lips from
hers. They laughed, and Jayden lifted her up above him, causing
Alex to shriek happily in the air, her feet kicking. He let her
down, cupped her face, and kissed her again. Their future was now
certain, and Jayden thought,
‘Gosh she was
his best hired girlfriend ever’.

*****

CHAPTER 30

One month later

NEW YORK CITY, USA

“OH MY GOSH!” Emma shrieked as
she ran from the luxurious sitting room into the large Ambassador
Suite bed room. “I can’t believe I’m actually in New York City! I’m
actually in a hotel!” she shouted, racing about Gracie who simply
laughed and shook he head. Emma jumped onto the king size
four-poster bed and collapsed in a fit of giggle.

“Emma darling, please calm
down,” Maly chuckled. The two elderly ladies met eyes and
laughed.

“I can’t wait to go
sightseeing. Did I tell you that you’re the best sister, Alex? And
that you are really beautiful today.”

Alex laughed. “Yeah. You keep
saying that, missy.” Then she turned to look at herself in the full
length mirror. She still couldn’t believe it. She had to say that
she looked stunning in a Chandra A line princess dress. Made out of
white silk taffeta with one shoulder neckline combined with pleats
and rose to the side, the gown fitted her perfect. Her hair was in
soft curls and a lose bun, with a white lily down on the side of
her left ear. Her fair skin was smooth and soft, her eyes bright
and her lips ruby red.

“Something blue,” Kelly said,
showing her the rosy blue garter. “Now pull your skirt up so I put
this round your thigh.”

Everyone laughed. Alex bit her
lip and did as she was told. With the garter in place, Beth came up
to her and said, “Something borrow.” She held a lovely ruby
necklace in front of Alex.

Alex stared at the masterpiece.
“Oh my. That looks really expensive. It’s an antique? Don’t you
think it’s...erm...”

Beth waved Alex’s hesitation
aside. “Yes it is antique. Over one hundred years old. But it is
now yours.”

“What?” Alex gasped.

“It’s my present to you as my
granddaughter-in-law.”

Ruby, Nikita and Isabella all
stared at the necklace in awe.