Lovestruck Forever (21 page)

I
thought about making my way around the city was some stranger,
someone like the guys who had been at our side in San Diego, some
hulking, intimidating bodyguard I had never met. If I wanted to
attract attention, that seemed like the best way to do it. “No,”
I said quickly. “Let’s just try to keep it incognito
unless we don’t have a choice.”

He
agreed, but I could tell he wasn’t thrilled about it.

The
day I was supposed to leave for New York, I was scurrying around my
bedroom, taking things out of my bag before placing them right back
in again a moment later. “Where is Thomas when I need him?”
I mumbled to myself, staring down at the open bag with my hands on my
hips. He had always calmed me down during packing, a process that I
generally found to be stressful. Today was even worse, since I’d
be going straight to London from New York and therefore needed to
pack for a variety of climates and events. Including a meeting that
could forever alter the entire course of my literary career—

“Stop
it, Lizzie,” I demanded out loud. “Just stop.”

“You
sound like a crazy person, talking to yourself.”

I
actually jumped straight off the ground, simultaneously gasping and
trying to turn to see who had spoken when I was sure I was alone.

“Sofie!”
I cried, placing a hand to my heart. “I thought you were at
work. You scared me!”

“Sorry,
cuz,” she said, smiling broadly and not looking the slightest
bit sorry. “I took the day off.”

I
leaned against the dresser, waiting for my heart rate to return to
normal. “I thought you were trying to save your sick days for
baby stuff?”

Her
grin grew larger. “I was. But something came up, and it was too
good to refuse.”

I
cocked my head. “Something like what?”

“Oh,
I don’t know.” She inspected her nails casually. “Maybe
like a trip to New York with my best friend to look for wedding
dresses.”

My
mouth dropped open. If I had thought I was shocked when she
interrupted me, it was nothing next to how I felt now. “What?”

She
grinned, dropping the casual pretense. “Thomas got me a ticket
on the same flight as you. I guess he thought it would be nice if I
came with you, for moral support and everything. And to try on
dresses.” She winked. “Apparently, New York is some kind
of fashion mecca or something. Who knew?”

I
shook my head, dumbfounded. Objectively, I probably shouldn’t
have been so surprised. Thomas was constantly doing stuff like that
for me, little and big surprises just to make me happy.

She
went on. “I guess he thought you’d like another chance at
dress shopping—with me and Callie there this time.” She
grinned. “Something to look forward to when you’re
terrified of your meetings.”

“He’s
really something else,” I said, unable to wipe the grin off my
face. I tried my best not to go on around Sofie about how perfect
Thomas was , but in this case, she was benefitting as much as I was
from his Prince Charming act.

“Indeed,”
she said cheerfully. “Now, hurry up and pack. Our car will be
here in a few minutes.”

“My
parents aren’t picking us up?” I asked, slightly
disappointed in spite of the exciting news about Sofie coming to New
York with me. I was counting on one last good-luck hug from my mother
before I boarded the plane, something to help me get past the fear
that was plaguing me about the meetings.

“Oh,
they’ll be in the car,” she said, her voice airy. When
she caught sight of my expression, her eyes widened in
mock-innocence. “Oh, didn’t I mention it? They’re
coming, too.”

“My
parents?”

She
raised her eyebrows, as if it was ridiculously obvious. “Duh.
Do you really think Thomas would expect you to pick out your wedding
dress without your mother there?”

With
that, I burst into noisy tears—so happy I could barely stand
it. Of course he would have known that I wanted my mother there, just
as much as I would want Callie and Sofie. The only way to make it
better would be for Maria and Laura to be there as well, but on
second thought, I wasn’t quite sure I could handle both of them
in a far away city for that long.

Sofie
laughed, crossing the room to rub my back as I wiped at my tears.
“Come on, weepy. I’m the one that’s supposed to be
hormonal. Besides,” she peeked at the alarm clock on my
nightstand. “We really do have to get going.”

“Are
you okay with this?” I asked, swiping at my eyes. “Being
away with my parents?” In the weeks since her disastrous
dress-shopping bailout, I had managed to convince her to join me for
dinner at my parents’ a handful of times. Under my strict
orders, my family had refrained from mentioning anything about the
pregnancy or Sofie’s current state of estrangement from her
parents. Even so, I could tell she wasn’t entirely comfortable
in family situations.

“I’ll
be fine,” she assured me. “Your folks have been nothing
but nice to me lately.” She looked pointedly at the open
suitcase. “Can we get moving now?”

“Help
me,” I begged. “I never know what to wear to stuff like
this.”

Sofie
confidently marched into my closet, pulling a few skirts and dresses
from their hangers. Within minutes, she had rummaged though my bag,
tossing a few things and throwing in a few more. “All you need
now is a strapless bra,” she said, nodding down at the
suitcase.

“A
strapless bra?”

“For
trying on dresses.”

“Good
idea.” Moments after I’d found the garment and closed my
zipper we heard a loud honking outside.

“That
must be the car,” Sofie said, bouncing on her heels in
excitement. Once again, I was overcome by emotion over what Thomas
had planned for us. In addition to providing me with company and
moral support, this trip away was exactly what Sofie needed.
Something to look forward to, to get her mind off of things. A little
fun in her life, which had been seriously devoid of fun lately.

“This
is so exciting,” I squealed, and she laughed, looking happier
than I’d seen her in a very long time.

“Then
let’s go!” she cried. “You’re taking
forever.”

I
grabbed the handle of my suitcase and slung my carry-on over my
shoulder. “I think that’s everything.”

“My
stuff is already by the door.”

The
hired car honked again and we hurried down the stairs. Through the
windows to each side of the front door I could see a long, shiny
black limo idling in the driveway. My parents stood beside the car,
waiting for us. Even from this distance, I could see the excitement
on their faces.

I
flung open the door to see the driver waiting, his hands folded
behind his back. “Miss Medina, Miss Flores,” he said,
nodding at each of us. “Please allow me to take your bags.”

Had
it just been me, I would have insisted on carrying the small suitcase
myself. But Sofie looked so tickled at the idea of someone carrying
her bag, I couldn’t bring myself to ruin it for her. Instead, I
thanked him and set the two bags down on the porch before turning to
lock the door. Once finished with the task, I slipped my arm through
Sofie’s and pulled on her. “Ready?”

She
giggled and we practically skipped down the steps toward my waiting
parents.

“Surprise!”
my mom called. “We’re coming, too!

I
threw my arms around her, forgetting for a moment that I should be
more gentle when she was standing unassisted. But she merely returned
my hug, laughing happily. “This is going to be so nice!”

I
released her to hug my dad. “I’m so glad you guys are
here!”

“Us,
too, Lizzie,” he said. Though he didn’t laugh or squeal
like we had done, I could hear the barely contained excitement in his
voice. Which, for my stoic dad, meant he was pretty darn excited.

“How
did you guys manage to keep the secret for so long?” I gave my
mom the sternest look I could muster with my cheeks practically
splitting in a smile. “I was just at the house yesterday.”

“Thomas
insisted,” she said, looking almost apologetic. “He said
you love surprises.”

I
had to bite my tongue at that. I certainly didn’t mind
surprises, but it was nothing compared to how much Thomas liked to
plan them. As the driver loaded our bags into the back of the limo
and the four of us piled in, I decided I had no business complaining.
In the short time I had known Thomas, he had managed to successfully
spoil me on a number of occasions, despite my usual protests that he
was spending too much money. Watching my parents relax back into the
plush leather, looking around the limo with something akin to wonder,
I decided I had never been so happy to have him splurge, and for the
first time, I let myself wish a little that he spared no expense for
the rest of the trip.

Of
course, he didn’t disappoint. After being dropped off at
departures, Sofie led us straight to the priority check-in line,
winking at me over her shoulder as she went. “Looks like we’re
flying first class, Mama,” I said, slipping my arm through
hers.

“First
class?” Her eyes went wide. “Isn’t that very
expensive?”

“Your
future son-in-law is a legit movie star, Tia,” Sofie called
back. “I think you should probably get used to a little
expensive in your life.” She glared at me. “Your daughter
could heed the same advice.”

We
were called to the counter after only a moment or two and Sofie
handed over all of our documents. Once we had all been issued
boarding passes, and our luggage whisked away, we made our way to the
security line, again getting to skip the crowds and use the priority
line.

“Well,
I could get used to this,” my mother said happily, plopping her
large purse into one of the plastic bins. I tried to catch my dad’s
eye as he slipped his shoes off. I was suddenly unsure if he would
approve of all this fuss. He was a very proud man, my father. How
would he feel about Thomas spending so much money on him?

Once
we were safely at the gate, my fears subsided. He leaned back in his
chair and checked his watch, before smiling around the crowded
airport. “Barely ten minutes to check in and get through
security,” he said. “I could get used to this kind of
treatment.”

I
giggled, resting against his shoulder. He automatically put his arm
around me and I leaned into his side, the way I did when I was
little. “Just wait until we get on the plane. The seats are
actually comfortable.”

“And
they’ll give you free booze, Tio,” Sofie said, pulling
out her magazine. “Whatever you want.”

My
dad’s eyes crinkled up in a smile. “In that case, I could
definitely get used to it.”

***

The
flight was comfortable and uneventful. Thomas had another driver
meeting us at JFK. My dad got a huge kick out of seeing the uniformed
man holding a sign with our name on it. “You really hit the big
time, Lizzie. Think it will be like this all the time when you’re
a hot-shot author?”

I
laughed. “I wish.”

Ciara
had arranged a room for me at a trendy hotel right near Times Square.
Thomas must have coordinated with her office to get Sofie added to my
room; he’d put my parents in a suite down the hall. My mother
had looked around the room, eyes wide, not speaking for a full
minute.

“You
okay, Mama?” I asked, once again unsure how his extravagance
would go over.

She
merely shook her head, walking slowly to the floor-to-ceiling windows
overlooking Manhattan. “This is beautiful. I never would have
dreamed I’d ever get to stay in a place like this.” She
turned to me, her face suddenly worried. “He shouldn’t
have spent so much.”

“I
tell him that every day, Mama. He’s usually not very
extravagant, you know. He just likes making special occasions more
special.”

“I’m
not complaining, Lizzie,” she said quickly. “It’s
amazingly sweet of him. I just…I hope he doesn’t think
he needs to impress us, or win us over.”

“He
doesn’t, Mama,” I assured her, not mentioning that he
probably felt exactly that way only a few months ago. “He just
wants it to be nice for you guys. I promise.”

She
nodded, though she still looked a little troubled. “If you’re
sure.”

My
meetings weren’t starting until morning, so we decided to head
out and sight see. None of us had ever been to New York before, and I
was momentarily concerned we would get lost or overwhelmed. I hadn’t
made any plans to guide three people through a city I’d never
been to.

Of
course, Thomas had thought of that. “We’re supposed to
check in at the concierge in the lobby,” Sofie said, reading
something off of her phone. “They’ve made arrangements,
apparently.”

“Arrangements?”
I asked sharply. “What arrangements?”

She
held out the phone, and I could see that she was reading from an
email. “Your fiancé is the type to think of everything.
In case you haven’t noticed.”

Wondering
what he had planned, and feeling a little silly about the fuss, I
approached the concierge desk. “Hello,” I said, trying to
sound more sure of myself than I felt. “My name is Elizabeth
Medina. I believe—”

“Oh,
of course,” the smiling concierge reached across the counter to
shake my hand. “We’re so happy to have you stay with us
this week. Mr. Harper asked me to arrange a tour for you and your
family.”

I
shook my head. Of course he did.

“What
kind of tour, exactly?”

“It’s
completely customizable,” he assured me. “The driver will
take you anywhere you’d like to go. Or he can make
suggestions—whichever you like.” He checked something on
his computer. “He also took the liberty of making dinner
reservations at eight, but I’d be happy to change the time if
it doesn’t suit you.”

“Eight
is fine,” I said, trying not to roll my eyes. He really had
thought of everything.