14. Hallie
CHAPTER 14
HALLIE
Now that our first real interaction with all three Winter brothers was a success, I feel myself relax a little as James and I continue to make our way around the room. Eventually, I start to forget that James and I are pretending to be together; it just feels like we’re at a fun party having a good time together. No matter who we’re talking to, James finds a way to connect with my coworkers, easily making conversation and fitting in. The night couldn’t be going better.
“Sorry to interrupt,” James says, appearing at my side as I’m talking to Perry Carter about the volunteer work she does at her local food bank. “I brought you some food.”
“Aww,” Perry sighs. “That’s so sweet. I’m going to go find Rick and ask him when the last time was that he brought me a plate of food.”
As Perry wanders off, I take the plate from James, my stomach suddenly rumbling.
“Thank you,” I say to him. “I’ve been so busy talking that I haven’t had a chance to eat.”
“I noticed,” James nods, handing me a fork.
The plate is filled with chicken marsala, crispy brussels sprouts, and mashed sweet potatoes. Of all of the options at the buffet, James somehow narrowed it down to the items I would have chosen for myself—some of my favorite foods. He even picked out the mushrooms from the marsala sauce—is it possible he was listening when I said I hate mushrooms?
“Thank you again,” I say before scooping the mashed potatoes into my mouth.
“Holy shit, you two,” Jasmine hisses as she hurries up to us. “Whatever you’re doing—it’s working.”
“What are you talking about?” I ask, leaning in conspiratorially.
“Everyone is buzzing about the two of you. They’re all totally buying it,” Jasmine reports. “And as an added bonus, Chase seems in a really bad mood.”
“Good,” I can’t help but laugh. “He’s been very suspicious that we’re not really together. We need to be careful not to give him any reason to go to the Winters with his suspicions. Today has been a good start, but we still have six more days to go.”
“We have nothing to worry about,” James says, putting his arm around me and leaning down to kiss the side of my head. “We’ve got this.”
I swallow hard, glancing around to see if anyone is watching us or if there’s any obvious reason for James to be acting so affectionate. The little gestures are a good call when we’re in a crowd; it doesn’t hurt in case someone happens to look over at us, but what catches me off guard me is how natural these moments are starting to feel. It’s one thing to pull me into a kiss when Chase is walking towards us, but to do something sweet out of nowhere just to be reassuring, hits me hard, as does how nice, and even welcome, it’s becoming.
“James!” Tom from IT calls out, hurrying towards us. “Can I steal you for a second? I want to introduce you to another CAL alum. The Bears have to stick together, right? Especially with all the Stanford flunkies milling about.”
“You better be careful,” James says, winking at me, “Hallie went to Stanford.”
“Oh, shit, right,” Tom winces. “Sorry, Hallie. No offense.”
“None taken,” I laugh.
“Duty calls,” James says, kissing my cheek before following Tom to a group of men assembled on the other side of the room.
“Um, hello?” Jasmine says, taking James’s place by my side as he walks away.
“Hi?” I reply, confused.
“Is there something going on between you two that you want to tell me about?”
I glance all around us, making sure no one is listening, as Jasmine loops her arm through mine and pulls me towards the bar.
“What are you talking about?” I whisper.
“There is a total vibe between you,” she says softly before turning to the bartender. “Two glasses of the Winter cab, please.”
As the bartender opens a new bottle and pours us two glasses, I consider what Jas is asking me. Is there a vibe between me and James or have we just been really convincing with our acting? I’ve been having these sparks of real feelings throughout the night, but I’ve been shrugging it off as just part of the ruse. But if my best friend is picking up on something as well… No, it’s just an act, I remind myself, refusing to read anything into what Jas is saying.
“Please,” I huff, shaking my head as the bartender slides the glasses across the bar to us. “There is no vibe or anything else between us. We are just doing what we set out to do—make people believe this is a real relationship.”
“Maybe,” Jasmine nods. “I’m just wondering if you’re doing such a good job at convincing everyone else, that you’re convincing yourself as well.”
My throat goes dry, and I take a sip of wine, swallowing hard. I’ve barely owned up to any stirring feelings to myself, let alone out loud. I’m sure I’m just getting swept away by the idea of being in a relationship and having someone by my side instead of being alone. It has nothing to do with James and it certainly isn’t real.
“It’s all an act,” I tell Jasmine firmly. “Nothing is happening between me and James. In fact, I can’t wait to put this charade behind us.”
Across the room, James looks over and catches my eye, smiling and offering a quick wave. I wave back at him, smiling despite myself.
“Oookay,” Jasmine says sarcastically. “Whatever you say, Hal. No genuine chemistry here at all.”
“I’m serious, Jasmine,” I whisper. “There’s nothing going on between us. He’s still my same creepy neighbor who I can’t stand. Everything about him is just…wrong.”
A roar of laughter goes up in the circle of CAL alumni. Tom claps his hand to James’s shoulder, bracing himself as if he might fall over from laughing so hard.
“Oh, yeah,” Jasmine nods. “I see what you mean… he's all wrong. A total creep.”
I let out a sigh as I continue to watch James, resisting the pull I feel towards him.
“So? Do I get points?”
I glance over at James as I push the button for the elevator, giving him a questioning look.
“Points?”
“For tonight,” he replies. “I made friends with pretty much everyone at the cocktail party. I think that they’re all wondering how you managed to land a catch like me.”
James is laughing as we get onto the elevator and the doors close after us.
“Do you ever get tired of being so smug?” I ask, trying to hide the fact that his joke was actually pretty funny, maybe even accurate.
“Oh, come on,” James replies, stepping towards me.
I take an unconscious step back away from him, bumping into the elevator wall. Suddenly I feel pinned in place with James right in front of me, looking into my eyes.
“Tell me what a good job I did tonight,” he says teasingly.
“You were fine,” I shrug, my heart starting to speed up.
“Admit it,” he continues. “I was awesome. I had the whole company eating out of my palm. Your boss even has my furniture in his house. By the end of the week, they’re going to be giving me that promotion.”
I roll my eyes at him in response, but as he places his hand on the wall next to me and leans in closer, I feel my body break into a sweat.
“Come on,” he says again, lowering his voice. “The least you can do is admit I’m crushing it.”
“Fine,” I say with a begrudging sigh just as the elevator doors open. “You did a great job tonight convincing people you were a normal human being and not just a sex-hungry dog, ready to hump whatever happens to be standing in front of you.”
“I’ll take it!” James exclaims, spinning around and sauntering off the elevator, his chest puffed out and his arms in the air.
“Try not to get cocky if you can manage it,” I hiss as I hurry to catch up to him. “The week has just started.”
As soon as we’re back in the room, I kick off my heels and grab my laptop, pushing aside the gift basket on the table so I can set up a workspace.
“What are you doing?” James asks as he takes off his tie.
“Working,” I reply without looking up as I type my password into the lock screen.
“No, come on, let’s go explore,” James whines. “That party was work enough.”
I look up, feeling a small pang inside of me. I didn’t think the party was work at all, in fact, I was surprised by how much fun it was. I had no idea it was such a chore for James.
“I have a lot of emails to answer,” I tell him. “The east coast will be working while I’m asleep and I need to send out replies to my clients.”
“The east coast can wait,” James insists, closing my laptop before I can protest. “We’re in one of the most beautiful national parks in the country. Let’s go see what it’s like under the stars.”
“James, I can’t,” I say firmly, but my protest is cut short as he grabs my hand and pulls me up out of the chair.
“Get your shoes on or I’m dragging you out of here barefoot!”
In a pair of ballet flats rather than squeezing back into my heels from the party, I follow James out of the main lodge and up a gravel path that I didn’t even notice earlier in the day. Music from the lodge carries faintly on the wind, but otherwise the night is quiet. It smells like winter, even though it’s still a couple of months away, and there’s a chill in the air, making me wish I had grabbed a coat instead of just my wrap.
“Where are we?” I ask, noticing the trees clearing, making way to immaculate green grass as far as I can see.
“It’s the outer edge of the golf course,” James replies softly as he starts to slow down. “There. Look at that.”
I move beside him, looking out from the viewpoint at the continental divide below us. I didn’t realize how high up we were until I looked out from this vantage at the sweeping meadows and meandering streams down in the valley. In the light of the full moon, everything is illuminated, including the towering evergreens, swaying in syncopation, and a single hawk gliding through the air before settling on a sturdy branch. Up above us, there is an abundance of stars in the sky, more than I ever could have imagined existed. It almost looks as if there are more stars than sky. I gasp unconsciously, my breath taken away.
“This is stunning,” I whisper, not wanting to disturb the peace all around us. “How did you know this was here?”
“It was in the brochure,” James replies, keeping his voice low as well. “I’ve been dying to come up and take a look. I thought it would be even more dramatic to see it in the moonlight.”
“Good call,” I nod.
I crane my neck all the way back to take in the full scope of the sky. Other than the little dipper, I don’t know many of the constellations, but I’m sure they’re up there, archers and lions and water bearers, all looking down at earth from above.
“What do you see?” James asks in a whisper.
“I think that’s Gemini,” I say, pointing up. “Or maybe not. I’m really not good at finding constellations.”
“You’re a Virgo, right?” he asks, his eyes also staring up at the sky.
“Yeah, how did you know?” I ask.
“You made me memorize your birthday,” he grins. “But also, you fit the profile.”
“Uh, is that supposed to be an insult?” I ask, not knowing much about astrology.
“No, Hallie,” James replies softly, looking over at me with a warm smile. “It’s a compliment. Virgos are independent and strong. They’re analytical and pay attention to details. Of course, they can also be workaholics and tend to worry too much.”
I’m about to be offended, but I stop myself, realizing that the description is pretty accurate.
“Alright, so what’s your sign?” I ask.
We both pause for a moment before bursting out laughing. Up the mountain, a bright white owl flies out from the inner branches of a nearby tree, circling once overhead before heading off.
“Wow, I sound like I just walked out of the 1970’s,” I laugh, shaking my head.
“I’m a Taurus,” he replies.
“Oh, I know this one,” I tell him. “My sister is a Taurus and she’s stubborn as hell. I think that fits you, too.”
“Definitely,” James nods in agreement. “But I prefer to think of it as determined.”
“Spoken like a true Taurus,” I quip.
James lowers his gaze from the stars, and I can feel him watching me. I turn my head and our eyes lock for a second.
“If I were into astrology, I’d say we’re a pretty good match,” he tells me. “Tauruses and Virgos supposedly go well together.”
I look away, averting my eyes back up to the sky as I try to convince myself what I’m feeling isn’t chemistry or connection or a vibe. It’s nothing at all; just a physical reaction to the tried-and-true moves of a known womanizer. James has probably used that same line on dozens of women in bars and clubs to get them to come home with him. And yet, I can’t stop my mouth from going dry or my heart from racing, once again getting pulled in by James’s charm.
“W-well,” I stammer breathlessly, “I guess it’s good that you’re not into astrology.”
Still smiling at me, James reaches out and tucks a loose strand of hair behind her ear. His fingertips linger against my skin, and I can’t stop myself from turning to meet his eye. The world around us goes silent as we stand a breath apart in the moonlight, waiting for whatever happens next.