Chapter Eleven #3
“And I want them to know that I was the one who saved their catty little butts.” She wasn’t so magnanimous that she didn’t want them to owe her.
“Excuse me, you two.” Linus stepped into the entryway. “Do you plan to spend the entire evening talking in the entryway or do you plan to attend the party?”
“Merry Christmas to you too.” She kissed him on the cheek.
He looked past her shoulder. “Are you here alone?”
“What do you think?”
“Just checking. I need a drinking companion. Come with me to the bar.” He tucked her arm into his. “By the way,” he said over his shoulder, “your wife wanted me to tell you the maid of honor is getting antsy. She’s worried you’ll take too long and prevent Santa Claus from coming.”
“You know,” Susan said as they stepped into the main living room, “Thomas insists that Maddie will be running Collier’s someday. I’m beginning to think he’s right.”
When Thomas said only a few friends and family would be invited, he hadn’t been joking.
Only a handful of people, a dozen at most, were in the room.
Most were gathered by the piano listening to the Christmas carols.
Four stockings, fire-engine red, hung from the mantel, the newest one a miniature version of the other three.
The magic of it all was like salt poured into her heart, but she forced a smile for her brother’s sake.
It was just a broken heart. She would survive.
Linus led her to the opposite side of the room where a portable bar had been staged. Susan’s eyes nearly popped out of her head.
“You again!” she said. “Are you the only bartender in London this holiday season?” The bartender let out a hearty laugh. “I’m beginning to think so. I was drafted into service by my uncle Chris. He’s over there by the guests.” He pointed to a portly man with a white beard and red reindeer sweater.
“Well it’s good to see you…?” She realized she’d never gotten his name.
“Nick,” he replied. “Is your boyfriend with you?”
A little more salt burned her heart. “I’m afraid we aren’t together anymore.”
“That’s too bad. You two made an adorable couple.”
She’d thought so too. “Some things don’t always work out,” she said sadly.
“Or maybe they just take time,” he replied. Evidently they taught positive thinking at bartending school. “Can I get you a house special?”
“What’s it called this time? Nick likes to name his drinks,” she told Linus.
“Yep, and in honor of tonight’s special event, we’re serving True Love cocktails.”
“Fabulous,” Linus replied, sounding slightly more enthusiastic than she felt.
“Trust me,” Nick told them. “You won’t regret the choice.”
Their cocktails were barely in hand when the pianist played a loud fanfare. “If you could take your seats,” he announced. “Our ceremony is about to begin.”
Maddie appeared at the top of the spiral staircase, and as the pianist played a soft classical piece, she began picking her way down the stairs.
When she reached the bottom, she scurried to the front of the room to hug her father.
She looked adorable. Susan smiled, then looked at the empty seat beside her.
How she wished Lewis were here.
Rosalind was next, looking resplendent in a simple white silk dress. She positively beamed with happiness. No wonder Nick named the drink True Love.
Feeling a little nauseous, Susan took a large sip and watched the ceremony. The look of utter adoration in her brother’s eyes made her heart ache. How wonderful must it be to be loved the way Thomas loved Rosalind.
Some day, she told herself. Some day she would have that. At the moment, her heart still wished it were Lewis, but after a week, it was time for her to accept that that wasn’t going to happen. Instead, she’d be grateful for the time they’d had.
As she blinked away the dampness from her eyes, she felt someone settle into the empty seat beside her.
“I hope those are tears of joy.”
Susan stopped breathing. She was almost afraid to turn her head. Was that really Lewis sitting beside her? “You… I…”
He put his fingers to his lips. “Shh. There’s a wedding going on.” A second later, his hand captured hers.
The rest of the ceremony passed in a fog as the only thing Susan could focus on was the man beside her. Did his being there mean he returned her feelings or was he simply fulfilling one last obligation? A tear slipped down her cheek.
“Hey, now,” Lewis said as the rest of the group burst into applause. “What’s this?” He reached across and fanned her cheek with his thumb, his fingers lingering on her jaw when he finished.
What was he doing, smiling at her like she was the most important person in the world? People were still applauding and congratulating the happy couple, but she needed to know. The moment was too surreal to believe. Or rather, too perfect to believe.
“Come with me,” she said. Slipping past the crowd, she led him to the vestibule where they could talk in private. There, partially hidden by a poinsettia tower, she turned to him and finally asked what she’d been dying to ask the entire ceremony. “Why are you here?”
“I got your invitation.”
A week ago. She’d left her message a week ago.
She tossed her drink in his face.
“What was that for?” Lewis wiped the True Love from his face.
“Why do you think?” It was an instant reaction and probably over the top, but dammit! “You left me hanging for an entire week!”
“Is everything okay?” she heard Thomas ask.
All five members of her family appeared in the doorway, prepared to stand by her. Even distracted by Lewis, the show of solidarity squeezed her heart.
“Thanks, but I’ve got this,” she told them. “Lewis was just about to explain what the hell he was thinking showing up here after being MIA for a week.”
“I was trying for a romantic gesture.”
“You call leaving me hanging romantic?”
“Don’t be daft. I wanted to call you back as soon as I got the message.”
Out of nowhere Nick joined the group, brandishing a cloth napkin.
Lewis took the cloth and wiped the last of the liquid from his cheeks.
“Okay, I should have called you back as soon as I got the message, but I was out of town on business. I decided it would be better if I waited until I saw you in person so I could say I love you properly. Clearly I made a mistake.”
“Clearly you did… Wait.” Did she hear him right? “What did you say?”
“I said I made a mistake.”
“No, before that.”
Lewis smiled. “I said I love you, Susan Collier.”
Before she could say another word, he drew her into a kiss. He tasted like peppermint and True Love.
God bless silly cocktail names.
“I’m the biggest idiot on the planet,” he whispered when they parted.
He rested his forehead against hers, his eyes shut tight.
“I was so afraid of… I spent my entire life certain the only reason anyone would want me was because of what I could do on the field. That if I weren’t a star…
if I weren’t in the spotlight, that people wouldn’t care.
I wouldn’t be good enough for anybody.” Pulling back, he opened his eyes to reveal unshed tears. “Especially not for you.”
“You are an idiot.” Her lips were trembling so much, the words barely made it out. “I don’t care what you do. I never did.” The irony of his confession hit her and she started to laugh. “I thought I wasn’t good enough for you.”
“Oh, sweetheart, you are so far out of my league. I consider myself lucky that you would ever give me the time of day.”
“We’re both idiots,” she said. Letting their insecurities keep them from happiness. “I love you, Lewis Matolo.”
He brushed her cheek. “I love you too, Susan Collier.”
They were the three most beautiful words she’d ever heard.
“My last grand gesture didn’t go right, but maybe this one will,” he said. “I know we both have a lot of issues to work out, and I can’t promise what the future is going to hold for us. But I’d like to find out.”
There was a gasp from the room as he dropped to one knee. “Therefore, in front of your friends and family, I’m asking if you’ll…date me. For real.”
“Yes,” she replied, wiping the tears from her cheeks. “I would be honored to be your real girlfriend.”
“Daddy, are we having another wedding?” Maddie called out.
“Maybe someday,” Susan replied, her heart giving a leap at the smile her answer brought to Lewis’s face. “Right now, I think I’ll focus on having a very merry Christmas.”
Lewis Matolo: How a Fake Relationship Brought Me Love
It doesn’t take a genius to see that Champagne Lewis is happy with life. Once the king of London nightlife, he’s content these days enjoying a cup of tea and babysitting his girlfriend’s niece and nephew.
“I love kids,” Matolo says. “They remind you of what’s important.”
It’s that love of children that led the star of Football Tonight to establish the Matolo Children’s Foundation, which aims to help underprivileged and foster children develop leadership skills through sports. His partner in the venture is his girlfriend, Susan Collier.
“To think,” he says, “it all started with a fake relationship…”
Susan stopped reading and tucked her copy of Personal Magazine under her arm. “It’s brilliant. I told you we could spin this into something positive.”
“Yes, you did, and it only took twelve months,” Lewis replied. He laughed when she gave him a playful smack.
Hard to believe a year had passed since that horrible night they’d met, which in retrospect had turned out to be the best night of her life.
It’d given birth to the best twelve months she’d ever had.
Both she and Lewis were making an effort to work through their insecurities.
Taking Rosalind’s advice, she’d begun trying to be less standoffish and to be open to people.
As a result, they were heading to the Regis to help their friends Maria and Hank celebrate their wedding anniversary.
Meanwhile it turned out Lewis hadn’t blown his shot after all. The network loved Lewis’s new notoriety. The executives thought he brought an extra edge to the broadcast.
“It’s too bad the article’s going to be out of date soon,” Lewis said. “I’ve already given the network my notice.” He’d decided the joy he felt working with kids was far more rewarding than broadcasting.
“I’m sure the world will forgive you,” Susan said. “It’s not like you left to chase wine and women. You didn’t, right?”
“No way, luv. I’m a one-woman man these days.”
Susan smiled. The best part of the year had been making their journeys together.
Lately they’d even started talking about merging those journeys into one shared life, and if the little square box she’d accidently found in Lewis’s drawer was any indication, that merger was right around the corner.
Two odd peas no longer unwanted and alone.
Just as they reached the hotel, the first snowflakes of the season began to fall. “Looks like the Christmas season has officially started,” Susan remarked. “They’ll be playing carols on the radio next.”
“A little early Christmas isn’t so bad,” Lewis replied. “Means the pop-up bars will be setting up shop.”
“That’s true.” Hard to hate those when it was a pop-up bar that brought them together. “Do you think the same bar is here this year? We could stop in and say hello to Nick.”
“We could see.”
They walked up the stairs to the mezzanine, expecting to find the temporary structure. Unfortunately, when they reached the top step, the space was empty. There was nothing but a pair of high-back chairs and a table with a small Christmas tree.
“Sorry, luv,” said Lewis. “Looks like we’re out of luck.”
No, she wasn’t. Her luck was only beginning.
“That’s all right,” she told him. “I’ve already got my Christmas wish.”