Page 27 of The Expiration Date

“Yes, Mom, I’m eating plenty, trust me.”

I let out an involuntary laugh because in the three years I’ve known Haley, she’s never been one to skip any meals. “I can personally vouch for that. This girl eats enough for an entire football team. There’s no need to worry Mrs. Swann.” I step forward and extend my hand to her. “I’m Aidan Stone. It’s an honor to meet you, ma’am.”

“It’s a pleasure to finally meet you. And please, ma’am makes me sound so old. Call me LeAnn. I don’t know why Haley kept you a secret from me. She usually tells me everything.” She glances at Haley, who gives a little shrug.

“Well, Mom. We had to be discreet about our relationship, especially since Aidan is…was…sort of my boss.”

LeAnn’s eyes grow wide. “Wait, this is the actor you work for?” She covers her mouth in astonishment. Here it comes. “Oh my goodness. I didn’t even process when you told me your name. You’re Aidan Stone. I saw you on the cover of People Magazine. And in the tabloids with a bunch of random women, who dare I say, were not my daughter.”

Shit. I revert back to when I was a child getting in trouble with my own mother for misbehaving. There is a sudden rush to beg for forgiveness from this woman. I don’t want her to think the worst of me based on my most recent behavior. Before Haley can defend me, I have to man up and tell her the truth…well, the truth that Haley and I established with my own mother less than twelve hours ago.

“I know what you’re thinking. Based on all the press that you have seen about me as of late, I’m not good enough for your daughter.”

I look directly into LeAnn’s eyes and notice a flicker of surprise. I don’t think she was expecting me to say that, being who I am. I’m sure she has preconceived notions about me, just like the rest of the world does. That’s the main flaw of being so famous–there is zero margin for error, for mistakes, for being human. If you make any misstep, it’s hard to come back from. The world doesn’t forget.

I lean toward Haley and take her hand in mine. Then I look back at her mother and continue, “LeAnn, your daughter is probably the best person that I’ve ever met in my life.” Now for the little white lie. Actually, the big white lie–the same lie Haley told my mom this morning. We have to keep our story straight. “Those other women by my side these past six months were there to ward off the paparazzi and leave a trail of fake breadcrumbs, so to speak. I didn’t want to jeopardize our relationship or Haley’s privacy by having the world track our every move and infiltrate themselves where they frankly don’t belong–in our love life.” I feel Haley’s hand flinch a little when I say the word love. It just slipped out. Maybe from all those scripts Chris has been sending me. The perfect words are spewing out of my mouth and I can’t stop. I don’t want to stop until LeAnn believes me.

I need her to believe me.

“Those women don’t mean anything to me. They were pawns in a game of chess. All set up by my publicity team.” I let go of Haley’s hand, wrap my arm around her shoulders, and pull her in close. It’s scary how much I like how she fits next to me. It seems natural and easy. I look down at Haley and her face is full of gratitude. She isn’t tense in my embrace–finally, she is totally relaxed, which I hope will help sell this whole arrangement.

The crease in between LeAnn’s eyebrows fades as she notices how relaxed her daughter is in my arms.

“Mom,” Haley chimes in, “Aidan’s right. Those other women were orchestrated to be in Aidan’s life so our relationship could be protected. But since Anna’s wedding was right around the corner, we decided it was time the world knew about our relationship. It may seem out of the blue, but–” Haley looks back into my eyes, searching for my permission to continue. It’s as if we’re talking in code. “–we couldn’t keep it a secret anymore. Aidan’s image was being tarnished and dragged through the mud, and plus I hated keeping this from you.”

Guilt.

Instead of relief, I feel guilt. Guilt for making Haley lie to her mom about our “relationship.” She is keeping a secret from her mom and it is all for me. If only LeAnn truly knew how much I wasn’t lying when I said Haley is the best thing to ever happen to me. I don’t deserve her–that much is true.

LeAnn smiles. “Well, in that case, welcome to the family, Aidan. I look forward to getting to know you more. One thing you should know about my daughter is that she doesn’t let people in easily. Her walls are usually impenetrable.”

“Geez, Mom. Thanks a lot.”

“That being said, you seem to have found a way to basically demolish those walls. Not many people have been able to accomplish that. You should consider yourself lucky.”

Hugging Haley a little tighter, I respond, “Trust me, I do.”

16

“Phew, I think we are in the clear.” As soon as my mom closes the door behind her, I wriggle myself out of Aidan’s embrace. I’m starting to feel too comfortable in his little nook. No thank you. I know that he was trying to convince my mom that our relationship is real, but what’s really freaking me out is the fact that I was becoming just as convinced, even though I know what the truth is. Never in a million years would Aidan Stone actually date me or think those things about me.

Never.

Aidan clears his throat. “Yeah, I think we are.” The energy shifts in the room, and I don't know why. There is tension rather than relief. And it is coming from Aidan’s side of the room.

“Sorry about my mom. She can be a little intense, but that’s because it’s just been me and her for a while now. She worries about me. I think a little too much.”

“She’s a mom. That’s their specialty.” Aidan pulls his suitcase on top of the bed, unzips it and takes out some fresh clothes. The tension is starting to ease a little. I’m hoping it will dissipate completely before the welcome dinner in an hour. I look out the window–caterers have already shown up and are setting up their stations with silver buffet trays on the lawn. This is going to be an interesting night.

I take three deep breaths and look into the mirror. “You can do this.” I decided to wear one of the dresses Rachel helped me pick out for this weekend. She took me shopping after she went through my closet and declared that I only own cardigans, which apparently is a problem. She had me try on this strapless light green dress with magnolia flowers that holds onto whatever curves I do have as if its life depends on it. I never wear dresses like this…ever.

To compensate for my lack of confidence, I chose shoes that are my favorite to wear with any dress: ballet flats. Not very glamorous, but I don’t care; they are comfy and easy to walk in. Rachel isn’t here to veto and I honestly don’t want to plummet to my embarrassment in front of all my close family and friends, and oh yeah my stupid ex-fiancé, who will indubitably bring his new girlfriend with him to witness my downfall… literally and figuratively. Although I don’t know if I could fall any further than the last time I saw Robert. I shake my head to clear that appalling memory from my brain.

I keep my makeup simple, natural, just like I always do it. I do put on a little lip liner and lip stain to step things up a little. But I want to look like myself. There’s no point in trying extra hard; it’s not like I’m trying to find a man. I already have one–well, kind of. And he doesn’t care how I look one bit. Although I am pretty sure everyone else will notice how haggard I look compared to the Henry Cavill god of a man next to me.

A faint knock on the door helps ground me back to reality. “Hales, you ready?”

I take one last deep breath and unlock the bathroom door. Upon opening, I am grateful I took that breath a moment ago, since I am currently rendered breathless. Yes, Aidan looked amazing in a suit and tie, and honestly whatever else he wears. But tonight hits different. He is laid back and looks like he’s belonged in the Hamptons all his life. An image flashes in my mind of what he might have looked like growing up here on the East Coast. It’s a different type of beachy vibe than L.A. He’s wearing perfectly pressed khakis and a light-blue button-down, with his sleeves rolled up to the middle of his forearms. Little tornadoes form in my stomach, demolishing anything sensical in their wake. The hue of his shirt also makes his eyes seem extra blue. And this is who I need to pretend to date for the next few days? How is anyone going to believe us? I wouldn’t believe us.

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