Page 154 of Hayden's Stalker

All this talk of weddings makes me think of the future I see with Tati. I long for the day when my stalker is caught, and I can ask her again to marry me. I don’t dare look at her right now, and I work to keep my expression as blank as hers as it occurs to me that Heather will probably want to design Tati’s wedding gown, too.

Luckily, Heather drops the topic after that, and we order room service for lunch once Sebastian and Lita join us, then we play poker afterward. We hang out until the early evening when I finally stand from where I’m sitting and smile at April.

“Well, we should get going, April. We have dinner reservations at six.”

“Atsix?” Sebastian scoffs. “Who has dinner at six?”

I booked the earliest reasonable dinner time I could get so that Tati and I would get more time afterward.

“April and I do tonight. It was a last-minute booking.” I shrug my shoulders casually as Tati stands and walks over to escort April and me to dinner.

“It gives them more time for after-dinner activities,” Heather says with a wicked grin on her face.

“Sure, let’s go with that,” I laugh and shake my head because the only woman I plan to have ‘after-dinner activities’ with is Tati. “I’ll see you guys later. Have a good night.”

We exchange goodbyes with the group before Tati leads the way out of the suite and down the corridor to the elevators.

As we’re traveling downstairs, April says, “I’m pretty sure Heather has us married off in her head. What will our wedding be like, Hayden?”

Tati stiffens next to me before she relaxes, but she keeps her face forward, looking at the doors in front of us. I imagine her in a white gown, walking down the aisle toward me, and I envisage what my perfect wedding to her would be like.

I turn to look at April, but my words are for Tati, and I hope she knows it. “I want an intimate wedding. Just me, my future wife, and our closest friends and family. No big circus or people who are mild acquaintances. Only people I love will be there.”

If Tati wants a huge wedding with everyone who’s anyone in attendance, I would happily do that for her. I hope she knows that. It’s something we can talk about in the future, but for now, this would be the wedding of my dreams.

Tati shifts slightly, and her arm touches mine. I’m surprised by the contact, and I want to look at her, but I don’t dare. Her arm stays touching mine, which tells me that she’s done this on purpose, and I’m comforted by it.

“Oh dear, I’m not sure if things are going to work out between us, Hayden,” April laughs. “I loved Heather’s wedding with everyone there. I’ve always imagined a huge wedding. Is this a deal breaker for you?”

Not if you were Tati.

“I guess we’ll have to see,” I tell her casually.

The elevator dings, and the doors slide open in the lobby. Tati’s on alert as we make our way through the lobby, and so am I. Not just because of my stalker but because people literallyhalt in their tracks to gawk at April and me. Our names are said over and over while multiple people pull out their phones to take pictures or videos of us, and I know these will probably hit the internet before we even make it to the hotel restaurant.

April cringes and says, “I doubt Heather will be the only person marrying us off in their heads soon.”

“You’re probably right. People love a good rumor.”

They certainly love rumors about us, that’s for sure. April Conway, man-eater extraordinaire, is seen out with Hayden Vega, the last remaining single member of Cruise Control. The media is going to eat this shit up. Fuck. It might even piss off my stalker. None of us thought this through before I agreed to this sham of a date.

As we approach the restaurant, April asks, “So, do you have to join us for dinner, Tati? You’re supposed to be with Hayden at all times, right?”

“I’ve got a table booked next to yours because I try not to infringe on my clients’ privacy when they’re on a date.” She gives April a beautiful smile.

“She also doesn’t expect to be in the room when I’m being intimate with someone,” I joke with a wicked grin at Tati, amused by thinking back to what seemed like an obvious thing at the time but is very much not true now.

“Correct. Live sex shows aren’t part of the gig,” Tati says with a laugh, and thankfully, April joins in even though she has no idea of the full extent of our in-joke.

We arrive at the restaurant, where April and I are shown to our table while Tati watches on from the entrance to the restaurant. I made the booking under Sherlock Holmes, so we’re seated slightly out of the way rather than in the center of the restaurant like I know would’ve happened if they’d known in advance whose reservation it was. Eventually, Tati is shown to the table next to us, and I feel better again now that she’s near.

A waiter approaches our table and asks both of us for our autographs before he takes our order. We each sign a slip of paper, which the waiter thanks us for profusely before he rushes off. A minute or two later, he appears again at the table next to us to take Tati’s order.

I take a sip of my drink and ask April, “How’s your movie going?”

“Shooting starts in less than a month. I’m so nervous. The script is good, though, and my agent says it’ll be a good move for me.”

April’s so talented that I’m sure she’ll do brilliantly as an actress as well. She looks so stressed from just thinking about it, though, that I smile encouragingly at her.

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