Page 92 of Hello Darling
“You really never read the stuff that’s written about you?”
“Not unless my publicist insists on it.”
“Okay. I promise I won’t either.”
“Oh my darling, I wish you never had.”
I pull him down to the hardwood floor in the foyer and roll on top of him. “What about kids?” He grins. “What about them?”
“You want kids?”
“As many as possible, with you.”
“Where would we have them?”
“Wherever you want. Wherever we are. Stella, I wanted to…”
“In a minute.” I unzip his jeans. “In three minutes.” I reach inside and take hold of him, this thing that I want, that is both too much and absolutely just right for me.
Three minutes later, I roll off of him, realizing that I didn’t even wait to ask if there was anyone else in the house before ravaging him. “There’s no one else here, is there?” I whisper, as I cover my naked breasts.
Without missing a beat, he raises his arm and says, “Come on out, guys! Hope you got all of that on film! Should make a good lead-in clip for my next Jonathan Ross episode.” He laughs.
I swat at him with my scarf. “Not funny.” I finally look around, at the bright white high ceilings, crown molding, tasteful but enormous chandelier above us, and the huge light-filled space that extends up a flight of stairs and to a living room beside us, out to a huge terraced space in back. A beautifully designed sophisticated blend of traditional and modern styles. “Holy shit, this place is stunning. Just how rich are you?”
“A very un-English question indeed.” He shakes his head. “I had a whole speech prepared, but as always, you’ve thrown me off my game.”
“Serves you right for planning to use your game on me.”
“Fair play. Get dressed so we can talk and then I’ll let you wreak havoc upon my genitals again.”
I smile and bat my eyelashes innocently as I put my bra back on. “I’m listening.”
He sits up and pulls his sweater back on, running his fingers through his hair and arranging himself directly in front of me on the floor. “Stella, I need to be clear about what I want…I’m not asking you to follow me around the world and be by my side every day, or wait for me in my trailer on set. I know that this life I chose is difficult to share with another person, I know how different our lives are, but I want you to be a part of mine. I need you to know that I’m here for you. No matter where I am, or where you are. As I’ve said, the next two years of my life are spoken for, career-wise. I won’t have more than two or three weeks off at a time, but I will fly you to visit me whenever you want, I will come visit you in Port Gladstone whenever I can, and we can keep in touch in every way possible. One day, I hope, we can settle down somewhere and make little people who have beautiful eyebrows and know how to fish and do a pull-up and have funny accents. But for now I just need you to come upstairs to my bedroom with me. Can you do that?”
“Yes. I will always do that.”
His bedroom is spacious and masculine but warm and inviting, and it smells clean and sexy, and I know that I could live here for as long as he’d want me to. He leads me over to a sitting area near the bed. There is a small black jewelry box resting on top of the copy ofTender is the Nightthat I gave him, on a side table. He clears his throat and picks up the box, handing it to me. His blue eyes are sparkling and his hand is steady.
I never once fantasized about a beautiful British movie star handing me a jewelry box in his bedroom, but I am so fucking happy to be here and I take it an open it like my life depends on it.
“My nan gave me her engagement ring at Christmas, so I wouldn’t have to go shopping for one and attract attention. She wanted me to have it, after I told her about you. I guess that’s why I was so…the way I was, when we were at the hotel.”
I place my fingers over his lips. “You were perfect.” I take the solitaire diamond ring out of the box, and hold it up for him so he can slide it on my ring finger, which is also surprisingly steady. “The diamond is sort of shaped like a turnip,” I say. “It’s so beautiful.”
“I was thinking, since you didn’t seem to know how to be my girlfriend, maybe it would make more sense for you to be my fiancée.”
I nod, because strangely enough, that does make sense to me.
He slides the ring onto my finger. It is only a tiny bit too big, which is a good thing. There’s no struggle at all in getting it on, and I’m not worried that it will fall off.
“I want to marry you. Say you’ll marry me. It doesn’t matter when. We can elope at the last minute or we can have two weddings, here and in Port Gladstone, a year or two from now. Just say yes to me for once dammit. I’ll always love everything you say to me but right now just say yes.”
“Yes, dammit,” I say. “I love you so much, darling. Yes.”
