Cross Check (Marriage Contract #1) (13 page)

“It is?” I ask, baffled by his response.

“Sure it is,” he goes on excitedly, “You know I’ve always
loved that family. Jamison especially. You two were such good pals when you
were little—”

“We picked on each other constantly,” I remind him.

“Yeah, well, that’s always how kids show their love,” he
chuckles, “When did this happen, Lee?”

“Just recently,” I tell him, “Right before his parents died,
Jay and I had dinner with Loudon in the city. Jay had decided to join the
company.”

“That must have made Loudon so proud,” Dad sighs, “And Jay
being with you would make him even prouder. Loudon just adored you.”

Here comes the hard part,
I think to myself.

“I actually know for a fact that Loudon wanted me and Jay to
be together,” I tell my dad, “Because he said so in his will.”

“I…I don’t understand,” my dad says, cocking his head to the
side.

“In his will, Loudon requested and Jay and I run King
Enterprises together, as partners,” I explain, “And in addition…that we be
partners in marriage.”

“…Wow,” Dad breathes, rubbing his chin in amazement, “I
didn’t know wills could be so…specific.”

“Me either,” I laugh nervously, “But, here we are.”

“But so then… Are you and Jay a real couple, or are you just
going along with Loudon’s wishes?” my dad asks.

“I…I’m not entirely sure,” I tell him, “Most of the time it feels
like we have a real connection, but other times… I mean, can our relationship
ever be authentic if it started out because of a clause in some contract?”

“Stranger things have happened,” my dad shrugs.

“Have they though?” I ask.

“Here’s the real question,” Dad presses on, “Do you have
real feelings for Jamison?”

I pause as Dad’s question hits home. It’s a question I don’t
think I’ve properly stopped to ask myself this whole time. I loving having sex
with Jay, that much is true. But what about real feelings of affection? Love,
even? I let my mind spin through all our moments spent together. From our
childhood afternoons holed up in the gazebo, to our graduation night, to these
past few days tucked away in his brownstone and strolling around the city.

It occurs to me that whatever relationship Jay and I have
didn’t begin with Loudon’s will. What if this crazy turn of fate, this mandate
from Loudon King, was the thing that had to happen to bring us together? God
knows we were always too stubborn to admit our feelings on our own. Maybe this
whole thing has been a blessing in
very
deep disguise?

“You know something,” I finally say to my dad, “I think… I
think I do have feelings for him. Yeah.”

“Then it’ll work out the way it’s meant to,” Dad says
simply, “I’m happy for you, Lee. For both of you. It may have taken your entire
lives for you to realize it, but you actually do make a real good pair.”

“Thanks Dad,” I say, feeling a huge weight lift off my
shoulders, “You’re being far cooler about this than I would have imagined.”

“Hey, it seems like most kids are meeting in the Internet these
days anyway,” Dad shrugs, “This thing you’ve got with Jamison is practically
old fashioned.”

He has a point.

“I’ve got to go work out the media strategy for my
relationship, I guess,” I tell him, “I love you, you know.”

“I love you too, Lee,” Dad says, “Go strategize your heart
out.”

As I hang up my dad’s call, it’s like the storm clouds that
have been threatening to burst all morning are rolling away across the horizon.
Maybe this whole thing doesn’t have to be a scandalous catastrophe after all.

A knock at the door turns my head, and I look up to see
Jamison appear in the room.

“Everything OK?” he asks, gaging my mood.

“You know what?” I say, rising to my feet, “I think it might
just be.”

“Well, great,” he smiles, pushing the door open for me,
“Ready to go talk shop?”

“Let’s do it,” I say, squaring my shoulders and marching
back toward my office. Everything between Jay and I was on the upswing before
Cordelia tried to derail it all. Is it really worth walking away from a
potentially good thing just because it’s complicated? I need to at least try to
see this through, find a way to make Loudon’s wishes come true. And not just
for his sake, but because it’s what I want, too. God, does that feel nice to
finally admit. I
want
to be Jay’s partner. In business… and in life.

And if we play our cards right, that’s exactly what’s gonna
happen.

Chapter Ten

The very next morning, I find myself sitting next to Jamison
on an overstuffed couch at 7am, wearing a full face of makeup and ready to set
the record straight… or if not straight, then at least bent in our favor. Three
studio cameras surround us and the heavily coiffed interviewer,
New York
Host Amanda Schaffer. Charlie Bridges, whose voice I can hear berating a
production assistant somewhere on set, got this interview set up for us in no
time flat. Bridges, Jamison and I spent the entire night preparing the story
we’re going to offer up to the press. Hopefully, after this exclusive
interview, the media will move on from our story altogether and leave us to run
King Enterprises in peace.

“OK everyone,” the director says, “We’re going live in
thirty seconds.”

“Ready for this?” Jamison asks, slipping his hand into mine.

“Absolutely,” I tell him, giving his hand a firm squeeze.

“Our audience is going to eat you two up,” Amanda Schaffer
says giddily, looking excitedly between us.

She’s a put-together woman in her late 30’s, with short
blonde hair and an ice queen smile. Jay and I will have to be careful not to
give her any ground. She’s got a reputation for engineering “gotcha” moments.
But if there’s anyone I trust to go up against her, it’s me and Jamison King.

“And we’re live,” the director says, “In
five…four…three…two…”

The lights shine brightly overhead as Amanda Schaffer grins
broadly at camera one.

“Hello, Big Apple!” she croons, “This is
Morning in New
York
, and I’m your host Amanda Schaffer. We’ve got a special treat for you
this morning, in the way of an exclusive interview with a couple that’s got
everybody talking. I’m sitting here with former hockey superstar Jamison King,
a very familiar face here in New York City, and Leah Brody, a creative
executive at King Enterprises. Hello to you both!”

“Hello, Amanda,” Jay say smoothly, “Thanks for having us
on.”

“Yes, thank you,” I put in, “We’re so happy to be here.”

“And we’re happy to have you!” Amanda smiles, “You two have
been getting quite a lot of coverage from the tabloids this week, haven’t you?”

“That we have,” Jamison chuckles, giving me a knowing smile,
“What’re you gonna do when everyone’s walking around with a camera on their
phone?”

“It’s hard to get a moment alone these days,” I sigh, “But I
suppose our story was going to come out eventually.”

“We’re just glad we get to be here with you, to share it in
our own words,” Jay says to Amanda Schaffer.

“And what
is
your story?” she says, putting on her
Pensive Reporter Face as she leans in toward us.

“Well,” I begin, “Jamison and I actually grew up together in
Little Silver, New Jersey. My parents worked on the King estate. My father,
Frank, is the groundskeeper there. My mother, Eva, was the housekeeper until
she passed away when I was fourteen.”

“I’m sorry for your loss,” Amanda says, “For both your
losses, it should be said.”

“Thank you,” Jamison nods, “We appreciate that.”

“All of our parents were actually good friends,” I go on,
“Though my parents were employees of Loudon and Priscilla King, Jay’s parents
always treated us with kindness.”

“A real upstairs, downstairs story,” Amanda nods eagerly,
“Two kids, from opposite sides of the tracks—”

“Well, same side of the tracks, technically,” I cut in,
annoyed at her implication, “My family lived in the groundskeeper’s cottage on
the King estate.”

“Six of one, half dozen of the other!” the host goes on,
waving aside my comment. “So, you two were friends when you were little?”

“I don’t know if you’d say friends,” Jamison laughs, giving
me a playful little shove, “Most of the time, we were locked into some kind of
game or competition. Always trying to one up each other.”

“Sounds like young love to me,” Amanda smiles, “But you
drifted apart when you left for college, is that right?”

After one last night fucking each other silly, yeah…
I think to myself.

“We did drift apart a bit,” Jamison confirms, “Which is
nuts, really. We actually went to college very close to each other. I was in
Boston, Leah was in Cambridge. But I was really committed to my hockey career,
then. And from what I hear the workload at Harvard is no joke, right Leah?”

“That’s right,” I agree, my mouth beginning to ache with my
plastered-on smile.

I thought giving this sunny account of my relationship with
Jay would be easy. But sitting here under the studio lights, I kind of feel
like I’m playing myself in a movie. This being in front of the camera thing is
no joke. I don’t know how Jay’s done it all these years.

“So when did you finally reconnect?” Amanda presses on.

“Honestly, it wasn’t until very recently,” Jay tells her,
“As you know, my hockey career was cut short after one too many concussions.
And instead of retiring at thirty, I decided to finally turn my attention to
the family business: King Enterprises.”

“I’d already been working at King Enterprises since I
graduated from Harvard,” I cut in, “Loudon King was something of a mentor to
me. And just a few weeks ago, I learned that Jay was coming on board as well.”

“And is that when sparks started to fly again?” Amanda asks.

I think back to that night at DeLeonardo’s, when I came upon
Jamison sitting in Loudon’s usual booth. Seeing him there after so many years
was a shock to my entire system…but not an entirely unpleasant one. I wasn’t
ready to admit it then, but I was already feeling that magnetic pull he’s
always had over me.

“Yes,” I say to the host, “That’s when it started.”

“It must have been such a blow when your parents died so shortly
after,” Amanda goes on, pouting sympathetically at Jay.

“My parents’ death would have been a blow no matter when it
happened,” he answers, his jaw pulsing, “I won’t lie, it’s been incredibly
difficult. I’ve just been taking it day by day. But I will say, it’s been made
a lot easier by having a partner like Leah at my side.”

I look over at Jamison, searching his gorgeous face. As
lovely as it is for him to say this now, it feels strange to be hearing it for
the first time on live television. Is this what’s actually in his heart, or he
just playing the game Charlie Bridges has laid out for us?

“So it’s true then?” Amanda pushes, “You two are partners.”

“We are,” Jay confirms, “In more ways than one.”

“Can you expand on that?” the host asks.

“Well,” I continue, “It was Loudon King’s wish that if
anything were to happen to him, Jamison and I would run King Enterprises
together, as co-presidents.”

“But ours isn’t just a business partnership,” Jay amends,
“It’s a romantic partnership as well. Leah and I are very much in love.”

“That is beautiful,” Amanda says, clasping her hands
together, “If you don’t mind my asking, what’s the nature of this romantic
partnership? Are you dating, living together…?”

“Actually, Amanda,” Jamison says, draping an arm over my
shoulders, “In this rare instance, the tabloids are actually right. Leah and I
are engaged to be married.”

I hold out my left hand, flashing the prop ring Charlie
picked out for me last night. I try not to let my heart sink too far. Just
because this part of the story happens to be an act, doesn’t mean the rest of
it is. I’m just doing what I have to do to put this whole fiasco behind me.

“Oh, wow!” Amanda gushes, “New York’s very own Jamison King
is engaged!”

“That’s right,” Jay smiles, giving me a kiss on the cheek,
“I only regret that my parents couldn’t be here to see this. They would have
been so happy to see Leah and I together at last.”

This, above all else, pains me to hear in this bizarre
context. The Kings would have been happy to see me and Jamison as a couple. But
what would they think of this media circus we’ve gotten ourselves into?

I smile and nod through the rest of the interview, feeling
numb from the strangeness of it all. I’m vaguely aware of Amanda Schaffer
gushing over us as the cameras cut. Of Charlie giving Jamison a hearty “well
done” handshake. Of Jamison leading me out of the television studio and down to
the waiting car. It isn’t until we’re finally alone again that I feel myself
drifting back to the surface of what feels like real life.

“How the hell do you do this all the time?” I ask Jay, my
voice dull with exhaustion.

“It won’t be like this all the time,” Jay assures me,
“You’ve just made it through your first PR crisis as a full-blown famous
person. Welcome to the club.”

“It just feels so weird,” I tell him, tugging off my fake
engagement ring, “It’s like I’m losing track of which parts of our story are
true and false.”

“I’m sorry we had to throw that engagement bit into the
interview,” he tells me, “Charlie just wanted to be sure that we gave the
vultures enough to leave us alone.”

“No, I get it,” I tell him, resting my head on his shoulder,
“I just feel like I need to take a hot shower now, is all.”

“You should absolutely do that,” Jay says, kissing my
forehead, “It’s barely nine o’clock in the morning. Let’s just start the day
over again from here, OK?”

“Sounds good to me,” I sigh, as we pull up to the brownstone
on West 10th.

I can’t believe that it was just yesterday morning that Jay
and I first discovered that we were tabloid news. Something tells me this
interview is going to bring a swarm of paparazzi back into our lives, but
hopefully it won’t last long. Happy couples are boring couples, after all. And
despite how bizarre these last couple of weeks has been, I am happy when I’m
with Jay.

Especially when I get to be alone with him.

Stepping into the foyer of the brownstone, I let out a deep
sigh of relief. Though I’ve only been staying here with Jay since earlier this
week, the sensation of returning here is one of coming home. I never felt this
bone-deep sense of comfort in my studio on Riverside Drive. In fact, I don’t
think I’ve felt at-home since my days at the groundskeeper’s cottage with my
parents. I didn’t realize how much I missed having a safe place to land.

“Hey, before you hit the shower,” Jay says, catching my hand
as I go to ascend the steps, “Come have some breakfast with me on the patio.”

“I don’t think we’ve ever had a meal together that wasn’t
prepared by a restaurant,” I observe with a laugh, “Are you feeling OK?”

“Never better,” Jay says, leading me towards the kitchen.

I study his face as we make our way through the brownstone.
Something’s up with him—but I can’t put a finger on what, exactly. He seems
excited about something. The exhaustion I’m feeling after our all-night cram
session for the interview doesn’t seem to be wearing on him at all. It’s like
he’s in his own little secret world. What gives?

“Wait,” Jay says, blocking my path to the french doors that
lead out to the terrace, “Close your eyes.”

“Why?” I ask, cocking my head at him.

“Just go with it, Brody,” he insists, laying his hands
gently on my hips, “Please.”

“All right,” I sigh, going along with his request, “As long
as you promise to tell me why you’re acting like a crazy person all of a
sudden.”

“Oh, I’m sure you’ll be able to figure it out,” he says,
taking my hand once more.

I trail along behind him, the morning light glowing orange
through my closed eyes. I listen as Jay opens the patio door, and take a deep
breath of fresh air as I step outside in his wake. But as I fill my lungs with
morning air, I’m surprised by the scent of freshly cut flowers. Jay doesn’t
keep any flowers out here. The terrace is enclosed by a tall, rustic wooden
fence, overrun with gorgeous vines of ivy but devoid of any floral touches.

“What’s going on?” I ask Jay, lingering at the doorway with
my eyes closed tight.

“See for yourself,” he tells me, his voice low and rich with
anticipation.

With my heart in my throat, I open my eyes once again. The
scene that awaits me is almost too much to take in all at once. The terrace has
been transformed from a simple urban outdoor space to an oasis of earthly
delights in the middle of this gritty metropolis. Bundles of wildflowers cover
every available surface, exquisitely arranged and bursting with fresh
fragrance. Even the wooden slats crisscrossing overhead have been hung with
delicate strings of blossoms and vines. Warm morning light filters in from
overhead, amplified by paper lanterns adorning the intimate space.

At the center of the space is a white circular table,
usually bare save for a discarded newspaper or water glass. But today, the
table itself is nearly invisible beneath an elegant breakfast spread. Freshly
baked pastries, rich espresso roast, bowls of fresh fruit and whipped cream,
savory breads and cheeses, have all been laid out between two place settings
and chairs. A breakfast feast for two after an extremely trying morning.

My own exhaustion ebbs away as I swing my gaze over to meet
Jay’s. He stands there in his navy blue sport coat, watching as I take in his
gift to me. The smile that plays across his face is for once free of arrogance
or camera-ready charm. He simply looks happy to share this moment with me.

“Jay,” I say softly, holding my hands out to him, “This…This
is lovely.”

“Had it set up while we were at the TV studio,” he tells me,
taking my hands in his and pulling me close, “You deserve this and much more
after the day you’ve had.”

“It was a handful for both of us,” I reply, lacing my hands
behind his neck as he holds my body close to his.

“I’m used to TV spots and gossip,” he shrugs, “But you. You
got thrown into the deep end with no warning. And through all of this, you
haven’t faltered once. You’ve looked this insane fucking situation right in the
eye and refused to back down. You are one hell of a woman, Leah Brody.”