Away From the Spotlight (43 page)

I stared at it as I sat down on the bed. 
“What have you done?”

“You agreed that I could spoil you on your birthday.”

“I did,” I said
reluctantly
.  I kissed him an
d
opened the box to find diamond earrings that matched the necklace that
Will
had
g
i
ve
n
me as a graduation present
. “They’re beautiful.
  You did too much as usual.”

“Not possible.”

I ran to the bathroom and put them on along with the matching necklace I
never took off
except to shower and sleep
.

Will was studying me as I returned to the room.

“What’s wrong?” I asked
,
confused by his expression.

“There’s just one thing
:
I would be happier
if the diamonds were the
only
thing you were wearing.”

I complied and we
continued with my
birthday
celebration
in our own private way.

As we
rose
to get going for the day, I tried not to think about the fact that this was almost our last day in England together
for over three weeks
.  Although I would return to London
a few days before
Labor Day Weekend, we only would have
those last
few days
here
before our flight home
and
return to reality.

I
was
told
only
that we w
ere going someplace nice.  Will sh
ould have warned me before I left L.A. as I really hadn’t packed much for nice.  My trip was supposed to be barely a step up from backpacking through Europe.  I wore my only nice pants outfit to meet his parents and I only had
two dresses, one completely unsuitable and
the little black dress
that, although it wasn’t particularly suitable for the daytime, would have to do
.  Will had on a suit and tie.

We headed through the throng of cameras to get to the car.  This time, there were a few
video
cameras and microphones as well.  I continued to try to look down this time, but was only partially successful.  I
heard
some of the questions asking where we were going and why we were so dressed up for the middle of the day.  Other than saying hello, Will did not respo
nd to the reporters’ questions.

We made it to the car, only to be followed again.  We headed off to the
hotel
where
we had parked the day before
and I thought we were going to use our trick of heading into the Green Park Tube Station. 
However, i
nstead of heading off in that direction, we headed toward the main
restaurant.

We were seated near one of the floor-to-ceiling paned windows.  The room was very formal,
one
you would
expect to
find in a French palace, very ornate with paintings on the wall and ceilings.  It was far more formal than any
place I had ever been by a long shot.  I looked around and marveled at the room
. 
I
then
looked over at Will and he was smiling, seemingly
pleased
that I
appeared
happy
.

“Is this a
good place for your birthday?”

“Yes.  Too good for me.  Wow
.
”

“Never too g
ood.  I was going for special.”

“You succeeded.  I have never been to any
place like thi
s in my life.  It’s beautiful.”

“Happy Birthday.”

“You spoil me.
”

“I try.  I love you.”

“I appreciate your tho
ughtfulness.   I love you too.”

We celebrated with champagne and a wonderful lunch.  I don’t eat what I refer to as cute animals –
deer
,
duck, lamb and
rabbit –
so
I had a steak that was presented beautifully.  I couldn’t resist the desserts.  Although I am more of a vanilla than a chocolate person, I selected a chocolate dessert that was
rich and
decadent.

By the time we finished lunch, it was mid-afternoon.  We retrieved the car and headed back home to change. 
Will
suggested that I
dress a little more warmly
for what he had planned
.  I couldn’t imagine what
else Will
could have
in store
for me
.

Will and I
braved the masses again on the way into the flat. 
I then
properly thank
ed
Will
for a wonderful birthday.  Although we
both wanted to continue, Will informed me
that we had an
other
appointment to keep.  We
reluctantly
got up and dressed nicely, but a little more warmly than we had for lunch.  I wore a black skirt and sweater, but brought a bag with pants and a
heavier sweater just in case.

After making our way through the press again, we drove
away
toward the heart of London and then toward the Thames.  I had no idea wh
ere we were going
and couldn’t imagine how Will could top
what we
already
had
done today.  We parked and walked along t
he Thames to one of the piers.

Will had
chartered
a
private cruise along the Thames for the
evening.  It was a long, single-
deck
cruiser.  The
bow
o
f the boat
contained the bridge
.  Behind that was th
e galley and a
head
followed by
a private
salon
with windows on each side
, and then
a long
main cabin with a stocked bar,
built in couches lining the windows
,
and tables and chairs in the middle.  It looked to hold a group
somewhat larg
er than just the two of us.  On one of the tables, there were
platters full of canapés and pi
t
cher
s of juice and water.  The
stern
of the boat was open with
some seating around the edges.

Will let me know that we were going to cruise for a while and stop in a few hours to have dinner brought
a
board.  We decided to sit outside since it
the weather was
good
. 
As we cruised,
though,
t
here was a little chill
in the air so
I grabbed my heavier sweater.  We sat outside for what was probably a few hours,
drinking wine and
not saying much
,
cuddled into each other
and
watching the sights of London pass b
y
us as we
moved
through the
central
part of London and back.  I could have sat there with him forever.  Before we knew it, we were back at the pier and dinner
was brought on
board.  We stood up and remained
outside
with me wrapped in Will’s arms.

When the boat left the dock ag
ain, Will kissed me
and led me into the
salon
where dinner had been laid out for us.  The lights were low and the dinner was excellent.  We ate at sunset and, by the time we were finished, it was dark.  The lights of London cou
ld be seen through the windows.

After dinner
, we
moved
into the
main cabin
and sat down on one of the
couches
along the window’s edge
.

“I’m surprised we
’
ve barely seen a crew member since we’ve been on the boat
ot
her than those b
ringing in dinner at the dock.”

“I asked that we have privacy.  I wa
nted it to be just you and me.”

“Yo
u think they’ll stick to that?”

“Yes.  Why?”

“Because
. . .”
I walked over and turned out the lights in the inside of the cabin.  I
returned
to Will and I could tell that it had clicked in his head what I
planned on us doing
.

“I can’t imagine what you have in mind
,
”
he said facetiously.

Will
sat still
for a moment
with me s
traddling
him.  He
then
started to laugh
,
kissed me
and made love to me
as we watched the lights of London
pass by us.

Afterward
, I put on the pants I had brought so that we could sit outside a while longer in the dark
. 
It was cold now, but I couldn’t feel it as much
since
I was still flush from being with Will.  We sat out on deck arms around each oth
er, intermittently making out.

I didn
’
t want this night to end, but end it did
,
and by midnight, we wer
e on our way back to Hampstead.

The next morning came too quickly as we had stayed up late, not wanting our time together to
end.  Unfortunately, I had a 1:
30 p.m. flight to Ireland and we needed to get out the door mid-morning to ensure that I made it.  We were both fairly quiet as we showered
and
got ready
,
and I
checked to make sure
that I had everything repacked tha
t I had laundered for the trip.

Leaving the flat, we
face
d
the p
aparazzi
again
with
questions
regarding
where I was going and why was I leaving so soon, which neither of us answered.  We both looked a little sullen and I wondered what the press would make of that. 
In my thoughts,
I could see break-up st
ories in the tabloids
.  When we
arrived at
the car, Will kissed me lightly as he handed me into the front seat.  That probably effectively canceled any
plans
on the part of
the
press
to
report
our
br
eak-up.

“You
kissed
me in front of them,” I said with surprise as we drove
away
.

“I couldn’t co
ntrol myself.  You’re leaving.”

“I’ll be back soon.”  It was so strange
for
me
to
be the one leaving. 
Now he kn
ows
how I
felt.
  “Besides, you’ll be working a
nd too busy to think about me.”

“Not
likely.”  He was still sullen.

“Well, let’s not ruin what has
been the best week of my life.”

“And
mine
.
I’m sorry.”  He put on a good show and smiled as we drove toward the airport, but I knew
that
he was as sad as
I was.

Will walked me into the ticketing area where I met up with Pam. 
Will
kissed
Pam
on the cheek
in greeting
and stood with us as we checked in for
the flight.  He then walked us
to the
security check-in line
.

I looked into
Will’s
sad
eyes
with my own
as I was about to go.  He smile
d and kissed me long and hard.

When
Will
pulled away, he said, “
P
lease have fun
.  F
or me.  I’ll be waiting for you when you get back.”