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“Yes. It’s this Saturday at Christian Harrison’s gallery.”
She nodded her head. “Okay. At least we don’t have this little guy this weekend.”
That was the only downside. But at least I would get to spend some time with Brianna. Granted it was under the guise of a ‘work trip’ but any time spent with her was always worth it.
“We leave tomorrow morning. We’ll take the jet.”
Her neck snapped to me so quickly I feared she gave herself whiplash. “We are flying private?”
“I don’t fly coach, Brianna.”
“I sometimes forget how rich you are.”
And that was one of the many reasons I liked her. She saw me as more than just a walking bank. She saw me as me. As Gabriel. Without the heavy last name that I was forced to carry. Without the tabloid rumors that littered the internet.
She saw the real me.
We landed in New York on the Friday and spent most of the day doing touristy things. It was her first time in the city and she looked just like a kid in a candy store. It was refreshing, and endearing.
We walked through Central Park. We went to Times Square. We ate at Vitaliali’s—which happened to be my favorite pizza place.
She had accused me of being boring with my plain cheese pizza. She said it lacked pizzazz. She on the other hand indulged in the more experimental flavors such as avocado and goat’s cheese or Hawaiian. Anyone who ate pineapples on their pizza needed a psych evaluation. In my opinion.
Brianna was beautiful as she soaked up her surroundings.
Even when we went souvenir shopping, she insisted on getting things for Michael.
“He will like this.” She held up a little onesie that had cars on it. “He liked the Cars movie we watched last week.”
She shopped for him more than she did for herself.And unlike in Chicago, we weren’t being followed by dozens of paparazzi everywhere we went. Maybe it was because no one had anticipated me traveling. Whatever the case, it was a welcome break from the constant cameras in our face. And I wasn’t shocked when we woke up on Saturday morning to tabloids that read.
“Gabriel and Brianna expecting?”
They always managed to find me one way or another.
My phone had gone off like crazy from my parents to Adriana and my PR team. I declined them all. This was my time with Brianna and I didn’t want it to be ruined.
“Do I look pregnant?” Brianna asked curiously.
We had just hopped out of the shower and she was looking at herself in the floor length mirror in the bathroom. Her hair was wrapped up in a towel and she was naked, staring at the reflection of her small frame. I was also staring at her small frame. We had just showered to get ourselves clean, but I wasn’t opposed to getting a little dirty.
I walked up behind her and put my arms around her torso. I pulled her into me and kissed the side of her neck.
“Gabriel.” She scolded me still trying to see herself. “This is a mess. They think I’m pregnant.”
“We’re engaged. It’s not that much of a shock.”
“Yes, but…”
“But nothing. Stop letting those sleazy tabloids ruin our time. When we are together like this it’s just you and me. No contract. No paparazzi. No outside world.”
She leaned into me and sighed. “Am I fat?”
“No.” I said immediately. “And I don’t ever want to hear you talk negatively about yourself. You are perfect Anna. Absolutely remarkable.”
Her eyes watched me through the mirror and I could see the gratitude in them. She didn’t need to thank me. I was only stating what was true.
I didn’t know it then but that was the moment I started falling for this woman. And I didn’t know if I would ever be able to get back up again.
