The Pretend Girlfriend (A Billionaire Love Story #1)(78)
"You'd best be careful with this one, boy," Henry said, walking over to the bay window, hands shoved into his pockets, and looking out across the New York skyline as though he were a world-weary emperor suffering under the weight of his crown. "She drove quite the hard bargain."
"I'm sure," Aiden said, trying not to pay any attention to his father as he led Gwen from the office. She looked over her shoulder at the contract, sitting open and unsigned on the desk. Would Henry still courier the amended one to her later?
Would she sign it, if he did?
With Aiden with her again, she didn't know. Maybe this was a sign, like the horse race. Maybe all that intense concentration on her phone earlier, trying to make him call and set her at ease, worked. Maybe it had just been delayed.
The secretary glared at them as Aiden pulled her from the waiting room into the hallway with its bank of elevators. He kept shooting glances at her, and Gwen got the impression that he wanted to tell her something. Why did he wait?
The building, of course, Gwen figured. Who knew how good those security cameras staring down at them from the corners of the lobby were, how much they could hear.
She could also sense apprehension coming from him in waves, nervous energy that set her heart racing.
"I didn't think you would come," she said as they got into the elevator. Aiden jabbed the button for the ground floor, glanced at her, then fixed his attention on the countdown as the elevator started its descent.
"Well, I did," he said, giving the security camera a meaningful look. They couldn't talk yet.
So Gwen and Aiden spent the ride down in silence. She examined him, stealing looks when she figured he couldn't see. Hair perfect. Suit not wrinkled. No scuffs on his shiny black shoes. His smooth cheeks and the hint of aftershave she caught, along with everything else, told her that Aiden was fully composed. Did he not ache, too?
It wasn't until they reached the sidewalk that he turned and confronted her. The growing number of pedestrians parted around them like a river around an outcropping of rocks, and the tall buildings hid them from the low morning sun.
"Why are you giving up?" he asked.
He definitely didn't sound pleased at the prospect. Couldn't he see why she'd tried to make everything just go away? Her first intended words were to ask him why he'd come, and how he'd found out, but his question demanded and answer. "Because it's the right thing to do."
Worry flashed across his face, and he took one of her hands. His fingers were cold. Gwen wondered why. He leaned in as though one of the passersby might stop and try to listen in. "Is this because of last night? Because of what happened? Because if it is, I don't regret it. Do you?"
"No, no, not at all. It's just that, after I told you about Beatrice knowing about..." It was Gwen's turn to feel paranoid. She glanced at a briefcase-toting businessman as he passed by. It didn't look like anyone spied on them, but she leaned in anyway, lowering her voice, "About telling Beatrice about the you-know-what. You got all cold and distant, and I thought you were mad."
"Oh," Aiden said, his face unable to fix on any one expression, changing from relief, to worry, to irritation. "Well, I wasn't mad, per se. Just confused, and surprised..." then fear won out, and he squeezed Gwen's hand, "You didn't tell Henry about that, did you?"
"What? No, of course not. Why would I tell him that?"
The fear drained away from him. "Good. If he found out about that, there would be trouble."
Gwen began feeling like her old self again. It had been a really bad idea to spend all that time alone with her thoughts and fears that morning. Her own mind had served as a sort of thought echo chamber, amplifying her worries, concerns, and insecurities until they'd overwhelmed her and forced her to this course of action.
Although, she couldn't shake the notion that signing that new contract would at least have simplified things for all involved. Plus, she'd also somehow been able to get some nice concessions for Aiden.
"Everything okay?" Aiden said.
"Yes, much better now."
"Good. You were staring off into space for a bit there..." Aiden glanced up at the Carbide Solutions building, squinting at the brightness from the top level as the sun caught in the windows. "What do you say to getting out of here?"
Gwen followed his line of sight. She wondered if Henry was up there at the top in his office, glaring down at the street, somehow able to pick them out of the crowd. The thought gave her the shivers. Though that pity for the older man still lingered. Could Henry be like his son, armoring himself against the outside world?
"Yes," she said, "Let's go."
Aiden hailed a cab, one of them detaching from the ever-increasing traffic and pulling up to the curb. She didn't complain when he opened the door so she could climb in. He asked her where she might like to go, but she just shrugged. There were too many things on her mind she needed to process.
"You know what?" Aiden said, glancing out the window up at the sky, "It's supposed to be a nice day. I haven't been to the park in a while."
Chapter 25
The cab dropped them at the park. When they got out of the car, Aiden offered her his hand in helping her climb out. She accepted, and when they started walking, they didn't stop holding hands.