Hollywood Remake (A Celebrity Love Story)

Chapter 18: Pretty Woman

Kate stopped at the corner of Wilshire Boulevard and Rodeo Drive and stood still for a moment, taking in the scene. The sidewalks were surprisingly full of pedestrians - a stark contrast to the notable absence of foot traffic she'd observed everywhere else she'd been in LA since arriving here last week.

She let out a small sigh of satisfaction, watching the people in the crowd jostle for position as they peered through the glass at the glamorous window displays. Finally, Kate thought to herself, something in LA that didn't make her feel like she was from another planet.

In fact, if she took away the palm trees, the scene here didn't look so different from the ritzy section of Fifth Avenue back home. Every major city in the world had a shopping district like this one. It was the one part of town where the fashionable elite mingled shoulder-to-shoulder with camera-wielding tourists dressed in sneakers and jean shorts.  

She scanned her eyes along the street, taking in the names of designers she recognized. Prada. Valentino. Oscar de la Renta. Gucci... Where to begin?

Kate hadn't anticipated counting herself among the few actual shoppers on Rodeo Drive, but she couldn't say she didn't find the prospect alluring now that she was here. It had been Aidan's idea this morning. They'd been chatting companionably over coffee and danishes when he'd been interrupted by a phone call.

"Sorry," he'd muttered to her, picking up the phone on the first ring. "Bat phone. Gotta take this."

He'd left her alone at the dining table to speak privately, and he'd made a gagging face when he returned a few minutes later. "I have to do an interview with Access Hollywood," he'd said. "Will you be OK here on your own this morning?"

He'd looked at her apologetically as he tossed on a pair of jeans and a blue t-shirt that had been balled up on the living room floor. That was when the bright idea hit him to let her take his Amex Black Card for a little shopping spree on Rodeo Drive.

"No way," she'd protested. "I'll go check out Rodeo Drive, but no way am I taking your credit card."

"Why not?"

"Because I'm not that kind of girl!"

He'd laughed. "Oh, come on. I want to get you a present." He'd come toward her and put his arms around her, kissing her lightly on the lips. "What's wrong with buying a little something for the woman I love?" he'd asked, cupping her face in his hands.

Now Kate had his credit card burning a hole in her pocket, but that didn't mean she had to use it. She probably wouldn't even buy anything - just have a look around. Where to begin? Gucci, Kate thought to herself, setting out again down the street. Wasn't that where Paul's girlfriend, Halley, had said her outfit was from the other night? 

Kate found herself inside the elegant boutique a moment later, and she paused at the threshold, hesitantly looking around the store. A saleswoman approached her almost immediately. "May I help you?"

"Yes," Kate replied. "I'm looking for..." What was she looking for, exactly? She hadn't really thought it through to be honest. Something that would make her feel less like an imposter next time Aidan took her out with him on a double date. "I'm looking for something interesting," she began, "but... simple."

"Interesting but simple?"

"Well, you know," Kate said, struggling to find the right words to communicate what she was picturing in her mind. "Like I'm not trying too hard?"

The saleswoman squinted back at her, saying nothing, and Kate felt compelled to keep talking to fill in the silence. "And youthful," she continued, "but still sophisticated."