Hollywood Remake (A Celebrity Love Story)

Chapter 23: Indecent Proposal

Aidan stood barefoot in the elevator, holding his shoes in one hand, as he waited for the doors to open onto the penthouse floor. His hair was still wet from the pool, and he ran his fingers through  it absent-mindedly to smooth it down.

He had tried his best to have a good time with the others, cavorting around the pool, but his heart hadn’t really been in it. Kate had managed to spoil what should have been a fun night. He couldn’t stop thinking about her, no matter how hard he tried to distract himself. His mood kept wavering back and forth from worry to anger and back again.

It didn’t help that Paul and Ritchie kept bringing her up. They’d been ribbing him about her all week – a sure sign of approval that she was back in the picture. The whole reason he’d invited everyone over here tonight was to show her off in front of his friends. So much for that plan.

They’d asked after her when she didn’t come swimming, and he’d lied and said she wasn’t feeling well. But he couldn’t stop thinking about what she’d really said to him up in the suite earlier. “Tell them I said I was too old to go skinny dipping.”

What the hell did that mean? She thought he and his friends were immature? Was that it? Since when did she have such a stick up her ass?

He was at the doorway to the suite now, and he opened it to find her curled up on the living room couch with her laptop propped in front of her and a half-eaten slice of hotel pizza in one hand. Someone had cleaned up after his guests while he was gone – all the empty beer bottles and food containers were gathered up in a garbage bag next to the door.

“Did the maid come?” he asked her.

She set down the uneaten portion of her pizza on the room-service tray before she replied. “It’s eleven o’clock at night, Aidan. No, the maid didn’t come.”

“You didn’t have to clean up.”

She shrugged and turned her head to look back at the book she was reading. Was she giving him the silent treatment now? Why? Because his friends had left a mess?

“What, Kate?” he snapped at her. “Are you going to tell me what's wrong, or do I have to stand here like a jackass and guess?”

That got her attention at least. She finally looked at him for the first time since he’d entered the room.

“So I cleaned up!” she said. “Sorry. I guess I’m not used to having a whole staff at my beck and call, all hours of the day and night.”

Was she calling him spoiled now? Because he didn’t want to clean up a hotel room?

“It’s a hotel room!" he exclaimed. "Who cleans up a hotel room? Even regular people don’t—“

“Regular people? Oh, that’s nice.”

“What is your problem?”

“That’s my problem. I think that sums it up pretty nicely. I am a regular person, and you are not.”

“No, I’m not. OK? I’m not a regular person. I’m sorry. Why does that mean you get to treat me like shit?”

“How am I treating you like shit?  I came out here to be with you. I spend all day following you around to your rehearsals, making nice with your stupid friends—“

“Since when did you hate my friends?”

“I don’t hate them, Aidan. They hate me.”

He let out a huff of annoyance. “I honestly have no clue know what we’re talking about right now.”

“Whatever.” She held up her hand at him, trying to diffuse the situation. “I’m sorry. I had a long day. I’m in a bad mood. I just want to eat my pizza and go to bed.”