Vaughn.
I’m almost afraid to turn in case it isn’t him. I think the disappointment would finish me off.
But I do turn. And it is him.
He’s here.
My heart starts to beat triple time.
He smiles, and my heart breaks.
“Hey, Pins.”
I can’t speak, so I just sit there, mute, while he takes the seat across from me.
“What can I get you?” the waitress asks him.
“Coffee.”
“Sure thing, hon. Anything to go with that coffee?”
He shakes his head but doesn’t take his stare from me. He hasn’t once looked away from me since I first locked eyes with him.
Well, he might be able to look at me for an extended period of time, but I can’t look at him. Staring at Vaughn right now is like staring at the sun. My eyes are starting to burn and sting and fill with tears.
I suck in a breath and stare out the window.
“I’ll be right back with your coffee,” the waitress tells him.
Silence drags on between us.
He’s right here.
I never thought I’d see him again like this. Never be close to him again.
Don’t lose this chance, Charly, to have more time with him. You’ll regret it if you do.
I just wish I knew why he was here. I’m too afraid to let my heart hope.
I move my eyes back to him. All thoughts fall from my mind.
“You’re not saying anything, Pins. It’s starting to freak me out.” He gives me a tentative smile.
I lick my dry lips. “You’re here.” It’s the best I’ve got at the moment.
“Yeah,” he says softly, “I am.”
“Why?” I want to kick myself for asking, but it’s killing me, having him here and not knowing why.
I’m silently begging him to forgive me for lying to him. Begging for him to want me again.
The waitress brings his coffee over, interrupting us.
“Thanks,” he says, briefly glancing at her. His eyes come back to me.
Silence hangs between us again. The tension is agonizing.
“I spoke to Jack,” he says.
“Oh.” That’s why he’s here.
Jack probably wants him to make an official statement to the press about our “affair.”
“Tell the press what you need to, Vaughn. Tell them the truth. That you didn’t know I was married. You don’t need to be hurt in this any more than you have been.”
“Oh,” he says. “Well, I was kinda thinking that we’d tell them that you and Nick have been separated for a while now but still living together, as you couldn’t afford to move out. I’m guessing you’re in a two-bedroom apartment, that you haven’t gotten around to filing for divorce yet, as it’s another expense you couldn’t afford. You and Nick are on great terms. And he knew all about you and me. About our relationship.”
“You and me?” I breathe.
“Yeah, Pins. You and me.” He reaches across the table, taking my hand in his. “I shouldn’t have let you go earlier. I didn’t mean any of what I said. I was still angry and hurting.”
“You’re not angry anymore?”
“No.”
He smiles, and my heart soars.
“I’m just…”
“What?” I ask eagerly.
“In love with you. And nothing else matters but that. Everything else can go to hell, for all I care.”
Tears fill my eyes, and my lips tremble. “I love you, too. So much.”
He moves around the table and sits beside me. He takes my face in his hands. “What you said earlier, that you want me to have the best life, that you want me to be happy…the only way I can do that is with you.”
A tear slides down my face. He wipes it away with his thumb. Then, he presses his lips to mine.
Happiness sets my skin on fire. I wrap my arms around him, kissing him back.
He breaks off, pressing his forehead to mine. “Let’s get out of here.” He kisses me one more time and then slides out of the booth.
I follow out behind him. He pulls some bills from his pocket and drops them on the table, way more than necessary.
He stares down at me and holds his hand out for me to take. Heart full, I slide my palm against his. He links our fingers, and we head for the door.
We’ve just almost made it outside when the waitress calls us back.
“Hey,” she says.
We turn to her. She’s standing on the customer side of the counter. She takes a step closer, looking…well, staring at Vaughn. She’s made him.
“Can I ask…are you…Vaughn West?”
He chuckles softly and then looks back at me. “No,” he says. “I’m just a normal guy who’s in love with an extraordinary girl.”
He thinks I’m extraordinary.
That’s the most amazing thing anyone has said to me.
The smile on my face is so big, my lips are stretching. But, of course, me being me, I have to say, “Did you bang your head on the way here?”
He laughs loudly, eyes sparkling. “There’s my girl.” His fingers stroke softly down my cheek. “And, no, I didn’t bang my head. But I plan on banging yours. Hard. Against my headboard. It’s time you and I got reacquainted, Pins.”
I step close and brush my smiling lips against his. “I can live with that, West.”
I can live with that forever.
Four Years Later
Vaughn
This is it.
This is the moment I’ve been waiting my whole career for. The moment that will tell me if all my hard work has paid off.
Working on my last film, Five Knots to Nowhere, was amazing but hard as hell. I bled this film. I lived in the fucking desert and the worst places on earth you could think of for this film. I left Charly for three months while we were on location. I put up with Brandon again for this film. The guy was still needy as fuck, and he was at epic neediness level while doing Five Knots to Nowhere.
Surprised he wanted to work with me again? I’m not. The Lament did fucking brilliantly. We smashed it at the box office.
I look up at the stage where Natasha and Gabriel are standing, waiting to present the award to the winner, which they’re going to announce at any moment now.
I mean, they’re two of my closest friends. It has to be me. It’s fate.
Right?
Please, God, let it be me. I’ll stop cursing so much if I win this. Not altogether, of course, because that would be near on fucking impossible.
My heart is beating so hard in my chest, it feels like I’m going to crack a rib.
I haven’t been this nervous since I stood up at the altar, waiting for Charly to appear and walk toward me.
Thank fuck she did.
I rub my thumb over her engagement and wedding ring.
She squeezes my hand. I glance at her.
Her look is encouraging. You got this baby, her eyes are saying.
I pray to God that I do. Because I’ll suck at being a gracious loser. I’m not that good of an actor.
“And the Oscar goes to…” Natasha opens the envelope.
She smiles and shows it to Gabriel.
He grins. And looks at me.
Did he look at me? Or did I just imagine that?
For fuck’s sake, just say who the winner is, or I’m going to— “Vaughn West!” he yells into the microphone.
Holy…fuck!
I won!
I motherfucking won! Sorry, God.
But I’m an Oscar-winning actor.