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The next morning dawned bright and early with the alarm buzzing beside my head. I rolled over and shut it off, then kissed Orlando gently and got out of bed. I pulled on my robe and went to the kitchen for some coffee.

I was just switching on the coffee maker when someone knocked at the door. I hurried to answer it before it woke up Lisa or Orlando.

“Sean,” I said when I opened the door. “What are you doing here so early?”

He smiled warmly at me. He was handsome, definitely, with slightly shaggy dirty blond hair, and a perfect white smile. He was tall, about six foot, and was wearing jeans and a simple white t-shirt. He looked good. I felt like a troll in my old plaid bathrobe and messy hair.

“I brought breakfast for you and Lisa,” he said, holding up a bag of bagels. “Can I come in?”

“Sure,” I said, stepping back to allow him to enter. “I think Lisa’s still sleeping, but I’m sure she’ll be thrilled that you’re here.” I grinned as I led him to the kitchen.

“So, are you blind after last night?” he teased, sitting at the table. I brought us both a cup of coffee, then grabbed some knives from the silverware drawer, and butter from the fridge.

I shook my head. “Just about,” I said, reaching into the bag for a plain bagel. I knew I’d be eating with Orlando and my family in a few hours, but I was hungry, and I figured one bagel wouldn’t hurt me. “That was wild.”

“Was that your family you were with?” he asked. He’d been pretty scarce throughout the party, mostly giving interviews and stuff like that. He was the big name draw in the show, so he was the one all of the reporters wanted to talk to. “I saw you a few times.”

“Yeah, my dad brought my aunt and my cousin to see the show,” I said, buttering my bagel. I smiled. “And Orlando,” I added, grinning from ear to ear.

“Orlando?” He looked puzzled. “Orlando Bloom? I heard he was there, but I didn’t see him.”

“Oh he was there,” I said, still grinning. “He was my surprise.”

“I’m not following?”

I laughed. “We’re involved,” I said, getting up to get the cream cheese for the bagels. “In fact, he’s in the bedroom right now, sound asleep.”

“Wow, that’s a surprise,” Sean said, taking a sip of his coffee. “I didn’t know you were seeing someone.” He looked slightly disappointed.

“Yes, you did,” I said softly, sitting back down. “I told you that.”

“I didn’t think it was real,” he said, his blue eyes burning into my brown ones.

“You thought I lied?” I was a bit offended. “Why?”

“Look, I know Lisa has some sort of thing for me, I’m not dumb,” he said, his voice low. “I just thought you made up the boyfriend thing so she wouldn’t be upset that I was interested in you.”

“You are?”

“You didn’t know that?”

“Didn’t know what?” Orlando came out of the bedroom. He was dressed in the clothes he’d worn the night before, and his hair was loose around his face. He came over to us and sat down beside me.

I glanced quickly at Sean, hoping he wouldn’t say anything. “Oh nothing, just work stuff,” I said, leaning over and kissing Orlando gently. “Orlando, this is Sean,” I introduced them.

“Hey,” Orlando said, getting up to get the kettle. He put it on the stove, then sat back down. “You were great last night, mate,” he said to Sean.

Sean smiled weakly. “Thanks,” he said. He stood up. “Uh, I should go, I gotta do some stuff.” He started for the door. “I’ll see you tonight, Charlie,” he said, then left.

I couldn’t get his hurt look out of my head after the door closed behind him. I really hadn’t known that he was interested in me, as dumb as that sounds. I loved Orlando so much, another man hadn’t even occurred to me.

“What time do we have to meet your dad, love?” Orlando asked, interrupting my thoughts. “I need to go back to the hotel to change.”

“Um, ten,” I said, getting up and settling myself on his lap. I wrapped my arms around him. He was the only man that mattered to me at that moment. “When do you have to go back?”

“Tomorrow night,” he said, nuzzling my neck. “I was lucky they gave me three days, after the time I took off last month.” He’d been everywhere the month before, premiering and promoting Elizabethtown. He’d been in New York for one day, but we’d both been so busy we hadn’t had the chance to see each other, much to my immense disappointment.

“I’m glad you were there last night,” I said, getting up as the kettle began to boil. I smiled at him over my shoulder.

“I am, too,” he said, getting up and coming over to me as I prepared his tea. “I don’t want to go back tomorrow.” He sighed into my hair, and wrapped his arms around me. I leaned back into him.

“How’s filming going?” I asked, wanting to keep the mood light. He loved his work, and was very rarely sad when we talked about it.

“It’s a lot of fun,” he said, resting his chin on my shoulder and squeezing me back against him. “I’ve got a sword in my hand most of the time, but that’s okay.” He paused. “I don’t want to talk about that right now, okay?”

“I should shower anyway,” I said, turning in his arms and handing him his tea. “Care to join me?” I gave him a wicked smirk.

His eyes darkened in the way I knew so well, and his arms tightened around me. “Don’t tempt me, darling,” he said softly. “I don’t think we have time for that right now.” He kissed my nose. “Later, though.”

I hugged him tightly and buried my face in his neck. I was still having trouble believing he was there with me, that he was standing in my kitchen, and that he’d spent the night with me. When we’d parted eight weeks before, I’d sort of forced myself to be okay with just talking to him on the phone once or twice a week, when we had time. I had a picture of us framed on my nightstand, and another in my wallet, and I loved them dearly. I didn’t have to worry about Lisa seeing them, because she never went in my room, and the odd time she did, she was usually busy rummaging through my closet, looking for something to borrow.

“Charlie, are you okay?” Orlando tipped my face up so he could look into my eyes. “Sweetheart, you’re crying.”

I hadn’t even noticed the tears that rolled down my cheeks. He gently wiped them away, then kissed the spots where they’d been. “It’s nothing,” I said, smiling up at him, and tightening my arms around his back.

“Tears are not nothing, love,” he said softly. “Where is this coming from?”

I shook my head. “It’s just hitting me now how much I actually missed you,” I said, melting at the tenderness in his eyes. “I’d sort of pushed it away, not wanting to feel it, you know? But now it’s going to be so much harder to say goodbye to you again.”

He sighed and pulled away from me, slamming his hand through his shaggy hair. “I know,” he said softly. He took my hands in his. “These past two months have been pure hell, I’ll admit, but I was so excited to see you again that I didn’t think of the consequences. I’m sorry, Charlie.”

“No, Orlando,” I said quickly, cupping his face in my hands. “Don’t apologize for being here, baby, please don’t. I love that you’re here, it’s just that I don’t want you to be anywhere else, even though I know you have to be. I’ll take what I can get, and deal with the rest later.” I leaned toward him, until I was against him, then kissed him, a passionate kiss to rival the ones from the night before.

A few breathless seconds later, I broke the kiss. “I have to shower,” I said, smiling at the disappointment on his face. “We’ll be late for breakfast.”

“I’ll go to the hotel to get ready, and we’ll meet at the dining room at ten, okay?” He kissed me lightly again.

“Sounds good,” I said, walking him to the door.

“I love you, Charlie,” he said, kissing me again. “I’ll see you in a bit.”

“I love you, too,” I said, then closed the door behind him.

“This is evil, purely evil.” Lisa came padding down the hallway from her bedroom just as I closed the door. “Too damned early.”

She had on a long yellow night shirt, and her hair was in a ponytail high on her head. She had her favourite men’s work socks on her feet, and she looked like a teenager, though she was 26.

“Good morning to you, too,” I said, going back into the kitchen to clean up the mess on the table. “Sean brought bagels, if you’re hungry.”

“Sean was here?” she said, grabbing the bag he’d brought. “Why didn’t you wake me up?”

“Sorry, I didn’t know what time you got in last night,” I said, dumping my coffee and Orlando’s untouched tea down the drain. “I wasn’t sure you’d appreciate it.”

“Honey, for him, I’d forgo sleep.” She got up to get coffee.

“I’ll remember that for next time.” I paused. “What time did you get in last night?”

“I was here when you and Orlando were making out in the living room,” she said, her mouth full of bagel. “Suddenly I was glad our rooms weren’t right next to each other.” She grinned up at me. “I’m guessing you had a good time last night.”

I couldn’t keep the smile from my face, as wonderful flashbacks of the night before whipped through my head. “You could say that, yes,” I said coyly, sitting down beside her. This was the best part about having a
roommate, girl talk.

“Why didn’t you tell me about him before?”

I shrugged. “It’s not something I wanted known, really,” I said. “I don’t want tabloid rumors circulating about us, and if too many people know, that’s what will happen. It’s still new, I don’t want to ruin it.”

“Those tabloids are brutal,” she said, shaking her head. “But do you really think no one took your picture with him at the reception? I think you blew your cover wide open there.”

I froze. I hadn’t thought about that at all, about the fact that the cameras were everywhere last night, and that there would be a lot of candid photos taken. I’m pretty sure Orlando didn’t think about it either, or we would have been more careful. I’d been sitting on his lap, for heaven’s sake.

“Damn,” I cursed softly, rubbing my hand over my eyes. “Oh well, what’s done is done, I guess.
There’s nothing I can do about it now.”

“No, there’s not,” she agreed. “So where is the hottie?’

I laughed. “That was nice,” I said. “He went back to the hotel to change. He can’t have breakfast with my dad in the same clothes he wore last night.”

“Oh God no,” she laughed. “Although, that would be priceless.”

I stood up. “I have to get ready myself. What are you up to today?”

“I’m gonna go down the hall and bug the boys for awhile,” she said, starting on her second bagel. For such a small person, she had a tremendous appetite.

“Have fun with that,” I said over my shoulder as I headed for my bathroom.

“Charlie?”

“Yeah?” I turned at the door.

“You’re bringing Orlando back here later, right?” She had a wicked glint in her eye.

“Maybe, why?”

“Oh, no reason.” She winked at me. “Enjoy your breakfast.”

I shook my head and went into the bathroom.