Just A Kiss Goodnight

Chapter Thirty-Eight

I retreated to the kitchen, thoroughly unnerved by Sophie's question, and busied myself getting dessert out from the fridge and plates from the cupboard.

"Can I help sweetheart?" Tom's voice interrupted my chaotic thoughts.

"No, it's fine." I barely spared him a glance, keeping my face turned away, afraid my emotions would show. After a second he went back to our guests and left me to it.

I stopped, resting my hands on the bench and leaning forward over them, head down. 'Are you going to LA with Tom?'  Sophie had asked me while the men were busy discussing a play. I'd mumbled 'I'm not sure yet'  as a response, but the truth had hit me in the solar plexus: Tom hadn't asked me to go with him. I knew that partners did often go on location, for a while at least, and we would  be newlyweds, after all – but still the fact remained that he had made no mention of it. Does he want me there with him or not?

"Kate?" Tom called.

"Coming!" I took everything into the dining area where the others were discussing plans for New Years Eve, only two days away. They made complimentary noises at the sight of the fruit and cream-topped meringue creation I presented to them and accepted generous helpings. Tom groaned aloud when he tasted his first spoonful of the dessert; it had a crunchy outer but melt-in-your-mouth filling and the sweetness of the sugary meringue was wonderfully offset by the fresh fruit on top. I was pretty sure my pudding-mad man would be back for seconds.

"Kate this is amazing! You must give me the recipe!" Sophie enthused and Ben nodded in agreement, his mouth too full to say anything.

"Thanks. I got the recipe from a friend; it's called a Pavlova. Very easy to make."

As we ate and conversation flowed again, I was fairly quiet; my thoughts kept skipping back to LA and I told myself Tom had probably just been too busy to bring it up. After all, he was leaving in a week for a month-long press tour and had our honeymoon to plan too – at his insistence, saying I had enough work to do planning the wedding and fake birthday party. Still, if I was going to go, plans needed to be made ...

I was brushing my hair before bed when Tom's hand took the brush from me and I felt his kisses on my neck. "Let me do that darling." It felt heavenly having him brush my curls; he did it just firmly enough to stimulate my scalp and leave it tingling but somehow managed not to encounter hundreds of tangles, the way I seemed to do. When he put the brush down has hands went to my shoulders and he began massaging the knots away. "You feel tense. Is something wrong?"

I was loathe to jeopardise our moment but was also mindful of my mantra not to let fear and doubt rule me, so I took a breath and broached the subject that was on my mind. "It ... it's about LA."

His hands stopped their kneading and I was instantly worried.

"I've been meaning to talk to you about that." He replied, wrapping his arms around my waist and resting his chin on my shoulder. Oh god, is he going to say he doesn't want me to go?  "I have been putting it off, I admit, because I wasn't sure ... I didn't know if you'd be filming ... or if you would want to leave your business ... but ... do you want to come with me? Can you spare some time from work?"

I turned in his arms, relieved and overjoyed at his words. "You want me to come with you? I won't be in the way?"

He kissed my forehead and wrapped me tighter in his arms. "Darling of course I want you there with me. Is that what you've been thinking and why you were so quiet tonight at dinner?" I nodded. "I'm sorry sweetheart, I should have mentioned it sooner, I was just ... well, I didn't want to make you leave your work here just because my job takes me away for long periods. You've been away from it a few times this year for one reason or another and I ... I suppose I felt guilty about asking you."

"Tom." I pulled his head down to mine and kissed him. "Don't move."

I went into my office and got the laptop from my desk, returning to the bedroom and opening a file to show him the screen. "This is a memo from me to Sam and Owen detailing my plan to make them permanent heads of the company with an appropriate title and shareholding. I'll continue to do design work from home as I have been and will remain CEO, but they will run it."

"Darling, I had no idea ... are you sure this is what you want?"

"Yes it is, I've actually been thinking about it for almost a year, to be honest. I found I hated being bogged down with management issues when it was the designing I really love and have the talent for – I'm not really cut out to be a paper pusher! The company has flourished with those two looking after it, so it makes sense to make that permanent."

"What about your shows?"

"I don't have a contract with either and they don't film until late April anyway, so there's plenty of time to decide about those. I'm sure I can be easily replaced if need be."

He smiled in acknowledgement but still had doubts. "But it was your way of promoting the causes you believe in."

I put my laptop down and gave him another kiss. "I'll find other ways."

"Are you certain about this? You're not sacrificing everything just to come with me? I would hate to be the cause of you giving up things you love."

I gave him an honest answer. "Tom, I am in the very lucky position of being able to do my work almost anywhere – as long as there is electricity and preferably an Internet connection – so my love, I can spare all the time in the world to come to LA with you, for as long as you want me there." I kissed him again, for longer this time. "As to sacrificing things – no sweetheart, I'm simply exchanging one beloved pleasure for another."

"What beloved pleasure are you exchanging for?" He asked, but I could tell from the look on his face that he knew the answer and just wanted to hear me say it. So I did.

"You, Hiddles, you are my most beloved pleasure." Then it was his turn to kiss me.

---

The next day the engagement announcement appeared in the newspaper and Luke released a confirmation. Social media went a bit crazy, Max reported, but I was keeping well away, having learned that lesson. Max's office phone never stopped ringing and Tom and I also received calls from friends who hadn't already known, including many of his work colleagues. When Steven Spielberg, Kenneth Branagh and Benecio del Toro had all called, Max was starting to hyperventilate and I joked to Tom, "You're going to break my wonderful assistant!" - a reference to the comment he had made to Robert the night I met the Avengers.

His reply plastered huge smiles on both our faces as it reminded us of the day we met. "I understood that reference!"

That night we had a dinner reservation and as part of our agreement with the press, they were outside the restaurant waiting for us. We posed for photos for ten minutes before going in and then again as we were leaving, by which time quite a crowd of fans had gathered, in spite of the very cold temperatures. Tom kept me at his side as we took selfies and received congratulations. Many of them of course wanted a photo of us kissing and by the time we had done a few of those we started joking that we'd end up with chapped lips, which everyone laughed at. I was wholeheartedly relieved that all the fans were happy for us and no negative comments marred our experience.

We joined a group of friends at a Vintage New Years Eve Party the next night. It featured pop-up venues with themed entertainment from a number of decades, including The Torch Club from the '30s and '40s, the Soul Casino with music ranging from deep funk to Northern soul, and 1960s-themed bar The Pick Up Joint, among many others. Tom and I dressed as Bonnie and Clyde and he looked so handsome in his pinstriped suit and Fedora I told him he should do a gangster movie.

"Yeah? Would you be my moll, Kate?" He hugged me close to his side.

I tried a Southern drawl. "Sure thing, Sugar. I'd follow you anywhere."

When midnight struck he dipped me as I wrapped my arms around his neck and we welcomed the New Year in with a long kiss.

"Happy New Year my darling. We have a lot to look forward to this year."

"Happy New Year sweetheart. I love you."

"'My love is selfish; I cannot breathe without you.'"

"Clyde Barrow quoting Keats? Only you could get away with that, Hiddles!"

"Eh eh eh."