On the fourth day of our trip to California, the other girls had gone to the spa, but I didn't go with them. I complained about a migraine so I could stay back in the suite while they went off to get pedicures and talk about tour. The trip had turned out differently than I expected. I hadn't realized how much distance had grown between my friends and me after I broke up with Harry and got a different job. I felt like an outsider.
My mind was also plagued with thoughts of the Cartier watch. Under different circumstances, I would be lusting after such an expensive timepiece, but that simply wasn't the case. My ex-boyfriend had plans to purchase a luxury watch—with a price equivalent to that of a new car—for me. He had even gone so far as to get an engraving of a promise. I had to stop him.
The girls had been gone for over an hour and I wasn't sure when they would be returning from the spa. I crept out of the suite and made my way down to the lobby where I could sit and make the phone call I had been mentally preparing for.
The lobby was fairly empty; two women stood behind the front desk and a single man sat on one of the sofas reading a newspaper. I sat down in one of the chairs facing away from the front doors. I scrolled through my phone and found the contact I was searching for.
"Hello?"
"Hi, Louis," I said quietly.
"Kate! How are you, love?"
"I'm fine, thank you. How are you?"
"Brilliant now that I'm hearing your voice," he replied.
I giggled, "You sound well."
"I've missed you. Where have you been?"
"I'm in Beverly Hills."
"You're joking!"
"No, I'm serious." Louis' reaction had seemed a bit off. He seemed overly excited by the fact that I was in Beverly Hills.
"Incredible."
"I'm actually calling because I need a favor. It has to do with Harry." His name fell from my lips too easily. I hated how it was so natural for me to say.
"What can I do?"
"I was at Cartier yesterday—"
"Nice store, love. Did you get anything?" he interrupted.
"Not exactly. Louis, Harry bought me a watch. I think the lady working there got confused and thought I was meant to see it. She showed me this watch Harry picked out and had engraved for me."
"What?"
"I think Harry's buying me an expensive watch and I need you to talk him out of it."
"You don't want him to buy you a watch?"
"We're not together."
"And what if this is his way of suggesting he wants to get back together?"
What if. It was a possibility I had not yet explored. Perhaps Harry's way of getting us together was to buy me a watch as some grand gesture. It was too much. It couldn't be the case. I had deliberately told Harry I didn't want anything to do with him. I had hurt him so badly he would never want to get back together. Things were ruined. Louis was reading the situation wrong. Harry was probably just buying the watch as a peace offering before he takes the breakup public. That made far more sense.
"I doubt it," I said sadly.
"Keep you mind open, love."
"Could you please just call him?"
"What should I say? Should I say that you wandered into Cartier and the woman there told you everything and now you don't want the watch?"
"Louis, you're quite clever. I'm confident you could find a good way to bring it up and talk him down. He's making a mistake."
"Is the mistake buying the watch or trying to win you back?"
"Please just do it," I ignored his question.
"I will call him, but only because you called me clever."
"Thank you," I sighed.
"You're welcome, love."
"Thanks for being a good friend to me even after...you know."
"We'll always be friends, Kate."
"Sorry to have bothered you. Take care."
"Have a good holiday, love. Call me when you get back to London and we'll get together or something."
"I will," I smiled.
"Bye, Kate."
"Bye."
I locked my phone screen and sank back into the chair. I had not even entertained the idea that Harry was intending to give me the watch to repair what was broken between us. The possibility left my head spinning. I wanted to be back with him. I wanted Harry badly, but I couldn't think he was so willing to come back to me after what I put him through. It was far more likely that Harry was sending the watch to preempt his taking our breakup public.
"There you are!" Alessandra walked around the chair and smiled down on me. She was alone. "I've been searching everywhere for you. What's wrong?"
"Nothing," I shrugged. "I just called Louis to have him stop Harry from buying that watch."
"Do you really think stopping him from buying the watch is going to stop him from following you down whatever path you choose?" Alessandra winked at her own wit.
"The watch is probably an apology before he takes the breakup public."
Alessandra frowned, "Why? Did Louis say that?"
"No, but it's a fair guess."
"I don't really think he's like that."
"Well, he is obviously capable of surprising me," I said coldly.
"Come on," Alessandra offered her hand, "let's go back to the suite and take a nap before dinner."
"Fine," I groaned.
I stood up and followed Alessandra toward the front desk. She leaned across the desk and smiled to the young redheaded girl working. "I'll faint if I have to use the stairs one more time, babe. Could you tell me where the lift is?"
"The elevators are straight through the entryway," the front desk agent smiled.
"Brilliant! Thanks, babe."
Alessandra linked her arm through mine and pulled me along through the entryway. I was so busy staring at the ornate tiled floor that I barely noticed the small group of people step through the lift doors. I looked up just in time to see a man with his hair swept back in a bun. A red Cartier bag dangled from his fingertips. He swiped the sunglasses off his face and turned in my direction.
He stared straight at me.
Green eyes.
Harry Styles.
The sight of him made me feel like I was burning alive again, but for completely different reasons that felt more wrong than right. My jaw dropped and I pulled my arm away from Alessandra's. My heart fluttered in my chest, betraying my mind, at the sight of him.
The doors began closing slowly. Within seconds, they separated him from me. I watched the little number above the doors increase, indicating the lift was on a different floor. For a moment, I was numb. After a few seconds of being stunned, I exploded.
"No."
"Kate," Alessandra began.
"No."
I turned on my heel and walked briskly to the stairs. Despite Alessandra's earlier protests against using the stairs, she followed me. I could hear her sandals smacking loudly against the tiles. Her breathing was ragged; probably equal parts panicked from Harry and strained from rushing. I dashed up one flight, then two, and then on the third, I sank to the floor in defeat.
"Tell me you didn't know he was here. Tell me you didn't know he was staying in Beverly Hills at our hotel."
"I didn't know he was in Beverly Hills staying at our hotel." The end of the sentence lilted up like Alessandra was asking a question instead of making a statement.
"You're unbelievable!" I seethed.
A new burst of anger gave me the energy to stand and push myself to our suite. I shoved my key card into the door so quickly that the lock rejected it and a small light flashed red. I tried a second time and it worked. I slipped into the suite and let the door close before Alessandra could catch it. I had my suitcase on the bed to be packed before Alessandra even entered the suite.
"What are you doing?" she asked, out of breath.
"Leaving."
"Wait! Could you just wait one second?"
"No," I snapped. "You knew he was here! You and Tory and Natalia and Jill knew he was here."
"Yes."
"Why is he here staying at this hotel?" I asked needlessly. "He has a place in Beverly Hills."
"Have you forgotten?" Alessandra asked in total disbelief. "Where's your head? Harry sold his place in Beverly Hills last summer. He said he didn't want to have a place in California because he wanted to spend his free time in London where you are."
I had lost my edge. I had been careless and let Alessandra see my memory was not perfect. I decided to play it off coolly, "Right, I meant he has friends he could stay with."
"Oh."
I began gathering my clothes and putting them in my suitcase haphazardly. Dresses, shirts, and shorts were balled up and thrown into the luggage without a second thought. My mind was focused on getting out.
"You know I don't want to see him. You know we're not together. You know we're over!"
"You don't understand," she protested. "I have never seen two people more in love. You two belong together. I know you can work this out. I was hoping that seeing him would help you realize that. You two have such a strong love."
"Had," I said coldly. "We had a strong love. Not anymore."
I kept throwing clothing into the bag and tried to ignore Alessandra standing limply in the corner. Her eyes were glassy and guilty. I knew she felt bad about my reaction. She had only been trying to do what she thought was right. But she had been very wrong.
Truthfully, I had wanted to see Harry. As eager as I was to repair things between us, the thought of being near him again terrified me. I wanted the chance to talk, but I did not want to run into him accidentally. Besides, I didn't feel like we were in a place to talk. I wanted time to determine whether my urge to reconnect was an emotional rebound, or something I really desired. I had said things to Harry that couldn't be erased with an apology. We needed time.
"Stop running away," Alessandra finally said. "What are you running from?"
"It's not what I'm running from; it's what I'm running to. I'm running to freedom and independence, Alessandra. I'm running to a new future."
"Without Harry?" she whispered.
I zipped my suitcase closed and nodded to her sadly, "Yes."
"I didn't mean to ruin the trip, Kate. I'm so sorry. We just thought that maybe if you saw him, you could actually talk. We want you to work things out. We want you two to be happy."
"This isn't something you can force."
"I know that. I understand now, babe. I'm really very sorry. Please stay. We'll have fun and get him off your mind. We'll let it go. We'll support you."
"I think I should go," I said softly.
"Let me walk you out," she offered.
Alessandra and I walked to the lobby. The front desk called a car to take me to the airport. We stood around silently for a few minutes until the car arrived. The driver took my bag. I turned to Alessandra and saw tears in her eyes.
"I'm not angry," I said, taking her in my arms. "I just can't be where he is."
"I get it," she said.
She didn't, but I didn't correct her. "Tell the other girls I said goodbye."
"Right," she smiled weakly. "You can always stay."
"That's not a good idea," I shook my head. "I need to get away from him. That's the whole reason I agreed to go on this trip. I wanted space from Harry."
"I'm sorry a million times over," she sighed.
"Don't be, Alessandra. You were just looking out for me."
"Have a good flight back, Kate. Sorry to have ruined the trip."
"Bye," I waved.
As the car pulled away from the hotel, I finally understood. All of the times the girls had been on edge and acting like they were watching for someone, Louis' excitement that I had been in Beverly Hills, that strange feeling I had experienced like Beverly Hills was leaving me on high alert, all of the intensity of the trip...that had all been Harry.
____________
{Harry's Point of View}
Hands shaking, knees weak, mind racing. I walked into my suite and shut the door behind me. I paced around for a few moments, eyeing the Cartier bag on my bed. Was it really her? It had to have been. Those eyes, I would know them anywhere. I had seen them every night in my dreams for months. It was her. Kate was down in the lobby. She wasn't in London. She was here.
My phone began ringing and I instantly thought it would be her calling me. Instead, Louis' name and picture were on my phone's screen. I answered anyway. "Hi, Louis."
"Harold, have you been to Cartier lately?"
Great. "Why?"
"I happen to know the answer is yes. Look, I know about the watch."
"How?"
"Never mind that. I think you're making a mistake."
"Why?"
"Harry, she's there. She's in Beverly Hills and she saw the watch at Cartier. The lady there showed her. I think it freaked Kate out."
I dropped my face into my hand. This is not how it was supposed to be. I was going to get the watch and surprise her at Christmas. I was going to win her back. "Did you say she's here?"
"Yes."
"So that was her." I said aloud.
"What?"
"Listen, Lou, I have to go."
"But did you hear what I said?"
"Yes, Louis. I heard you. You have been talking to Kate and not telling me."
"You've got it all wrong, mate!"
"Louis, I have to go."
"Don't be upset. And don't make any irrational decisions."
"Bye."
I shoved my phone in my pocket and rushed out of my suite. I hurried to the stairwell and took the stairs two at a time. I had to find out where Kate was. I needed to talk to her.
I approached the front desk nonchalantly. The two women standing behind it watched me eagerly. I glanced around the lobby and saw that it was empty. Kate was nowhere in sight.
"Mr. Styles," one of the front desk agents said calmly, "is there something we could assist you with?"
"Actually, there is."
They looked excited, "What can we do?"
"I need to know what room Kate Wright is in."
The two agents looked at each other uneasily. "I'm sorry, Mr. Styles, but that is not information we are at liberty to disclose."
"We value the privacy of our guests," the redheaded agent smiled.
"I understand," I nodded. "I'm her...I'm her friend. I'm just wanting to say hello." The word "friend" felt like a curse.
"We can call up to her room."
"Please," I smiled.
One of them lifted a phone and put it to her ear. She waited patiently and then spoke professionally over the phone, "I'm calling for Kate Wright. Yes, I see. Thank you."
"Well?" I said hopefully.
"She has already departed."
"Excuse me?" I said in disbelief. It hadn't even been thirty minutes since I saw her.
"She has left the property, Mr. Styles. Her friend said that Ms. Wright will not be returning."
This is how it's going to be. A game of cat and mouse.
I stood frozen at the front desk for several moments. She was here, she saw me, she left. I didn't even need to guess where Kate was going. She was probably already on her way to LAX.