Dream Date (10 page)

“
That sounds simple when you say it that way. But that would mean I’d be cheating on Kayla.”

“
She doesn’t have to know you’re seeing Amanda.”

He
didn’t
just say that.

“
Ashton, that’s exactly the definition of
cheating
. I’m not having a tryst with Amanda behind Kayla’s back. No way.”

“
Your loss, man. Resisting her is like resisting…well, I can’t find a suitable comparison.”

Don’t I know?
Nathan thought.
How tough resisting Amanda is?

“
If you can’t have them both, then choose one. I must admit it’s a tough choice. The two of them are gorgeous.”

Ashton retreated into the kitchen to find something to eat. Nathan remained in the sofa, frustrated.

Why did you have to return, Amanda, why? When I can’t have you?

Nathan wondered whether it would be worth it to pursue a relationship with Amanda.

Worth it? Of course Amanda’s more than worth the effort. I should take a leap of faith.

Nathan laughed at the absurdity of his wish.

Leap of faith. More like leap of madness. I’m ordinary. Wanting to date Amanda is like wanting to date Emma Watson. They’re the ultimate unavailable girl.

Nathan stood up, debating whether he should take action or let the chips fall where they may.

The following day, Nathan used his lunch break at work to call Marissa. He’d spent almost the entire day trying to convince himself that he should make that call. There was something he needed to ask her.

Marissa picked up the call after the first few rings.

“
Hi, Nathan. How are you?”

Nathan hesitated for a bit before speaking.

“
Uh—great. I’m great. How are you?”

“
Spectacular. I’ve come up with a new idea for a dress that I’m totally in love with. I can’t wait to bring it from concept to finished design.”

“If you love it, I can picture how Claire will react. She’ll be head over heels.”

Marissa laughed.

“
I know. She’s my biggest fan, isn’t she?”

“
Don’t doubt it for a moment, or she’ll eat you.”

“
I don’t think so. That sweet girl doesn’t bite.”

“
You never know. They say big things come in small packages,” Nathan said, laughing along with Marissa.

“I’m going to tell her you said that.”

“Come on. It’s not like she hasn’t heard that before.”

Marissa exhaled softly. She then changed the subject.

“
You want to ask me something, right? I can tell.”

“
Yeah. I wanted to ask you what you know about Amanda Tilley.”

There was a pause. Nathan could picture Marissa with her mouth open wide.

Marissa mulled that over for a few seconds.

“
I’m highly knowledgeable about the fashion world, so I caught wind of Amanda soon after she started her modeling career. It didn’t take long for people to fall in love with her.”

“
Yeah, I wonder why.”

“
I can tell you fell under her spell, too.”

“
Maybe. Amanda is drop-dead gorgeous. We talked, and she told me she traveled around Europe the year after graduating from high school.”

There was a loud gasp on the other end.

“
What? You’ve spoken to her!?”

“
Yep. I guess I haven’t told you. Amanda lives here and attends Cornell University.”

Marissa whistled.

“
Well, well, it’s a small world. I had no idea. She keeps her whereabouts secret.”

“
She does? That’s odd.”

“
Not much. I understand, as she’s a public figure. According to the Internet, she lives in New York. Obviously she lives in Ithaca, as you tell me.”

“
Maybe she’s only here for school. She’s a freshman.”

“
That’s most likely why.”

Nathan paused, thinking of what to say next.

“
By the way, why are you so interested?”

“
I…I was just curious.”

“
Come on. You like her, don’t you?”

Nathan took a moment to answer that.

“
Perhaps.”

“
Don’t be coy about it, Nathan. Amanda’s a lovely, beautiful woman. Hell, even
I’m
not immune to her charms, and I’m straight.”

Nathan chuckled, surprised by that admission.

“Why don’t you ask her on a date?”

Nathan could almost picture Marissa narrowing her eyes at his question.

“
Why don’t
you
ask her out, smartass?”
she said in an amused voice.

“
Marissa, I’ve just met her. And I have a girlfriend.”

“
Then why do you want to know about Amanda?”

“
I don’t know. I just…I want to resist her. But I can’t. And I fear that I will hurt Kayla.”

“
Do you love her?”

“
I don’t want to think that I don’t. Kayla loves me so much. And I could really see my future with her in it.”

“
You could? Or you can?”

“
I can.”

Nathan sighed, wishing he could solve his dilemma.

“
What should I do?”

“
Is it possible for you to keep Amanda as a friend? And nothing more?”

Nathan thought about it. He felt that resisting Amanda was like fuel resisting being set on fire when touched by flames.

“
As long as she’s around, I’ll never stop desiring her.”

“
Then maybe you should wait it out. Graduation is almost here. You can move elsewhere with Kayla and forget Amanda definitely.”

“
I’m not sure I’d want to erase Amanda from my mind if I could.”

Marissa didn’t reply to that remark. She latched on to something else she was wondering about.

“How long have you known Amanda, Nathan? You sound too…enraptured by her to have known her for only a few weeks.”

Nathan wondered whether he should tell Marissa. If things with Amanda went nowhere—which they most likely would—then Marissa didn’t need to know about his past with Amanda.

“Just a while.
How is it possible to love two women at once?”

“
Nathan, you
can
love two or more women at once. But you can’t be
in love
with more than one woman.”

That was the key thing,
Nathan thought to himself.

“
What do I say to Kayla, then? She will feel hurt if she thinks she’s got competition.”

“
Be honest with her. We hate when guys keep secrets like that from us. If you’re in love with Amanda, you should let Kayla know. Find a proper way to do it.”

Nathan sighed again.

“
I’ll think about it.”

Nathan looked at the time on his phone.

“
I’ve got to go, Marissa, all right? My shift’s about to start again.”

“
Okay. Take care, Nathan. And I hope you can find the answer that you want.”

“
Yeah. I hope so. Bye.”

“
Bye,”
Marissa said, and ended the call.

Amanda was working out with her fitness trainer and great friend, Jonathan. He was a coveted trainer who specialized in training celebrities. Jonathan was costly to hire despite being less than thirty, and for good reason. He was an expert in fitness, body well-being, and self-defense. It didn’t hurt that he was also handsome.

Jonathan had been working with Amanda for six months now. Upon her return to the U.S., she had wanted to get fitter and better-looking before resuming her modeling career. Amanda was now in the best shape of her life. Part of it was because she already exercised regularly before hiring Jonathan. Although Amanda was only lightly toned (she wanted to remain looking feminine) guys were often awed when they saw her abs. They were subtle, though.

“Let’s move on to resisted pushups,” Jonathan told Amanda, and she put down her dumbbells. “Take your resistance band and follow along with me as usual.”

Amanda liked having a fitness trainer of her own. She could go to a gym and spend much less money, but the results just wouldn’t be the same. Jonathan knew what Amanda needed to do to be the way she wanted to be.

As they worked out, Amanda noticed Jonathan’s well-muscled arms. She had seen them hundreds of times, and they still had her stealing glances. A girl could admire.

Even though their relationship was platonic, Amanda didn’t mind Jonathan checking her out. He was too professional to do so, but he was still a man. Amanda had caught him taking a short peek at her chest one day. She’d worn a bikini top under the pretense that her small supply of sports bras were at the laundry. Jonathan didn’t know she’d noticed.

A quarter of an hour later, the workout ended. Amanda grabbed her towel and wiped her arms and her forehead.

“That’s it for today’s session,” Jonathan said, handing Amanda a bottle of water. She thanked him. “We’ll meet again next Tuesday.”

“All right,” Amanda said, walking forward to shake hands with him.

 “See you next week. Oh, and you can tell Judith and Emmy that they are still free to work out with us,” he said as he grabbed his stuff and put it into his pack. He then put the strap on his shoulder.