The Date Auction (22 page)

“I'm confused,” William says. “What just happened?”

“Harry accidentally referred to your girlfriend by another name because in my book, there's a character named William who's dating a woman named Alaina.” I collapse on the sofa and pick up the video game controller. “Now, are we going to play some games or what?”

Harry sits next to me on the sofa, while Lilly and William cuddle on the adjacent loveseat. The word
love
seat couldn't possibly be more appropriate, since Lilly never misses an opportunity to rub my brother's leg or give him annoying kisses on the cheeks. Granted, her kisses don't seem to annoy my brother, but her obnoxious smacking smooches tend to grate on the nerves of anyone who is unlucky enough to be in the vicinity.

“I don't like video games, Pookie,” Lilly whines. She's got her head on his shoulder, and she's sticking out her lower lip.

“You wanted to visit my sister, didn't you?”

“Yeah...”

“Well... she and Harry want to play some games. We don't have to stay too long.” Meanwhile, William is gripping his controller in anticipation. He used to be an avid gamer. I wonder... when was the last time he had an opportunity to play? It seems like Lilly's got him whipped. “If you play some games with us, I'll buy you a purse.”

“Okaaaay...” Lilly sluggishly snatches a controller and waits for the game to begin. As it turns out, game time with Lilly is just as unpleasant for us as it is for her. When we play Mario Kart, she spends most of the time off-roading, hitting cows and running into trees. When we play Left 4 Dead, she gets eaten alive by a zombie horde. When we play Gears of War 3, she doesn't stay alive long enough to figure out how to fire a gun. In other words, it's a miserable time for everyone involved, but I admire her for attempting something that's out of her comfort zone.

Harry, on the other hand, is a pleasant surprise. He described himself as a casual gamer before we began, but he can more than hold his own on a battlefield. The fact that he shares this hobby with me is almost too good to be true.

“I stink at this!” Lilly whines.

“No, you don't stink, baby!” Meanwhile, her character is on the ground awaiting revival for the seventeenth time.

“Yeah, I do! I'm really really bad!” When I glance in her direction, I see her punching a button that's not even used in this game. “How do you guys shoot your guns like that?!”

“Practice,” Harry says. “A lot of practice.” He looks at me and winks, and the adorable gesture melts my heart even more than it's already melted.
Oh, what I wouldn't give to be Harry Shaw's girlfriend...

William must be reading my mind, because he asks, “So... what's the deal with you and Harry? Is this guy your boyfriend?”

“What?! No!” I'm quick to laugh it off. “Harry's an actor who I've admired for years. He's just here because he's being nice.”

“
And
I'm your friend,” Harry politely amends my statement. “At least... I hope I am your friend?”

“Of course.”

“Well, I guess that makes sense. I don't think I've ever seen you with a boyfriend.”

Thanks for that, William. What a wonderful thing to say while Harry's sitting right next to me!

“Willieeeeeeee,” Lilly whimpers my brother's name. “Can't we just let Henry and Cora continue the game without us? I'd rather cuddle.”

When I open my mouth to correct her—to tell her it's
Harry
and not
Henry
—I see Harry shaking his head. He looks amused by the fact that she called him by the wrong name.

“I'd rather cuddle too,” William says. Without a second though, he hands me his controller and
drops out of the game.

I
would rather cuddle too, but I doubt my partner would be up for that. Harry and I continue to
play while Lilly slides onto my brother's lap and smothers his face with kisses. Never mind the fact that
it's totally awkward for the rest of us!

“You're really good at this game,” Harry praises me.

As if on cue, I perform a headshot that only a veteran gamer could pull off. “You're not so bad yourself.” In the corner of my eye, I can see Lilly's tongue slipping into my brother's mouth. Gross. “I'm sorry about them.”

“The lovebirds? Don't worry about it. It doesn't bother me.”

“It bothers
me
,” I say with a groan. “I guess it's too much to hope they might relocate to another room.”

“It seems that way.”

“I wish you could meet Jamie too. Jamie
and
Jackie. I'm sure you'd like them.” I want to say he'd like them better than William and Lilly, but I can't say that while my least favorite brother is in the room.

“I wish for a lot of things,” Harry says. “I wish I could take you to London with me. I'd love to show you around.”

Did Harry really say that, or do I have a large amount of wax stuck in my ears? I want to tell him I'd love to go, but I don't have the courage. And even if I agreed to go, I know it wouldn't be a smart move for me. All the Airborne and Emergen-C in the world couldn't save me from the diseases that float around an airplane.

“I was just thinking...”

Harry's voice trails off, so I press, “What were you thinking?”

“I was just thinking about your book,” he says, “the very last scene, when Harry and Cora were playing video games. I was just thinking about that.”

“What about it?”

“He asked her to kiss him at a very inopportune time.” As he criticizes the other Harry's technique, he grins. “I would have waited for a more romantic moment.”

“I agree. It was a stupid moment to ask for a kiss.”

“No... I wouldn't say it was stupid. It just... well, it was far from perfect.” Harry pauses the game and turns in my direction. “If I was to ask you for a kiss right now, what would you say?”

“Well...” I study Lilly and William in the corner of my eye. As much as I want to kiss Harry, I'd rather not do it while my brother's around. “I guess I would... um... I'd say... yes?”

“Cora...” Harry's voice drops to a whisper as he leans in my direction. “I've been thinking... I really like you.”

My ears start to tingle when I hear him say those words. “That's from my book, isn't it? From The Date Auction?”

“Exactly.”

Thank god. If he was actually confessing his feelings for me, I'd probably swoon on the spot. “I thought so.”

“It's from your book... but it's also true,” Harry says. “I really do like you. I enjoy your company. I think you're a very sweet girl.”

“R-really?” I swear I can feel fire in my cheeks. “Well, you know I like you too. That's probably really obvious.”

“I want to kiss you,” Harry whispers. “But not now. It needs to be someplace special.” When he tucks a lock of hair behind my ear, I almost forget that I'm wearing a wig.
Oh my god.
I can't believe this moment is actually happening! Any time now, I'm going to wake up and realize I'm laying in my bed, having a dream. “Can I take you somewhere tomorrow?”

“I don't know...
can
you?” Oh great. What a perfect time to correct his English! Cora, could you
possibly be more stupid?!

“
May
I take you somewhere tomorrow? I want to go somewhere romantic.”

I don't think any man has ever wanted to do something romantic with me—let alone, Harry Shaw! I wonder... does he really like me, or is it just his sympathy for the girl with cancer? Either way, I might as well enjoy the moment.

“I'd love to go with you, Harry,” I tell him. “Anytime. Anywhere.”

“Good.” He picks up his controller and un-pauses the game. “Now that we have that squared away, let's get back to shooting some bad guys. We have hordes of evil to vanquish.”

With a smile, I add, “Yeah. And it's too bad we can't vanquish Lilly and William.”

X

We depart Long Beach's Shoreline Village and head toward the marina, where countless ships line the docks. Harry bought me two gifts during our shopping spree. One: he bought me a pair of chic sunglasses, which I'm still wearing, despite the fact the sun is going down. Two: he bought me a skull necklace at a kitschy store called The Pirate's Cove. No matter how many times he tells me it looks cute on me, I'm not going to believe him.

During our walk along the boardwalk, Harry tells me, “I like it here. I might have to come back here on holiday someday.”

“You could do that. Of course, it won't be half as fun if you're not with me.” We pass a young couple on our way to the beach. When I catch them giving me a strange look, I wonder what's to blame. My unnecessary sunglasses, perhaps?

“Nothing's as fun if I'm not with you.”

“Liar.”

“No, it's true!” Harry insists. “I've enjoyed every minute of your company.”

“Even though I had to wear a mask when we went shopping?”

“Oh, I didn't mind the mask in the least!” Harry exclaims. “In fact, I rather liked it. I've never seen people step aside so readily.”

“When you're wearing a hospital mask, people
do
look at you like you've got the plague. The funny thing is, I have more to fear from them.”

“I don't know about that. I think they have plenty to fear from you.”

I cross my arms. “Really? Why do you say that?”

“You have an adorably disarming smile, guaranteed to melt the hardest of hearts.”

“True,” I sarcastically agree. “But they can't see my adorably disarming smile when I'm wearing a mask, so I think they might be safe.”

“That's true. I hadn't thought of that.” At the boardwalk's end, we find ourselves standing at the edge of a beach. Harry turns to me and says, very seriously, “You'll have to remove your shoes.”

I look down at the sneakers I'm wearing, which are probably the ugliest shoes I could possibly wear on a date. “Seriously?”

“Absolutely. You can't really enjoy the beach unless you can enjoy the feeling of the sand between your toes.”

“Only someone who doesn't go to the beach very often would say that.”

“Well, we have terrible beaches in England. Off with your shoes!” he demands. He holds out his hands, as if it's his intention to carry my shoes from now on.

“Can I keep my socks?”

“Can you keep your socks?!” he mocks me with a snicker. “No,
of course
you can't keep your socks, you silly thing! I'll be needing those as well. Hand them over, or face my wrath.”

Sighing, I slip off my shoes, tug off my socks, and take a few steps into the sand. I don't think I've walked barefoot on the beach since I was a little girl. The feeling of the sand squishing through my toes is a strange sensation, but not an altogether unpleasant one.

Harry removes his shoes and tosses our discarded footwear into an empty shopping bag. “There. That wasn't so hard, was it?”

“I like it. It feels nice, actually.”

“You'll have to ignore the fact that I have ridiculously large feet, ugly toes, and yellow toenails.”

I immediately look down at his feet to confirm what he's saying. “They
are
pretty big. I don't think I see any yellow toenails, though.”

“Only one of them is yellow... the poor, crusty little one,” Harry says with a sigh. “He's hopeless. I'm thinking I should just cut him off and be done with it!”

“You're so silly.” I walk a few paces ahead of him. Over my shoulder, I say, “You're nothing like the Harry in my book, you know.”

“I'm assuming that's a good thing, since the Harry in your book was a right prat.”

“Yeah. He was a
right prat,
” I repeat his words in a faux British accent.

“Ohhh, you naughty girl! Are you trying to imitate my English accent?”

“Maybe.” I challenge him with a grin.

“I should tickle you for that.”

“I don't think so.” Now I'm barefoot
and
I'm sticking out my tongue at him. I feel like I'm ten years old all over again. “You'll have to catch me if you want to tickle me.”

“Well, since you asked for it...”

I run as fast as I can, but I don't last long. Harry grabs me around the waist, lifts me off my feet, and spins me around in a circle. When he puts me back on my feet, I feel a rush of dizziness swirling in my head.

“You bad girl,” he teases me, “making fun of a poor British bloke...”

“It wouldn't be so easy to make fun of you if you weren't saying words like
prat and bloke
,” I say. “You're so British, it's hilarious.”

All of a sudden, the tone of his voice changes to a more serious one. “Cora... do you know why I gave you a necklace from The Pirate's Cove?”

“Why?” When I look down at the skull charm, I realize I'm smiling wider than I've ever smiled in my entire life. Harry Shaw is standing two feet in front of me, barefoot, with tousled hair and intense eyes. The sunset casts an orange glow on the ocean, providing us with a surreal backdrop for our walk along the beach. I think this might be the best day of my life.

“I got you that necklace because you're a bit like a pirate.”

“
I'm
like a pirate?” My eyebrows shoot up to my forehead.

“Of course you are. You plundered my heart.” Harry turns me in his direction and gently caresses my cheek with his thumb. “I find it difficult to believe you haven't plundered many hearts in your lifetime. Am I correct to assume, like the Cora in your book, you've never had a proper boyfriend?”

“I haven't had an improper boyfriend either,” I answer with a chuckle. “No, I've been single all my life.”

“That's absurd. I can't believe it! You're such an adorable young woman. How could you possibly be overlooked for so long?”

“I don't know...” That's not the response I wanted to give him. I want to say something clever and self-deprecating, but my stomach is clenching so hard that it's impossible to think straight. “I think I'm too shy.”