Getting There

The black BMW pulled into the driveway of the old mansion block where Gemma had grown up. She turned to face Ryan as the doorman, Paul, rushed over to help her out of the car. "Thanks for the lift, I really didn't fancy making my way home in those heels." He looked at her, sitting in the passenger seat wearing nothing but his T-shirt, her feet as bare as her tanned legs. "And stop grinning like an idiot. I know I'm an embarrassment." With that, she swiftly stepped out of the car and into the lift that was waiting for her. "Thanks Paul!" She chirped.

Gemma's father had sold their penthouse flat some years ago, and as soon as she could afford to, she'd bought a third floor, two bedroom place in the same building. Something about the old fashioned carpets in the foyer downstairs, and the way the doormen would smile knowingly when she returned from a night of debauchery, just felt like home. As she reached her floor the lift came to a stop. "5...4...3...2...1..." she held her breath. The doors opened after the predictable delay and she reached for the keys to her flat.

Ryan groaned as he watched Gemma's hips sashay as she made her way to the lift. It seemed like he couldn't stop thinking about her these days, whenever she left a room he sighed with disappointment, and every time she touched him he felt a sense of completion. Of course, the fact that they'd been inseparable for as long as he could remember did complicate things. His mind wandered back to the summer after they finished school. They'd spent the best part of three months traveling with their best friends. The five of them had the most wonderful time. And even just thinking back to the night before Gemma left for Bath filled Ryan with regret.

...

"Okay. I'm packed." Gemma said, collapsing on the foot of her bed while Ryan lay next to her.

"I can't believe summer is over."

"It isn't for you." Gemma rolled onto her side, facing him.

"The next few weeks won't be the same without you here." Ryan started to realise just how different life would be without seeing his best friends everyday. Although, the twenty minute distance between Bath and Bristol would mean they wouldn't be apart for too long.

"Shit. I forgot to pack photos!" She jumped off the bed and scrambled around the rubble of her room in search of something. Ryan knew all too well that she was trying to distract herself from the lump in her throat.

"Where are they?"

"In that damn memory box of mine" she snapped back at him.

"You mean the one you've kept under your bed for the last five years?" He smiled at her, getting on his knees and reaching out blindly for the old designer shoebox she'd taken from her mother after a Harrods sale.

Gemma laughed at her foolishness. "Yeah, that one."

Ryan opened the box which was bursting with photos and letters, some of which spilled out. Gemma squealed with delight as she stumbled across a multitude of memories. Ryan noticed an envelope that must have fallen on the floor. Across the front Gemma had written Christmas present for Will. "What's this?" Ryan asked, showing Gemma the envelope. It took a lot to make her blush, owing to both her strong self-esteem and her tanned complexion, but there was no way she could disguise the prickle of heat at the back of her neck that turned her cheeks rose.

She gritted her teeth and said "Give. That. Back."

"Give that back, please..." Ryan teased.

"Please Ryan, give that back."

What had started off as harmless curiosity was now transformed into a desperate need to know what was in that envelope. They had no secrets, of that Ryan was sure. There was nothing she hadn't told him. So why was she being so possessive?

"Or what?" He maintained eye contact with her while his fingers pulled the envelope open. Gemma ran after him and he dodged her, sliding under the bed and out the other side. "Now that was cool, admit it." he laughed.

She smiled and said "You are such a loser."

With that he jumped on top of her bed and she dove at his ankles, causing him to land on his back, still clutching the envelope tightly.

"Please." She said breathlessly.

"Fine." he conceded, holding the envelope out for her. She climbed on top of him, straddling him, and grabbed the envelope. "Not so fast." He picked her up and threw her off his lap, running to the bathroom where he tore the envelope open.

Ryan put down the contents of the envelope and went to splash his face with water. He looked down at the bulge in his pants and knew there was no way he could leave the bathroom in his current state. He pulled his shorts and boxers off and gripped his erection tightly, jerking off to the pictures he had discovered. Images of Gemma's naked form flashed through his mind with every stroke of his shaft. By then, he heard Gemma pounding on the door. "I TOLD YOU TO GIVE THAT BACK."

Seconds later Ryan opened the door, beaming. He handed the envelope back to Gemma. "Next time you need a photographer just let me know."

Gemma felt her mortification disappear, only to be replaced by relief. She shouldn't have left those pictures lying around, anyone could have found them!

Thank god it was just Ryan.

...

There was a tap on the window. Ryan realised he was still parked outside the front of the building, "Would you like me to park your car in one of the visitor bays, sir?" Paul politely asked through the lowered window.

"Actually, I was just leaving."

Gemma sunk her toes into the plush carpet in her bedroom. She thought for a moment what project she could throw herself into. It had been her routine for years, every time she broke up with a boyfriend she delved into her work. Business was good at the moment, it seemed like some people were recession-proof and there was no shortage of millionaires in need of someone to makeover their homes. In fact, the very idea of hiring an interior designer seemed odd to Gemma. She had always maintained that in order to truly be at home in your own home it had to reflect your personality. Of course, it was this very approach that made her a hot favourite with the housewives she encountered. As a result, a crucial part of her technique was the fancy dinner she was treated to by her clients, in order for her to gain a deeper understanding of their lives. It was over these dinners that she usually won the husbands over with her dazzling smile and sharp wit.

Gemma decided to call her best friend, Rachel, first. Following a deep post-mortem examination of yet another failed relationship, Gemma packed all of James' belongings into a black bin bag without hesitation. She used the intercom by her front door to contact the Porter's Lodge and ask Paul if he could arrange to have the bag taken down. She fired off a text to James telling him to collect his stuff from her building. She went into the little office she created out of the second bedroom in her flat and started planning the Thompson's new nursery.

At around seven thirty Ryan looked up from his computer. He'd been lost in a chain of emails that had left him frustrated- his intention was just to return a few messages and exchange pleasantries with a few people he'd met at the CyberEntrepreneur Forum a few weeks earlier, but instead he was hit with an avalanche of requests for his services as a consultant. He rushed in for a shower and pulled on a pair of jeans and a striped shirt, sprayed some cologne and head out to the bar just off Regent's Street. At the same time, Gemma was deciding what to wear to announce her return to the singles scene.

At the corner of the bar, right at the back, away from the roar of the speakers but with a direct line of sight to the bar, Ryan could see his friends. The group consisted of his best mates from his school days and their respective spouses. Sam and Phoebe had started going out at university, and he'd been the Best Man at their wedding, Phoebe had fit seamlessly into the tight-knit friendship circle. Then there was Rachel, who craved drama. She was chronically single as a result, but had decided to embrace it. Chris, on the other hand was very unhappily married. His wife Joanna hadn't quite taken to the idea that her husband counted two very single women amongst his best friends. She'd come along to the bar in order to chaperone, and judging from the stern look on her face, she wasn't happy about it.

When Ryan approached the table he called over to the bar manager to get the first round. "No date?" Rachel asked, probingly, by way of greeting him.

"No date." Ryan responded, to which Sam and Chris chuckled and the friends slipped into easy conversation. "I take it Gemma hasn't shown up yet?" Ryan said, scanning the room.

Phoebe exchanged looks with her husband, who smiled as he reached for his phone. "Get your fat ugly arse over here, missy" he typed into his phone, a moment later the response came "I can't get it through the door." Joanna, who was watching this exchange, rolled her eyes. How her husband could associate with people of such immaturity was beyond her.

Just then, a svelte brunette in a red dress glided her way through the crowded bar towards their table. "Wow." Rachel smiled, happy to see her partner in crime looking like she was ready for business once more. "Aren't you looking ravishing tonight!"

Gemma smiled coyly, "Thanks, babe. I love your dress! New?" Gemma slid into the seat between Phoebe and Rachel just as the first round of drinks landed on the table.

A few rounds later and the bar was really buzzing. Sam and Phoebe were in their own little loved-up world and finally, at the instance of all the others, returned to their love nest. Joanna used this as an excuse to drag Chris home leaving the three singletons at the chic nightspot.

"I'll get the next round" Gemma said, strutting up to the bar. She leaned over it and whispered her order of six tequila shots to the bartender. She could tell from his physique that beneath that black T-shirt she would probably find a body worth worshipping. She made a mental note that he was a potential candidate for a rebound fling. He poured the drinks while complimenting her and she bit her lip seductively. A man standing a couple of feet away sidled up to her and put his hand around waist, his breath heavy with alcohol. She turned to face the stranger and glared and him, insisting he back off and then asked the bartender to give him some water to sober him up. With that, she picked up the tray of shots and headed back to the table.

Ryan had watched as the eyes of all the men in the room followed Gemma as she placed her order. It was as if the focus of the entire place shifted to drink in her curves. Gemma returned to her seat and noticed that Rachel was deep in conversation with a city slicker. She rolled her eyes at Ryan and mouthed "another suit?!" They decided to split the drinks between the two of them, as Rachel's lips were now locked with the handsome stranger's. After their second shot Gemma noticed a rather pretty blonde girl propping herself up at the bar, who kept looking over at Ryan.

"I think you've got an admirer!" she told him discretely, pointing out the blonde girl in the black dress. Ryan's eyes fleetingly glanced at the blonde. Ordinarily, he'd make a suitably boyish comment about bedding her. But he wasn't in the mood. He reached for the last of the wasabi peanuts and dismissed the idea without a second glance. Meanwhile, Rachel announced her departure, her latest conquest looking extremely pleased with himself as she led him away.

Just then, the bartender placed a drink in front of Gemma, "this one is on me, sorry about that creep." Ryan's pulse quickened. Gemma took out a credit card out of her impossibly small handbag, "that's very kind but completely unnecessary, here, let me pay." The bartender insisted, and stayed while she sipped it, offering to get her another. She declined. He then offered to take her home with him after his shift ended in an hour. Ryan's pulse quickened. He knew it was more than just his protective instincts kicking in, and he felt sick. Gemma looked at Ryan's face, she thought she saw him pale a little. She, too, was quite taken aback by his forwardness. "Maybe another time, I've got a busy week coming up."

The colour returned to Ryan's face as the bartender walked away, dejected. "Are you okay, darling?" Gemma asked, taking Ryan's hand in hers, and looking at his expression searchingly. She leaned over the table and placed a hand on his forehead. "You haven't got a temperature or anything, have you?"

He took her hand in his and stroked it looking into her eyes. Gemma saw an intensity in the look that she didn't recognise. She suddenly became acutely aware of how blue his eyes were.

She wanted to say something, but she was scared to break the silence.

...

Tears rolled down Gemma's cheeks as she stood in the church. She looked into the crowd at the faces of all the people gathered to witness the beautiful wedding. She looked across to see Ryan. He looked so composed, even though the night before the wedding he'd revealed to her that he was scared things would never be the same again. He felt someone staring at him and caught her eye. He winked, and she felt calm again.

She thought nothing of it.

Then, Sam and Phoebe were pronounced man and wife.

...

"I'm fine, Gem. Just tired. A random stranger broke into my house last night and drank my alcohol and ate my food." He teased.

Gemma smiled weakly. Ryan's eyes now had that playful look she was used to, and he stood up. They both knocked back their last shots and decided to call it a night. Ryan laughed as the men in the room glared at him leaving with Gemma. She was totally oblivious to her effect on the average red-blooded male, somehow she managed to balance a sort of naivety with her self confidence, and it was that combination which made her so special. Ryan stole a glance at her in her simple red dress. The fabric draped over her curves in a sort of classic, old hollywood way and her long brown hair swayed with every step she took.

Ryan hailed a taxi and the whole journey back they were making jokes about Rachel's outrageous habit of seducing men who could afford her expensive handbag addiction. The night porter held the door open for Gemma when the taxi pulled up outside, and she gave Ryan a quick peck on the cheek. She gracefully stepped into the foyer. As the taxi continued on to his house, Ryan let out a deep sigh. He scolded himself for missing another opportunity to tell Gemma how he felt.