11 - Eliza

Afternoon passed and then evening with no word from Tom and though I tried to keep myself occupied it was ever present in my mind. I'd thought the market had gone well but maybe I'd missed something that had upset him. It annoyed more every time I replayed it and came up with nothing.

I'd given Gerald my business card and a key to the shop and told him I'd have some coffee he could take down to the cast and crew, remembering what Chris had said about the coffee they had on set. It was going to be pretty cold tonight and it was something simple I could do.

Though now I was agitated enough I'd wished I hadn't. The cameras had all disappeared from outside the shop at least. So I brewed several pots in the large thermoses I used for the harvest fest booth. They'd be easy enough to carry and set up since they each had a handle to carry them and if by chance they used the same ones on set mine had the name of my shop on them. Gerald could bring them back in the morning some time.

I was finishing labeling them as Gerald let himself in.

"Hey Gerald, you're just in time. I just finished labeling them. Need help loading them up?"

"I've got it miss. This is very nice of you."

"Please call me Eliza and it's nothing. Bring them back in the morning and I can do this again for tomorrow. It's gonna be cold out there the next few nights."

"I've known Tom for many years and though he's my boss he's also my friend."

"He said as much. It's nice getting to work for and with people you can trust and get along with. Do you travel everywhere with him?"

"I do. So believe me when I say I think you're good for him. You challenge him and don't just treat him like he's a celebrity."

"He's an amazing man. I just want him to be happy." I answer honestly.

There wasn't anything else I could say. I didn't know what he knew and I certainly wasn't going to slip up and tell him that it was all make believe if Tom hadn't.

"You love him."

He wasn't asking a question, he said it as a statement of fact. It startled me that he had come to that conclusion and realized that maybe Tom had realized it too and that was why he'd acted so strange on the ride back here. I wasn't ashamed to admit it to Gerald, though I knew I'd never be able to say it to Tom.

"I do."

"Don't give up on him."

Did that mean he'd noticed the strange behavior too? Of course he had, he'd known him far longer than I had. But what did he mean don't give up on him? I was too tired and far too annoyed to ponder any of it tonight.

"I'm going to head on up and go to bed. If you need more coffee tonight you can use the key and refill them. There's instruction on the front of the machine and the coffee is in the counter below the station."

"I'll lock up after I get them loaded. Good night Eliza."

"Good night Gerald. Thanks."

I quickly climb the steps up to my apartment and shut the door behind me, leaning my back against it. It'd been a long and emotionally exhausting day. I wasn't good at dating, never had been, so why I thought I could pull this charade off was a mystery. I'd gone on dates over the last fifteen years, mostly because Katy badgered me about it, but there had been very few second dates.

It was earlier than I'd usually go to bed but I was officially and completely done with this day. I changed into my pajamas and got ready for bed. Padding out to the kitchen I plug my phone in only to notice a missed text. I open it and let out a huff of annoyance.

"Good night." Was all Tom's text said.

He'd messaged while I'd been downstairs making coffee. Had he not left as he did this morning it'd have been a sweet gesture, but as it stood it annoyed me more.

"Night." I send back and turn it off completely.

Plugging it in and I walk back to the bedroom and sit in the chair by the window, watching the cars and people go past. Looking up at the sky I sigh. I missed the moon, there was too much light in the city to be able to see it from here. Maybe it was time to take a vacation and get away for a while. I had a good team who I knew I could trust to not burn the building down if I left.

The cameras outside as I opened the shop up for business were milling around but weren't really paying much attention to the shop itself, which I didn't mind at all. I hadn't slept well and I wasn't in the mood to have to look perky yet. They were probably waiting to see if Tom would be coming by or even one of the other cast members.

The handful of staff I kept to run the kitchen had been excited as they'd made it in and Katy was more made up than usual. I couldn't fault them for their excitement, but I wasn't sharing it. I was putting on a good face but it was purely an act.

I was helping a young man find a book as I heard the door open and judging by the chatter it let in I knew someone important had just walked in. I didn't bother to turn and see who it was but when Katy called my name from the register I had no choice but to turn around, forcing a smile onto my face in the process.

It was no wonder why Katy had sounded almost breathless when she'd called for me; her celebrity crush was standing beside the register. I'd already met Chris and though I didn't have Tom as a buffer now my anxiety was fairly low.

Grabbing the book the young man was looking for off the shelf I hand it to him with a smile and excuse myself.

"Hey." I say walking up to him, "I didn't expect to see you this morning."

"Can we talk?"

"Um, sure. Katy we're going to go upstairs. You're in charge down here." I say and glance at Katy and have to stifle a laugh.

She was staring at Chris wide eyed, I was surprised she wasn't drooling. If she'd been a cartoon she'd have had hearts in her eyes. I understood her reaction so I swallowed the laugh and looked back at Chris.

"This way." I say and lead him to the door that leads to my apartment.

We make it to the top and he looks around the room. He nodes and looks at me.

"You have a nice place."

"Thanks. Can I get you anything? What'd you want to talk to me about?"

I was dreading whatever he had to say. He was one of Tom's best friends and he'd already hinted at he didn't' approve of what Tom and I were doing. I wasn't going to beat around the bush since this was more than likely not going to be pleasant.

"What are you getting out of this thing with Tom?"

Good, he wasn't going to beat around the bush either.

"Other than getting to spend a few days with him, nothing. I don't want anything from him."

"You expect me to believe you're simply doing this out of the goodness of your heart? Your business seems to be profiting from it at least."

"Your movie caused an increase in my business long before I met Tom. And before that, we weren't struggling or anything else. I don't need or want anything. He asked me, not the other way around. I didn't expect to hear from him or even see him again after he left here Saturday morning."

"Then why did you come to set that afternoon?"

"My friend drug me there to see you actually. I tried to stay in the back when I saw the two of you together. I'd say you could go ask her but I doubt she'd be able to talk in complete sentences. You're welcome to try though."

He studies me and I return his gaze. I had nothing to hide and he wasn't going to make me feel bad for agreeing to help his friend. They'd be gone in four days and it'd be over with.

"Tom's a good man, one of my best friends."

"He is." I agree.

"May I as you a personal question?"

"Of course, though I cannot guarantee you an answer."

"Do you have feelings for Tom?"

That had not been the question I'd been expecting and it felt like a physical blow. I school my face and raise my chin slightly.

"I don't see how that is any of your business."

"Look, I think you're genuine when you say you're just doing this to help him but I know firsthand how quickly feelings can develop. Elsa and I met and were married three months later. He's just got out of a long term relationship that ended badly and he's vulnerable, I don't want to see him get hurt again."

"Stop. The short answer is yes, I have developed feelings for Tom but I'm well aware it doesn't matter. You will all be gone in four days and I'll wish him nothing but the best."

"You're really willing to just let him go?"

"It will hurt like hell I'm sure but yes. He deserves someone more like him. Besides it's what he wants and that's what matters. When the cameras aren't rolling we're barely friends, he made that clear yesterday when we got in the car. I'm not the first fan to fall in love with their celebrity crush, and I won't be the last."

He just stars at me and I fight the urge to tear up. Saying the words out loud hurt. I was definitely going to need a vacation after this was all over with.