Fake Fiancée

Chapter 24: Discoveries on the Streets

“No you aren’t.”

“Yes I am.”

“No you aren’t.”

“I think I can do whatever I want,” Keith said with a snort.

“Ok guys cut it out!” I exclaimed, my eyes wide with incredulity. Who knew two guys would ever fight over me? And one of them being the guy I liked too!

“Where do you want to take her to?” Henry demanded. I looked over at him, surprised that he seemed angry. Maybe he was jealous … or maybe I was reading into Henry’s reactions too much. It was most likely the second one.

“Out and about,” Keith answered with a shrug. He then gave Henry a wink and continued, “Don’t worry my man, I’ll keep her safe.”

The four of us stood there, unsure of what to do next. Henry spoke up first. “You’re not going Lainie.”

I was suddenly filled with fury. Did he just order me around? Oh hell no! Before I could protest, Steve cut in with his lips in a grim line, “You can go Lainie. Just be careful.”

I nodded and scurried over to Keith, who led me off to his newly rented motorbike. I didn’t want to look back because I could feel Henry’s eyes on me. Keith handed me a helmet and I flipped my hair up so the helmet would go on easier. When I finished, I saw Keith smirking at me, making me frown. “What?” I asked self-consciously.

“Your fiancé is checking you out,” he replied with a chuckle. My heart skipped a beat and my head whipped towards Henry, who had been staring at me the whole time. But as soon as I turned my head towards him, he looked away. Damn.

We both hopped on the motorbike and I had to place my arms around Keith’s waist, if I didn’t want to fall off. I was actually pretty excited to ride on a motorbike, but I secretly wished I was on the back of a motorbike with Henry.

It was an exhilarating ride, and while Keith sped through different streets, I shouted, “This is fun!”

“I’m glad you think so!”

I had no idea where he was taking me, but I felt the need for fun, after that press conference and Henry’s mixed signals. Why in the world were guys so confusing?

The bike suddenly slowed down by the lot of the beach, which made me pout. I had really liked riding on the bike, unlike girls I had seen back home complaining that the ‘thing’ made them dizzy and was too ‘fast’ and ‘scary’. Keith and I hopped off the bike and I tossed the helmet to him so he could fit into the compartment under the seat.

“Why’d you rent a motorbike?” I asked, as I brushed my fingers through the tangles of my hair. “Do you even have a license?”

Keith smiled as he shoved the keys into his jeans pocket. “Of course I do. I used to ride bikes all the time, so I just felt like trying again.”

Interesting. As I imagined a young shaggy-haired Keith wearing a leather jackets and being a bad boy, he spoke up, telling me that he was bringing me on a tour of this ‘little town’.

I laughed and followed him down the narrow street, with many intersections adorned with little shops, boutiques and little restaurants and parlours. We stopped in front of a bookstore first, with shelves of dusty classics. Keith and I ended up discussing about Stephen King’s awesomeness and having a debate on Wuthering Heights. I didn’t really see the point in it, but Keith started explaining how love can destruct and control everything, and that it can turn you into something other than yourself. I pondered on that.

Would loving Henry turn me into something other than myself? I was already different – I could sense it. I’m weaker than before and I get quite giddy when Henry does the smallest of things. Oh boy.