Viva Spanish Fly!

We decide to have our meeting and grab a bite at STK by THE BELMONT since it's centrally located to where everyone lives. Naturally, parking is a nightmare on La Cienaga but however irritated that made me I got a good laugh watching Emerith in a red 'bandage' dress by HERVE LEGER and red JOHN GALIANO pumps sitting on the swing that was hanging from the ceiling of the black and hot pink, green and purple, COCO DE VILLE.

Emerith thinks she is so NICOLE KIDMAN in MOULIN ROUGE. I hear ESTELLE's 'AMERICAN BOY' featuring KANYE WEST playing in the background so I hope Emerith ala Satine doesn't go full throttle on the fantasy and bust out in song! She hears me laugh so I pretend that I am reading something from DAILY CANDY on my new IPHONE 3G. Just like that, me in my MARC JACOBS navy 'resort' dress turn away from the lounge siren before her daggers have a chance to nail me.

I love the black and white decor of STK and I hear the steaks are better than MAESTROS but I'm a seafood girl (if you're at Maestros, get the lobster mashed potatoes - they are to die for!) so I guess I will never know. I see the girls at a table clad in PREEN and couture CHRISTIAN AUDIGIER dresses but I catch Kyra in a flirty ZAC POSEN black dress as she is heading to the table from the ladies room.

I take her arm in mine and whisper in her ear, "What is up with fire-crotch on the swing?"

Kyra leans in, "Trust me, everyone is as surprised as you are to see her here."

Emerith catches my eye and hops off the swing, bounding towards us. We do air kisses. Then with a big cat-ate-the-cream smile, "Like your highlights! Chris did a great job!"

"Thanks Emerith. I never would have gone had you not given me your pre-paid appointment."

"I know!" She exclaims as if I forgot how she swindled me, "You have so much to thank me for!"

Arm in arm, we head for our table, as the girls’ eyes grow wide with fear. All eyes are on me, questioning. No one is avoiding eye contact like they might be guilty. Apparently everyone is wondering why the vampire queen of ANNE RICE-proportion darkness is here. I wonder then if it really is Kyra who told Emerith and why?

I take a seat at the table, "I called everyone together because things haven't been the same at the agency in the last few months. By the looks of our outfits, we are all making good money and I know for me that needs to continue." I look around and the girls are all listening except for Emerith who fiddles with an errand string on her dress. I continue, "I don't know what is going on with Vanessa but ever since John was replaced with Lisa, we've been taking greater risks on calls and there seems to be an accounting error about once a week which means I am doing some calls for free. "

The girls’ heads nod. We're all in the same WTF boat.

Then Emerith speaks, "You know why?"

We all look at her.

Emerith doesn't look at anyone just keeps working that damned string, "She is getting ready to replace us."

Kyra speaks up, "We should start our own agency. If we pull our money together, we can do it."

Brittany, "Wait a minute, why does Vanessa want to replace us?"

Emerith rolls her eyes, "The hotels are starting to recognize us. It's a new customer every night to us but management is getting the same complaint: L.A. Escorts suck! They don't want us there if we are pissing off their VIP clientele. We are bad for their five-star business."

Burton, "Vanessa changes the ads like she always does. What's the problem?"

Emerith, "She is changing the ads but she has to change the faces." She finally gets the string and pulls it, then she looks at us, "New girls take time to train, it takes them awhile to make money. She is keeping us to pay for the new ads and until the new team can ramp up. Lisa has a long-history with Vanessa. She's the cleaner. You're not getting calls because Lisa is working the second board."

I didn't know that! "What second board? Have you seen it?"

Emerith laughs, "I've run into a few newbies at a drop-off and read the writing on the wall."

Kyra, "It doesn't matter if we start our own agency because we've become too recognizable."

Dior, "Why don't we hire girls and do it like Vanessa?"

Estella gets a chill, "Become like her?"

"We have to survive." All eyes turn on me, "I don't like it either but it's that or we go international."

Emerith declares, "I need a cigarette. Ali? Care to join me?"

There are much better smokers at the table so I am surprised she asks me, "Sure."

Outside STK, she lights me a CAMEL and hands it to me, I nearly choke on the Turkish tobacco. She lights hers and takes a long drag, as she exhales, "You ever try to fuck me like that again, I will cut your heart out and eat it."

The cigarette is making me ill so I crush it out on the concrete, "We didn't know if we could trust you. You're kind of a frankenturd you know."

She laughs, "I know."

"So what's going on Emerith? I know you're dialed in. Where are Stacey and John?"

"They booked a reality show." She says like can you believe that shit?

"Okay, what are we going to do?" Even though I would like to know which show S&J got on.

Emerith just shrugs, "You can't save everybody."

Then I take a hard look at my adversary, "Why do you want to save me?"

Emerith, "What makes you think that?"

"Why else did you call me out here to talk?"

She puts out her cigarette and gets really close to my face, "Because you're a survivor, you're cunning." There is a pause, like time has stopped and I can hear a pin drop. Then she pulls away and the moment is gone, she's back to 'whatever' Emerith. "I like those girls too but deep-down their pussies. Maybe Dior has figured it out but her nose is in the blow and her eye is on VOGUE. She'll wind up at PROMISES before she runs a successful escort agency. Vanessa gets this business. That's why she is more than surviving she is getting rich. If she didn't do it someone else would that's why she doesn't give a flying fuck about us."

I wonder about something Kyra had said about Emerith, "This isn't lover's revenge, is it?"

She walks up to me and puts her hand up my dress and dexterously presses down on my clit through my panties, "I never kiss and tell."

I am so embarrassed I run away as she laughs behind me. She is such a mind-fucking twat-bag I don't know if I am better off having her hate me. I run back to the girls’ table and they look at my flushed face. I hope I'm not blushing too badly.

"Forget what Emerith said. She wants us to doubt ourselves so she's in control. Next time we meet, we do this thing. We do it for real."

We clink our glasses, "Cheers!" And Emerith never comes back to the table.

Despite the drama of my job, I sign up for the missionary trip to see if pre-med was what I wanted to do. Volunteers meet at LLU and pile into an old yellow school bus. Hello? ROAD TRIP! The medical and dental students are so different from my world I feel like I'm lost in an episode of THE SIMPLE LIFE. At least I had the good sense not to bring LOUIS VUITTON luggage to perform charity work.

I fall asleep on the drive and when I wake up we have already crossed the border and are heading down Revolution Street. I hear the whistles of tequila shots being thrown down some college kids from USD and smell the hot dogs wrapped with bacon being sold on the street by vendors. It makes me hungry but then one of the dental students says it's not real bacon but road kill.

As we leave Tijuana and head down the lonely highway marked with burned cars and crosses, I wonder where the road kill comes from. Instead of TOLSTOY's WAR & PEACE, I start reading CONFESSION OF AN HEIRESS by PARIS HILTON because it's easy and I don't have a LUNA BAR to curb my low blood sugar headache. Then the dental student gets into it with a medical student ending the argument with "Better Dead than Med!" And I know I have a real dick in our group. Great. This is another bad idea like taking myself on a date.

We get to the mission just outside of Encinitas where the girls and guys have separate quarters. We walk into a cramped room filled with bunk beds. A girl turns down her sheets and a cockroach pops out. She screams bloody murder. Another uses the toilet and we realize why it stinks. You can't flush toilet paper in the septic system you have to throw it in the trashcan. Despite the flaws in our government and the legal system, a vision likes this makes me really appreciate the standard of living in my country. I feel like GOLDIE HAWN in PRIVATE BENJAMIN because the mission didn't match the brochure I had been given when I signed up to volunteer. I knew it wasn't the RITZ CARLTON but c'mon, it didn't have to be closer to the Thai prison in BRIDGET JONES!

After we unpack and we head to the dining area, things don't get much better. We eat something like boiled maize and spend the evening singing Christian songs. Finally we are packed off to bed and I zip up my sleeping bag like a body condom, as I hate cockroaches. Thank God I had only volunteered for a weekend and hadn't signed up for a whole summer! Do you think ANGELINA JOLIE goes through this for the U.N.?

In the morning, the mission nuns show up and make us an authentic Mexican breakfast. Now this is food (Not IL SOLE but pretty damn good)! After not eating since yesterday, I carbo-load on handmade tortillas like nobody's business. The bus honks outside to take us to a hospital where recent medical school graduates are volunteering their time for something like a nickel a day in wages. How did they expect to pay their student loans on that? I tear myself away from the world's most delicious breakfast and get on the bus. Dick-head dental student tries to talk to me so I sit with the girls who were studying to be nurses or hygienists. The hygienists are a sexy lot and look like porn stars that golf with their giant implants and LILLY PULITZER mini-skirts. Sadly, I don't meet many women studying to be doctors or dentists. I wonder why these smart girls don't study a little further for the brass ring but they seem to have it all worked out they will marry it instead.

We take a tour of the hospital that is in such need it makes our county hospitals look like CEDARS SINAI. I see a teenage boy in baggy pants trying to look tough as he paces the hospital hallway. I break away from the tour to talk to him. Lucky for me, his English is better than my Spanish. I ask him why he is pacing and he tells me his girlfriend has to have a c-section in order to safely deliver their baby.

I ask, "What is your name?"

He shuffles his feet and shyly responds, "Spanish Fly."

I laugh, "I'm sure she is okay but I'll check on her and report back."

I walk in her room and she is moaning in pain. I don't know if she is about to give birth but I try to get a nurse quickly without startling Spanish Fly. No one seems too concerned about the young woman wreathing in agony. I run down the hall to get someone from our group to see this woman.

A nursing student comes back to the room and sees the girl, "She's ready to go!"

We run back and get the doctor giving us the tour. He tells his staff to prepare for a c-section. We are invited to watch. I'm not sure if I have the stomach for it especially as I see flies landing on the surgical equipment being set up. The doors close and I am trapped in the surgery room with the LLU students. A hospital nurse administers an epidural and thirty minutes later the doctor is slicing into Ms. Spanish Fly's abdomen and uterus. MSF moans like she feels it but she doesn't say anything that makes sense. The idea that this teenage girl might be in pain makes me light-headed and I'm not sure if I'm going to faint.

Suddenly, the doctor pulls out a fake-looking baby and sets it on the table. Quickly, he cleans the baby's nose and mouth and fake-looking baby screams. What a set of lungs little PAVAROTTI has! Then the doctor goes back to MSF and pulls out of her something like a little, pink turtle and starts to sow it up. The nursing student I brought into the room in the first-place takes my hand and holds me up as I start to wobble a bit. It's then we notice that the baby is kicking and he is moving further down the table and looks as if he could fall off and hit the ground. The nursing student lets me go and we cross to the table to save the baby. She wipes away the POLTERGEIST-looking after-birth as I look for a blanket to wrap the screaming red bean in. We get him all set when I look at his face. He calms down and smiles at me. Guess he likes blondes.

"Hello baby, welcome to your new home," I smile back at him as he tries to grab my breast. Guess he's a fun-bags man too.

The hospital nurse walks in and looks at us irritated. We weren't supposed to touch the baby. We apologize as she wordlessly takes the baby away to an incubator while glaring at us. I walk outside the surgery room to see how Spanish Fly is doing. Of course, he is pacing like an expectant father just as I left him.

I touch him on the shoulder, "Congratulations, it's a boy."

He does a little dance, "Viva Spanish Fly!"

I take him to the incubator room where his son and the nurse who hates me are in. He looks down at his son like he is looking at a brand new future; everything he thought he knew is about to change. But he isn't the only one affected by his son's birth. I love my L.A. life but it's nice to know there is more out there than becoming a card-carrying member of the VALLEY OF THE DOLLS. Why couldn't I make a difference? Why shouldn't I? I look again at the little baby boy who is now smiling at his proud papa.

Today is a new day for us all. Viva Spanish Fly.


photo: miami fever

The One

The Bimbo Summit was a week away because everyone either had finals, an audition or simply didn't want to deal with the inevitable. Lucky for me, school was cool except I was dreading my math final. I would rather shave my head with a cheese-grater than ever take calculus again but at least the torture was about to end soon.

I had made a good-sized commission off LAGUNA BEACH alum KRISTIN CAVALLARI when she came in the store to buy a VIVIAN WESTWOOD blouse and two color-blocked dresses from ABAETE and MARNI. For a second I thought she was KATE HUDSON because she was so pretty and only the young HILTON sisters come this way. Young Hollywood, like RACHAEL BILSON or MISCHA BARTON, usually shops on Robertson at places like KITSON, HORN and LISA KLINE because Rodeo is more Establishment. Maybe Kristin heard POSH SPICE had been in here?

Soon after, HEIDI MONTAG from 'Speidi' came in and I wondered if the two were friends? I guess not because Tiffany, my Goth girl who never ceases to amaze me on how she has the 411 on celebrity culture thanks to a daily brain diet of TMZ, PEREZ HILTON and PINK IS THE NEW BLOG, filled me in that Kristin knew LAUREN CONRAD from LAGUNA BEACH and Heidi knows Lauren from THE HILLS so there is no connection. Still, it was weird that Kristin and Heidi came in within days of each other and Heidi even asked for me. Not that I'm complaining, Heidi could pick up whatever she wanted and charge it to MTV. I wouldn't be surprised if after MTV got the bill, someone in accounting would call someone in publicity who would then call Veronique and asked if they could swag the clothes in exchange for free publicity on THE HILLS.

If Veronique were smart, which she was, she'd take it because every girl who read PEOPLE during her mani-pedi and walked onto Rodeo Drive would stop by our store or buy online. A hit cable show could help a store like E! helped DASH and SMOOCH with their online sales. You don't have to live in Beverly Hills to dress like a celebrity. Maybe people hated Heidi's on-again/off-again fiancé, SPENCER PRATT, but Heidi was hot and a lot of girls who watch THE HILLS would want to copy her look. Just catch MY SWEET 16 and you'll know what I am talking about. The new religion is TRUE RELIGION.

I followed these trends to sell the right fashions to my A-list and poser client book. But with our celebrity-obsessed culture, it was hard to believe we were at war until you bought a tank of gas. After the Al Qaeda attack on the WORLD TRADE CENTER, PENTAGON and miss on the WHITE HOUSE, we attacked the Taliban in Afghanistan for aiding Al Qaeda. Then we went after Saddam Hussein in Iraq because he was aiding terrorists and he may/may not have had weapons of mass destruction. The reason our dollar is worthless is because we borrowed trillions from China to finance the war and they lent us the money because we have so much business in China. Now Saudi Arabia is raising the price of oil because demand is going up as Russia and China are undergoing an Industrial Revolution as they move from a communist to capitalist economy. As Saudi Arabia raised their prices so did OPEC causing some crazy inflation and the president can't do anything because big oil financed his campaign. I get the war because we were attacked but it really sucks that big oil controls our government not the best interest of the people.

It is time for a change with the value of the dollar going down and the cost of living going up, people are starting to feel the pinch. Enter BARACK OBAMA. Obama wants to eliminate the war debt and increase the value of the dollar by ending the war and increasing taxes to pay off the debt. The thing is, is ending the war a good idea? I've heard this war compared to Vietnam (which happened before I was born) but I don't think the Vietnamese ever attacked us. The fear I feel about these fanatical Muslims who hate us and want to destroy us reminds me of how people describe the nuclear threat of the Cold War. Then the Iron Curtain fell and the Russian threat seemed overrated. But the Russians never hijacked our airplanes and turned them into missiles to attack our country and kill our people on our own soil. So are we safe?

Enter JOHN MCCAIN. McCain doesn't think we're safe and wants to continue the war. As a former POW I think when McCain says there is a threat that he really knows his shit. But he also admits he knows dick about how to handle the inflation and debt issue so how is he going to help those struggling in this country? Do we ignore domestic problems for the greater good of our safety like the REAGAN era? If we drill in Alaska to lower our need for Saudi oil, we might lower inflation but ruin our environment. We should be looking for a cleaner, more abundant energy source to replace our dependence on oil but who is going to pay for that research and development? It is time for a change but does anyone really know how to save this country?

Sometimes, when I look down on the lights of the city from Mulholland Drive, the future really scares me and I wonder, "Are we like Nero fiddling while Rome is burning?"

All these thoughts were giving me such a bad headache I wanted to go PROZAC NATION just to stop the dogs from barking in my head. Maybe it was the heat, maybe it was that catchy OBAMA GIRL song stuck in my head but I needed to cool off and relax with a BACARDI mojito. Besides rising oil prices and rat-fuck politics, I was a crabby apple because (1) I was on THE SKINNY BITCH DIET and eating nothing but tofu (how come we can create a global navigational system but we can't create a weight-loss diet of SPRINKLES cupcakes?), and (2) all this driving around L.A. was really eating up my money. It was time to get a new car. A PRIUS or something. Then I could save money and be politically correct.

Sounded smart except since Lisa took over the phones I wasn't going out as much. Big shocker! But I guess the day the phone didn't ring at all would be the day she was on to me about the meeting. Thinking about Lisa made me think of Emerith's call. Who told Emerith about the meeting after we decided as a group not to say anything to her? Did I have a frenemy in the ranks? Who? And did Vanessa and Lisa know my plans but they were playing dumb until Emerith could come and report back to enemy camp? Okay, now I really needed a BACARDI mojito!

I went home after class, changed into a frilly MARCHESA dress and headed out for a mojito at JAMES BEACH. Nothing clears the head like a refreshing summer drink of freshly pressed mint and sugarcane then a stroll on the beach to watch a sunset. Makes you feel like everything will be okay. Brittany calls me on my way to Venice and asks me if I want a girls night out with her friends. I ask her what she is wearing. LANVIN of course! I ask where they are heading and she tells me THE HOLLYWOOD MEN on Highland. It's totally in the opposite direction so I decline. She asks me what I am doing tonight and I say I am taking myself on a date.

"Sounds boring."

"I want to be alone. I have a lot on my mind."

"The meeting?"

"Did you tell Emerith about it?"

"Oh no, does she know about it? God, no one will come now."

"Nothings happened so we're clear. I wouldn't worry about it."

"You think Kyra told her?"

"I don't know." I hadn't thought of it but Kyra knew that Emerith and Stacey were fighting over Vanessa so maybe they talked?

"I'll ask her. So hey, why are you depressed?"

"I'm not. Just trying to figure out what I'm going to pick for a major."

"What do you like?"

"Everything."

"Okay, what are you good at?"

"Nothing."

"Gee! That sounds promising." She starts to laugh and I laugh too.

"I was thinking of going on a missionary trip." I bite my lip knowing she is going to flip.

"Uh, why? Are you religious or something?"

"I think I need a change. I read this book called EAT, PRAY, LOVE and this woman walked away from her life, traveled to Italy, India and Bali then came back with a new prospective on her life."

"Are you going to those places?" She asked like it sounded kind of glamorous.

"No, I'm going to Mexico." I pause waiting for her response, "We go to these villages and offer them free medical and dental care through the medical and dental school. If they are interested in us, we give them a brochure on the SDA faith. It's not like we are pushing it on them and they need volunteers. I just thought it would be a great opportunity for me to travel and see if I want to go into pre-med."

"If that's what you want to do, you should do it." She says but she doesn't sound like she means it but like that's what she thinks I want to hear.

"I think that's why I wanted to be alone tonight. I need to think about it."

"That's cool. Well, if you change your mind, call me because we'll be at the club if you want to come."

"Cool. Thanks."

I hang up and walk into JAMES BEACH. The outdoor bar and eating area is packed and suddenly I feel stupid for coming out alone. What kind of woman comes out alone? A prostitute. Yet the last thing on my mind was hooking up let alone making any cash. All I wanted to do was dress up, take myself out to dinner and enjoy my own company. A novel concept. But looking around at everyone sitting with friends or on dates, I'm just not that confident so I ask the hostess if I can sit inside because it's empty. I sit down, breath a sigh of relief and then realize I have nothing to do but look at everyone, which makes them look at me. I wish I brought a book, a script, anything to read! I don't know what to do so I start reading my blackberry and return emails. So much for enjoying my own company!

"Are you alone?"

I look up and my heart skips a beat. This guy is so handsome I can't believe he is talking to me. His dark brows over his piercing green eyes and full lips gave him a look of smoldering sensuality. Because he has the boyish good looks of BRODY JENNER of PRINCES OF MALIBU or ADRIEN GRENIER of ENTOURAGE I thought of dissing him as a man-brat. Who wants to waste their Pilated butt on Peter Pan? But as I looked at him some more, I note he is wearing a dark business suit tailored so well to his JAMES BOND physique it looks like he got it from Savile Row. Beneath the metrosexual veneer, he is all man like CHRIS NOTH of SEX & THE CITY fame. Could he be my Mr. Big?

"I am waiting for someone?"

"That's too bad, I was going to have you join our party."

"Actually, I just wanted to be alone."

"Well then, I'll leave you to it."

As soon as he left my table, the smell of his PENHALIGONS cologne lingered in the air and I realized then I was quite lonely. I turned to watch him walk away and I realized that was a very stupid thing to do because he probably felt me watching him and his friends at the table would confirm it. I immediately look away and take a deep sip of my TURNBULL Cabernet Sauvignon and realized I made another stupid mistake. The warmth of his voice, his cologne and the wine caused my heat to rise and explode like the Beautiful Woman in Le Vrai eating chocolate cake in the MATRIX RELOADED. Seems Mr. Big had The Merovingian effect on me. Like TORY MUSSETT, I had to excuse myself from table and run to the bathroom.

In the bathroom, I saw my face was flushed scarlet so I wet a paper towel with cool water and dabbed my face and neck. Okay, it had been a long time since I had sex but was this really necessary? I wished then I kept a small, vibrating bullet in my purse as Brittany said it worked wonders if you were really attracted to a guy on a date but needed to put the breaks on it if you wanted to be one of those happily attached THE RULES girl. Unfortunately, I never made my way with her to the PLEASURE CHEST in West Hollywood. I would just have to use good old-fashioned mind control.

Fortunately when I left the ladies room, my food was out on my table. Thank God I had something to do even if it was eating! This is the last time I am taking myself on a date. Brittany was right. It was so boring. But how do you eat when he is staring at you? I take a few ladylike bites then look at him and smile. Then he gets up and comes over. Holy shit! Do I have food in my teeth?

"I don't mean to bother you."

"Not a problem."

"But how would you feel about going out with me to SHUTTERS?"

"That would be lovely."

"Great. Shall I get your car?"

"Oh, you mean now?"

He smiles beautifully, "Absolutely."

We head to SHUTTERS and we eat a light meal at ONE PICO overlooking the Pacific Ocean. It's very romantic and the chef is spectacular but the best thing ever was my date wasn't wearing a wedding ring and he didn't have a tan line where it should be. Maybe he was a commitment-phobe like GEORGE CLOONEY? A cheater like JUDE LAW? Something had to be wrong with him, right? He talked about his career as an investment banker in Manhattan and the house he was renovating in Bedford, New York. He talked about how he was in a garage band in high school and college until his father made him go to YALE Law School but he still has a pretty awesome record collection of jazz and old punk bands. He talked about his travels all over the world and his favorite hotel so far is the FOUR SEASONS in Bali. He talked about his love of wine and how he wanted his ashes scattered over Napa Valley but he didn't think that was legal so he'd just have to settle for Big Sur. I listened to all of it as he talked, letting who he was wash over me like a spring rain. And I was noticing something else that I couldn't quite put my finger on. It felt something like falling in love.

"You're not saying much."

"You've had an extraordinary life. I enjoy listening to it."

"What about you?"

"I just turned twenty so I'm barely getting my feet wet."

"You're twenty?"

"Yeah, why? Did you think I was older?"

"I don't see too many women your age eating out alone."

"Maybe I'm a trend-setter."

He smiled, "Maybe."

I kissed him full on the lips. I don't know where the nerve came from but it was apparent I desired him on a totally unholy level. I really should be thinking about how guys don't respect girls who come onto them because we look desperate and they like to be the hunters but I could feel myself getting more into his kiss and less concerned about the consequences. Of course he was leaving! He was on a business trip from New York! And with my job, how could I get serious with anybody? Wasn't this situation perfect?

He took me to his room and we kissed like our survival depended on it. He smelled and felt fantastic as I pulled off his shirt. He slipped off my dress as I thanked the wine gods for my blasé expectancy when he opened my legs, kissed my girl-box like a little flower, then gently sucked on the center as well as the silky petals. It turns out good sex like good men is not an urban legend. It and they are out there. If you had the room next door that night, you would know I was beyond mildly pleased with his technique. He caressed my breasts and TFG didn't twist my nipples like radio knobs. I rewarded him for his good behavior as he had touched me in just the right way. When he couldn't hold it any longer, he pulled me under him. As he entered me, he kept looking at my face and telling me how beautiful I was. We rocked like KATRINA then fell asleep spooning, arms and legs tangled up. That night and again in the morning was the best sex of my life.

When I woke up with the sun streaming in, I heard the ocean outside and him in the shower. I wished I had called Hilary because she was probably worried about me. I slipped the bed-sheet around me to look for my purse and phone. Just as I found it, he came out of the bathroom with a towel wrapped around his waist. His abs and arms were well toned and tanned making him as gorgeous by day as he had been by night.

"I was going to order breakfast. What would you like?"

I did my best to wipe my stupid smile off my face, "French toast with strawberries and a mimosa."

He sits on the bed then picks up the phone to order but gets a little detoured as we kiss. "You keep kissing me like that and we'll starve to death."

He orders breakfast and we cuddle in bed until delivery. I hear the beach beginning to wake up with tourists. I wonder what it would be like to live in an apartment on the beach and wake up every morning with a wonderful boyfriend who just wants to have wonderful sex and take you out to a champagne brunch. I love Hilary's house but it's not like I can bring a man over. Okay, money for college, a car that gets better gas mileage, now a beach apartment for the lover and me, how am I going to accomplish all of that with the agency not calling me as much? Oh yeah, the agency, what does lover boy feel about that? Slow down girl. Have the presence of mind not to get lost in a fantasy.

He gets dressed and packs while I take a shower. As the water hits my face, a sort of sadness creeps up my throat and I feel tears coming. I don't want to say good-bye. But he has to go back to New York and I have to go back to my life. It was a great night, it will happen again. It's not the end of the world. I will meet someone just as yummy and good in bed. I put on my bathroom robe and slip out to grab my dress and shoes.

As I come back in the room, he is sitting on the bed lost in thought. "I forgot to ask your name."

I don't know what to say, "Ali."

He turns and looks at me a long time, "Ali, I don't want you to go."

I don't want to go either. "I have to."

He pulls me in for a kiss, "When can I see you again?"

I have already slept with him so I'm on dangerous territory. "When are you back in Los Angeles?"

"I'll be back in thirty days."

I give him a kiss and pick up my purse off the bed, "In thirty days, I will see you at JAMES BEACH at 8 PM. If one of us doesn't show then we're not meant to be."

"Oh we are meant to be."

"Then I will see you then."

I turned to leave but he grabbed my arm for another embrace. If I didn't get out of there, I never would so I slipped out of his grasp. He tried again but let go as I laughed. He watched me go and there was something in his eyes that told me he felt something too. I know this sounds delusional but I knew I would see him again. I knew there was something there. I just wondered if he was 'The One' I've been waiting for.


photo: moderniteter