Page 24 of From LA to London, With Love

I walked to the small bedroom next to mine, which used to be my dad’s study, got Elliot up, gave him a feed, and took him down the wooden stairs into the dining room, hoping one of my parents was up so they could entertain him while I had a shower. A shower might make me feel more human and help clear my head of thoughts of Chris.

Dad was sitting at the table, coffee and cereal in front of him, reading the morning news on his iPad. Mum was sitting next to him, looking concerned. Dad stood when he saw me.

“Sophie, there’s something you should see. I’ll swap you.” He handed me his iPad and took Elliot, careful to keep him away from his hot mug of coffee.

I had to blink a few times to work out what I was looking at. It was photos of Chris, me, and Elliot while we were picnicking at the Pergola the other day. Chris and I eating on the picnic rug, Chris playing airplanes with Elliot, Chris pushing Elliot’s pram as we walked home. The photos were on one of the tabloid websites with the headline: Is Chris Trent a baby daddy?

I read on, my mouth open.

Chris Trent, in London to film a period drama, has been spotted with an attractive mystery brunette and a baby, having a romantic picnic at the Pergola on Hampstead Heath. Fresh out of his messy breakup with the singer Vanessa Milan, Chris seems to have bounced back quickly…

Taken aback, I shook my head. I’d seen no sign of the paparazzi at the Pergola. My stomach felt uneasy at the thought of Elliot’s paternity being speculated about by a trashy tabloid, although I got a slight kick out of being described as an “attractive brunette.” For my grandparents’ sake, I hoped my relatives back in India didn’t read the British tabloids, or they would have a lot of questions.

“Is this true, Sophie? Well, not the bit about the baby daddy—humph!—but the bit about you two dating? I thought you were just friends?” Dad asked, watching my face closely.

Mum jumped in before I could answer. “Are you sure it’s really wise to be spending time with this man? The paparazzi are terrible. You know what they did to Princess Di and now poor Meghan. I don’t want anything to happen to you or Elliot.”

My parents had mixed feelings when I told them about Chris. While happy I was getting out more, Mum had made it clear she would have preferred it wasn’t with a world-famous celebrity. When she’d voiced some concerns about whether the paparazzi might hassle us, I’d rolled my eyes, but now I wondered if I’d been too hasty in brushing off her worries. On the other hand, it turned out Dad had seen all the Muscle Man movies, and he kept suggesting I invite Chris around, presumably so he could grill him about them. I had no intention of doing so.

“We are just friends, Dad. You know you can’t trust anything in the tabloids. And Mum, it’s fine. Chris isn’t British royalty, and I’m definitely no Princess Di or Meghan Markle. We won’t be chased down in cars or out of the country. We didn’t even notice these photos being taken.”

I studied the photos carefully. I had to admit, it did look like we were having a very romantic picnic. The photographer had captured us looking at each other and laughing. The way Chris stared at me did appear very…loving.

Was it possible he was interested in me? Josh and the tabloids seemed to think so. Maybe I hadn’t imagined the chemistry between us last night.

But, even if he was into me, would I really be interested in actually dating him? Deep down, I knew Josh was right. It wasn’t reasonable to dismiss all men just because of my past bad experiences. Not all men sucked. And while I was telling myself I didn’t have time for dating with Elliot and the new business, I had managed to see Chris almost every day last week without any issues.

But even if I ignored my no dating, no men rule, would Chris fit into my world? Sure, we got on well together, and he’d made a good impression on my friends last night. But he was so different from us. Rich, famous, probably straight—Josh had reported with disappointment last night that his gaydar wasn’t picking up any bi vibes from Chris—and, not to mention, the sexiest man alive.

And would Elliot and I fit into his world?

I mentally gave myself a shake. I was getting ahead of myself. He dated singers and supermodels, not single mums who live in T-shirts and jeans covered in baby vomit.

It’s all in your head.

My phone buzzed. I pulled it out, and my heart leaped. Chris. God, now I was nervous, my stomach flipping over and over. This whole crush thing was not pleasant. I walked into the living room to have some privacy from my parents, staring at the painting above the mantelpiece in the hope it would calm me down.

“Hi Sophie, thanks again for inviting me last night. I had a lot of fun. I hope you’re not too dusty this morning?” Chris’s voice was warm and friendly.

I couldn’t help wondering where he was. Was he sitting up in his bed, bleary-eyed, or had he been up for hours, already worked out and sipping his second cup of coffee in the living room?

“I’ve felt better, to be honest, but it was so much fun. Definitely worth it!”

“So...um, listen, Sophie...” Chris sounded nervous. I tensed, wondering what was coming next. “I was ringing because some tabloids got hold of photos of us having that picnic last week and wrote some articles about us.”

I breathed out. Oh, right. “Yeah, I saw. My Dad just showed me.”

“I’m so sorry. It’s so frustrating that I can’t spend any time with a woman without everyone assuming it's romantic. How ridiculous! I’ll speak to my publicist about the best way to handle this.” I could hear the annoyance in his voice.

A hot flush rushed over my face. Of course, the idea of Chris and I together was ridiculous. I was stupid for thinking there might be something between us.

“It’s fine. At least they were flattering photos, and they didn’t name us. Don’t worry about it,” I said, trying to ignore the wave of disappointment washing over me.

“Still, it’s really shitty and not fair on you guys at all. I’m so sorry. I’d just let my full-time security detail go because it didn’t seem necessary over here. Now I’m having second thoughts.” He paused, and then his voice lightened. “Hey, in other news, Alfie will be arriving on Thursday. Would you and Elliot like to come on his first walk to the Heath? And I was also thinking of exploring Kenwood House on Tuesday afternoon, if you and Elliot fancy an excursion.”

Kenwood House was a gorgeous stately home on the edge of Hampstead Heath.

“I haven’t been to Kenwood House for years. That sounds fun. And we’re also in for Alfie’s first walk on the Heath. That would be lovely. I can’t wait to meet him.” Once we’d made arrangements, I hung up, unsettled. There were so many good reasons why I wouldn’t want to date Chris, so why was I so bummed that he’d brushed off the idea as ridiculous?