Turn Me On. Dylan Rose
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“None of the other magazines have it,” Bev said. “This could be major for you.”
Faye twisted her long, platinum blond hair over her shoulder and smiled nervously at her boss. “I appreciate that, really, I do.”
“I need you for this, Faye,” Bev said insistently. “You’re my best writer. And I know it’s not my place to say, but maybe traveling for a few days would do you good.”
Faye opened her mouth to protest her boss’s gentle suggestion but instead her mouth hung agape. She wasn’t quite sure what to say. Of course, the assignment was incredible. And she did deserve it. But she had heard the rumors about the women who encountered Gregor. It wasn’t so much that he was persistent, but more that women were drawn to his aura. Getting caught up in a fantasy was just something she didn’t need right now.
“Did you say days—as in, multiple days?”
Bev returned Faye’s nonplussed expression with a knowing smirk. “A week, actually. In London.”
Faye exhaled deeply and turned her gaze toward the windows. The sun was shining bright for what felt like the first time in weeks. It had been a long, cold New York City winter and today, for the first time, people were walking around without jackets. Spring was in the air.
But where was she? Still in emotional limbo over a guy who was long gone. And punishing herself with her bland diet and her austere lifestyle. Even her outfit was joyless. She looked down at her black trousers and pilled sweater and could just hear her mother saying how she was “hiding her beauty.” But what if she wasn’t ready for anyone to see it again? Maybe she would never be ready.
“What about Lindsay?”
Bev snorted.
“She’s a good writer!”
“She’s fine. But I don’t want someone ‘fine,’ I want you.” Bev reached into her desk and produced a file folder which she tossed across the desk to Faye. “Everything you need to know is in there. Your flight leaves out of JFK first thing tomorrow morning.”
Later that night in her apartment, Faye sat on the living room couch. Even though she had kept almost everything when David had moved out, the place still felt weirdly empty without him there. There were some things she liked about living alone—for one, she could watch any of her “girlie” shows without snark or criticism. And now things were decorated the way she preferred—before she hadn’t been able to display all of the framed pictures of her many travels with her girlfriends after college. Come to think of it, she hadn’t traveled much in recent years as David was more of a homebody. Maybe the adventure would be a good thing, she told herself.
Her suitcase, which she had gotten out of storage in her building’s basement after work, was in the middle of the room and she had multiple items of clothing piled on the bed. Faye stared off into space, lost in a reverie featuring Gregor from the episode of his show where he went stand-up paddle boarding in Turks and Caicos. She easily remembered how his lean, tanned body looked against the vibrant blue waters. He had worn a bike-shorts-length Speedo, but instead of looking ridiculous, as most men did in that skintight suit, he managed to pull it off and give his female viewership something very substantial to occupy their thoughts after the episode ended.
Angry at herself for letting her thoughts get away from her, she picked up the phone and called her sister, Eden, who was always her “in case of emergency” person.
“Hey,” Eden answered right away, her voice sounding a little harried and tired, as per usual. She was three years older than Faye, and a married mom of three. Right now, she was probably in the middle of serving dinner to her army of boys.
“What do we think about Gregor Wright?” Faye asked her sister tentatively. Ever since they were kids, Eden was the barometer of cool for Faye. If she said anything negative, the trip would be off.
“Ooh, the hot guy from the Travel Channel?”
“Yeah. That’s him,” Faye said, with a slight tinge of disappointment in her voice. So there really was no getting off the hook for this.
“Are you interviewing him?” Eden asked enthusiastically. “Make sure to take a selfie. And do other things I would say if there were not children present,” she added deviously.
“I’m flying out tomorrow to interview him at his home in London,” Faye said. Saying it out loud for the first time that day suddenly made the trip seem all too real. “Anyway, I just wanted to let you know. In case I was in a plane crash or something.”
“Geez. Positive outlook, sis.”
“I know. I just worry…”
“About being alone with a sexy-as-hell famous man who’s used to getting anything he wants?”
“Pretty much.”
“Listen,” Eden said, her voice sounding more serious. “You’ve suffered enough. You deserve to let yourself have a little fun.”
“I know,” Faye whispered, the events of the night it had all gone so very wrong flooding back to her. She swallowed hard, refusing to renege on the promise she’d made herself to not cry about this again.
Sensing her sister’s mood, Eden switched to a perkier tone. “Well, make sure to take lots of pictures. Oh, and bring me back a souvenir.”
“Like what?” Faye asked incredulously. Sometimes her big sister acted like she was five.
“You’ll think of something.”
Faye hung up the call with a smile forming on her lips. She looked at the picture of her and Eden on her refrigerator standing in a London phone booth on a family trip there as teenagers. Surrounding it was further evidence of the fact that she was a die-hard anglophile—a Beatles postcard, a magnet from Harrods and another one featuring a Union Jack.
There was no denying it—London, and Gregor Wright, were calling.
After a fitful night’s sleep—Faye could never sleep the night before a flight—the alarm went off at 4 a.m. She took a quick shower and did a last-minute check of the apartment. She then lugged her suitcase down the four flights of stairs, hoping not to disturb her neighbors, before pushing her way out of the building and onto the sidewalk where she could hail a cab.
A short taxi ride later—there was almost no traffic at this early hour—Faye went through security, found her gate and settled into a seat with the file folder on Gregor to wait for her boarding call. Ever punctual, she always liked getting to the airport with plenty of time to spare.
After a while, she looked up from an article about Gregor’s favorite Thanksgiving recipes, including a roguish photo of him in an apron with three-day stubble, to check out some of her fellow travelers. There were plenty of people flying solo, presumably on business, a few families dressed in their comfy sweats, their seats overflowing with bags and snacks and amusements, and seated just across from her, a young couple obviously on their honeymoon. The woman was wearing tight jeans and