Strictly[Business]

[William Drake Gardner]

William had walked around the centre of London now for nearly two hours. The meeting at the hotel had gone well, and the builders were working on the problem as he spoke. Now, all he had to do was wait. Sit and wait in silence, on his own, until he got too bored and headed back to one of his hotels in the city centre. After a day of sitting, watching bald business men sit and talk about some faulty gas main, coming out here had seemed like the perfect thing to do. Two hours on, he felt differently.

He'd bought something for Jules, he felt sorry for her. Plus, she'd love him for it, the jeans were a one-off, and the dress was great. Well, that was a mans view on them. No doubt there'd be a lot of jumping around and squealing from Julie to come. He'd also bought a necklace, intentionally for Amelia. It'd been a spur of the moment type of thing, something that he was very good at. But now he had second thoughts about it. So, it was either her or Julie, but he wanted Amelia to have it. It'd look great against her eyes. Those oh-so-beautiful eyes.

Speaking of Amelia, he still hadn't met up with her, something that the pair had planned to do. So, pulling out his mobile, he typed in a text and sent it to her. Too late to go back now.

[Amelia Isabelle Forster]

Amelia was actually fairly close to the Lime Bar when Will texted her, so it didn't take her long to meet him there. What took the longest was to stop in a public washroom to fix her hair and make sure her make up was perfect. Because this was Will: she had to look excellent.

Amelia caught a glimpse of him before he realized that she saw him, and her breath caught in her throat. She would have just stopped and stared at him, as he looked striking there in the midst of everything else, but the pedestrians around her pushed her forward. Amelia allowed them to move her forward, her eyes never leaving Will. He transfixed her. At least she could admit it to herself, now. She hadn't allowed herself to think that way before. But honestly, how could she deny it?

Finally she was so close to him that she could speak and he could hear her. She placed one hand on his arm, feeling her hand tingle where it touched him.

"Hey there, Stranger. Fancy seeing you here!" She said, smiling widely at him.

[William Drake Gardner]

Will had been stood outside for the last few minutes. He'd waited a while after Amelia had text him, then gone out to look for her. Feeling the hand upon his arm, he turned and smiled at the owner of it. A pedestrian in a rush nearly knocked him flying, and as he righted himself, he laughed and put his arm around Amelia, steering her into the quiet, nearly empty bar. "You've got to love London" he said sarcastically as the pair sat at and empty table.

Popping his coat over the back of his chair, and the three designer bags under the table, he thought about the necklace again. Now would be a perfect time to reveal it, and see if her feelings had changed. But, until they'd talked for a while, he felt that he'd be too proud to reveal his heart like he had done before again.

"So, what trouble have you been upto?" he asked, a smile playing on his lips. A waitress came over, and he ordered a cappucino for himself, and a grilled bacon sandwich. "True British meal, apart from the cappucino" he laughed, then cast his gaze upon Amelia as she ordered herself.

[Amelia Isabelle Forster]

Amelia was embarrassingly aware of Will's arm around her, though she showed no outward signs of how he affected her. She was determined to appear collected, calm, and sophisticated, though she wasn't a London girl at heart. She always felt acutely out of place in London, as if she was an imposter.

Amelia laughed when Will asked her what mischief she had been up to. "You know me too well. I'll admit, I have been conniving. But I have an accomplice. I was sent here to interview an author, and she has turned out to be quite the little daredevil. She wishes for me to accompany her to an interview tomorrow, so that she can use my as a decoy." Amelia shrugged, because she wasn't exactly sure what this author meant by "decoy," so she was a little bit apprehensive.

Amelia felt Will's gaze upon her as she turned to order, and she felt her cheeks heat up. He hadn't used to fluster her. If only she could take the bodily reactions she had felt then and combine them with the emotional reactions she had now. Of course, it was kind of amusing for her to see how her body reacted, as well. The authors didn't lie when they described love.

"I'll have a hamburger and french fries, but leave off the onions and pickles. And just water to drink, please," she instructed the waitress. She had drank enough coffee at her interview that morning, and she could feel the caffeine coursing through her veins.

"So what about you?" She asked, turning to capture Will's blue eyed gaze. Those eyes made her heart stop. But enough of that. "What mischief have you planned?"

[William Drake Gardner]

Will smirked as she ordered her lunch. "Hearty appetite" he laughed, then thinking about how one of his previous girlfriends had hated how he'd used to say that, quickly righted himself; "Not that there's anything wrong with that I mean.." he trailed off, realising he'd already made a complete berk of himself. And, what, they'd only been here two minutes?

"Tomorrow I have to go back to the hotel, see how the works coming on. Then I guess I'm probably free to head home. At least Jules will be happy about that" he grinned, thinking of his sister. Now, maybe this was a good moment...

"In fact, I got her some things before, only I need a womans view" he smirked, pulling out the jeans first, then the dress, holding them both either side of him. Feeling the approving gaze of the waitress next to him, pouring out his coffee, he knew that once again he'd got it right. Now, all he had to do was wait and see if Amelia thought the same..

[Amelia Isabelle Forster]

Amelia laughed at Will's comment. "Yeah, I do have a hearty appetite. Dad always said that at least he wouldn't have to worry about me being anorexic..." There had always been slight worry that Amelia's younger sisters would give into the fad of being super skinny, and starve themselves or be bulemic, but that had never been cause of worry with Amelia. She was skinny enough without having to do that, anyway.

"Luckily for me, I have a high metabolism," she mentioned, sipping her water gracefully. That was just great, she had to go and mention her weight. She was a healthy weight, though she was considered underweight, but she didn't pay much attention to things like that. Nutrients and health just really didn't interest her.

"I hope everything works out with the hotel," said Amelia genuinely, then leaned forward as he held up the clothes. Clothes were always of interest, especially designer clothes.

Her mouth gaped when she saw them, and she gasped audibly. "Wow, those are gorgeous. Did you pick them out yourself? Because if you did, then you have a better eye for fashion than most women."

[William Drake Gardner]

Will laughed. "Yeah, I chose them out. Of course the sales woman did help a little." Obviously, it had been the sales woman who had gotten both of the things, Will didn't really care for the fashion industry, just so long as it kept Jules happy, he was happy. Taking a sip of the coffee, he then placed the mug back down, carefully folding the two items before returning them back to their correct bags.

Now he sat back and looked at Amelia, trying to make up his mind. "In fact.." he started, reaching into the jewellers bag and bringing forth the jewellry box that held within it the gorgeous necklace. "Sorry if this seems I'm using you to figure out what's good, but, what do you reckon to this?" he asked, handing her the box. He raised his hand to his chin, watching as she took hold of the box and began to open it...

[[Sorry it's short, mind blocked]]

[Amelia Isabelle Forster]

Amelia let a smile steal across her face. "The sales woman helped a little? Does that mean that she picked it out, and you get to take the credit? Well, nevermind. Whoever picked it out, it's lovely." She sipped her water delicately, thankful that it got the coffee taste out of her mouth. She hated the aftertaste that coffee left.

"No, it's fine," said Amelia off-handedly when he handed her the box. She didn't mind at all; in fact, if it meant that she could spend time with Will, then she liked it. She opened the box and looked inside, wondering what it could be.

Her breath caught in her throat again, but not because she had seen Will, rather because she saw the necklace. "Oh wow..." Was all that she could say, and her mouth gaped open slightly. "That's incredible! I'm sure that Juliette will love it."

((No problem. My post wasn't exactly the best))

[William Drake Gardner]

Will smirked as her mouth fell open slightly. Well that was good. Now, all he had to do was tell her it was hers. This could be a little unnerving...

"See, that isn't for Jules. Keep it" he smiled, nodding at the box, and taking her hands in his, "It's yours."

Will loved this. It was like, teasing Jules with something, but better, because it was Amelia. And this could be a sort of test too. If she flustered and didn't accept, it obviously meant that he was still in the wrong, and that she still didn't love him. If she accepted, he was obviously gettin somewhere.

Standing, he walked around to Amelias side of the table, fingering the necklace slightly. "Shall I?" he asked, indicating whether she wanted some help in putting it on, and Will would be only too obliging.

[Amelia Isabelle Forster]

Amelia's eyes widened when he said it was for her, and a smile spread over her face. "For me?" She asked, still not willing to believe that it was actually for her. Will had gotten her a necklace? A beautiful necklace? It was almost too good to be true! It was like a dream, or something.

"Wow, thank you," she said breathlessly, not knowing what else to say. "How did you pick it out?" She had a lot of faith in his abilities now. And then he had come over to her side of the table, offering to put it on her. That was a good thing; her hands were probably shaking too hard to put it on.

"Yes, please," she said breathlessly.

[William Drake Gardner]

Will smiled at her questioning. "Believe it or not, it was actually me who picked it out. I saw it and thought of you." No matter how corny that sounded, it was still true, and he wasn't going to hide the fact. "I'm guessing you like it then?" he smirked, teasing her.

Standing behind her now, he reached around her and took the necklace, taking it over her head so that it sat on her neck as though an angel had just lown past and left a splattering of dew there. It looked great on her, and he smiled once more as he fastened the clasp.

"You look gorgeous" he murmured softly, then, shame-faced, he walked back to his side of the table, coughing slightly and lowering his head. What was this, his shy side coming in to play again? Well that wouldn't do. "Are you okay?" he asked, forcing his head up again. She looked a little flustered, which he didn't like to see.

[Amelia Isabelle Forster]

He had seen it and thought of her? Did that mean that he thought about her as often as she thought of him? She could only hope and dream about that, though. Will had reduced Amelia to a silly schoolgirl again, at least, as far as her emotions were concerned. Amelia should probably have been cautious around guys, especially after her little encounter with Ian Crombie, but she knew that she could trust Will.

"I love it, Will, it's gorgeous," said Amelia, blushing and smiling at the same time, the blush causing her white cheeks to spot red. His proximity to her flustered her. It was as though her nerve endings were on fire; they stood at attention. She wanted to lean back and brush against him, just to feel the electric charge that would run through her body.

Had he really just told her that she looked gorgeous? Amelia blushed harder, but was incredibly touched. It had probably taken him a long time to admit that, or been hard for him. "Thank you," she said softly, wondering how to react to that. She wanted to jump up, lean across the table, and kiss him on the lips, but figured that would just scare the poor guy.

When he asked if she was ok, she figured he could probably read her mind. She reached across the time and placed her hand over his. "I'm fine...just..." she didn't know what to say. "This is so different for us. But nice. Incredibly nice."

[William Drake Gardner]

Will smiled as she flustered. Well, at least she hadn't thrown it back in her face or anything just yet. They were getting on, and Will didn't really know what to do. Except for that one time when he'd admitted his feelings, he'd never really known anything else except for when the pair of them argued. They'd hardly ever gotten off on the right foot, and her temper and the way she spoke had really been what had drawn him into her in the first place.

A spark of electricity hit his already cool hand as their hands touched. Smiling up at Amelia, he replied to her comment. "It is nice." A simple statement, but that was exactly what it was. Then, he spoke again. It was either him speaking about something relevant, or an awkwardly tense silence, and he'd rather speak. Even if what did come out of his mouth was equally as awkward.

"I guess, this is what I thought we could have had.. I mean, when I asked and.. Well, that I guess" he smirked, trying to hide his embarrassmant. But no, now he was going to say something else, before Amelia had time to show any response, in words or her expression. "I still feel the same you know Amelia. I think I always will, no matter how much you hate me" he spoke quietly, his head on a tilt and eyelids heavy. Those words that he'd longed to speak for weeks were finally out again. And now, the atmosphere was so tense, you could cut it with a knife.

[Amelia Isabelle Forster]

A smile hovered on Amelia's lips as Will answered her, and she didn't remove her hand from his. She was bound and determined to do this: to do what she needed to do, and not to regret it. But how could she regret it? She regretted many things, especially where Will was involved, but the most was that she had refused him without even inspecting her own heart. Because underneath the feelings that she allowed to come to the surface, she had to admit that she had loved him all along, probably almost as long as he had loved her.

Will began to speak, and Amelia made certain that her face showed no signs of her emotions. She knew her face to be altogether too expressive, and at times like these, that wasn't appreciated. She didn't want to confuse Will's emotions more by her facial expressions, though truth be told, she didn't know what he was getting at.

Whoa. He still loved her? After she had been horrible to him? Like, completely horrible? Then Will had to be the most patient man in the world, because Amelia knew that she probably wouldn't have put up with herself if she had been as rude to herself as she had been to him. But he still loved her! That was all that mattered, after all.

"Well then..." she said, letting her words linger in the air as she squeezed his hand. "I suppose I should tell you that my feelings are also unchanged. But," she added, hurrying to continue what she was saying, "I must also confess that I lied to you. I told you that I didn't love you, and never could, and that was a blatant lie. I did then, and I do now."

[William Drake Gardner]

Feeling the pressure on his hand tighten, and the words Amelia started to speak, he felt as though he'd done it again. He'd opened his heart, and she was going to throw it right back at him. Then, the but. And then that she too loved him. The smile that had slowly been dropping off of Will's face started to grow again, then grew even wider than it had before.

"Amelia, how long have I wished for you to say those words" he smiled, shaking his head in disbelief. He reached his other hand over the table, taking hers. Raising them up, he kissed both her hands at the same time, hardly believing what she had just admitted.

"But, why did you lie in the first place?" he asked, lowering his eyes, still keeping hold of her hands. Though he did want an explanation, he still loved her, even if it were some stupid reason.