‹ Prequel: Just Go With It
Sequel: I Could Never Pretend ›
Status: Completed
Nothing Is Ever Simple
Getting Over Her
JOHNNY
Jeff’s words in New York had sunk in and Johnny spent the weeks following the takeover desperately trying to forget Amelia or at least his feelings towards her. She was a married woman; off limits. He needed to accept this and as usual his solution was to get drunk with the guys.
Getting drunk with the guys was not much of a challenge and it was proving to be a great distraction. He was even finally prepared to accept the help of his friends in terms of dating and allowed Dave to set him up with one of his girlfriend’s friends. He had, however, drawn the line when for the umpteenth time Mel had tried to arrange him a blind date with someone she worked with. Being set up by his ex wife was one step too far.
Although none of the women he dated were Amelia, the constant attention was certainly keeping his mind off her and he had to admit he was enjoying being back on the scene. He was all too aware that he had become a needy, clingy shadow of his former self over the past few months and all of his friends had noticed the change in him since the takeover.
Johnny still made the effort to keep in touch with Amelia, no matter what happened he was not going to lose her as a friend and after catching up with Cliver at the offices Johnny had been unable to resist sharing the pictures with Amelia. Though he had seen some of them before, they had been painful to look now that he had come to terms with his feelings for her. He had been sure to send her an innocent email with no emotion attached and he really hadn’t expected to receive one back.
Johnny had not long returned from a dinner date with Lucy, a friend of Laura, the woman Jeff was currently seeing. The date had been a success and he had even gone so far as to bring her back to his house. They stumbled through the doorway, a little dizzy from the bottle of wine they had shared and Johnny put an arm around Lucy to steady her as they entered the hallway. She responded by wrapping her own arms around his neck and he found himself bringing his lips down to hers.
They kissed passionately and made their way into the living room where Johnny gently pushed her down on to the sofa. She smelt good and it had been a long time since he had been this close to someone. As he deepened the kiss he felt her work her hands down the front of his shirt, undoing the buttons. He was powerless to resist and pulled her dress over her head and started kissing her neck. Johnny could feel his pulse quicken and his heart pounding in his chest. Once they were both clad only in their underwear Johnny led Lucy to the bedroom and pulled her down on top of him.
***
Lucy was flat out in bed next to him but Johnny couldn’t sleep. He wasn’t sure if it was the buzz from their love making or something else but he felt restless and got out of bed to get some water. As he returned to the bedroom he saw his laptop flashing and realised he had left it on before going out that night. Glancing back at the woman in his bed, he decided to check his emails briefly. Jeff had mentioned that he was going to send him a proposal for a new show.
As he signed in to his email account his stomach performed a triple back flip that Steve-O would have been proud of, for he saw a familiar name in his unread list. Amelia. Johnny read through the email as fast as he could.
“I need to see you.”
He read the words over and over again.
“I need to see you.”
What did that mean? He was confused. The recent correspondence between him and Amelia had led him to believe that married life had improved for her. She had told him how Bam seemed to be a different person and that she felt happier than she had in a long time but as he flicked back to her most recent email it seemed that she had not been entirely truthful.
A wave of nausea overtook Johnny and he thought he might actually be sick. He could feel bile rise in his throat as he remembered what he had just done with Lucy. It was stupid to think that he had betrayed Amelia. She had never been his in the first place but he couldn’t shake the horrible feeling.
Ignoring the woman in his bed, Johnny took his phone from the desk and dialled Amelia’s number. It was late enough there in LA that it might just be a reasonable time to ring Amelia in Westchester. As he heard the dial tone he left the bedroom and started to pace the house, willing Amelia to pick up the phone. To his despair she did not answer and the call went through to her voice mail. Johnny groaned.
“Amelia, it’s PJ. I just got your email. Is everything ok? Please get in touch Amelia. Why do you need to see me? Has something happened? Ring me back as soon as you get this message.”
He hung up the phone and realised he probably sounded a little hysterical in his message but he couldn’t disguise his anxiety to know what she meant by needing to see him. He collapsed on to the sofa in his living room and put his head in his hands. He could not bring himself to go back upstairs to Lucy. It had been fun at the time but since reading Amelia’s email he wished he could rewind the evening.
He must have fallen asleep because he was suddenly aware that the sun was shining through the living room window and he could hear footsteps walking around the house. As the footsteps came closer he shut his eyes and pretended to be asleep, hoping that Lucy would see herself out. Sure enough, he heard the front door open and shut and he breathed a sigh of relief. No doubt Jeff would chew him out for not being a gentleman when Lucy complained to Laura, but he had no intention of seeing her again so what was the point in pretending?
Remembering the email from the night before, Johnny scrambled around for his phone anxiously and was frustrated to see that Amelia had not tried to return his call. He could still not shake the sick feeling in the pit of his stomach and trudged back upstairs now that the coast was clear. He considered ringing Amelia again but remembered his vow to leave her to it. If she really needed to see him she would surely get in touch.
***
The next evening, Johnny was sitting in a bar with Jeff and Spike. Needless to say, Jeff had heard every detail about Johnny’s date from Laura, and while he was proud of Johnny for bringing Lucy home, he was annoyed that he had not made more of an effort afterwards as Laura had moaned at him for it.
Johnny laughed and decided it was best not to tell him why he had suddenly taken a rain check with Lucy. It was at that moment that he felt his phone vibrated from his jeans pocket and pulled it out to find a voice mail waiting for him. He frowned trying to work out when he had missed a call and excused himself from the table as he dialled the mail box.
“Hi Johnny. Sorry for not ringing back sooner but Brandon’s not been very well. I had to take him to the doctors yesterday and everything’s been a bit manic. I guess you’re busy at the moment but I didn’t want you to worry. I know what you’re like. About the email...I err...well I just...I need to see you Johnny. I can’t explain over the phone. Can we meet up after Christmas is out of the way? Ring me or email me back? Oh, it’s Amelia by the way. In case you didn’t know.”
Johnny heard her laugh nervously before the beep signalled the end of the message. He rang her straight back and was relieved when she answered promptly. Johnny realised he would have to keep it short if he was to keep Jeff and Spike from getting suspicious so he quickly agreed to fly over to Westchester in the New Year and spend some quality time with Amelia before the filming for Viva La Bam began.
Jeff’s words in New York had sunk in and Johnny spent the weeks following the takeover desperately trying to forget Amelia or at least his feelings towards her. She was a married woman; off limits. He needed to accept this and as usual his solution was to get drunk with the guys.
Getting drunk with the guys was not much of a challenge and it was proving to be a great distraction. He was even finally prepared to accept the help of his friends in terms of dating and allowed Dave to set him up with one of his girlfriend’s friends. He had, however, drawn the line when for the umpteenth time Mel had tried to arrange him a blind date with someone she worked with. Being set up by his ex wife was one step too far.
Although none of the women he dated were Amelia, the constant attention was certainly keeping his mind off her and he had to admit he was enjoying being back on the scene. He was all too aware that he had become a needy, clingy shadow of his former self over the past few months and all of his friends had noticed the change in him since the takeover.
Johnny still made the effort to keep in touch with Amelia, no matter what happened he was not going to lose her as a friend and after catching up with Cliver at the offices Johnny had been unable to resist sharing the pictures with Amelia. Though he had seen some of them before, they had been painful to look now that he had come to terms with his feelings for her. He had been sure to send her an innocent email with no emotion attached and he really hadn’t expected to receive one back.
Johnny had not long returned from a dinner date with Lucy, a friend of Laura, the woman Jeff was currently seeing. The date had been a success and he had even gone so far as to bring her back to his house. They stumbled through the doorway, a little dizzy from the bottle of wine they had shared and Johnny put an arm around Lucy to steady her as they entered the hallway. She responded by wrapping her own arms around his neck and he found himself bringing his lips down to hers.
They kissed passionately and made their way into the living room where Johnny gently pushed her down on to the sofa. She smelt good and it had been a long time since he had been this close to someone. As he deepened the kiss he felt her work her hands down the front of his shirt, undoing the buttons. He was powerless to resist and pulled her dress over her head and started kissing her neck. Johnny could feel his pulse quicken and his heart pounding in his chest. Once they were both clad only in their underwear Johnny led Lucy to the bedroom and pulled her down on top of him.
***
Lucy was flat out in bed next to him but Johnny couldn’t sleep. He wasn’t sure if it was the buzz from their love making or something else but he felt restless and got out of bed to get some water. As he returned to the bedroom he saw his laptop flashing and realised he had left it on before going out that night. Glancing back at the woman in his bed, he decided to check his emails briefly. Jeff had mentioned that he was going to send him a proposal for a new show.
As he signed in to his email account his stomach performed a triple back flip that Steve-O would have been proud of, for he saw a familiar name in his unread list. Amelia. Johnny read through the email as fast as he could.
“I need to see you.”
He read the words over and over again.
“I need to see you.”
What did that mean? He was confused. The recent correspondence between him and Amelia had led him to believe that married life had improved for her. She had told him how Bam seemed to be a different person and that she felt happier than she had in a long time but as he flicked back to her most recent email it seemed that she had not been entirely truthful.
A wave of nausea overtook Johnny and he thought he might actually be sick. He could feel bile rise in his throat as he remembered what he had just done with Lucy. It was stupid to think that he had betrayed Amelia. She had never been his in the first place but he couldn’t shake the horrible feeling.
Ignoring the woman in his bed, Johnny took his phone from the desk and dialled Amelia’s number. It was late enough there in LA that it might just be a reasonable time to ring Amelia in Westchester. As he heard the dial tone he left the bedroom and started to pace the house, willing Amelia to pick up the phone. To his despair she did not answer and the call went through to her voice mail. Johnny groaned.
“Amelia, it’s PJ. I just got your email. Is everything ok? Please get in touch Amelia. Why do you need to see me? Has something happened? Ring me back as soon as you get this message.”
He hung up the phone and realised he probably sounded a little hysterical in his message but he couldn’t disguise his anxiety to know what she meant by needing to see him. He collapsed on to the sofa in his living room and put his head in his hands. He could not bring himself to go back upstairs to Lucy. It had been fun at the time but since reading Amelia’s email he wished he could rewind the evening.
He must have fallen asleep because he was suddenly aware that the sun was shining through the living room window and he could hear footsteps walking around the house. As the footsteps came closer he shut his eyes and pretended to be asleep, hoping that Lucy would see herself out. Sure enough, he heard the front door open and shut and he breathed a sigh of relief. No doubt Jeff would chew him out for not being a gentleman when Lucy complained to Laura, but he had no intention of seeing her again so what was the point in pretending?
Remembering the email from the night before, Johnny scrambled around for his phone anxiously and was frustrated to see that Amelia had not tried to return his call. He could still not shake the sick feeling in the pit of his stomach and trudged back upstairs now that the coast was clear. He considered ringing Amelia again but remembered his vow to leave her to it. If she really needed to see him she would surely get in touch.
***
The next evening, Johnny was sitting in a bar with Jeff and Spike. Needless to say, Jeff had heard every detail about Johnny’s date from Laura, and while he was proud of Johnny for bringing Lucy home, he was annoyed that he had not made more of an effort afterwards as Laura had moaned at him for it.
Johnny laughed and decided it was best not to tell him why he had suddenly taken a rain check with Lucy. It was at that moment that he felt his phone vibrated from his jeans pocket and pulled it out to find a voice mail waiting for him. He frowned trying to work out when he had missed a call and excused himself from the table as he dialled the mail box.
“Hi Johnny. Sorry for not ringing back sooner but Brandon’s not been very well. I had to take him to the doctors yesterday and everything’s been a bit manic. I guess you’re busy at the moment but I didn’t want you to worry. I know what you’re like. About the email...I err...well I just...I need to see you Johnny. I can’t explain over the phone. Can we meet up after Christmas is out of the way? Ring me or email me back? Oh, it’s Amelia by the way. In case you didn’t know.”
Johnny heard her laugh nervously before the beep signalled the end of the message. He rang her straight back and was relieved when she answered promptly. Johnny realised he would have to keep it short if he was to keep Jeff and Spike from getting suspicious so he quickly agreed to fly over to Westchester in the New Year and spend some quality time with Amelia before the filming for Viva La Bam began.