Resolution Pact: First Kiss

Bradley walked towards a group of people that seemed to be well on their way to getting intoxicated and began to talk with them. I found a spot near the edge of the crowd and just tried to blend in. I felt slightly out of place and while Bradley was beautiful, finding out that he only brought me to the party so he could point me out as his date didn’t seem to indicate he had any real interest. He pointed to me a couple of times as he interacted with various people and I struggled not to blush when they looked my way. After about twenty minutes, I was ready to make my exit as soon as I could find an opening. A couple of people near me moved towards the elevator, so I tried to follow along behind them so that I would be closer to it.

“You’re not thinking of leaving are you?” Bradley walked up to me and smiled.

“I was considering it.” I nodded. “It looks like you’ve got everything under control. Everyone thinks you brought a date, so you should be in the clear.”

“I suppose so.” He looked towards the crowd. “I’d like it if you stayed though.”

“Why?” I raised an eyebrow.

“So I can get to know you a little better—hold that thought, someone just arrived that I need to talk to.” He sighed and left me standing by myself again as he walked away.

He certainly seems to be popular…

After Bradley left me standing alone for the second time, I pulled my phone out of my purse and glanced at it. A few of my sorority sisters had replied to a group text that was sent earlier in the evening by Stacy, the head of our sorority. I reread it, letting the words resonate in my head.

Remember, ladies. Do it. Whatever you want to do. Wherever you have wanted to go, whatever you want to try, to taste, to feel, to live…do it. This is going to be our year.

There were a lot of things I wanted to do—lots of things I wanted to try. The problem was, I didn’t even know where to begin. I always dreamed of growing up, meeting a nice guy, and experiencing all of the magical moments from the romantic movies I loved. Real life hasn’t been anything like the fantasies on the screen. I had only been on a few dates, and while the guys seemed nice when I met them, it was clear they were only interested in one thing once they got me alone. It indeed wasn’t the beginning of a beautiful romance—and based on what I had seen so far, it didn’t look like Bradley Remington was going to bet he one either.

I don’t think he’s going to be the first guy to kiss me, so I might as well go home.

“Mr. Remington, I was hoping that we would have a few minutes to talk about the proposal I submitted last week.” An older man named Jon Stevens tried to pull me away from the crowd.

“Jon, this is a party—lighten up. Make an appointment with my secretary for later this week, and I’ll be glad to sit down with you.” I forced a smile, one that I hoped would be reassuring.

“Okay.” He nodded. “But if you get a few minutes…”

“You’ll be the first to know.” I patted him on the shoulder and turned away before he could see the annoyed expression form on my face.

My life went from normal to extremely complicated the day my father decided to take early retirement and appoint me as the newest CEO of Remington Aeronautics. I always expected to end up in his chair—it’s what I had been preparing for my whole life. I just thought I would have a little more time before it happened. Becoming CEO meant that my life was under the microscope and that included the women I dated—not that I had much time. The main concern seemed to be that I wasn’t dating anyone, which meant every business associate with an eligible daughter thought we would be great together.

Hopefully, I’ll have a break from that tonight since I managed to walk through the door with a beautiful woman at my side.

“Speaking of which…” I looked around, talking to nobody in particular. “Where did she go?”

I walked towards the edge of the crowd where I last saw Brittany last, and there was no sign of her. My eyes quickly scanned the room, and I finally caught a glimpse of her heading towards the elevator. I pushed my way to the exit and started walking a little faster once I was out of the crowd. She had already hit the button, and I saw the buttons flashing as the elevator made the way to the top floor.

“Wait, where are you going?” I quickened my pace so that I could get to her before the elevator door opened.

“I know you said you’d like for me to stay…” She turned towards me and sighed. “But, I can see that you’re busy. Surely everyone knows that you walked in with a date by this point.”

“Yes, word has spread…” I chuckled under my breath. “You just want to go home and watch the ball drop at midnight on television instead of watching it live?”

“I’m going to be watching it on television here…” She motioned towards one of the screens that were showing the countdown towards midnight.

“Oh no.” I shook my head back and forth. “Come with me.”

I walked over to the door that led to the roof and motioned for her to follow me. She hesitated for a moment, but then she finally started walking behind me. I took her hand as we walked up the stairs and when I opened the door to the roof, I saw her eyes light up.

“See.” I pointed over the edge of the roof. “We have a perfect view.”

“Wow!” She walked through the door and looked back at me with a surprised look on her face.

“This is the tallest building for miles. It’s like being in the middle of Times Square without the crowd.” I walked over and poured two glasses of champagne from one of the bottles that were sitting on ice. “Although it will be a little crowded once everyone is up here.”

“This is in an incredible view.” She took the glass of champagne that I offered her. “It’s—beautiful.”

“It’s the second most beautiful sight I’ve seen tonight.” I sipped my champagne and smiled. “It doesn’t hold a candle to you.”