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Post by James Benson on Jan 10, 2016 1:16:52 GMT
Jamie smiled at her, wanting to dismiss her statement of not being as cool as he had made her seem. From the little that he knew about her so far, it seemed much more likely that she was actually cooler than he was giving her credit for. Something about a girl who was more than willing to sit in the middle of a crowded party and pour over a graphic novel instead of socializing with dozens of people, that he was sure that she neither cared about or found interesting, had intrigued him. So he was happy to hear her say that she didn't have a boyfriend - not even because he expected anything to necessarily happen between them, but because it was the sort of information that he would enjoy tucking away for later. Especially around midnight.
Laughing, he shook his head softly at her, "I wish I was half as interesting as you make me out to be - but I'm glad that I've been able to make your night less boring. I'm glad that I found you here."
Olivia had looked over at the other two, hoping that their reason for intruding on the time she was spending with her husband was well worth the interruption. Though she knew that she couldn't really be upset with them for interrupting when business was involved, there was always going to be a part of her that immediately became defensive when people from her past were involved. It had taken her a while to become comfortable with Brandon and Amber Finn as a regular, and eventually welcome, part of her own little social circle, but she was absolutely certain that the doe-eyed brunette in front of her was never going to be part of that group. Though, after all of this time, she supposed that it had significantly more to do with Madison's continued dislike of her. "Cooper, Madison, happy New Year," she greeted with a small smile.
Madison smiled in response and wished them both a happy New Year in return before feeling the need to press herself a little closer to Cooper's side. There was some history that she knew that she struggled to move past, and no matter how much she knew that she was being petty and childish, the consistent way that Olivia had attempted to make not only high school but her adult life miserable, she had a difficult time stomaching the woman's friendship. "Well, we won't take up any more of your time," she offered, more than willing to continue with her original plan of pulling her husband out of the party.
"You're more than welcome to stay and catch up for a moment," Liv said with a polite smile. "Unless, of course, you have somewhere else to be."
"Oh," Madison hesitated, looking to Cooper for his guidance.
Sloane smirked at him over her drink, taking a sip from the glass before she returned a little shrug. "I suppose we could. Though it does seem awfully boring, doesn't it? Maybe we should liven it up a little bit."
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Post by A.J. Dogherty on Jan 10, 2016 1:35:38 GMT
AJ hadn't been expecting to meet anyone while invited out by her aunt and uncle. In fact, she'd practically kicked and screamed when her parents told her that they had to go and when her aunt, earlier in the day, had vocally disapproved of the dress AJ had brought from home and insisted on buying her a new one. So she'd snuck her graphic novel in her bag, hoping to just make it through the night instead of being showcased as her aunt and uncle's current charity case. Still, she couldn't say that James' company was an unwelcome distraction from her otherwise uncomfortable evening and when he smiled at her, she couldn't help that her face flushed a little bit. "I bet you're interesting. Everyone is at least a little bit interesting," she told him with a nod. "Tell me something about you."
Cooper smiled politely at Olivia but he knew that his wife felt slightly uncomfortable around the other couple and given their history, Cooper understood despite the time that had passed. "Well, we're actually going to get going because I'm feeling slightly under the weather," he pressed a kiss to the top of Maddy's head. "Do you want to go tell James that we're going to be heading out? I've got a bit more I need to discuss with Parker, but then he's all yours for the night Olivia," he joked.
Will smirked at Sloane, nodding as he glanced around the party. "What did you have in mind?"
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Post by James Benson on Jan 10, 2016 1:57:41 GMT
It was difficult for him to think of anything worth telling her about himself. figuring that most of the time it ended up coming across as more bragging than anything. Melanie had never had a problem being honest with people about her many likes and dislikes, even brutally so, but she had an entire room that helped to supply answers to questions like these. Shrugging, trying to think of perhaps the most interesting of his generic hobbies, he smiled at her again. "I know that a lot of people say that it's fake and that it's just kind of stupid - but I really like wrestling," he confessed. In fact, some of his most amusing, or perhaps embarrassing, memories as a little kid included him trying to jump on top of Melanie to pin her to the couch and win his imaginary championship belt. While the wrestling move practice in their living room had stopped, he still loved the excitement and the hype of the matches, both on television and in person.
Maddy nodded, smiling politely at Parker and Olivia before wishing them a happy New Year one last time and excusing herself from them. She found Jamie speaking with the same cute young woman before and she almost hesitated at interrupting them. "Jamie?" she said softly, trying to get his attention. "Your father isn't feeling well so we're going to take off a little early. Feel free to stay here if you'd like to, and just for this one night, forget about your curfew." She couldn't help herself and so she stepped up and pressed a quick kiss to his cheek. "Be good and we'll see you tomorrow morning." Grinning at him, glad to see that he wasn't letting everything that had happened with Kensi get to him, she made her way toward the door, waiting for Cooper to join her.
Jamie flushed slightly at his mother's sudden appearance, unable to look directly at her in the moment out of a small bit of embarrassment but he laughed and shook his head all the same. "I'm sorry about that," he apologized. "But I guess I don't have to worry about leaving you alone in this crowd just yet."
Contemplating it for a moment, Sloane chewed on her lower lip absentmindedly. "Do you like games?"
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Post by A.J. Dogherty on Jan 10, 2016 2:08:48 GMT
Cooper continued his conversation with Parker, briefly just fleshing out a few things he needed to talk about regarding work before spotting his wife. He wished the other couple a happy New Year again before going to meet his wife at the door, wondering how quickly and discreetly he could get a room in a hotel that he owned.
Parker smiled at Liv, sipping at his drink. The truth was that he was proud of how much Olivia had grown and being able to take stock in it like in moments that had just transpired. Their history with the other couple, namely with Madison, was just that -history, but for a group like their circle that sometimes had a hard time putting the past to rest, he appreciated Liv's efforts to be as polite as possible. He leaned in and kissed her, "I love you," he told her gently.
AJ was about to respond when James' mother came over to let them know that his parents were leaving for the night. She watched as he became a bit embarrassed and couldn't help but find it entirely endearing. Upon hearing that he had the entire night free, she wondered if he'd like to continue spending it with her. For a girl who'd come to a party hoping to spend it alone, she certainly wanted him to stay with her. "It's okay, your mom seems very sweet," she told him. "And as for your confession, my brothers have been practicing wrestling moves on me since I could walk," she told him. "I'm actually really into it too," she told him with a laugh. "A few of us went to a house show last month at Madison Square Garden. Our seats were pretty high up, but it was a blast. Really, I try to never miss a show," she admitted with a shrug.
Will eyed Sloane for a moment before shrugging a shoulder up casually. "I like winning," he replied simply before grinning at her. "What sort of game did you have in mind?"
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Post by James Benson on Jan 10, 2016 3:06:12 GMT
Taking a drink from her glass, Olivia shook her head at her husband. She supposed that she hadn't been purposefully trying to make an effort, at least not for a while, she just supposed that she had finally reached a point where she had found the games exhausting. She blamed Will for that a lot if she was being honest. Having a child had put things into perspective and she had quickly moved past her desire to play a destructive role in other peoples' lives. What it all boiled down to, she supposed, was that William had allowed her to get to a point in her life where she had felt the need to finally grow up. "And I love you," she told him with a soft grin.
At AJ's confession of also being a wrestling fan, he had to grin widely at her. He had certainly chosen the correct table to crash at in his attempt to be more social. Though, if he was being entirely honest, her statement of having been high up had brought down the realization that they did come from two very different worlds, and she came from one that he wasn't sure that he knew anything about. "What about you? Tell me something about you."
Sloane grinned, "Good, I like winning too." She glanced over at where she had last seen her cousin absorbed in her little book thing and noticed that a relatively cute boy had now joined her. Well, she thought, perhaps the game just got a little more interesting. "I guess what I was thinking of might have been a little more of a competition - a wager, even."
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Post by A.J. Dogherty on Jan 10, 2016 3:23:30 GMT
Parker glanced at the door where the Bensons had just exited. "I wonder if Will would fancy a night to himself, too," he muttered. "Perhaps they had the right idea about cutting the night short." It was rare that Parker was willing to sacrifice an opportunity to network, but he'd found that spending time with Olivia was just as important and since they'd become parents alone time was fewer and further between.
AJ pursed her lips for a moment as the conversation became focused on her. She glanced around the party, taking in everyone in their expensive dresses and suits, enjoying their fancy party and cocktails. She realized just how much she didn't fit in to this world that James had previously admitted to being a part of. She suddenly felt a bit nervous, she shrugged though, deciding to be honest. "I can change a flat tire really fast," she told him. "I mean really fast. My dad and my brother are both mechanics, our family owns a garage, and my two other brothers both worked there as kids but I'm faster than all four of them. It's this weird hidden useless talent of mine," she told him with a smile. "If my career goals fall short, I might just join a pit crew on a race track."
Will smirked and nodded, he followed her gaze and found Jamie Benson and some girl he didn't recognize sitting together. With interest, he turned back to Sloane. "I do fancy myself a gambler. What did you have in mind?" he asked her.
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Post by James Benson on Jan 10, 2016 4:01:33 GMT
Raising a brow at him, Olivia smirked at Parker. Quite frankly, the idea of spending a night alone with him was highly refreshing. In between their responsibilities as parents, Parker's sometimes demanding career, and her societal obligations, any excuse they had for spending time together was a welcome one. "I'm sure he's old enough to spend some time alone. We are in a hotel - it would be only too easy to give him free reign of the flat if one were so inclined." Toying with the olives in her martini, she made a show of sliding one off of the toothpick and chewing on it thoughtfully. "That is, of course, if you think that he can be trusted to do anything that we wouldn't do." And by that, she meant that she hoped they could trust their son not to get into too much trouble or bring anyone home that night.
Jamie grinned, nodding at her confession and again was reminded about how different her own life was than his. He didn't even have a driver's license yet, having felt no need for one considering the fact that he didn't actually know how to drive a car, and never having felt the need to do so. He figured that he could wait until he reached legal drinking age to obtain one, but in the mean time, that was what they had drivers for. "Impressive," he mused to her. "And what are your career goals?" he asked curiously.
Grinning, Sloane raised a shoulder in a little shrug. "I don't know - I think it might be fun to get my cousin to break out of her shell, show her how exciting life outside of her stupid stories could be. Maybe after a heartbreak or two, she'll be better suited for all of this." She had always thought that maybe her cousin was perhaps a little too nice for the world that Sloane had always tried to include her in, and she thought that maybe a harsh dose of reality would get her to see that Sloane could be her best ally in this world.
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Post by A.J. Dogherty on Jan 10, 2016 4:31:44 GMT
Parker grinned, taking a sip of his drink and nodding at her. "I say, we text him - tell him he's on his own for the night, and then you and I go get ourselves a room - maybe some champagne from room service?" he suggested with a smirk. "Let's live on the edge a bit, Mrs. Blye," he chuckled.
AJ smiled at him, shrugging her shoulders up. "I want to go to school for early childhood education. My mom is a teacher, and I like working with kids. I babysit a lot when I'm not in school and when I'm not working at the garage with my family." she grinned. "So I want to teach kindergarten - maybe even first grade or pre-school - but definitely young kids," she explained. She thought it would be fun to take after her mother - but she had always taught older students. AJ liked the idea of being able to teach younger kids who were more excitable, liked games, and use things like music in the classroom.
Will observed the girl Sloane had previously been looking at and nodded. "That's her, I suppose?" he asked, looking at James Benson. "Well, it seem James has taken quite a shine to her. Which could make this even more fun. So what's the wager then? If I can help break your cousin in, what do I get out of the deal? What do you get if I can't?"
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Post by James Benson on Jan 10, 2016 21:27:53 GMT
Olivia raised a brow in amusement at his suggestion. She certainly couldn't say that she felt that it was a terrible idea, though part of her did feel a little bad abandoning Will. Looking over in his direction, she found that he was still occupied by the same young woman as before. Torn between the thought that perhaps she shouldn't trust him on his own and wanting to slip away with her husband, she decided that there wasn't too much trouble he could get into in one night. At least, she hoped not. "Perfect," she said, turning to Parker with a smirk of her own. "I think that sounds like a lovely idea."
Jamie grinned at her, finding her career goals to be incredibly endearing considering that most of the people that he knew had aspirations of taking over their family's companies, taking on high-paying roles for large corporations, or simply remaining part of society. To hear that someone wanted to do something that potentially had the chance to make a difference. She was making the entire evening much more interesting than he had thought it would have. "That's great," he complimented her.
Nodding, Sloane observed her cousin for a moment before turning back to Will with a slight raise of her shoulder. "What would you like to get out of it?"
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Post by A.J. Dogherty on Jan 10, 2016 21:41:06 GMT
Parker grinned, taking out his phone briefly to tap out a text message to his son with one hand even as he downed the rest of his drink and reached for his wife's hand after setting the glass down.
Will turned to Sloane after glancing down at his phone and then smirked at her. "How about I get to take you on a date?" he told her. He was pretty sure that putting sex on the line might have been a bit much given that he hadn't even gotten her name yet. But still, the way he lifted his eyebrows and smirked at her should have implied that he had no intention of taking her on a sweet first date and dropping her off at the door with a kiss. "And if I can't break your cousin's heart, you can have - whatever you'd like, honestly." He told her with a wink. He glanced around though, just in time to see a familiar face heading in James and AJ's direction. He smirked, not saying anything but feeling as though his job had just gotten a mite easier.
Kensi spotted Jamie almost instantly upon walking into the party with some of her friends. She'd known that he was going to be there - it was his family's hotel after all. And it was also the place they'd first met and slept together. Being dumped had left a bad taste in her mouth, one that only worsened when she saw him sitting with another girl making conversation. Making a bee line straight for him, she cleared her throat. "Hi, can we talk?"
AJ blushed a bit at his compliment and shrugged her shoulders. "Thanks," she muttered to him. She glanced up though, as they were interrupted and quickly realized the newcomer wasn't going asking to talk to her. "Friend of yours?" she asked gently.
"Girlfriend," Kensi replied easily. "Could we have a minute?"
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Post by James Benson on Jan 10, 2016 21:51:48 GMT
Sloane smirked at him, nodding at his suggestion of a date. "We can start there, of course." She wasn't naive enough to expect that what either of them really wanted was just a date, though she could understand his hesitation to move directly to the suggestion of sex. Besides, she already knew what she was going to ask for if he wasn't able to get AJ to step outside of her weird little box - so she supposed that they were both going to win either way. "Deal," she agreed.
Jamie looked up at Kensi at her intrusion into his conversation with AJ, but frowned angrily when she introduced herself as his girlfriend. He wasn't sure how much he needed to tell her to make it clear that they were over, and that he had ever intention of it staying that way. He couldn't be in a position where he felt like he constantly had to choose between his girlfriend and his family, not only because it wasn't fair, but also because he knew that he was going to pick his family every time. "Ex-girlfriend," he forcibly corrected her. "And no, Kensi. We don't have anything to talk about."
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Post by A.J. Dogherty on Jan 10, 2016 22:02:01 GMT
Kensi frowned at Jamie and sighed. "Fine, extremely recent ex-girlfriend," she pointed out to him, glancing at the other girl as she said it. "But please? Jamie, I just need a few minutes to talk to you."
AJ cleared her throat, shifting uncomfortable. Just as quickly as her nice evening had been going, she felt her heart sink a bit. Of course he had someone else. And whether or not it was over, she could tell from the girl's tone that she wasn't going to give up without a fight. Deciding that, since she was really just visiting, that it was best to avoid drama, she shook her head at them both. "You know what, it's fine? I'm going to go check in on my parents anyway," she told them before smiling at Jamie. "Thank you," she told him sincerely. "And happy New Year."
Will smirked at Sloane before seeing his opportunity, approaching AJ as she seemed to walk away from Jamie and Kensi. He smiled at her upon his approach. "Do I know you?" he questioned. "Because I was pretty sure that I know every pretty girl on this side of the city and now I'm not so sure." She seemed startled by his compliment and he decided to try a new approach, he let out a chuckle. "I'm sorry - that was completely and utterly lame of me. I just saw you talking to Jamie earlier and you seemed a mite disappointed once his ex showed up, I thought maybe a cheesy line would cheer you up." He offered his hand out to her. "I'm William. And I did mean what I said earlier about finding you incredibly pretty. I wouldn't let Jamie and Kens get you down - those two crazy kids have a really special relationship and he's kind of still hung up on her whether he admits it or not. First love and all."
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Post by James Benson on Jan 10, 2016 22:13:07 GMT
At the sudden loss of his companion for the evening, Jamie scowled at Kensi. He truly felt as though there was nothing that they had to talk about, and he resented her for causing AJ to feel the need to walk away from their conversation. "Kensi, I have nothing to say to you. And I don't want to hear anything from you, either."
He tried to turn his attention away from her and see if there was any chance of him catching up to AJ before she made it over to her parents. He found that William Blye had already intercepted her, which had only caused him to frown. "And if you don't mind, I think I should go save my new friend from whatever is happening over there now."
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Post by A.J. Dogherty on Jan 11, 2016 1:18:24 GMT
Kensi frowned at Jamie and shook her head at him. "Jamie, I'm only trying to apologize," she said to him gently. "Don't you think that we can talk for even a minute? I know that I was out of line at dinner that night and I didn't mean to upset you. Sometimes I say things without thinking them through but - it's not like our relationship was all bad, was it?" She shook her head at him. "You were the first guy that I liked in a really long time and I thought we were...It can't really be that easy for you to just forget about, can it?" she asked him sadly.
AJ frowned a bit at Will when he mentioned that James might still be hung up on his ex girlfriend, implying that he was looking for a rebound more than anything else. She tried not to be too disappointed. After all, it wasn't like she was in this social circle often. But it had felt nice to have him pay attention to her - her incognito Prince from a foreign land. But she supposed that if her stagecoach turned into a pumpkin before midnight, she couldn't be disappointed. So she smiled at Will, making easy conversation with him. She wasn't quite sure what had prompted two boys to flirt with her on the same night, but it was a nice little ego boost, she supposed. Will asked her a few questions about herself - why he hadn't met her before, where she was from, if she was having a nice night. He certainly was charming and the accent didn't hurt, either. But conversation, surprisingly, didn't come as easy as it had with James.
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Post by James Benson on Jan 11, 2016 1:39:53 GMT
Jamie sighed, trying to decide whether or not it was even worse carrying on this conversation with her. He truly didn't care that she was trying to apologize, if only because he knew that it wasn't something that he felt that he was going to be able to forgive her for. In the absence of having her around he had been reminded of all of the times that she had something that he thought had crossed a line, things that she had said about his sister, and the way that they just didn't seem to always mesh. In the short time that he had been able to speak to AJ, he had felt like they had a stronger connection with her than he did with Kensi in all of the time that they had been together. But no - he had to admit that not everything had been bad. In fact, there were parts of it that had been really good. Those parts just didn't make up for everything else.
"You were out of line," he told her with a nod. "Kensi, I don't regret dating you or what we had, I just don't think that it was right for either of us." Feeling his attention drawn back to AJ, he wondered if she would have liked him to come and interrupt whatever conversation she was getting involved in.
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