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Reese giggled. “Yeah. When someone would come stay with us, we were always trying to pass Johnboy around between us. Like, hide him somewhere they would find him eventually.”
“Johnboy? Was that her dog’s name?”
“Yep. She loved this show called The Waltons. I think Johnboy was one of the characters. Anyway, he lives in a little plastic container now with his name taped to the lid.”
Her giggles turned into laughs now. Sterling found himself unable to stop staring at her. She was incredibly beautiful when she laughed.
“What kinds of places did you guys hide Johnboy? Give me your best one.”
“Well, mostly we would put him around people’s houses or if it was out-of-town guests like my cousins, we would stuff him in a suitcase, wrapped up in a pair of boxers or something.”
“Him? Don’t you mean ‘it’?”
Reese smiled. “No, definitely a him. The best, though, was the time I put him in the whipped cream at my aunt’s house at Thanksgiving.”
A shocked laugh escaped him. “That’s disgusting, Reese.”
She laughed. “You sound like my mom! It’s not like I dumped the ashes into the whipped cream. It was just the whole container, still sealed, inside the whipped cream. Totally hygienic.”
“You put your grandmother’s dead dog’s ashes into the whipped cream at Thanksgiving.”
“My dead grandmother’s dead dog’s ashes. My Dad’s mom. My other grandma is still around. No dog.”
“Dare I ask what you did with your grandmother’s ashes?”
“What kind of a person do you think I am? She’s buried in a cemetery, thank you very much. Oh my gosh. You must think I am completely a wreck. If you didn’t already.”
Sterling shook his head, laughing. Somehow, the story only made him like Reese more. She was completely different than anyone he’d ever met. Full of surprises and quirks. She made him laugh.
“It just makes me sure I want you on my team, Little Schemer. Speaking of, how about we do our meeting tonight? I’ll get room service delivered to my suite.”
“Your suite?” Her eyes went wide.
“It’s like an apartment, not a bedroom. We’ll stay out in the main room. Promise. It’s a professional, working meeting. Maybe I can hear more of your stories. I need to be prepared for any other pranks.”
She still looked nervous, which was adorable. Sterling hadn’t seen an expression cross her face that he didn’t like.
“Okay,” she said.
“You still look nervous. I’m not the one who said I was going to make you marry me the first time we met.”
“Hey,” she said, poking him in the side. He giggled and jumped back, trying to escape her fingers. Her face lit up. “You really are ticklish.”
“No, I’m not.” Reese stopped and put a hand to the center of her forehead. Sterling watched her. “What are you doing?” he asked.
She put her hand down and smile. “Just making a mental note. Had to file that away for things I can use against you later.”
“I’m really scared now,” Sterling said. “Let’s get back to the hotel.”
“You should be,” Reese said, grinning. “Remember: I’m a long-term pranker. You don’t want to cross me.”
As they fell into step, Sterling realized that he was scared. But not of being pranked. He was scared of other, long-term battles she was launching against his heart, whether she realized she was doing it or not. He felt like he was starting to give up ground, lowering his defenses a little bit more every time he was with Reese.
Chapter Ten
Reese stood just outside of room 522. Suite 522.
Sterling’s suite. Sterling James’ suite.
