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She’s quiet for a moment, and I know she’s absorbing this information. Part of me hopes it’ll change her opinion of me, even though I really shouldn’t care what she thinks. “Where’s your mom now?”
“She died when I was nineteen.”
“I’m sorry,” she says. “That must have been awful—being so young and suddenly having to care for your brother.”
There’s a gentleness in her voice that makes me want to wrap my arms around her and tell her all about every shitty thing I’ve ever been through. “It wasn’t easy, but I managed okay,” I say, offering her an easy smile to lighten the moment.
She doesn’t smile back. Instead, she says, “You don’t have to do that. You can just be real with me. It’s okay.”
“What, are you a soft place to land?” I ask, verging on sarcastic to avoid how I’m actually feeling.
“I could be.”
Somehow I know she means it, and to be honest, this whole thing is suddenly extremely confusing. Here’s a woman that I met a few hours ago, who I can’t seem to stop breaking all my own rules for—oversharing, flirting, wanting her opinion, and wanting to change her opinion of me. And I don’t want that from anyone. I need to get away from her right now so I can get my head screwed on straight again.
We walk back through the gates of the lodge and up the long, paved driveway. When we reach the lobby, I pull the door open for her and we walk inside, the warm air welcoming us. Gwen stops and looks up at me, her green eyes melting my resolve. “Would you like to grab a bite of supper with me? I’ll treat.”
Yes, I would. “I think I’ll eat in my room. I have some work I have to take care of.”
I can see the disappointment in her eyes but she keeps her smile in place. “Right. Yes. Well, thank you,” she says, reaching up with her right hand.
For a brief second, I think she’s going to pull me toward her for a kiss, but she doesn’t. She puts her hand on the strap of her backpack. “I should take this then.”
“Right, yes.” My first response is disappointment which is swiftly followed by shock. There’s no way I should want that. There’s no way I should want her.
“I’ll see you tomorrow,” she says. “Good luck with your work.”
“Thanks. Have a good sleep.”
“I will.”
I turn and walk down the long hallway to my room and unlock the door. When I’m inside, I let out a long sigh, then open the room service menu and call down to order the fish carpaccio and two bottles of beer. After that, I wander around my room for a minute, and decide to take a shower while I wait for my meal to arrive.
As the hot water washes over me, I feel agitated. Alone. No, more than alone—lonely, which is crazy because I like being alone. Love it, in fact. Alone is my happy place, other than when I’m at home hanging out with Michael. I’m just tired. That’s all this is. Tired and maybe a little mixed up. But the fact that I’m so mixed up is exactly why I should be alone right now. I need to concentrate on the important things in life—how to safeguard the corporation now that Richard is gone and make sure I’m the next owner of the Destroyers. Gwendolyn Fox is one distraction I don’t need. Or want. No matter what her ass looked like in those leggings.
14
Heating Up the Hot Springs…
Gwen
I should be sleeping. It’s been an insanely long day. I’m exhausted. Except, I’m not. My whole body feels like it’s vibrating, as if I’m hooked up to some sort of motor with no off switch. I’ve just been lying here, my mind going over every minute I spent with Ty Sterling today. It feels as though I’ve always known him, even though I really don’t know him at all. And what I do know, I don’t like. He’s a cynic. A critic. And worse, he’s one of those awful critics who’s vocal with his opinion even though he’s never stepped foot in our facility to see what we do, how we do it, or why. Instead, he sits in judgment of us from a place of ignorance and skepticism (two things the world really doesn’t need more of right now).
For the life of me, I can’t reconcile that version of him with the one I met today. The one who gave me his pullover when I was cold and exposed. The flirty, fun version pretending to be my husband. The caring one on the phone with his brother. The one holding my hand on that helicopter. The man that, in just a few short hours, stirred all kinds of feelings in me that I haven’t had since my college days. I grab my phone to text Allie, even though I have no idea when it’ll get to her.
Super confusing day. Spent the entire time with Ty Sterling. He was actually oddly amazing. Not sure he’s who we think he is.
I stare at it, then delete it. I can’t send that to her. Not after years of us having so much fun hating him. The thought of Allie makes me realize what’s at stake—our jobs, my house, my entire social circle. It’ll all come to an end and it’ll be because of him. No. It’ll be because of me if I can’t convince him.
Come on, Gwen. Get your head in the game. Because this is a game to be won or lost by me. I know I can change his mind. I can see it in his eyes when he looks at me. The way his focus is only on me, how his pupils get a little bigger, the way he held my hand—with such warm comfort. I can use this to save us all. And isn’t that exactly what someone like him would do? He said it himself. Use every advantage you can find. Bend the rules. So maybe that’s what I have to do too.
Picking up my phone, I write: I was wrong about him having his girlfriend followed. It’s to do with a business deal—the one he’s using as an excuse to shut us down. Please Google the name Muffy and club, see if you can make sense of it. He’s buying some sort of club that must be worth billions. He needs to keep it a secret or it sounds like the whole deal will go up in smoke. If we can figure it out, maybe we can find a way to use the information to get our funding.
I press send and hope that sometime tomorrow, it’ll go through. Throwing the covers off, I walk over to the window, the hardwood cool against my bare feet. The stars are unbelievably bright here, reminding me of my time in Puerto Rico back in grad school. When I look down, I spot one of the hot spring pools. It’s empty and the steam rising into the dark night air looks extremely inviting. That’ll help me fall asleep.
I quickly change into the new bikini Ty bought me, pull on a plush white bathrobe and hotel slippers, pocket my room key and head outside. The air is much cooler now and I bundle the robe tighter around my waist while I make my way to the pool. Sloughing off the robe, I slide into the steamy water, feeling the silkiness against my skin. “Ahhhh.”
I sit back against the side and stare up at the stars, feeling both small and connected to the universe at the same time. We’re not alone. I know we aren’t. If only I could convince Ty of the one thing I can’t convince my family—that there is life out there and one day we will know each other, maybe even be friendly but distant neighbors.
