Page 34 of Soul of Discretion

Nick laughed knowing Simon was trying to calm him with a joke. “I know I’m being overly dramatic, but it’s important.”

Simon looked at him closely and Nick was getting a little nervous under that perceptive gaze. “You’re important to me as well, Northernsalute.”

Nick could feel his face heating up. He’d been too obvious due to the fear of something happening while he was away. Before he had a chance to respond there was a knock on the door. Nick got up and went to answer it. The only two people who should be able to get this close to Simon were Jeffries and Peter. Unfortunately, it was the former.

“Wanted to let you know I’m back from my break,” Jeffries stated with a satisfied grin on his face. Nick wouldn’t put it past Jeffries to return early just to disturb whatever he thought was happening inside the suite. Again, Nick didn’t have time for this petty shit and shut the door in Jeffries’s face. He only had a short amount of time to pack and steal a few minutes with Simon.

“Nosy fellow, isn’t he?”

“Nosy, pain in the ass, jerk, all pretty much sum up the man. But he’ll keep you safe, and that’s all that matters,” Nick assured as he walked back to his suite to pack.

He grabbed his duffle bag from the closet and began taking clothes out of his dresser. Simon sat on the bed and watched, saying nothing. After he finished, Nick hoisted the bag over his shoulder and reached for Simon.

“You be good while I’m gone, your Lordship, and don’t even think about solving the case on your own, you’re in enough danger,” Nick teased as he wrapped his free arm around Simon.

“I can’t make any promises,” Simon replied before leaning forward and taking Nick’s lips in a heated kiss. He was going to miss this for the next few days, but he began viewing the whole thing as a test of sorts, to get an idea what it would be like when Simon left for good.

With that depressing thought heavy in his mind, they said their good-byes and Nick took a taxi over to Terminal One at the airport. Nick didn’t like having to deal with the many emotions running through his body, so he shoved them aside, boarded the plane, and studied the file instead.

Jason Webber was a distant cousin of the Baronne family and ripe for the picking. He was facing twenty-five to life for racketeering, and the family had hung him out to dry. He either made a deal, or he’d spend what could be the rest of his life behind bars. By the looks of things, Webber would still face a good amount of time behind bars whether he helped in Nick’s investigation or not.

****

By the time he landed at the Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport, Nick was ready to get on with the questioning but that would have to wait until the morning. For now, a fellow RCMP officer drove him to his hotel with a promise to pick him up early the next morning. His mind filled with Simon, Simon’s safety, getting back to Simon, and finding out if this Baronne cousin had any useable info, Nick walked into the hotel lobby in a hurry. Then he stopped dead in his tracks. Wow. It was breathtaking. Large silver chandeliers hung from the ceiling, reflecting off the marble columns that rose up from floor to ceiling. What looked like velvet drapes framed every window. Artwork hung on the walls, and porters in pristine uniforms ran by to help the next patron.

This is not my hotel. There must be a mistake.A young porter approached him with a huge smile on his face; he couldn’t have been more than twenty-one. He quickly took Nick’s bag and said, “Welcome. Can you please follow me, sir?”

Before Nick had a chance to stop him, the young man walked up to the check-in and stood waiting for Nick to join him. He realized this couldn’t be his hotel, but he played along and walked up to the large, carved oak desk, behind which a distinguished-looking woman sat.

“Have a seat, sir, and we’ll get you signed in. May I please have your name?”

“Nick Cooper, but I think there’s been a mistake.”

“Here you are, sir. Your room card, and please, feel free to bill meals or items you need as it appears the room comes with all expenses paid,” the older lady said as she handed him his room card and a few pamphlets about the surrounding area.

Nick wasn’t going to question the poor woman considering the line behind him. He’d wait until he got to his room and call the inspector to find out what was going on. He looked at his reflection in the mirrored elevator doors, wondering what you had to do as a profession to stay in a place like this. The elevator dinged then the doors opened and Nick stepped on, and the porter followed. He pushed floor eleven and off they went. When Nick got to his room, he tipped the young man, took his bag, and opened the front door.

The moment he walked inside, he knew Simon had something to do with this or the Montreal detachment was extremely welcoming. A bouquet of sunflowers sat on the round coffee table in the living area of the room. Nick’s favourite flower. He dropped his bag on the couch and went to the flowers; sure enough there was a card attached. Yes, he was a man who enjoyed flowers.

I couldn’t leave you in a motel. Dinner will be served at 8pm. Simon x.

Nick shook his head; he should have known Simon had done all of this, and he wasn’t sure how he felt about that. He sat down on the couch and was sucked into the buttery leather.

Simon had done this without even asking.

Yeah, because he wanted to surprise you.Nick began arguing with himself.

He’s overbearing.

He’s showing he cares.

This behaviour highlights how different the two of us are.

Opposites attract.

What the hell am I doing? It doesn’t matter, this will be over soon enough and none of this is going to matter. I should enjoy it.

With that decided Nick grabbed his bag and went to unpack in the bedroom. The first thing that caught his attention was the king-size canopy bed. Okay, now he felt like Cinderella. A servant becoming a princess, or prince in this case.