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“All right, kisses goodbye,” Rachel says while striding toward my mother. She brushes her lips against the top of Maria’s head. “And you have Lucas’s number just in case anything bad happens?”
“Oh, honey,” Mom says with a chuckle. “If anything bad happens, we’ll call 911.”
Rachel gives me a look like she’s about to kill me.
“All right, well, goodbye!” I shout while ushering everyone out of the house. “Have fun with Maria. Please do call me if anything happens,” I add with an awkward chuckle.
Just when Hunter, Seth, and Alex have made it outside, I watch in horror as Rachel stalks past my dad and swipes his cigar from his very lips. Dad’s eyes widen, his mouth gaping open. Mom hasn’t even noticed since her attention is practically glued to Maria.
“What—” Dad begins, but Rachel ignores him as she heads for me, a look of determination in her gaze. “That was my last cigar!”
“I said no smoking inside,” Rachel practically hisses as she stalks past me and toward the car. I watch her throw the cigar onto the ground and stamp it out with her high heel.
***
“Oh, this is nice,” Rachel says while sitting into her cushioned chair.
She looks around the large hall filled with round tables and faux-gold plated chairs. The place is classy, yet a little hipster, with brick walls and old chandeliers hanging above us. Not all of them work. Some flicker, but it adds to the quirkiness of the venue. The waiters are dressed in all black and there are even dessert tables being pushed past us, which remind me of my days growing up with my parents and eating at Michelin star restaurants all the time.
“Isn’t it?” I say while glancing at the bros, watching them look around. “Steve recommended it to me.”
“I’ve lived here my whole life and I didn’t know this place existed,” Hunter says.
“I think it’s new,” I say with a nod. “Steve says they’re known for their swordfish, but get whatever you want. Dinner is on me.”
As far as dinner goes, it’s smoother than I thought it would turn out. It’s a bit awkward at first, given we usually talk about Maria or the bills, but after the initial thirty minutes, it’s like we’re all back to being us. Rachel is talking about her schoolwork. She just started classes again two weeks ago and she has a lot of work to catch up on. Seth and Alex talk about running, since they still go in the mornings. Hunter discusses what his plan is now that he’s decided he hates teaching teenagers. He may go into teaching elementary school kids. Things have opened up for him since he worked the ski trip, and it looks like he will be able to get an internship at a school for the next school year. By the time dessert comes around, it’s been at least two hours, and Rachel and the bros haven’t demanded to return home to Maria.
After dessert has been cleared, and I’ve paid for the bill, we waddle out to Hunter’s car, looking fuller, happier, and more relaxed. I’m not ready for the night to end, but something holds me back from inviting everyone to the hotel room I’ve booked for the night. Hearing their no’s or their need to return to Maria makes the words catch in my throat, and I don’t want to end the night on a negative note, with me wishing I had kept my mouth shut.
“Great dinner,” Seth says, patting me on the back.
Alex opens the door for Rachel. “I kinda want to regurgitate it all and eat it again.”
“That’s disgusting,” Rachel says with a grimace aimed at Alex.
“Well,” I begin nervously, fidgeting with my fingers, “the night doesn’t have to end here. I booked a hotel room nearby. If…you know…any of you are interested.”
Rachel, Hunter, Seth, and Alex share a look.
“That was presumptuous of you,” Seth says, the beginnings of a smirk taking hold of his features.
Alex gives Seth a shrewd look. “Very.”
“I don’t think we could stay out the whole night,” Rachel says slowly as if calculating her words. “But…another hour or two I don’t think would hurt. What do you think, Hunter?”
Hunter swings his keys around his finger, yet his gaze remains glued to Rachel. His cheeks appear flushed, and there’s heat in his gaze. “Yeah,” he finally says, his voice low and just above a whisper. “If you think it’s okay. We can spend another hour or two out. I think Lucas’s parents won’t mind all that much.”
We all ease into the car. The idea of going to a hotel has silenced us. I type the location on my phone and hand it to Hunter. My fingers tap anxiously on my knee while Hunter drives. No one speaks. It’s like we’re all thinking about what’s waiting for us in that hotel room. It’s been a long time since we’ve had sex together, and I’m not so sure we can even get penetrative with Rachel. It’s been nearly four months since she’s given birth. Her stitches have healed. She’s been moving around a lot—running from class to class and back to Maria’s side—so I think it’s safe to say getting physical with her should be fine. Still, I would hate to hurt her.
But, if Rachel says she’s fine and okay to have sex, then I’m going to take her word for it. She knows what’s best for her body. No one else can tell her what she does and doesn’t feel.
After checking into the hotel and receiving a very curious look from the receptionist, we squeeze onto the elevator and make our way toward our room. Not even the elevator music fills the silence between us, and the closer we get to our room, the more antsy I get, worried that things may not go right.
Our room is 306, one of the closest rooms to the elevators, which may or may not be a good thing. I open the door for everyone. Seth blazes right on in and I bite back an awkward chuckle when I hear him shout, “Wow! Isn’t this fancy.”
Alex and Hunter follow after him while Rachel takes my hand, tugging me inside. Seth is quite right. The room is pretty fancy for being close to Aurora University. I can’t imagine who would ever have the money to stay in a place so nice, or who would want to.
Correction. My parents would want to. I really hope they don’t expect to stay at our place. Since we aren’t staying the night, maybe they can have this room when…we’re done with it.
