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Goose bumps peppered my skin. I couldn’t imagine scouring Boston alone looking for my mother. As much as I’d resisted this trip in the beginning, I knew I’d made the right decision.
The girl handed me my key and Owen his. “If you need anything at all…” she said, looking at him. “My name is Colleen. I’m on until midnight. And more importantly, I’moff aftermidnight.”
“Thank you,” he replied, seeming unaffected by her proposition.
“That woman deserves to be punched,” I whispered as we walked toward the elevators.
Owen laughed. “She wasn’t very subtle, huh?”
“Just because we aren’t sleeping in the same bed doesn’t mean we’re not together.” I quickly corrected myself. “I mean, we’renottogether, butshedoesn’t know that.”
“Yeah, that was a little brazen. Kind of reminds me of a spitfire I met one night not too long ago who told me very clearly what she wanted.”
I blushed, realizing he was referring to me. “It was unlike me to let loose…to that extent.”
We stepped into the elevator. “Well, I’m glad you took me along for the ride, even if it was only a fleeting moment.” He pressed the number for our floor. “I’m sorry if I made you uncomfortable by bringing it up.”
I tucked my hair behind my ear. “You didn’t.”
The elevator doors opened, and we stepped out onto our floor.
“What do you say after we drop our stuff, we find the best restaurant around here and go out for a nice dinner?” Owen suggested. “Make the best of this?”
“That’s tempting, but I sort of feel like just crashing in the hotel room,” I told him. “I’m so exhausted from this day. Can we do takeout instead?”
“Of course. I’ll go pick something up while you relax.”
“Are you disappointed we’re not going out?” I asked as we walked down the hall.
“I spend my life in restaurants with clients, Devyn. A low-key dinner here with you sounds even better.”
After we located our rooms, Owen went to his to drop off his stuff. After a minute I heard a knock, but not at the front door. Our rooms were not only next to each other, but there was a door that adjoined them.
He joined me to look at the spectacular Boston skyline outside the window in my room.
“Wow, this is really beautiful,” I said.
“It is,” he agreed, although in the reflection of the glass, I could see him looking atme, not the skyline.
Knowing that he was going to be right next door made me nervous, but I wouldn’t have wanted it any other way.
“Anything in particular you want to eat?” he asked.
I shrugged. “Surprise me.”
“Seriously? No requests? The world is your oyster, Devyn.” He smiled. “The North End isn’t too far from here. They have great Italian.”
“No requests. I’m feeling indecisive, but I have no food allergies or anything. So anything will be great. Literally the only thing I don’t like is ginger. You know, the pickled kind they put on the side of sushi? That makes me want to vomit.”
He laughed. “Okay, I’ll steer clear of pickled ginger.”
After he left to go pick up food, I called to talk to Heath and Hannah for a minute before taking a long, hot shower. I needed it after this day. I felt spoiled having this alone time in a beautiful hotel room while an even more beautiful man went out and bought me dinner. It made me realize just how crappily men had treated me in the past. This feeling should not have been so foreign.
After my shower, I lay in bed, wearing the pajamas I’d bought at Target and feeling grateful. I turned on the TV, wondering how pathetic it would be if Owen came back to find me totally asleep—I wasthattired.
As I started to doze off in the comfy bed, my phone rang.
Robert.
