A twinge of jealousy prods me as I wonder whether she’s asking me this because Edward snores. My brother and I haven’t shared a bedroom since we were six years old, so I have no idea if he’s a noisy sleeper. But that doesn’t stop my mind from coming to this conclusion.
Unlike before, Alice doesn’t consider the correlation between her question and its implications. I find this disappointing. It’s not that I expect her to anticipate my feelings about her and Edward every time she speaks. It’s disappointing because it makes me wonder if I read too much into her avoiding the topic of Edward earlier.
My mobile vibrates in my pocket, and I pull it out immediately, thinking it will probably be Tino, wondering where I am and when he can expect me to return his truck. But when I see my brother’s name again, I swiftly tap the button to reject the call and slide the phone into my pocket.
I look down at Alice, searching for any indication she saw Edward’s name on my screen, but it doesn’t appear so. “I’ve been told I do not snore, but I can’t make any guarantees.”
She shrugs and turns back to the desk clerk. “We’ll take the room.”
The man seems uncomfortable, his eyes sketchily flitting back and forth between Alice and me as he runs my credit card and generates our card keys. Placing the keys in a tiny envelope with the room number written on it, he places them on the counter and points to our right.
“The elevator vestibule is around the corner on the left. The restaurant and bar are open until ten p.m. Complimentary breakfast is served in the restaurant from six a.m. to nine a.m., with grab-and-go coffee and snacks available in the lobby all day—in case you want to sleep in,” he says, glancing at me for some reason. “The Wi-Fi password is written on the envelope. If you need anything at all, please don’t hesitate to call the front desk. We hope you enjoy your stay with us.”
I slide the room keys off the counter and head toward the elevators. “Are you sure you don’t want to go to another hotel?” I ask, looking around at the corporate-style furnishings and chintzy, gold-pinstriped wallpaper.
Alice presses the button to call the elevator. “Truthfully, I’m exhausted by this emotional roller coaster of a day. I just want to put something in my stomach and go to sleep. Do you mind if we eat in the hotel restaurant? I know they probably only serve food service pre-baked cheesecakes and brownies, but it’s better than starving.”
I wait for her to enter the elevator first. “You’ll find when it comes to food, I’m not as pretentious as you’d expect,” I reply, punching the button for the fourth floor.
She seems to relax at the sound of this. “Good. I’m easy, too.” She seems to realize what she said and shakes her head at the smile on my face. “Not easy when it comes to that.”
“Not easy when it comes to many things, apparently.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Nothing,” I reply, cursing myself for speaking without thinking.
The doors slide open, and we spill out onto the fourth floor corridor.
“Don’t be scared. Say what you’re thinking?” she prods me.
My mobile vibrates again, and I reach into my pocket, grateful for the distraction. But at the sight of Edward’s name, I immediately send the call to voicemail and tuck the phone away again. I’m going to have to change his name in my address book if I want to prevent the appearance of impropriety by constantly rejecting phone calls in Alice’s presence.
I imagine that, by now, she must be a wee bit curious to know why I’m not answering. She may refrain from asking about it a few more times, so as not to appear insecure, but eventually she will ask. And I don’t mind lying to Edward, but the thought of lying to Alice puts my teeth on edge.
“I’ll have to ring Tino later and tell him I’ll have his truck back by tomorrow,” I say, careful not to say it’s Tino who’s been calling me, though the implication is enough to make me queasy.
I slide the card key into the slot a few times before the red light turns green, and the lock disengages. But as soon as we enter the room, I realize why the front desk clerk seemed uncomfortable while he was running my credit card. He charged me for a room with only one king-sized bed.
Alice lets out a few choice curse words. “That little weasel,” she says, snatching up the handset on the phone next to the bed. “You gave us a room with one bed! You said it had two beds!” she shouts.
My eyes widen and I can’t help but feel turned on by her fieriness.
The pointed anger in her features slackens into a kind of despair. “But you did. I heard you—” She’s silent for a while, looking jolly defeated, then the fury returns as she shakes her head. “Fine. We will!”
I take a cautionary step back as she slams the handset down. “What did he say?” I ask tentatively.
She rounds on me and I take another step back. “He said I’m the one who said the room had two beds. He never confirmed it. And if we want a refund, we’ll have to take it up with the hotel manager who arrives at eight p.m.”
I step forward and place a hand on her shoulder as she pinches the bridge of her nose. “Hey, it’s not the end of the world. I can sleep on the floor.”
She peers up at me looking utterly defeated. “I can’t make you sleep on the floor when you paid for the room. At least let me pay you back for the room, so I don’t feel guilty.”
I chuckle softly at her offer. “You’re not giving me a single penny.”
She glances sideways at my hand on her shoulder, then she swallows hard as she looks up at me again. “We can share the bed. As long as you keep your hands to yourself. I mean, the bed is huge. You should have no problem staying on your side, right?”
I shake my head as I lower my hand. “I really don’t mind sleeping on the floor.”
She looks slightly confused and possibly a tiny bit offended now. “Are you sure?” she asks, and I definitely hear a note of disappointment in her voice. “I really don’t mind sharing the bed.”
This is a pivotal moment. How I choose to handle this predicament has the power to change everything between us.
I glance at the king-sized bed, then back at her. She’s my employee. I should insist on sleeping on the floor. It’s improper for me to waver even the slightest bit on this decision.
Yet, here I am, clearly wobbling like a poorly set jelly. I reckon that’s a proper image for what my insides feel like. The thought of sleeping in the same bed with Alice and not being able to have my way with her sounds like some form of extreme punishment.
And I’m no masochist.
“If you insist,” I reply in a somewhat dismissive tone. “I don’t want to risk you apologizing to me in the morning for making me sleep on the floor.”
She lands a hard push in the center of my chest and strides past me toward the door, leaving me in a cloud of that Alice framboise fragrance I can’t seem to get enough of. “Can we eat now?”
I savor the scent for a moment, allowing myself to imagine eating at a restaurant closer to our room. “Yes, love.”
The server who takes our order makes no attempt to disguise her appreciation of me, stealing glances at my tattoos and my face every few seconds as Alice rattles off her order. She’s a good-looking blonde in her early twenties, but I have no desire to encourage her behavior. When Alice finishes and the server doesn’t acknowledge her, I find myself incapable of hiding my annoyance.