I followed her out of the room. “Meet me in the lobby in 10 minutes.”
“15. I need to freshen up.”
“Fine, 15. It’s already late.”
I headed for the lobby and ran right into her family, plus Aimee’s two cohorts. Her brother looked a little less than thrilled and the girls looked terrible—I’d seen all the bottles they’d emptied last night.
I opened my mouth to introduce myself, but Aimee’s mother pulled me into a hug and squeezed.
“Thank you,” she whispered in my ear before pulling away.
Her husband gave me a quick nod, and they walked away. I felt a burn in my chest, and felt unworthy of her gratitude.
“She’s right. We’d hoped that this trip would help her get back on her feet,” Orion said and held out his hand for me to shake.
“Annalise and Eloise told me everything.”
I took his hand and gave a quick jerk of my head.
“Though, if you break my sister’s heart—I will end you,” he said, and I believed him.
“I’m taking her skiing—has she ever been?”
“It’s been since before the accident. We have passes up at check-in—we’re probably hitting the slopes tomorrow, if you want to join us,” he said.
Annalise leaned into his side, and his arm automatically moved around her shoulders. I watched as she buried her face in the side of his chest.
“I’ll let you know. I think you need to get these two some ginger ale and a toilet bowl. I counted at least six empty bottles of wine when I saw them last night.”
Orion chuckled. “I heard about that. I’ll take care of them. You take care of my sister.”
I nodded again and started to move away.
“Oh, Lukas.”
I turned to look at Orion. His brows were furrowed, a little line creasing between them.
“She’ll tell you her knee is fine, but if it looks like it’s bothering her—it is.”
He turned and walked away, leaving me standing in the lobby contemplating how long I should wait before going to get Aimee. I had a feeling she was going to take a lot longer than 15 minutes.
I lasted all of ten seconds, before hitting the elevator button, calling it to the lobby. There were a few people milling about, and fought tapping my foot in anticipation. The lift dinged, and Istepped out of the way to let a couple off. As soon as I entered, I hit theclose doorsbutton like a madman. I could see a different couple, waving at me to hold the elevator, but I pretended I didn’t, and it closed in their faces.
Maybe not my finest moment, but I had a plan, and I didn’t involve awkward bystanders. I was betting what I wanted to do, on a lot of things, and I hoped they all worked in my favor.
The door dinged and opened, right in front of Aimee, who was on her phone, not paying attention.
“Aimee,” I asked.
She was grinning at her phone, so I reached out and grabbed her the same time the doors slid shut. She screamed, dropping her phone and the jacket she had draped over her arm. I let go of her, and she backed away, pressing herself into the far wall.
“Shit,” I hissed, moving towards her, my hands hovering around her face and head, before cupping the back of it and pulling her against my chest.
I held her against me, her back still pressed into the wall, and I waited for both of our heartbeats to return to a normal rhythm.
“I thought you’d maybe heard me say your name,” I said.
I felt her arms come around my waist.
