“It’s complicated.”
Well. That was a weird answer. “Um…we have a shared door. It might be locked on your side though. You want me to come over if I can?”
“God,” the guy groaned, and there was a smaller thud like he’d knocked his head on the wall. “Yeah, I guess. Shit, this is humiliating.” I was pretty sure I wasn’t meant to hear that last part, and it made me smile a bit.
Something about his voice was oddly familiar, though having worked as an EMT for as long as I did, I’d come to realize that a lot of people sounded like a lot of other people, so I quit making assumptions a long time ago.
Reaching for the dead bolt, I flicked it, and the door shook as it disengaged. When I turned the knob, it groaned…and then it opened.
Well, shit.
That was creepy. If I were some sort of mass murderer, I could have walked over and killed both him and his partner in their bed.
Luckily for them, I wasn’t.
I pushed in all the way, startled by how dark it was. All the lights were off save for the one in his bathroom, so I searched the shadows and eventually saw him a few feet away, lying in a heap beside the wall. His back was up against the same little table I had in my room, and he looked like he was only just keeping himself upright.
As my eyes adjusted, I could also see he was wearing the very pristine white hotel robe, and his legs were pale as they stuck out. I could also make out a mess of black hair that was falling loose from a hair tie.
“Hi,” I said, taking a few steps closer. “I’m Ryan.”
The guy wheezed a laugh. “Hey, Ryan. What a shitty way to meet.”
Something about his voice struck me hard. It was difficult to make out the nuance of it because it was raspy and soft, but I swore I’d heard it before. “It’s no big deal. I used to do this a lot.”
“Slip into strangers’ hotel rooms and help them off the floor?” he asked.
I laughed as I got close enough to kneel down. “You’d be surprised at some of the shit I dealt with. One time, I had to rescue this old man—I’m talking, like, damn near ninety. He mistook a Christmas ornament for a dildo, and, well…yeah.”
“Oh my god,” the guy said, his voice barely a wheeze. He used his hands to attempt to turn over, but he wasn’t successful. “You had to pull it out?”
I laughed again. “Oh my god, no. I just had to get him comfortably on a stretcher so we could transport him to the hospital.”
The guy went very, very silent. Then, “Are you an EMT?”
“I was one, but I quit a year ago.”
“That is disgustingly ironic…Ryan. Your name isRyan?”
The way he said my name was…but no. There wasn’t a chance in hell. This was more likely to be some kind of fever dream. “It is. Now, how can I help you up?”
“Well, Ryan,” the guy said. He turned his head toward me, but I couldn’t see much more than basic features. “I have this thing with my legs where every now and again, they just kind of quit working. Especially if I get worked up or stressed.”
Worked up. He’d definitely been worked up before. I glanced around quickly but realized that he was alone in this room. His partner must have gone for a drink or something.
“If you can just lift me to my feet and support me to the bed, I think that’ll do it.”
“Easy enough.” It had been a while since I’d maintained my upper-body strength, but I hadn’t lost all of it. I managed to scoot behind him and get my arms under the robe. As I liftedhim, his legs gave out, but his feet eventually caught on the ground and flattened enough to take some of his weight.
And then, of course, his robe fell open.
He was completely naked. It was still dark, but I caught a glimpse of his tattooed chest and then a shadowy, long,gorgeousdick before he scrambled to close it.
“Shit, sorry.”
“Trust me, I’ve seen naked people before,” I murmured. “There’s nothing to be embarrassed about.”
He stiffened, then cleared his throat and pointed to the bedroom. “If you don’t mind?”
