“There’s no way I’m lettingyousleep in it,” I fire back. “I doubt you’ve ever slept on anything but the finest mattress with the highest thread count sheets.”
He gives me an amused smirk. “Oh, yeah?”
I glower at him. “Am I wrong?”
He nods once but is still smiling. “Yeah, you’re wrong.”
I turn away and glare at the doors to the elevator. I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s lying just to make a point. “We’ll see. Good luck getting me into that bed.”
Now Theo barks out a laugh. “Is that a challenge, Whit?”
I glare at him but don’t deign to respond. We make it to the hotel room, and I swipe the key over the door to gain entry. The room is nice. Immediately after walking in, we find the lounge area with the couch that I assume is the pullout bed.
Walking right over to the couch, I drop my purse onto it, effectively claiming it as my own. Theo watches me, unamused, with his hands shoved in his pockets. Thankfully, he doesn’tpress the issue and walks further into the room toward the bedroom.
I follow him, mostly out of curiosity, just to check if the rest of the room is as nice as the lounge area. Right in the middle, against a side wall, is the king bed and a TV hangs directly across it on the other wall. The bed is immaculately made with several colorful throw pillows and a beautifully stitched bed scarf right at the end.
I hate to admit it, but that bed looks incredibly comfortable. Maybe I should’ve let him be the gentleman and take the king bed for myself.
But I’ve planted my flag. I can’t go back solely based on principle. But that’s a problem for later tonight. Surely there’s no harm in claiming it for myself until then, right?
Glancing at the time on my phone I ask, “What time is the event?”
“Not until seven this evening. We’ve got plenty of time to do whatever. I’ve got to check some emails and catch up on a few other things, but then we can maybe get lunch and walk around the city if you’d like.”
“Mind if I take a nap?” I suggest. Theo nods, tilting his head off to the side as if gesturing for me to go ahead.
Wasting no more time, I launch myself onto the bed, landing right in the center of the squishy mattress and heavenly pillows. Theo’s eyes are wide, clearly not expecting me to have done that. I shoot him a sardonic smile as I wiggle under the covers and get settled. Theo’s expression turns from surprised to amused. He shakes his head and smirks at me before switching the lights out and closing the bedroom door behind him.
I smile, pleased that I could stake a claim for now. As I get more and more comfortable, I start to regret making such a bigdeal out of me taking the pullout. Going from this five-star bed to a likely lumpy and squeaky roll-out mattress will be hard.
Once I’m settled, I reach for my phone and send a quick text to Leila, letting her know we made it. After she found out I’d be attending this gala with Theo this weekend she was all in, begging me to send her every little detail. I had no doubt she would’ve been able to attend had Chase made it this weekend as his date, but he was busy moving himself out of Theo’s apartment and into his own.
After I put my phone down, I close my eyes and try to relax. The minutes tick by, and I’m frustrated I’m not asleep yet. My mind is too jittery with thoughts of how tonight’s event will go. Aside from the fact that I’ve never been to such a fancy event before, Theo’s parents will be there, and that knowledge is making me over think everything. I want to make a good impression on them. I want them to know that their son is important to me, and I hope they’ll appreciate that fact. I’m terrified that I won’t know how to act or make a fool of myself and that will somehow prove to them that I’m not worthy of Theo’s attention.
But at the same time, I know Theo will never let that happen. He’s the one who asked me to come with him after all, as hisdate. He’d never put me in a situation where he wasn’t confident I belonged.
Thoughts of how he stared at me on the airplane flood my mind now, putting the anxious thoughts to ease. His warm, brown eyes become all I can think about.
Eventually, my body starts to feel heavy, and suddenly, I can’t find it inside myself to care. Slowly, I fall into a deep sleep and dream of ballgowns, castles, and beds fit for a king.
Theo
With one lastlook in the hotel room mirror, I’m satisfied that this is a good look for tonight. I settled on my black slacks and a white shirt. Whitney ordered me a dinner jacket specifically for this event, and I’d be lying if I wasn’t impressed with her style. She picked a slim-fit charcoal gray jacket with a subtle embroidered floral pattern. I paired it with a black tie and silver cufflinks.
I’m still fiddling with my tie, unsure I have the knot correct. We’re already pushing the time too close, so this will have to do. I rap my knuckles against the bathroom door to let Whitney know we’ve got to hurry up, and step back into the living area in our hotel room to wait for her.
Only a few minutes pass before Whitney throws open the bathroom door and enters the main room to greet me. The minute my eyes fall on her, my mouth goes dry.
She’s an absolute vision.
Adorned in a long, royal purple formal dress, she seems to have stepped out of a dream. The shape of the dress does amazing things for her figure, the neckline dipping lowand showing off the exquisite swell of her breasts. And to make matters worse, her dress has a long slit running up the side of her leg.
I swallow thickly, attempting to get ahold of myself as she turns to me with a wide smile. “How do I look?” she asks.
“Stunning,” I choke out and then clear my throat. “You look great, Whitney.”
Her cheeks heat, and her eyes fall down to the matching purple clutch she holds in both hands. She tucks a strand of her silky hair back behind her ear and then looks up at me again shyly. “Shall we?”
