We went to the front desk, a wooden affair decorated with delicate floral designs that reminded me of my grandmother’s love of damask wallpaper. Wick beat me to the punch, getting his wallet out first as he flashed a smile at the teenage girl behind the counter. She was very put together in a white dress with a high neck, her curly brown hair anchored perfectly in place with a white barrette, but her eyes were wider than I thought they should’ve been. Her lips thinned as we came toward her.
“I’ve got three rooms left, and Mr. Yoon asked me to get people to stay together, if possible,” she blurted the second we were standing directly in front of her. “I’m sorry for the inconvenience, gentlemen, but we’re a bit overwhelmed.”
Wick nodded and leaned closer to blast her with that smile of his. “We’ll take the largest room you have left.”
She shrugged. “They’re all the same. We have single queen-sized beds with a connected bathroom. I would say you could go elsewhere, but we have word every place is booked to the roof!”
Wick nodded and said something quietly to her I didn’t catch, but I’d already noticed Hyeon rushing around with a stack of towels he handed off to a boy in his twenties, who I thought might be related to him. I felt like I should know the guy’s name, but it escaped me.
“Hyeon,” I called, and he startled, then turned toward me, smiling as he walked over.
“Reece! Wow, what a day. Are you... okay?” He looked me up and down. “Did you get into an accident?”
“He helped save a school from being flooded this afternoon.” Wick knocked his elbow against my side.
Hyeon’s mouth fell open. “That’s amazing. You’ll have to tell me about it.”
“Wick already promised story time to the folks outside,” I said, with an eye roll that had him laughing. “I was wondering if you could help me. Wick’s clothes are trashed, and we can’t get to his place out of town.”
“No one can,” he muttered direly, glancing toward the front doors as a bunch of people came in. He groaned, then spun toward the desk. “After this group, you need to put a sign on the door saying we’re fully booked.”
The girl behind the desk nodded.
“I was wondering if you had any ideas on where we could get Mr. Guidry some extra clothes,” I said, gesturing at Wick.
Hyeon looked Wick over, which made me uncomfortable. It was stupid to be jealous, but I couldn’t stop it. I happened to know he preferred men, and if Wick liked me well enough to flirt, maybe he would do the same with Hyeon because we had similar builds. He smiled and nodded. “Yeah, my cousin probably has something. He just ran upstairs. What room are you putting them in, Pearl?” he asked the girl behind the desk.
“Thirty-seven, sir.”
He nodded. “I’ll see if I can drop off pants and a shirt, and we might have other things laying around. I would offer to send someone out to buy something, but we’re extremely busy.”
“No, you’re helping us a lot. Thank you, we’re in your debt,” I said, and I really meant it because I was too tired to contemplate trying to fight the rain to go shopping somewhere that still might be open—assuming such a place existed. I stuck out my hand, and Hyeon grinned as we shook. I’d always had an easygoing friendship with Hyeon because we were similar in a lot of ways, and we’d gone to the same private Catholic school together. Neither of our families were religious, the school had been strictly for the education, and we’d complained to each other when the bullies, nuns, and schoolwork got to be too much.
“No worries. Get to your room.” He snagged two key cards off the desk and passed one to me and one to Wick. “You look like you need the break.”
Laughing, I nodded. Outside the thunder rolled, but the people drinking on the patio didn’t come in. Nothing could deter the party atmosphere. It was like we were on theTitanic. Things might be dire, but if the ship was going down, everyone would have a drink in hand when it happened. Wick and I shared smiles as we walked up the large central staircase together, all the way to the top.
“Our room is on the right,” he said with a smile.
I nodded and followed him. Turned out he was wrong, and we had to go the other direction, but I was too tired to think up any snappy one-liners about it. I shut my eyes as we plodded along, and he rubbed my back between my shoulder blades. I wanted to moan out loud. My muscles were getting tense and his touch was perfect.
“Open your eyes, sleepy bear,” Wick whispered. “You’ll trip.”
Grunting, I did as he said.
When we got to the room, I was delighted with the interior. It was very over the top, done up in what I lovingly referred to as Arsenic Green, a very brilliant classic color. The gilded furniture gave the décor a bit of a bordello vibe, and I chuckled nervously as Wick closed the door.
“Lovely. I should get out in our fair city more often.” He waggled his eyebrows at me, and I groaned. “Why don’t you take the first shower? I have to wait for clothing, and you’re set.” He lifted the duffel, and I took it from him.
“Thanks,” I murmured. “You’re sure you don’t mind being in the bathroom after me?”
He shook his head and interest glinted in his eyes.
I sucked in a breath.
“Certainly not.” His smile had my belly heating.
I had no idea how he made those two words sound filthy—almost like he would be thinking about the fact that I’d been naked in the room before him—but he did it. I backed away from him, then turned and fled. I closed the door behind me and sighed.
