That does it. I’m defeated. He went for the dog. My weakness. I bet he knows it too.
Holland senses my hesitation. “This hike is practically a walk. You know how to do that, right?” His lips pull into a smirk. “I think I saw you doing some of that as recently as yesterday.”
I didn’t picture him to be so sarcastic. This morning is full of surprises.
“My footwear choices are these heels or slippers. I couldn’t be more ill-equipped to take a walk.” This isn’t a lie.
“Ivy already tried to hike in those heels.” Beatrice claps her hands, laughs, and even throws her head back. Seems like my painful trek into the lobby is a core memory for more than one of us.
“We’ll get you some real shoes and anything else you might need over the week.” He continues to surprise me. “I know you have nothing better to do,” Holland teases with his arms crossed.
His arms. Again, I’m noticing the evident muscles hidden beneath his shirt. How did I miss those shoulders yesterday?
He’s right. I have nothing planned. There’s only so much TV one can consume. And my desire to see the dog is a bit stronger than my nervousness about hiking. Also, did this man just offer to shop with me?
“I can take an Uber. You don’t have to take me shopping. I’m sure you have things to do.” I ramble.
“No, you won’t. There are no Ubers here. My schedule is flexible and open. Lucky you.” I swear there are gold flecks in this man’s eyes that make my knees quiver. He’s playful.
I can’t believe what I’m about to say.
“Fine. I’ll trade an extremely easy walk-like-hike in exchange for a date with Slate,” I say, much faster than anticipated.
“Look at that. She click-clacksandrhymes.” Beatrice jokes as she puts everything in a bag.
Holland looks at Bea then back at me, with a fake eye roll. His eyes are dark; like the coffee I desperately need.
At least I’ll have another week of Bea. She’s not what I expected at all.
“I can take you into town around eleven. Does that work for you?”
I hesitate and look for Bea. I barely know this person.
“He’s not a serial killer. A big grump but he won’t kill ya.” Bea does her best to reassure me. Oddly, it works.
“Sure. I’ll meet you in the lobby,” I answer and grab the bag, the clothes, and snacks from Bea. This feels weird but I don’t feel uncomfortable. It’s ridiculously nice for Holland to offer to take me somewhere to get anything.
I don’t want to be a nuisance, but he offered. He offeredandinsisted.
“If you need coffee or breakfast, there’s some quick options in the restaurant,” Bea suggests.
I wave to Bea and Holland. On my way out, I swear I can hear her giggling.
Chapter Sixteen
IVY IS A JOLT to the system. I didn’t expect to see her again, especially not this morning. The second I heard her talking to Bea, I moved a little faster. Had to make sure it was her.
She was fresh-faced, no makeup to be seen—it’s not like she needs it though. Her dark hair was sort of messy, like she’d just woken up.
Fuck. Why is an image of her sleeping the only thing in my brain right now?
Last night was easy. It didn’t feel awkward or forced. She listened. She shared. I listened and more surprisingly, I shared a little. This is the reasoning I use to justify offering to take her shopping.
Her ex seems like a real ass. Who reschedules someone’s travel plans without asking them first? I don’t have all the details, but Ivy’s voice cracking and glassy eyes told me everything I needed to know.
Why does this bother me so much? As she was explaining, my skin was getting hot, and I was getting more and more pissed off.
It felt like the least I could do was offer to take her into town to shop for what she needs. Shopping is not my typical activity. And could I have offered at a worse time? Bea already has too many opinions.
