“It’s going to have to do.”
“I’m not sleeping in this bed with you.”
I reached into my coat pocket and pulled out my cell phone. I pulled up Michael’s contact info and handed Taylor the phone.
“Then you call and tell him that you’re being a bitch about a fucking bed.”
Taylor walked over to the dresser and set her bag on top of it.
“Have I mentioned that I don’t like you?” I enjoyed her playful side of continually reminding me that she didn’t like me. She had such dry, sarcastic humor that not everyone would be able to pick up on it. And since sarcasm was one of my specialties, I always threw it right back at her.
“Not yet. I find that surprising,” I said dryly.
Taylor’s quiet demeanor and slow movements around the room showed me she had calmed down about the bed situation. She wasn’t quietly fuming like some women did. She took her pajamas and toiletry bag out of her suitcase and seemed to be focused on the simple tasks. It was important that she have a calm rest of the evening because we had a huge day tomorrow. Both of us would be relying on one another. I had the ability to help her relax or rile her up, and seeing how she took it upon herself to try to calm down, the least I could do was not intentionally set her off.
“Would you like to take a shower this evening? If so, you can go first.”
“Yeah, that would be nice.”
“Warm water is good for your muscles and will help relax you. Especially after the long flight.”
She nodded, collected her toiletry bag and pajamas, then headed into the bathroom. The faucet turned on as I sat on the loveseat and propped my feet up on the ottoman. With my phone in hand, I scrolled through some sporting news and checked some basketball scores. The longer I sat there, the heavier my eyelids felt.
Taylor’s sweet, smoky scent carried out into the room. There was something about that scent that I found relaxing and intriguing. It was different than anything I’d been up close to before, and that was the draw to it. Just like Taylor. She was different than anyone I’d ever been with or wanted to be with. I set my phone on my lap and let my head roll to the side to face the bathroom. Her scent filled the room and latched on to me.
If she wasn’t a colleague… But she was.
If she wasn’t Michael’s… But in some way, she was.
If Michael didn’t come first… But he did.
The water stopped running, and a few minutes later the bathroom door opened. Without looking at me, she walked to her suitcase, unzipped it, and began strategically placing her toiletry bag and folded clothes in their places. Once she had everything just how she wanted them, she zipped up the suitcase. Is that a military thing? Or a Taylor thing?
Relax, Taylor.
She’d at least be ready if some emergency came up and we had to leave the hotel quickly. I opened my mouth to ask her what the deal was with putting everything away when she was only going to pull stuff out in the morning again. I thought better of it, though, and left her alone.
“The bathroom is all yours,” she said.
I pulled myself off the loveseat, grabbed a pair of clean boxer briefs and my toiletry bag, and went into the bathroom. Her sweet and smoky scent immediately blanketed me in the small, steamy room. Even though I lathered up with my fresh scented body wash, it was no match for Taylor’s intoxicating and alluring scent. I assumed it had to be her body wash or lotion or a combination of the two because those were probably the products she would have used in here just now.
Whatever it was, I fucking loved it.
After my shower, I went back into the bedroom and found that she had selected the side of the bed closest to the wall rather than the more open side. She had her cell phone in hand and appeared to be reading.
“I hope Aria’s mother will be ready and that the oldest boy helps with the two younger kids,” she said.
“Me too.”
“I also hope Jensen is there.”
I took a deep breath as I got into bed. I wanted to make sure Taylor truly understood our plan and Michael’s orders.
“But if he’s not—”
“I know. We’re to leave.”
Taylor set her phone down on the nightstand and shut off the light. I turned the light off on the nightstand beside me, and by the time I laid down, Taylor had rolled onto her side and faced away from me. We kept the light on in the small hallway in case one of us needed to get up during the night.
