“Why don’t you and Jake take that one,” Ramin said. “And Noah can room with me? If you don’t mind, that is?”
That last part practically came out as a squeak, and he turned to Noah with a question in his eyes.
Noah swallowed. His stomach gave an uncomfortable swoop that had him worrying he’d end up like Jake.
How was he supposed to share a room with Ramin Yazdani?
Ramin, who was beautiful and kind and had just put a roof over his cold, wet son’s head?
Ramin, who shied away from every touch like Noah was lava. Who was getting over a breakup and wanted nothing to do with Noah.
How could he share a bed with the man he wanted more than anything else?
“That would be amazing,” Angela said. “That work for you, Noah?”
He swallowed again. Pinched at his cross.
This was going to be torture.
“Of course.”
nineteen
Ramin
What. The Actual Fuck. Had he been thinking?
Sharing abed? WithNoah Bartlett?
He held Jake’s hand while Noah and Angela gave their passports and information to the receptionist.
“You cold?” he asked.
Jake shivered and said, “No.”
Ramin made himself shiver too, though hewas, in fact, cold. Someone had set the lobby air conditioner so cold, the rain in his hair was in danger of freezing. But he said, “Me neither.”
Jake’s shy smile actually did warm him a little.
Angela and Noah returned with handfuls of single-use toiletries.
“Thanks for waiting,” Noah said, barely catching a tiny tube of toothpaste before he dropped it. “For everything. Really.”
“I didn’t do anything,” Ramin pointed out.
“Then what was all that at the front desk?”
Ramin blushed. “Uh, I travel a lot for work, so I have loyalty status here? And I showed them my card?”
Noah whistled. “Well, you didn’t have to do that for us.”
“I don’t mind.” How could henotdo that? Noah and his family had wined him and dined him and made him feel welcome for no other reason than that they could. Flexing his Diamond Membership was a poor way of making it up to them.
They crowded into the elevator. This one, at least, seemed made for more than one person at a time.
As soon as the doors shut, Angela blurted out, “My sister’s a lesbian.”
Noah made a choking sound.
