His ability to ad-lib his answers amazed me.
“If you make the exhibit, let me know. I would come to see that.” Benny walked to the counter and collected one of his business cards. He wrote something on the back and removed a different card from inside his desk.
“That’s my cell phone,” he said, pointing to what he had written. “So we don’t have to trade emails. In case you want advice on that display. The second card is for a supplier that sells antivenom. You can order online. It can take a while for him to fill orders.”
“Thanks for your time. We’ll call if we have more questions.”
“Go ahead. I like you better than the other guys from Portland who came a few months ago. From some lab. Tall guy and a short one. They wanted to buy all my scorpions and I wouldn’t sell. Too hard to get more, they’re rare.
Christopher and I glanced at each other at the description.
Benny handed the cards to Christopher. “But you two are all right, even if she hates my beauties.”
I shrugged with a smile to show I couldn’t help it. They both laughed.
Benny showed us out and locked the door behind us.
Out of the musty snake air, I took several deep breaths to clear my lungs.
“Want to walk? Get ribs for dinner?” Christopher jammed his hands into his pockets. “You were thinking about a Jenga game. Care to share that story over dinner?”
I nodded and smiled.
We wandered downtown Reno for about half an hour. It was pleasant to stretch my legs after all day in the car, though there wasn’t much of a view. We found a place we could sit on the patio and enjoy the late summer evening. We ordered a variety of ribs and sauces to compare and rate, equivalent to ordering a flight of beer. Christopher ordered a pint of craft beer but was content to nurse it through dinner and didn’t order another. Counting drinks went back to my childhood—it was involuntary.
While we waited for our food, I looked up hotels near the highway that led home and after several minutes of searching, found one with vacancy. I booked two rooms online and breathed a sigh of relief. With that settled, I enjoyed dinner when it arrived.
It was comfortable around Christopher. He did most of the talking, but encouraged me to text and explain from time to time. He didn’t treat me like that was strange and pushed me to participate.
“Time for Buffy, then sleep?” he said. The sun had set while we’d finished dinner.
I nodded. I liked that our evening wasn’t over.
Chapter 11
Christopher and I found our hotel on the outskirts of Reno. I was relieved I’d booked something, though it had been last minute. All the places we passed had bright neon“No Vacancy”signs lit, as did this one. Who knew ribs were so popular? Or perhaps gambling was a regular draw that kept the town busy.
It was a standard chain hotel with the faint scent of lemon cleaner and a hint of old smoke in the air when we entered. They’d decorated the lobby in shades of burgundy and yellow-gold, a generic look reminding me of other hotels where I’d stayed. We brought our bags with us as we’d limited our luggage to one small bag each.
Christopher sauntered up to the counter and said, “We reserved two rooms. Under the name Elizabeth Bergstrom.”
“Oh,” the clerk said with a blush. “I have some bad news.”
I didn’t like where this was going. He avoided looking at me, but his eyes twitched in my direction as he spoke.
“You see, it’s my first solo shift, and I made a tiny mistake. I gave one of your rooms away, just after you booked online. The system said ‘Pending’ and I didn’t know what that meant. I hit override. The other couple has already checked in. One room is still reserved. You can have that one. I’m so sorry.” He took a deep breath.
“What kind of room is left?” Christopher’s voice was flat, without inflection. Not like his usual friendly sound. The look on his face made the young man squirm. Christopher glanced in my direction. His eyes looked harried, panicked.
I could relate.
“A Queen single,” the young man swallowed. “One bed,” he clarified.
I wouldn’t mind rooming with Christopher if necessary, but sharing a bed was unacceptable.
“Is there anything else?” said Christopher. “A king or a suite or a fold-out couch? A cot you can send to our room? We’re colleagues. This is awkward.”
The poor clerk shook his head. He looked miserable. “We’re totally full with travelers for Rib Fest. I tried to fix it. I called around, but everybody was full. The rooms were only available because we had a last-minute cancellation.” His voice broke a little. “I have coupons. I can give each of you a free two-night stay this year at any of our locations. Please don’t tell my manager.”
