Of course he would have thought ahead about this. I text him a thank-you with more hearts and pictures of the lobby.
The bellboy takes us up to the rooms on the third floor. I’m confused when he opens the doors to three rooms instead of two and asks which luggage should go into each. I hesitate and point to rooms randomly.
“What’s all this?” I ask Frank after the bellboy leaves. “Was the reservation messed up?”
“No. I reserved this room and it looks like Will reserved those two,” Frank replies with a raised eyebrow.
I frown. Will had reserved an extra room here? I knew there was a pretty good chance he’d ask me to stay with him at the hotel instead of my hostel, but I hadn’t decided if I was ready for that or not. The fact that he’d thought to get me a private room rather than pressure me to sleep in his makes me ache for him even more.
“Looks like we all got upgraded for this trip,” Huan replies,rubbing his hands together.
“What? No.” Dev takes a step back. “I’ve already got a reservation and I don’t want to get in trouble with Emberton for changing plans.”
“Then check in at the hostel but sleep here.”
“I’ll be fine at the hostel.”
“Have youbeento a hostel before?” Frank shivers dramatically, his curls falling in his eyes. “The chainsaws, the maiming, the murder...”
“You’re thinking of the old horror film about a hostel,” Huan reminds him.
Frank grins. “Oh, am I? You’re probably right. Well then, I’m sure you’ll be totally fine there all by yourself, mate.”
“Completely safe,” Huan agrees. “No need to worry at all.”
Frank ushers Dev down the hallway. “Right then, no need to linger. Off you pop.”
Dev looks back at me, eyes wide. “Um, maybe I’ll just have a look around here first.”
“Will you? Suit yourself.” Frank winks at me. “We’ll just start getting unpacked.”
I follow Dev into one of the rooms. It’s like nothing I’ve seen in real life. The space is so grand—larger than Mom’s and my living room, kitchen, and dining room combined. An enormous bed with a gilded headboard and canopy takes up most of one wall of the bedroom. Upholstered chairs and a table with inlaid marble fill the adjacent sitting room. But it’s the windows that make Dev and me gasp. They reach from the floor to the ceiling and overlook the Grand Canal.
Dev comes up beside me and we stare as boats of all sizes bob past. “You’ve got to be kidding me,” he whispers.
“You can’t fault his style.”
He grunts. “Are you sure I should stay here? I can’t imagine Will would like it.”
“Of course you should stay here. He told us to use the rooms, he’s already paying for them—how could younot?” I gesture at the opulence. “And bonus, no chainsaw-wielding murderers.”
“That is true.” Dev steps toward the window and leans his head against the glass. “But this view is to die for.” He pauses for effect and then gives me a wicked grin.
I groan loudly. “You’re lucky these windows are locked or I’d throw you out of one.”
We all check in with Emberton, then Dev heads to his room to send an email to his family, and Frank and Huan go back to their room to do whatever it is that they’re going to do. I send Mom a long series of texts (brushing over Will’s absence) and a bunch of photos. I think about posting everything on Instagram too, but then decide I don’t care. Who am I trying to impress on there anymore? I don’t really know any of those people.
Finally, I call Will. He picks up on the first ring. “How’s the hotel?”
“Will, it’s...”
“Is it too much? When I suggested this hotel to Frank he told me you’d think I was trying to buy your happiness.”
I climb onto the bed and literally sink into the layers of blankets. “If you were, it worked.”
“Good. I just wish I could see that very costly happiness.”
I snap a selfie of me beaming on the bed and send it to him. A few seconds later, he laughs. “I’ve never liked technology more.”
