The men’s changing room had lockers and benches in the middle. Though there were no windows, the ceiling lights made it still feel cozy and warm. To the left was a small restroom with three showers. A door to the right led to the spa itself.
“You can change here. I’ll meet you inside,” Nicholas said before leaving me alone.
I quickly undressed, shoved my belongings into a locker, and put on the swimsuit Alex had lent me.
When I pushed open the door to the spa, I found two saunas right in front of me, and a small empty room that I couldn’t quite figure out the purpose of. Next to them was an indoor pool large enough for a workout, though it wasn’t filled with water yet. To the left were more floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the mountains, and in front of them were two indoor hot tubs. The one in the back was already bubbling. Alex and Jason were sitting in it, and Nicholas was standing next to them. All three of them were laughing, and when they saw me, Nicholas waved me over.
“You could have gone inside already,” I called out, my words echoing through the room.
“Jack and Noah will be here any minute, and I don’t want to be all wet when I have to let them in,” Nicholas replied. “But you go inside. Actually… I think I’ll excuse myself for a moment.” With that, he walked away.
The hot tub looked inviting. With the view of the mountains, it was easy to see why they had flipped the hotel’s layout inside out. I walked around to the side where Alex was sitting and climbed in next to him. The water was warm and soothing, the bubbles gentle against my skin.
“Did you and Nick get along?” Alex asked as I sat down.
“We sure did.” I scooted close to him and put my arm around his shoulder. His back straightened, and his head twitched toward me as if he wanted to ask what I was doing, but after a second, he leaned into me, his hands underwater, searching for my knee to hold onto. If he wanted me to act like a boyfriend, I sure as hell was going to try my best to show him what I could do.
Jason, who was sitting on the opposite side of the hot tub, eyed us, his lips curling into a half-smile. “So, Nick told me you study hotel management?”
“Vegas, baby,” I laughed.
“Apparently, it’s one of the best schools, I heard?”
“Only topped by Switzerland, yeah. But I wouldn’t change anything. Las Vegas is an experience. Switzerland is probably like Seastone, except everyone speaks languages I don’t understand.”Not that I always understand what people here say, either, but that was a different topic.
“You know, we’ll be looking for a manager soon. We’ve scheduled the soft opening for October, which is sooner than I’d like. If it’s okay, I’d love to give you some business cards. If youknow anyone who might be interested, it would really help if you could pass them along.”
My heartbeat picked up a little. Even though it could’ve been because of the warm water or because Alex was scooting closer and closer, I knew it was because of the anticipation that he would now ask me ifIwanted to work here. It was so obvious he would say it next. After all, I was from Seastone and knew the area inside and out. I would have my degree in time. Alex and I were acting all lovey-dovey, probably giving off the impression that I couldn’t wait to move here to be with him.
To be fair, that wasn’t entirely wrong. I could see myself living in the same city, maybe even the same house or apartment. But moving to Seastone? Even with the hotel’s modern concept, that wasn’t something I could imagine myself doing. It would feel like a step back.
“So,” Jason said, “Alex told me you two make music together. And that you sing?”
Wait. No invitation to work here? What was going on?
“Uh, yeah.” I looked at Alex, as if he might know the answer to the question preoccupying me.
He ran his thumb over my knee. “I hope it was okay to mention that?”
“Of course,” I replied, still unable to process the fact that I hadn’t been invited to work for them.
Then, luckily, the alarm bells in my head went off.This moment wasn’t even about that.Jason had already changed the topic to Alex and me making music together, which made it a perfect opportunity to show off my boyfriend skills.
“Did you also tell him that we’ve already recorded demos for almost an entire album?” I asked.
“Wow,” Jason said. “You two have been busy.”
I put on a smile. “Yeah. It’s hard for me not to want to spend all my time with Alex.”
Our conversation was interrupted by laughter from the changing room. Nicholas returned wearing only his swimming trunks now, not shy about showing off his chest hair. Right behind him was Jack, sporting a very tight yellow Speedo that made the impressive chest muscles—which he had hidden well under his yellow jacket the last two times I saw him—look even bigger.
“Hey guys, sorry, we’re late,” Jack called out to us. He waited at the door, glanced back into the changing room, and said something quietly that I couldn’t hear.
Then the last guy I was supposed to meet today came in. He was a little shorter than Jack and not as muscular. His soft face lit up with a bright smile when he saw us. He wore the same kind of Speedo as Jack, only in blue.
As they made their way over to us, they greeted everyone at once, their voices growing louder by the second. Every word echoed four times through the room, thanks to the tiles. The three of them climbed into the hot tub with the three of us.
“Hey, I’m Noah,” the blue-Speedo guy told me as he climbed into the seat next to me. “You must be Sebastian.”
