Page 8 of Koda's Love

I didn’t know what to do when he got even closer and pushed my hair behind my ear. Koda licked his lips, and I panicked. I didn’t show it, though, because I wanted to see what he would do next.

“My bad for touching you without your permission.”

“It’s cool.” If it were anyone else, I would have slapped him, but with Koda, it didn’t bother me.

He smiled, then said, “I hate to be so straightforward, but I haven’t stopped thinking about you since I saw you last night. The sadness in your eyes fucked with me, and I wanted to do something nice for you. Consider me upgrading the room for you as my way of trying to bring the light back into your eyes.”

Bitch!

My insides did somersaults. What did he mean he hadn’t stopped thinking about me? He wanted to bring the light back to my eyes? His words did something to me and made me even more nervous.

“Tha-thank you,” I stuttered.

The elevator dinged, then the doors opened. Koda moved to stand in the doorway, so it didn’t close as I exited. He stepped off right behind me.

“You’re welcome. Was your dinner to your liking last night?” he asked as we walked toward my room.

“Yes. It was perfect. I know I probably didn’t look like I enjoyed it, but I really did.”

We reached my room, and I opened the door. Koda walked in behind me and closed the door so it didn’t slam.

“It won’t take me long to pack my stuff,” I told him as I walked over to the drawer to take my clothes out.

“Are our sheets not good enough for you?” Koda asked with a smirk on his face as he leaned against the wall.

His voice in the quiet space gave me chills. I could listen to him read the phone book and still be entranced.

“It’s not that. I just like a certain kind of sheets, so I always have my own.”

He licked his lips and nodded. “Do you have OCD or something?”

“My family seems to think so, but I never got diagnosed. Nothing about what I do bothers me, and I never had any issues. I’d rather not know, to be honest. Once you find out, things change, and people become judgy.”

“I think we all have our quirks.” He winked. “Are you going to be okay with putting them on the bed in the new room, or do you need another pair?”

I was certain that the hotel didn’t have the sheets I used, so I was confused about where he would have gotten some if I said I needed new ones. I didn’t need new ones, though. I had just put them on the night before. More than likely, they would last my stay here, but I had a backup set just in case.

“No. These will be fine,” I informed him as I started to take the sheets off the bed.

Koda pushed off the wall and came near the bed. He reached down and helped take the rest of the sheet off, then helped remove the two pillowcases. The bed had multiple pillows, but I only needed my own cases on two of them.

He was nice enough to fold them as best as he could, instead of just stuffing them in the pillowcase like I would have done. I moved around the room gathering the rest of my things.

“Do you take your sheets anytime you travel?” Koda asked as he took his place on the wall again. I noticed two bracelets on his wrist when he crossed his arms over his chest.

“I do. Always have two pairs, so don’t think that I think there is something wrong with the sheets here. It’s just me.” I shrugged.

“Interesting.” He rubbed his hand over his beard as he stared at me.

We held each other’s gaze until Koda’s phone rang.

“Excuse me.” He pulled his phone out of his pocket and answered.

Since his eyes no longer held me hostage, I proceeded to finish packing my things. I wasn’t trying to eavesdrop on his conversation, but I couldn’t help but feel a little jealous about the way he talked to whoever was on the other side of his phone. It didn’t sound sexual, but by his tone, I could tell it was a woman.

A few minutes later, Koda slipped his phone back in his pocket and looked at me.

“My apologies. Whenever my sister calls, I answer.”