Page 46 of The Moment Promised

I wiggle in his arms, laughing despite the fact that I want to pull his hair out one by one. Ihatebeing tickled.

“Okay, okay,” I say, breathlessly. “You weren’t scared.” I raise my arms in surrender.

He releases me and picks up our bags.

The front door might be the creepiest part. I take a deep breath, slowly opening the door, not able to see what’s inside.

“This isn’t getting any lighter, love.”

Right. “Okay, okay.” I inhale a deep breath and open the door, squinting my eyes anticipating a jump scare.

“Well, hello there!” a lady with a country accent pipes up from behind the desk that sits only three feet away. I take in the small lobby. The bookcase to my left holds travel pamphlets. The alligator mascot appears on some. We must be in Gainesville, Florida. Only a few more hours until we reach Georgia, and I will have officially left this state for the first time in my life.

I breathe in the welcoming scent of cinnamon. Finn walks up to the desk first. I follow suit. This is not what I expected.

“Y’all need a room?”

Finn nods politely.

I grab a mint from the tray sitting on the front desk, and pop it in my mouth. The woman opens a drawer and hands Finn a key that has the number 5 attached to it. “Since you all looked so darn cute together out there on my security camera, I’ll letyou have the couple’s suite for the price of a normal room.” She winks.

I open my mouth to correct her assumption, but Finn chimes in before I get the chance. “That would be great, thanks.” He grabs the key and puts it in his pocket, handing her a fifty-dollar bill. I open the door for him while he picks up our bags.

“Have a nice stay!” the woman says while we leave through the creepy door. I lead the way to room five and pull the key out of Finn’s front pocket. A blush covers me, and I am relieved the streetlamp flickered out again.

I push the key into the hole and turn it. When we walk inside, Finn lets out a deep bellied laugh. “No way this is real life.” We step into the room, and I take it all in.

A neon sign of a phallic shaped palm tree hangs above the bed. Red, wilted, roses cover the white fabric. I walk over to the nightstand. A bowl of condoms are sitting there.

“Strawberry banana?” his voice startles me, suddenly much closer than I expected.

“W-what?”

He reaches a hand in front of me, picking up one of the condoms. “It’s flavored.”

Finn puts it back in the bowl and I duck beneath his arm, grabbing my bag and locking myself in the bathroom.

The mirror is warped, and as I walk further into the bathroom, the reflection of my head distorts. I breathe in slowly and hold it, then slowly blow it out. I remind myself again of my realization in the car.

I turn on the cold faucet to the sink and cup my hand under the running water. “Shit!” I hiss. The water is boiling hot. I turn off the cold faucet and twist the one labeledhot. Cold water comes out.

Of course.

“Everything okay?” Finn asks, knocking.

“Yeah.” My voice comes out louder than I wanted it to. “The faucets are labeled wrong. I burnt my hand.”And I’m in the midst of a mental breakdown because I realized I’m in love with you but don’t want to ruin our friendship by doing anything about it.

“That’s the fun of sleeping on the road,” he says with ease, and I hear the bed squeak. He must’ve just sat down.

I splash some cool water on my face and change into a pair of spandex shorts and a light pink tank top.

When I open the door, the cool air hits me in the face. Finn’s house is always cold, no doubt he set the air to sixty degrees.

Finn lays comfortably on the bed, legs crossed, with a travel pamphlet in hand. When he hears the bathroom door open, his eyes slowly lift to mine. They widen for a millisecond, but I didn’t miss the way they traveled up the length of my legs…and then to my chest. I glance down, realizing the cool air and no bra combo happening to my breasts. Instinctively, I shift my arms to cover up, and respectfully, Finn pretends he didn’t see.

“I’m going to grab a quick shower,” he says while getting up from the bed.

I get under the covers and try to bundle up for warmth. I browse through the pamphlet while Finn is in the bathroom. There’s not much to do here, other than tour colleges. I toss and turn, realizing how much energy I have stored up from sitting all day.

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