Page 83 of The Main Event

“It’s one night, Daisy.” He dropped both my feet and crawled over me, putting his weight on his arms as he looked down. “I like it when you’re here.” He lowered himself and gave me a kiss. “It doesn’t feel like a welcoming bed when you’re not here now.”

He had no idea how warm the words made me. “When I was a kid, I used to walk by this hotel and wonder what it would be like to live here.”

“Like Kevin inHome Alone?”

“More like Eloise, but close enough.”

“Who is Eloise?”

“It’s a series of books. She lives at the Plaza. They were later made into movies, which I enjoyed, but the book took my imagination and ran with it.”

He flopped down on the bed next to me, his hand on my stomach. “Does the reality live up to your imagination?”

“I don’t know.” I glanced around the room. To my surprise, he had settled for one of the standard rooms rather than trying to take over a suite. His room basically consisted of a bed, dresser, nightstand, and adjacent bathroom. “I pictured more room service.”

He lifted up his head. “Do you want room service?”

I was about to say no when my stomach growled. “I might be a little hungry,” I hedged on a laugh.

He joined in. “Well, where is the room service menu?” He glanced around. “There must be one here, right?”

“Wait, are you telling me you haven’t ordered room service since you moved in? That’s almost a month now.”

He shrugged. “I don’t want to put the workers out if I don’t have to.”

“But you’re willing to tonight?”

He gestured toward my naked body. “Neither one of us is getting dressed. Let’s not kid ourselves. It’s either order room service or starve. Given what I have planned for you, I’m fairly certain we’re going to need the sustenance.”

“Good idea.” I was more than happy to crowd close as he pulled out the menu. “What are you thinking? Like … burgers?”

His gaze was searching when it met mine. “I don’t think burgers were part of the fantasy, were they?”

He had me there.

“Let’s go big if we’re going to do it. I mean … this is a special occasion. I’m making your childhood dream come true.”

“Yeah, when I was little, the nudity didn’t play into the fantasy.”

“Fine. We’re melding your dreams of childhood with your dreams of adulthood. Is that better?”

He really was a dream come true. I recognized that as I stared into his eyes. “Much better.”

“Good.” He went back to the menu, clearly not recognizing that I was having a moment. “So, I’m thinking we go big. They might assume I have someone with me, but you’re already up here, so they can be as curious as they want.”

“I’ll hide in the bathroom when they deliver the food. Just in case.”

“That sounds classy.” He made a series of humming noises. “So, I’m thinking we’ll get the pretzel knots and wicked nachos as appetizers. Then I want the steak for my entree.”

“Oooh. The steak sounds good. Is that too decadent, though?”

“Only the best for you, baby.” He didn’t look up when he said it. Did he even realize what he’d said?

I refused to read too much into it. “Have them bring up cocktails, too. Go big.”

“Now you’re thinking.” He grinned. “It’s going to be a heckuva night.”

It most certainly was.

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