Page 162 of How to Kiss a Hawthorne Brother
“I checkedmein. There was only one room on the reservation, but I’m sure it was just a mix-up. Did you reserve your room under your own name, maybe?”
"Both rooms should be under your name. Would the confirmation number help? It's in your email.”
Huh. Well, this complicates things. “Let me go talk to them again. I’m sure they have an open room somewhere. I’ll go sort it out, then maybe we can grab a drink before we crash?”
“Or share the overpriced mini bar M&Ms?”
“Now that sounds like a plan.” I give her hand a quick squeeze. “I’ll be right back.”
She nods, her smile warm. “I’ll be right here.”
My heart thumps steadily as I move to the hotel’s front desk, warmed by the promise in Lila’s words and the memory of her lips on mine.
I’ll be right here.It occurs to me that I don’t just want her to be here. I want her to be everywhere else I am, too. Not that I plan on confessing all those feelings and driving us right into a DTR. I meant what I said about respecting Lila’s need to move slowly. But for the first time, the thought of spending my life with another person doesn’t scare me.
And that means something.
Maybe that Lila is magic.
Or maybe that I’m finally—finally—ready to move on.
Chapter Seventeen
Lila
The thing is, I’mused to people appreciating my voice.
I’ve done enough singing in public spaces to have grown comfortable in my ability. But no amount of applause from the general public can compare to what I felt when I walked off the stage and into Perry’s arms. There was real, raw admiration in his eyes. That alone felt like a shot of adrenaline straight into my veins. But I also saw hunger.Desire.And then he was there, and we were kissing, and . . . I’ve never been kissed like that.
Not ever.
Not until he kissed me on the elevator, which was even a tiny bit better because we were alone.
The whole night feels like a dream. Well. Except the parts that read a little more like a nightmare.
I mean, I just tucked my boss’s very drunk ex-wife into bed. Gave her aspirin. Pushed her still-perfect hair out of her eyes. Unstrapped her complicated heels—the kind with straps that go all the way up your calf and make your legs look ridiculously long. Or, they makeJocelyn’slegs look ridiculously long. On me, they would only make my very sturdy legs look stumpy.
It’s all about elongating when you’re shaped like I am. Heels are great. The more neutral the tone, the better. But ankle straps? They’re always going to be a no for me.
Which,fine. I’m happy to work with what I’ve got, and I’ve learned a lot about how to do it well. High-waisted anything to accentuate my tiny waist. V-necks to show off my great collar bones and broad shoulders.
Bigger girls always have better voices.I force the words out of my brain, not wanting Jocelyn’s small-minded judgment to ruin my good mood.
Perry didn’t seem to mind my size when he was kissing me like he wanted to have me for dessert.
My not-so-grumpy-anymore boss makes his way back from the front desk, his frown reminding me of that first day we worked together in person. It’s only been a few weeks since then but considering how we’ve spent the last couple of hours, it feels like it’s been so much longer. His smiles came so infrequently at first, but with every day that passes, I feel like I’m seeing more and more of the real Perry.
“No luck?” I ask when he finally stops in front of me.
He shakes his head. “They’re completely booked. I showed them the confirmation number, but they’re citing some sort of internal error. The good news is they’re comping the one room theydohave for us. But there’s still only one.” He glances toward the door. “Listen, it’s not that far. I could just drive you home. Or you could stay, and I could drive home to sleep, then come back in the morning.”
Neither option sounds particularly enticing. I really don’t want to stay without Perry, but going home to my empty house? That just feels sad.
We could always go with Option C, the one he didn’t mention: us sharing a room like two adults perfectly capable ofplatonically sharing a room. We’ll just pretend like five minutes ago, we weren’t making out like fiends.
The heat of the kisses we’ve shared rushes through me.
So,fine,there would have to be some guidelines. He can kiss me a thousand times, but I’m not ready for more. Even if my body feels tempted to think it is.
