Page 66 of Honey Be Mine
“You were never a scout.” Everett rolled his eyes. “What’s that hand thing supposed to mean anyway? Are you Spock or Spiderman?”
Dane shrugged. “I could use help with the luggage. You’d think we were staying here for a month, not a weekend.”
“Fine.” Everett preferred staying busy anyway—especially when his brain was on overdrive.
Dane hadn’t been kidding about the luggage. Tansy, Rosebud, Nicole, and Kerrielynn were sharing one room. Astrid, Charlie, Nova, and Halley were in another. Dane, Everett, Leif, and Benji were in the last. Among them, there were enough suitcases and bags to fill a luggage store.
The rest of the afternoon was pretty uneventful. The expo hall wouldn’t be open to the public until tomorrow, but the Hill sisters made sure everything was stocked and ready. Kerrielynn, Leif, and Benji came out of their exams relieved and exhausted. At lunch, Tansy suggested they all throw on their swimsuits, hit the hotel pool, and relax for the rest of the day.
Relaxation sounded good.
The pool was massive. But the moment Rosebud walked out in her modest green one-piece, there wasn’t enough room for him to breathe. Somehow he made it through the whole ordeal without drawing attention his way. It took effort, though, and there was nothing relaxing about it.
While the teens were splashing and playing games and Charlie was helping Nova swim, he was aware of Rosebud every second he was in the water. From how dark her wet hair was to the pale cream of her skin—he had to fight against reaching for her or staring at her.
After two hours, he had enough. He headed up to his hotel room, took a long shower, and cleaned up for dinner.
Dinner with Rosebud.
The knock on the hotel room door was a surprise, but finding Rosebud outside was even more so. She wore her swimsuit, a towel wrapped around her, with her hair dripping onto the carpet. She was beautiful—even with the furrow between her brows and the tightness of her mouth.
“Rosebud.” Was she upset? She didn’t look happy. “You’re going to catch a chill.”
“I wanted to make sure dinner was still a go?” She gripped the towel with one hand.
His gaze followed a water droplet trailing along the side of her neck and over her shoulder. He pressed his eyes shut.Get it together.He nodded. “If you’re up for it?”
“You seemed upset—like you were avoiding me in the pool, so...” Her gaze fell, and she pulled the towel tighter around her, shuddering once.
Out of self-preservation.He didn’t want her to think he didn’t want to spend time with her—that was the last thing he wanted. But spilling his heart while she was shivering and soaking wet outside his hotel room wasn’t a good idea, either.
She frowned then. “Everett—”
“Rosebud, please go get warm. You’re so cold your lips are turning blue.” And pulling her close and warming her up sounded way too good. The images that came to mind had him gripping the edge of the door. “As soon as you’re ready, we’ll go eat.”
“But it’s only four thirty.” Her teeth were chattering.
“And I’m ready.” He gripped the door harder, his throat going tight.
Her gaze swept over him, pink staining her cheeks. “You look handsome.”
“You look beautiful.” He cleared his throat, but it didn’t help.
“I do?” she whispered, shivering now.
Always.“Rosebud.” He drew in a deep breath, the words spilling out of him. “If you catch a chill, you’ll get sick, and you won’t be able to show up that good-for-nothing bastard tomorrow—I couldn’t live with that. So please, go on and get warm and dressed.”
With a blinding smile, she said, “I’ll be back.” And she hurried down two doors to her room and disappeared inside.
Everett spent the next few minutes looking at places for them to eat. He’d rather drive a short distance and be free and clear of anyone and everyone that might interrupt them. Other than having some one-on-one time with Rosebud, he didn’t have an agenda.
The door opened, and Dane, Benji, and Leif came into the hotel room.
“Where’s the fire?” Dane ran a towel over his head.
Everett shrugged. “What?”
“You’re dressed? Going out?” A look of understanding settled on Dane’s face. “Oh.”
