Page 97 of We Met Like This
“Immediately.” I pushed the reply button on my email and typed:Such a strong start! Will you send me the rest as soon as you can? Thank you so much.—Margot“Let’s hope she’s as obsessive at checking her email as I am.”
I had been glued to my screen for most of the drive, reading the three queries that had come in right after Marissa’s. It was like the universe was pouring out good vibes. Each query camewith the first five pages of the manuscript included. I’d read them all out loud to Oliver and we discussed the strengths and weaknesses of each. It was nice to have a sounding board. And he was good at the job too. Out of the three additional choices, there was one that was promising, so I had sent her a request for the full manuscript. By the time we arrived at our hotel, I was buzzing with positive energy.
As I got out of the car, shouldered my backpack, and retrieved my suitcase from the trunk, I assessed our surroundings. It definitely had small-town vibes. It was both picturesque, with its blue skies and yellow hills, and unremarkable at the same time. That would be my job this weekend, to figure out what made this place unique, what could make the setting pop on the page and not just be every other generic small town.
Because my brain had been engaged the entire drive here and because before today Oliver wasn’t a part of this weekend, it took until now, heading into the hotel, to think about the sleeping arrangements for the weekend.
I must’ve hesitated as we walked to the counter just enough, because Oliver said, “I’ll get my own room.”
“What? No. Why? Kari Cross is paying. We can handle a room together, can’t we? I’ll keep my hands to myself,” I said.If you want me to,I added in my head.
“I’ll get my own,” he insisted.
I held back my frustrated sigh. So much for thinking he’d figured out how he felt. “I’ll pay you back.”
“No, you won’t,” he said.
I was waiting for the woman behind the counter to tell us there weren’t any rooms left and we would, in fact, have to share one. But the universe wasn’t in the habit of granting my storybook fantasies, because she handed us two keys.
I pocketed mine. “Are you from around here, Bree?” I asked, reading her name tag. “Or know this area well?”
“Yes, born and raised,” she said.
“Is there anywhere around here where the internet is bad? Like famously bad? Somewhere off the beaten path where people might go to hide out, make out, or bury a body?”
She just stared at me, her expression going slack.
“It’s for research,” Oliver added. “For a book. She’s not planning to bury a body.”
I smiled. “I mean, I was, but now you’ve found me out.”
“She’s kidding,” Oliver said. I wondered if I was making him uncomfortable or if he was just feeling sorry for the wide-eyed Bree.
“Yes, actually,” she said. “Lots of teens hang out at the abandoned silos just north of here because it’s a cell phone dead zone back in the hills. Their parents can’t track them.” She pulled a paper map out of a plastic holder on the counter and pointed to where I assumed these silos existed.
“Perfect. One more question, on the opposite end. What do locals do for fun?”
“Tourists are big on vineyard tours. But if you want to hang out with locals—”
“Which we do,” I assured her.
“Then I would say Boots and Spurs.” Her finger moved on the map to the center of town. “They have line dancing there tomorrow night. It gets pretty rowdy in the best way,” she said.
“We can’t wait to see what that means,” I said. “We’re there.”
“She is there,” Oliver said. “I’m just the Uber driver.”
“It’s true, he is. But when I asked him to come inside with me, he said yes. Don’t report him to corporate, okay?” I said.
He gave me a side-eye but didn’t tell her I was kidding this time.
“I won’t,” she said. “We respect our patrons’ privacy.”
“As any good hotel would.” I patted my pocket where the key was and grabbed the handle of my suitcase. “Thanks again.”
We walked away and were silent all the way to the elevator. When I pushed the button, Oliver said, “You’re the worst.”
I laughed. “Sorry, sometimes I just say whatever comes into my head. My sister says I lead with my emotions instead of my logic. Something I obviously need to work on if I want to be a shark agent and not a teddy-bear one. Her words, again.”
