Page 24 of Vixen's Guide to Christmas
“Have you checked in yet?” I ask as we step back from each other.
“No. Just pulled in a few minutes ago.”
“Well, then, let’s do it,” I say as I pick up my bag, and being the gentleman I am, grab onto her suitcase and roll it to the check-in desk. “This is a pretty big suitcase. All of this, and all that panty math, for a trip to the mountains? Isn’t that pretty outdoorsy?”
She laughs at my joke, and if I’m not mistaken the tiniest bit of a blush creeps on her cheeks. “No. After I’m done here, I’m on my way to St. Lucia. Christmas on a beach. What could be better?”
I laugh because, again, what are the odds? “My boss just told me that I should take a beach vacation and actually recommended I go there.”
“I’ll make sure to let you know how it is. In case you’d want to go there in the future.”
“Please do.”
We share a look that screams “we’re about to see each other naked again really soon,” when the front desk attendant calls up the next guest.
“Welcome to the Timberline Inn,” she says cheerfully while also dawning reindeer ears. “Are the two of you checking in?”
We share a smile before Kat shakes her head. “No. We just happen to know each other. We’re single reservations.”
She’s right. But if I have my way, neither of us are sleeping alone until we have to go our separate ways.
“Wonderful.” The attendant asks for Kat’s ID and credit card, and as she’s doing that, something in the distance catches my attention.
“I’ll be right back,” I say, leaving my bags next to Kat as I make my way to the area so expansive that even calling it a “great room” feels like an injustice. Every space I walk into is more impressive than the last. Here there’s a massive Christmas tree that takes up every vertical inch from floor to raised ceiling. The soft, white lights give the room a certain glow that you can only get at Christmastime.
But what got my attention was the tinkling of a piano. I'd hoped as I walked in that it was somebody actually playing and not just piped-in sound, or worse, one of those auto-play ones. But no, there's a man, probably in his fifties, smiling away as he plays a Christmas carol on a grand piano. There are kids dancing and singing around him, as well as adults just sitting and taking in the atmosphere. And then there’s me out of habit, moving my fingers against the air as if I’m the one pressing the keys.
It’s been a while since I’ve played. A year? The last time I was in Connecticut? It had to have been. Maybe if I can sweet talk Howard, he’ll let me tickle the ivories before I head off.
“Perfect timing,” the attendant says as I walk back to the desk. “Name, please?”
“Grayson Ross,” I say pulling out my credit card and license. “I booked yesterday.”
“Great.” She starts to type away, but with every click and clack of the keyboard, I watch her face get more and more worried.
“Mr. Ross?” She swallows hard before continuing. “I’m so very sorry about this.”
“Sorry about what?”
She takes a breath and squares her shoulders, likely preparing for me to freak out for whatever she’s about to say. “I need to start by explaining that our hotel has been going through renovations for the past year and a half. Through that time, we've closed off different areas so we can keep some capacity while also making the changes that our owner has wanted to implement.”
“Sounds like smart business to me.”
“Well, usually, yes. Unfortunately something must have glitched in the system, because the room that you're staying in is still under renovation and not available.”
“Oh.” The way she was freaking out, I was expecting a lot worse. “That’s no trouble. I just booked the first one that came up. Whatever room you have is fine with me.”
“That’s the next problem,” she says, her eyes getting more scared. “There are no rooms available.”
“Oh,” I say, now understanding her impending panic. “Okay then. I can try and find?—”
“Stay with me.”
I look over to Kat, because while the thought did cross my mind, I didn’t want to push her into something she might not be comfortable with.
“Are you sure?”
She flashes me a familiar smile—the one that looks awfully familiar to the night we met when she suggested we take our night to another location. “I’m sure. Plus, not like we haven’t done this before.” She quickly glances to the attendant, whohasn’t taken a breath yet, before glancing back to me. “You know…share a room.”
