Page 60 of Effortless

“Yes, ma’am.”

* * *

I knock on Hadley’s hotel room door and pray I have the right room number. She told me last night in our texts but I forgot to double check it when I got here.

The door swings open and thank the Lord above it’s her.

“Hey,” she sighs, smiling up at me.

“Hey, you.”

She swings the door wider so I can walk in. As I pass by, I have the urge to give her a kiss on the forehead but I suppress it.

“Hey, Brooklyn.”

“Hi, Cash. Thanks for bringing our stuff.”

“You’re welcome.” I place the bag on the floor and stand awkwardly, not knowing what to say or do next.

“Have you eaten?” Hadley blurts out. “We just ordered some pizza and wings. You’re welcome to join us.”

For the first time in my life I’m not hungry because I ate so much at the diner today, but I’m also not about to turn down her offer.

“Sounds great.” I smile. “How’s Dorothy doing?”

“So much better. She has some color back and she’s not feeling as weak and tired as she was.”

“Awesome. You two doing okay? Did you nap today?”

Hadley had told me neither of them have been sleeping well, which I assume is because they’re worried about Dorothy.

“We did. Dorothy kicked us out of the hospital room around two this afternoon and sent us here. She said she didn’t want to see us again until tomorrow. The doctor assured me she was doing well and reminded me we needed our rest, too.”

“Good for her. Glad you listened.”

“I think the past few days just really caught up with us. We crashed, didn’t we, Brooklyn?”

Her eyes get big. “We did. I don’t think I’ve ever fallen asleep that fast.”

Hadley laughs. “Or snored that loud.”

Brooklyn’s cheeks grow red. “Mom!”

Ignoring her daughter’s embarrassment, she asks, “Did you get checked in?”

“Yeah. Dropped my stuff off in my room before I came down to yours.”

“Good. Thank you, again, for doing this.”

“You’re welcome.”

I can’t stop staring into her eyes. She’s so beautiful. I remember how gorgeous she was the night I met her and couldn’t have imagined that it was possible for her to look even better all these years later. But it happened.

“I’m going to grab drinks before our pizza gets here,” Brooklyn announces, startling us both.

“Oh, okay, honey. The gift shop has bottles. Can you get some waters, too?”

“Yup.”

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