6. Rosey
Chapter 6
Rosey
T he plane landed and after going through immigration and customs, we collected our bags and walked outside to find the person from the transport company holding a sign with my last name.
“This way,” the man said, swooping in to grab our bags.
His eyes widening and a growl ripping up his throat, Ostor lifted my bag against his chest and pawed at his waist, I assumed for the sword he’d mentioned he’d use to lob off Jacob’s head—if I felt the need.
“You will not remove this from her possession,” he snarled.
The transport dude reeled backward, his face blazing like he was about to have a heart attack.
“Hey,” I said softly, placing my hand on Ostor’s forearm. “Juan is just trying to help us with our bags. He’ll take them to the van and deliver them and us to our resort. He’s not trying to steal them.”
“I apologize.” Ostor deflated, his face darkening. Those around us who’d paused to stare continued what they’d been doing.
“Not a problem. I should’ve told you,” I said.
Ostor lowered my bag to the ground, and at my encouraging smile, Juan took the handle and wheeled it and Ostor’s toward a vehicle waiting by the curb.
Sweltering sunshine greeted us beyond the awning, and I grabbed my sunglasses from my backpack, putting them on.
Ostor looked down at me, his eyes watering and tears already streaming down his face.
Aw, was he crying?
“Hey, it’s okay,” I said, spontaneously giving him a hug. I tried to, that is. He was so much bigger than me that I couldn’t reach all the way around him. “No need to be upset. Juan’s probably used to people acting protective about their bags.”
“It’s not that. It’s the blazing bulb in the sky. Your sun.” He looked up and glared at the sky, shaking his fist. “Why is it so much brighter now than it was before?”
“Oh, I see.” I’d brought a spare pair of sunglasses, but like the rest of Ostor, his head was much larger than mine. How could we make this work?
“Do you know if your stores carry sunglasses big enough for orcs?” I asked Juan as he urged us to climb inside the second row of the van.
“Of course.” He gave Ostor a guarded smile. “You’ll find some there.” He waved to a bar built into the outer wall of the terminal with a few items for sale on display. “I can wait.”
“Thanks.” I took Ostor’s hand and hurried him over to a rack with all sorts of sunglasses, thankfully finding a few that had been marked “Orc”. They were universally round, and they were going to make Ostor look like an overgrown, green Harry Potter, but they’d give his poor eyes a break. I bought a pair and curled my finger his way. “Bend forward and I’ll put them on.”
He scowled at them before shaking his fist at the sky again but did as I asked.
I tried not to laugh. An orc in sunglasses should be a common thing, but he still looked different while wearing them.
Actually, he looked amazing.
“You brought a bathing suit, right?” I asked, picturing him wearing floral print shorts. Were his legs as lightly haired as his arms?
“I did not.”
“Okay, then, we’ll hit the resort’s gift shop after we’ve settled into our room and get you some.”
“I’ll buy my possessions from now on,” he growled.
“Consider the sunglasses a gift.” I could understand clinging to one’s pride. I also tried to pay my own way whenever I could.
“Thank you.”
We walked over and got inside the van. Juan slid the door shut and climbed into the driver’s seat, where he verified our resort and then started the engine.
“Beer? Water? Tequila?” he asked gaily as he drove the vehicle away from the terminal.
“No thanks,” I said.
Ostor shook his head and stared out the window. “Amazing. So different from where we come from.”
“We” meaning he and I, I assumed, and not the orc kingdom.
“Palm trees are pretty, though very different from evergreens, aren’t they?” I lived in the Boston area, though not in the city itself. “Do you have trees in the orc kingdom?” Vegetation must grow there, or they couldn’t feed their orc cattle.
“Some. They’re not as tall as these, though they have more branches.”
“Palms adapted to live in hot climates like this one and to weather tropical storms. I understand they’re quite flexible and can sway rather than break in a strong wind.”
“Will we experience such a thing while we’re here?”
“Thankfully, it’s not hurricane season, so I doubt it, though I’m sure we’ll see rain here and there. It’s common in the afternoon, but it leaves as quickly as it arrives, and the area steams after.”
He nodded and continued to stare, pointing out one thing after another as we left the airport behind and traveled to the resort strip in Cancun.
Juan pulled into the palatial place that was a complete opposite from how the locals lived, and stopped at the front entrance. Someone rushed over to the vehicle and opened the sliding door.
“Hola! Welcome to Azure Sands,” the man said with a big smile, gesturing for us to get out of the van. “Orc. An orc!” His brown eyes lit up. “Welcome, orc!”
Ostor grinned. “Thank you. It’s nice to meet you.”
“You as well. Come this way.” The man guided us toward the large glass entrance doors etched in gold. “Your bags will be brought to your room once you’ve checked in.”
Towering palms framed the entrance, as well as three-story cream-colored pillars and huge stone planters overflowing with bright tropical flowers. Lush hibiscus shrubs glided away in long rows on either side of the stone sidewalk that curved around to form a complete oval behind us. An intricately etched, tan-colored stone awning arched over us. Two-story carved statues of Mayan gods marched in long lines behind the shrubs. I could’ve remained out here for hours, studying each statue.
“Hola,” a woman said. She dipped close, offering us sparkling margarita glasses full of tropical drinks adorned with pineapple skewers. “Welcome to Azure Sands. A fruit drink?” Her eyes gleamed. “Or do you want tequila?”
“What’s teek-eela?” Ostor whispered out of the corner of his mouth. “Everyone keeps offering it. Is it a ritualistic drink here?”
“It’s another form of alcohol. Yummy alcohol,” I said with a grin. This was going to be fun. When my sister’s invitation arrived, I’d cringed and immediately started thinking up excuses for why I couldn’t attend. A sudden inability to expose my skin to the sun. Food poisoning. Or pneumonia. I’d call a few days before and fake a cough.
But Ostor was making this fun. With him as my date, I was looking forward to the long weekend. Such was the difference being with a great guy could make.
We lifted drinks off the tray, and the woman smiled and hurried to our right, her heels clicking on the gleaming marble floor.
“This way, please,” the man who’d greeted us at the entrance said, urging us farther into the enormous, three-story foyer with a round, arched roof overhead. A massive crystal chandelier cascaded like falling stars overhead, the lights making the entire room glow. Floor-to-ceiling windows bathed the room in sunlight on the opposite side of the lobby, offering sweeping views of turquoise pools and arched stone paths lined with vibrant, tropical vegetation. Red stone buildings etched in gold marched in rows toward the sea, with a huge swimming pool in between.
“Right over here.” While we sipped our drinks, our greeter escorted us toward the registration desk on our right, the gleaming wooden counter backed by an eye-catching red wall etched with gold designs. Such opulence. I’d never seen anything like it outside of TV shows.
He led us to the left of the counter, where we were greeted by a woman sitting in a wheelchair. She smiled and waved to the two plush chairs opposite her desk. “Please sit and I’ll check you in right away.”
We dropped into the seats, and I was glad they’d provided large seats for orcs.
“Name?” she asked in a cheery voice, and I gave her mine, Ostor murmuring his own.
She clicked into her computer. “Ah, yes. Perfect. A lovely room on the third floor, overlooking the pool. Here’s a packet that explains all we offer here at Azure Sands.” She handed it to him. “The concierge in your building will help with dinner reservations. All your meals are included. Breakfast and lunch are at the buffet other than the pool barbeque area where you can choose lunch options at the times noted in the booklet.” Her smile rose. “I see you’re part of a wedding party. If you choose to dine all as one group, let your concierge know, and they’ll ensure you have a table large enough to accommodate all of you at once. Your bracelets are coded to unlock your door.” She secured them around our wrists and cut off the excess string. “Room 3205.” Her hand lifted and a smiling man came over to stand beside us. “Miguel will take you to your room and ensure your bags are brought promptly. I hope you enjoy your stay at Azure Sands!”
After thanking her, we rose and followed Miguel out of the lobby and up over one of the arched bridges, where we paused to look down at the pools on either side where fish swam among rocks and colorful vegetation.
“Amazing,” I said, spontaneously taking Ostor’s hand and giving it a squeeze. “Have you ever seen anything like this before?”
“Never,” he breathed, staring around with widened eyes. “There’s nothing like this in the orc kingdom.”
“If you’ll follow me,” Miguel said with a bright smile. “Your building is the third on the right. I’m sure you’d like to unpack and change into something better suited for our tropical environment.”
“Do you have a shopping area?” I asked, remembering that Ostor hadn’t brought swimming trunks. “We need to pick up a few items of clothing.”
“We do.” His gaze flicked down Ostor’s frame. “We stock orc-wear now, and I believe you’ll find we have a good selection.”
“Awesome,” I said, realizing that I still held Ostor’s hand.
He lifted our linked fingers and lifted them to kiss my knuckles. Heat flashed through me, and I had to remind myself that this wasn’t real, that he was only practicing what we’d discussed we’d do when my sister and others were around.
Miguel took us into our building and up to the third floor where he opened our door. We stepped into the air-conditioned suite. He showed us the closets in the short hall, as well as the mini bar, dorm fridge, and coffee maker, telling us that the bar and coffee would be replaced daily. “Don’t drink the water from the faucet, though it’s safe to use to brush your teeth.” He pointed to two glass bottles standing near the coffee maker. “We purify our water here and if you need more, please let us know.”
He urged us into the bedroom with a sitting area and balcony beyond.
One bed.
One big, orc-sized bed.
“Oh, there’s been a mistake.” My cheeks blazed. “I meant to mention this in check-in. We need two beds.”
“I do apologize,” Miguel said. “But we’re still renovating to accommodate orcs. I’m afraid the double rooms only have queen sized beds which . . .” He scanned Ostor’s frame. “Your legs will stick off the end. It won’t be comfortable.”
Ostor said nothing.
My shoulders curled forward. “Well, um . . .”
“I'm terribly sorry.” Miguel’s face darkened.
The bed stretched across the room like an orc-size monument to bad decisions, and every second I stared at it made my skin itch with dismay. This wasn’t part of the plan. Fake dating, yes. Acting like a couple for the weekend, sure. But sharing a bed with a seven-foot-tall, palm-licking orc cowboy wasn’t on my agenda.
“Could you give us a minute?” I asked Miguel in as neutral a voice as I could manage.
Ostor’s eyes remained locked on me, and he was probably wondering what was going on, but I couldn’t meet his gaze right now.
Taking a breath, I grabbed Ostor’s arm and urged him toward the balcony. “Let’s check out the view.” My voice was too bright, too perky. Without waiting for a response, I steered him out onto the balcony, sliding the glass door closed behind us.
Heat immediately wrapped around us like a tropical hug. The balcony had two massive chairs that catered to orc-sized bodies. They faced out toward the resort’s teal-colored pool where people played in the water. Palapas dotted the sides of the pool like straw hats, offering shade to the lounge chairs beneath. On our left, the ocean sparkled under the late-afternoon sunlight, waves gently licking at the powder-white sand where a few people walked while others bobbed in the water.
The tension coiled in my shoulders loosened. The view was near postcard-perfect, and who could be uptight while staring at something like that? Though it didn’t solve the situation waiting for us inside the room.
“So…” I bit my lip, glancing sideways at Ostor. “What do you want to do about the bed thing?” My words came out careful, like I was negotiating a peace treaty. I hoped my question sounded casual, though inside, panic fluttered in my chest as the lines between fake and real wavered too close for comfort.
Ostor shrugged, his tusks catching sunlight as he looked back at the bedroom, his eyes shaded by this cowboy hat. He’d removed the glasses while we sat in the lobby. “We can make this work, right?” His voice came out calm, like he hadn’t just casually suggested we’d share a bed. “You’re tiny. I'm big, but I can keep to my side.”
The thing was, I wasn’t scared of Ostor. The idea of curling up next to him didn’t fill me with unease. It filled me with something that was part of the problem. A weird cocktail of anticipation and something warmer, softer, kept sloshing through me. It was ridiculous for me to feel this way, because whatever this was, it wasn’t anywhere near real.
But I’d invited him here. I’d set the rules, such as they were. I’d laid out the boundaries clearly in my mind. Sharing a bed was way past the line. It took fake dating into . . . something else.
I realized I hadn’t answered him, so I forced myself to turn back toward the pool, trying to focus on the soothing sound of water trickling below us. “Yeah, sure. It’ll be fine.” My words came out more confident than I felt. My awkward laugh burst out. “I mean, it’s only for a few nights, right?”
Ostor’s large hands came to rest on the railing beside mine, his solid presence a comforting surprise. “If you’re worried, I can sleep on the floor, or maybe that chair-thing.”
“No way.” I groaned at the thought of him scrunching himself up on the sad excuse for a sofa. More decorative than functional, it wouldn’t even fit my body well, let alone that of a seven-foot orc. “And you’re not sleeping on the floor.” I met his eyes, finally, and immediately regretted it because the intensity there was too much for what we were supposed to be.
His smile came out slow; a tusky kind of grin that loosened everything inside me.
“Then we’ll share the bed,” he said, shrugging again, like it was the simplest solution in the world. “You’re safe with me.”