Chapter 40
Chapter
Forty
The to-do list on Angelica’s iPad didn’t seem to be getting any smaller. For everything she marked off, it seemed that more was added to it. But at the same time, if she paused long enough to look around, everything was coming together so well.
Construction on the lobby would finish up overnight, and staff training was already underway for all employees.
Hope had the kitchen up and running with their new menu and as much of the experience as they could manage for now.
They still had some things that needed to come in for the full experience to be there.
And Hope had done beautifully training hospitality.
But she was exhausted.
Every second of the last week had been spent trying to keep up appearances—at least the majority of it.
Angelica had never been good at that, but she didn’t want the rest of the crew to know exactly what was going on.
And perhaps that was a mistake in the long run, but for right now, she couldn’t handle them interjecting their opinions into the situation.
“How’s it going?” Hope asked, pressing her fingers against the small of Angelica’s back to get her attention.
“I need a break,” Angelica said. “Not just tonight, I need this break coming up.”
“I think we both do.”
Angelica leaned back into Hope’s touch using the comfort from the physical connection as much as she could.
She didn’t want to admit it out loud because that wasn’t her style, but she did enjoy that they didn’t have to hide this anymore.
Everything was out in the open—at least everything that could be.
“What else do you have to do tonight?” Hope asked.
Sighing, Angelica glanced down at the to-do list and nearly groaned. It would be impossible for her to finish everything on it before they were due to leave. She’d have to leave a good chunk of it for Daph and Frannie to finish up.
“Let me rephrase my question.” Hope shuffled in a little closer, and Angelica loved feeling the warmth of her body pushed into her arm. “At what point can I steal you away for the night?”
“Give me two hours.”
“Perfect. Meet you upstairs.” Hope kissed her cheek quickly and walked away without another word.
Angelica watched her go, the sway of her wide hips moving from side to side and the lightness in her step. Just what exactly did Hope have up her sleeve? She desperately wanted to know, but she couldn’t exactly stop right now to get an answer. Shaking her head, Angelica focused back on work.
Toward the end of the night, she had a quick debrief with Daph and Frannie, letting them know exactly what needed to happen going forward.
Sy and Rex caught everything on the camera, and as they wrapped up, Angelica snagged her iPad and immediately made for the staging area.
She needed to check in with Florence and Logan one more time before she clocked out of this job for the evening and started to work on what was left of her production position and making sure that the hotels out west were still doing well enough.
Though she’d get the full run-down next week when they were back in town for a short break before continuing filming the season.
The longer season?
Yeah, she was really regretting that decision right about now. She was so used to being done already, to having that break time already built in, but now it was all just going to go to planning whatever was next.
Within the next hour, she was up at her room with exhausted feet and calves.
She pulled out her key and swiped it against the lock.
As soon as she opened the door, she paused.
The room had a scent of lilacs to it, one she hadn’t expected, one that was far more overpowering than normal.
Holding her breath, Angelica stepped inside and let the door shut behind her.
“Hope?”
“I’m here!” Hope stepped forward toward the door, a smile on her face.
“What’s going on?” Angelica canted her head to the side, intrigued. She’d never seen that look on Hope’s face, the sheepish one like she was up to something.
“I thought we could use a break.” Hope reached forward and slipped Angelica’s iPad from her fingers and took a step backward.
Curious, Angelica followed slowly. Each step she took was muted, but she followed Hope’s path deeper into the room, surprised to find candles and flower petals all over the floor and bed.
“What’s this?” The tension that had been in Angelica’s shoulders melted instantly. Whatever Hope had spent the last few hours up here doing, it was something for Angelica, something to make her night a little better.
“Just a little something I put together.” Hope’s cheeks pinked, and Angelica couldn’t tell if it was because she was excited, embarrassed, or aroused. And honestly, it could be all three. “I never get to do nice things like this for you.”
“You do nice things for me all the time.” Angelica furrowed her brow as she reached for the button on her suit jacket. Hope had already dressed down into comfortable pants and a tank top, but Angelica was still dressed to the nines from work. “You brought a lunch platter today for the meeting.”
“Angel… a tray of pita bread and hummus isn’t a lunch platter, and if you think that’s a well-rounded and full meal, then we have some education that still needs to happen.”
Not touching that one with a ten-foot pole, Angelica stripped off her jacket and tossed it over the back of the chair. She surveyed the rest of the room, and she still couldn’t get the scent of lilacs out of her nose even though those were real rose petals all over the floor.
“Did you spray perfume?” Angelica asked.
Hope shrugged, that pink deepening into a darker red.
“Your perfume,” Angelica answered for herself. “Because you know I like it.”
“Well, the goal was to seduce you.” Hope bit her lip, and this time, Angelica had no doubt that that look was all nerves.
They didn’t often fall into bed together like this, not with flowers and grand gestures.
No, they simply found time they could spend together, and they either ended up naked and having sex or not.
Angelica had never given actual seduction a second thought.
Then again, it wasn’t something she typically paid attention to either.
“Sometimes you have to set the scene for people to know what the experience could be like,” Hope said with a glint in her eye.
“Are you throwing branding and marketing speak at me? As if that’s going to turn me on?”
“Is it working?” Hope asked, stepping forward and sliding her hands along Angelica’s waist and hips. She moved her fingers to the line of her skirt.
“Maybe.” Angelica tilted her face to the side. In heels and with Hope being barefoot, they were right about the same height “What if it is?”
“Then I’d say my plans were successful.” Hope stopped her fingers at the back of Angelica’s skirt. “Should we get you out of your work clothes?”
“Naturally,” Angelica murmured, her entire body already heating up with arousal and anticipation.
Hope had taken such care to make this night special and different from anything they’d done before, and she didn’t want to let her down.
It was such a sweet thought. Instead of moving to help, Angelica just held still.
Hope dragged the tiny zipper down slowly, her breath brushing against Angelica’s cheek and neck.
Fluttering her eyes shut, Angelica focused on the gentle touch, the tenderness that it came with, the intention and sweetness.
What had she ever done to deserve someone like this, someone who would actually take the time to take care of her, to love her?
Hooking her thumbs in Angelica’s waistband, Hope pushed the material over her hips until it fell away and pooled around her feet.
In silence, Hope reached for the edge of Angelica’s blouse and dragged the material up.
The backs of her knuckles bushed Angelica’s sides and sent another wave of arousal through her.
Angelica moved her arms to get rid of the blouse.
But she couldn’t wait any longer. Moving in, Angelica stole Hope’s lips. She pulled Hope closer, moving their mouths together in a slow kiss that teased into deepening before pulling back. Angelica wanted to take this slow. She wanted the tenderness to exist here and never leave.
“Thank you for this,” Angelica whispered, pulling Hope’s tank top over her head.
“Of course,” Hope answered with a kiss to her cheek before she shimmied out of her pants and tossed them into the growing pile of clothes.
Angelica still felt way overdressed for what they were about to do. Stepping out of her heels, she reached behind her back to pinch the hook on her bra at the same time, never taking her eyes off Hope’s. “What made you think of doing this?”
“You, honestly.” Hope’s cheeks were back to that same pink color as before. “Part of it was talking about making things special with an experience, but the other part was that you were right.”
“I was right?” Angelica raised an eyebrow at Hope as she hooked her thumbs in her thong and tugged it off. “I’m always right. I thought you knew that.”
“We both know that’s a lie.” Hope laughed. “But this time is one of those where you were right.”
Angelica’s smile never faltered as she sat on the edge of the bed, the flower petals that Hope had put on the blanket itching her skin, but she ignored them.
Hope stood in front of her, completely naked, staring down at her with that all-knowing and confident look that Angelica found stunningly sexy on her.
“I think I fell in love with you in Estes.” Hope tapped Angelica’s legs to encourage her to move backward on the bed. “And I think that you were right that I never would have admitted that before tonight.”