21. Inevitable Conversation
INEVITABLE CONVERSATION
How the hell did they go back to being funny after last night?
It was a question that raced through Luca’s brain all night while he stared at the ceiling after he got his fill of Gabriela as she was passed out next to him.
He turned his head, saw her hair spread on the pillow, her arm over her eyes shielding the coming morning light.
There was no stopping what the day was going to bring.
It was how they handled it.
He flung the covers back, and as quietly as he could, he snuck into her bathroom. He pissed, turned the water on in the shower, then opened a few drawers.
Jackpot. Found a spare toothbrush and helped himself to it.
The same as he did with her coconut shampoo and rose-scented soap. He was going to smell like a chick.
His wrists flicked the water off, the curtain was pushed aside, he reached for the towel and stepped out the minute Gabriela opened the door.
“Hey, don’t you knock?” He dropped the towel in front of him. It wasn’t as if he was at his most impressive just now either.
“Not in my house and I’ve got to pee. Badly. Out.”
“I’m wet.”
Her eyes moved over his chest, to his hands holding the towel over his junk as water dripped on the floor around his feet.
He wrapped the white cotton around his hips while she continued to stare.
“Yes.” Her finger came out and trailed down his chest. “You are. And it’s making me have to go even more.” She shoved him toward the door. “I don’t pee in front of anyone. Out!”
He didn’t have much of a choice when the door shut in his face.
At least his clothes were out here, so he dried off quickly, reached for his underwear and suit pants.
Christ, he hadn’t planned on staying the night and didn’t really want to put a suit back on, but he didn’t have much choice in the matter either.
He was just pulling his shirt across his shoulders when Gabriela came out. She still wore the T-shirt she’d thrown on last night, nothing else under it he’d noticed.
“We can catch the first ferry in an hour if you think you can get to your hotel and check out. I’ll just shower quickly now and come with you. Or we have to wait three hours for the next one and can get some breakfast and chill. Your choice.”
If they rushed, then they could avoid the inevitable conversation a little longer.
Yep, that was his first choice.
Coward, he knew.
“We can try to rush. If we miss it, we get breakfast.”
“I like your thinking,” she said, shutting the door back in his face.
Her closet was off the bathroom, so it wasn’t as if she needed to get anything.
The water turned on and he finished dressing.
She was out in five minutes in leggings and a long cotton shirt.
“You’re fast.”
“Not you,” she said, wiggling her eyebrows. “And I like that fact.”
There she was, busting his ass. He knew exactly what she was talking about too.
It wasn’t just the first time last night against her door, but the second time an hour later in her bed.
That once he got it out of his system, he could spend some more time discovering her body.
“I didn’t hear any complaints out of your mouth. Or was that yelling for me to stop when I thought it was don’t stop?”
She grabbed his open shirtfront and pulled him closer into her space.
Her minty breath got close to his mouth, she landed a quick kiss, then said, “You know exactly what it was and you’re stressing over a talk. Relax. We’ll have it in the car on the ferry and it won’t kill either of us.”
And there she was, making it easier for him.
Something he’d never experienced with a woman before.
In the past, he had to be the strong one. The one making all the decisions.
He didn’t mind it. He shouldered it well.
Until his life was vacant, and with no one to watch over or take care of, everything felt emptier than before.
Maybe being equals was the way to go. Guess he was going to find out.
She gave him one more kiss, then reached for his open pants and fastened them while he took care of the buttons on his shirt.
He sat on her bed to get his socks on. She grabbed her little bag she’d brought over with her, stuffed her dirty clothes from yesterday in there, along with her nude pumps that he’d like to see on her again, then said she was ready to go.
“Can I say I like how fast you get ready? I would have beat you if I didn’t have so many buttons to contend with.”
“This one is a little loose,” she said, touching it with her finger. “I might have been impatient last night.”
He laughed. “Oh, you were.”
She shrugged and moved past him, found her sneakers, slipped them on, handed him his suit jacket and he guessed that was their cue to leave.
Didn’t seem she had to do much in her place before she walked away from it again for God only knows how long.
There didn’t seem like there was much food here. He’d gone looking for something in the fridge last night and had only found water. There were at least a few boxes and bags of snacks not opened. One that they emptied and she threw in the trash.
“Let’s go. If you want, I can sit in the car while you grab your bag and check out.”
“I can check out on my phone, so I’ll do that once I’m in the room, then it’s just tossing the keycard in the trash. You don’t have to wait outside, it’s cold.”
“But if I do, then we can be in the drop off and pick up zone and you don’t have to park and walk.” Her finger went to her head. “See. Smart.” The elevator door was opening as she shut her door. “Run and hold it for me.”
He did as she said, his hand on the opening for her to climb in. No one else seemed to be moving around this early. Probably for the best.
Maybe she wouldn’t want anyone in her building to know she’d spent the night with a guy.
They got to his car in the garage, climbed in, and when he pulled out, she stopped at the gate and held up her phone to release it.
The minute they got to the hotel, he dashed inside, took care of everything he needed to and was thankful he hadn’t really unpacked more than his comb and toothbrush.
As tempted as he was to change his clothes, he knew damn well she was waiting on him to return, probably clocking him on top of it.
It wasn’t as if he had any of these clothes on long yesterday.
Four hours at the event, an hour before, and then nothing until fifteen minutes ago.
If he told himself that enough, he wouldn’t be skived out by it.
He had to remind himself that he wore his scrubs or clothing sixteen hours during his shifts.
“Wow, okay, that was quick,” she said when he jumped back in his SUV that he’d left running. Her wrist was up, her finger tapping it. “Less than ten minutes.”
He winked at her. “I knew you were timing me.”
“I thought for sure you’d change.”
“I was tempted, but I couldn’t have you giving me crap for taking too long and missing the ferry if we get stuck in traffic.”
She leaned over and waited for him to plant a kiss on her lips.
This playful side when he had such heavy thoughts was exactly what he needed.
“I’m going to give you crap about a lot of things. It’s just the way I am. You seem to handle it well, or am I wrong?”
“No,” he said, his voice more serious now. “You’re not. And it’s a good thing.”