Chapter 31 Hotel Nowhere
Hotel nowhere
After a few exhilarating loops along the road, stopping at the Jeep each time for a sip of the iced tea, they were now back at the vehicle, taking off their rollerblades. The sound of the suction releasing with a whoosh made them both smile.
"How come--" they both started at the same time, then laughed. "You go first, how come what?" Gray's lips quirked up, almost certain they were thinking the same thing.
"How come it's so satisfying to take off these rollerblades?" Riley asked. "I don't wear them too tight, but after a while, they seem to mold to my feet and ankles." She began rubbing the lines where the blades had left marks.
"Here, sit up in the back," Gray set his rollerblades aside and slipped on his sandals. Riley gave him a curious look but trusted him. As she climbed into the back of the Jeep, Gray joined her, gently taking her foot and massaging the grooves on her ankles.
"Ohhh," Riley moaned quickly, covering her mouth as she turned beet red. "Sorry, that slipped out."
Gray chuckled. "Don't apologize; it lets me know I'm hitting the right spot.
When I was younger, I got minor frostbite on my toes while skiing.
My family used to take a trip to Lake Tahoe every spring break, and one year I was trying to outlast my dad on the slopes.
My socks got wet early in the day, but I said nothing because, you know, I didn't want to admit defeat.
I paid for it later when I was moaning in pain.
My dad was upset, not mad, like I expected, but worried.
He's a plastic surgeon, so he knew how to treat frostbite, but I was terrified.
That night, he didn't leave my side. It's probably the most caring moment I've ever had with him. "
Riley stared at him, taken aback by his story. "I'm sorry." She looked into his eyes.
"Sorry? Why are you sorry?" Gray teased. "Oh right, you're Canadian; you lot love to apologize! Don't be. It's an excellent memory, even if it was a scary situation." He motioned for her to give him her other foot.
"Now, you said you had snacks, and I'm famished. Feed me, Seymour!" he quipped, easing the tension of the moment.
As they finished their snacks, Riley packed up the Jeep, making sure everything was in order. She loved to feed people, and Gray had happily devoured all the treats she'd brought.
"I noticed on the map there's a hotel out here somewhere. Have you been there?" Gray asked.
Riley gave him a mischievous look. "Oh, I've been there, but it's not a hotel anymore. Just the cinder block frame of one. It must have been impressive when it was open."
"Wait, it's not a hotel anymore? What happened?" Gray realized he had seen no details beyond the location on the map.
"Come on, I'll show you. It's two minutes away, but you'd never know with all the trees." As they got into the Jeep, Gray glanced at Riley and thought, I'd go anywhere with you. He smiled, knowing it was one of the truest things he'd ever felt.
Pulling up outside the massive eight-story structure, Gray finally understood what Riley had meant. There had been a hotel, but now... "Did they blow out all the floors and leave the skeleton?" He stared at the massive concrete structure, empty inside.
"The place was beautiful when it opened in the 1970s.
" They got out of the vehicle and approached the building.
"It was originally called the Blair House Condos, then renamed the Arawak Hotel after the Indigenous tribe that lived in the Caribbean.
It was open for about ten years but couldn't sustain itself.
" Riley motioned around them. "There's not much out here, nothing for tourists to do.
If you wanted to relax, sure, but there are no beaches, no restaurants, no nightlife.
It was ahead of its time. Nowadays, more people would appreciate a secluded getaway. "
"What happened to it?" All around was desolation.
"Once they announced the closure, chaos erupted. Everything was stolen—literally everything. Toilets, copper wiring, anything that wasn't nailed down. It never officially closed because they couldn't operate in the last few months with everything gone."
Gray shook his head, walking beside her into the shell of the hotel. Graffiti marred every inch of what remained.
"What a shame. I bet it would've thrived today.
I mean, I'd prefer fewer people around when I'm on vacation, though I guess I'm already living on a paradise island permanently," Riley added with a laugh, absentmindedly grabbing Gray's hand.
She paused, realizing what she'd done, but when he smiled back, she blushed and kept holding on, leading him deeper into the building.
"Wow, this place is immense. It must have had some grandeur when it was open. Is that water over there?" Gray pointed with his free hand, not wanting to let go of hers.
"Yeah, come on, it's spectacular," Riley guided him out the back of the hotel towards the canal.
As they walked over the rubble, Gray pondered what the view would've been like back in the day.
It wasn't exactly beautiful, but it was interesting.
The canal stretched out in front of them, part of the Grand Waterway, and not much else.
"It's a modern-day ghost town. Why did they build all these canals to nowhere? And then just leave it?"
"That's the crazy part," Riley explained.
"They started building the waterway in 1967, cutting through the entire island from north to south.
The plan was to develop this area with housing and this giant hotel.
They finished the canal in 1978, and this hotel closed in 1980.
Ever since, it's all been abandoned." They stood at the edge of the canal, looking down at the water.
Gray had never seen water this colour before, a soft green that deepened to a mesmerizing blue as the canal grew deeper.
He wanted to bottle it up and take it home, but as he thought that, he realized. .. this could be home.
"And here's another wild mystery: manatees have been spotted in this canal. It's rare, but I always check just in case." They both scanned the canal, waiting for a gentle giant to make an appearance.
They stood there, holding hands. Gray thought, this is the perfect place to kiss her. He turned to Riley, who was still searching the canal when she noticed he wasn't looking at the water anymore but at her, like she was the treasure he'd been seeking. She met his gaze, and he pulled her closer.
"I'm going to--" Gray began, but Riley didn't let him finish.
She pushed up onto her tiptoes and kissed him.
Gray almost lost his balance, but she pulled him in tighter, and he wrapped his arms around her, kissing her back.
He felt like she was melting into him. What was happening?
He pulled back to look at her, and she smiled, tapping him on the temple.
"Dr. Gray, are you trying to analyze the data before you've completed all your research?" she teased.
He laughed. "I would never! I need multiple data points. And I think I should start here," he pressed his lips to her neck. Riley gasped, her head tilting back as he kissed her softly. "Gray?"
"Hmm?"
"I want to do this... and a lot more," she whispered as he nibbled on her ear and stroked her back. "But I don't want this to be a onetime island romance."
He stopped, looking into her eyes, seeing the question there: did he mean he could stay? He pulled her close, not wanting her to think he was pushing her away.
"I don't want that either, Riley. I haven't--" He trailed off, searching for the right words.
"Haven't what?"
"I haven't had many serious relationships.
I'm an all-in kind of guy, and that's made it hard because I haven't found many women who wanted the same.
So, I've been a bit of a single guy, not jumping into things, and I don't walk away.
What we're starting here, I don't know. I want to see where it goes because I could live here.
I already know that, and I've only been here a few weeks.
" He pulled her to his chest, whispering into her hair, "I want to keep doing my research here, with you.
" As Gray said this, he made a note in his brain to think about later. This could be the first moment of us.
"Here's what I know." He moved her back slightly to look into her eyes again.
"I want to keep kissing you, and other stuff.
But I'll also understand if you want to wait and see if I can stay.
I applied for an extension of an extra two months.
I've saved so much money on accommodation that the funding committee said they'd consider it.
Maybe we propose the Lagoon as a satellite research station and run it? Honestly, I don't know, but--"
"You applied to stay longer?" She gaped at him, not knowing when he'd done that, but it meant the world to her, and if he got it, then she'd have more time with him.
Once again, it was Riley who started the kiss.
As it deepened, Gray thought he was definitely falling for her and knew he needed to stay.
He realized there was no way she would leave; her life was here.
When she finally pulled back, panting slightly, she smiled at him.
"I know you can't say for sure that you'll stay, but that you'll try is enough for now.
How about we take things slow? We've got to keep working together, and my meddling coworkers will know we're up to something if we're making googly eyes at each other all day.
So, you're going to have to play it cool.
I'm already cool, so all I need to do is be myself," she added with a playful peck on his lips before pulling away and grabbing his hand.
"Now, I'm starving, and I think an early dinner would be perfect.
Bear needs to get out for a bit, so how about we go get him fed and then wander to the Conch Shack for something to eat?
" she suggested as she started walking back to her jeep, with Gray right beside her, still a bit dazed from being able to kiss her and the anticipation of what might come next.
"It's a plan. I'm definitely hungry, and this place is giving me the creeps. But I'm glad we came." Gray looked back at the hotel and noticed something unusual. Pointing to the building about two-thirds of the way up on the far side, he saw something moving. "Riley, what's that?"
Following his gaze, Riley noticed the same moving object and smiled.
"Oh, that's Roland Sr. He's training to climb Everest, and since there's nothing tall on this island and we're barely above sea level, he comes out here and climbs the building over and over for practice.
He walks here with all his gear. His training regime is insane! "
"You're joking, right?" It seemed unreal; a man living on a flat island climbing a building to train for Everest?
"I'm totally serious. Haven't you seen him yet, walking in the ocean around the island?
He straps weights to his body and walks in the water for resistance training.
He's climbed many of the highest peaks already.
I think he leaves for Everest next year.
" They both watched the figure moving at a speed that seemed almost superhuman.
"I'm impressed! You've shown me more new things in one day than I've experienced in years.
Thank you, Riley, for bringing me here." She smiled, knowing that while she had wanted to see more of him after their first meeting, it was Cam's hard work that had brought Gray to the island.
She wasn't upset about it, though. If anything, she wanted to sneak in a few more kisses, but she'd wait.
Having her heart broken would be too much to bear, and there was a possibility this could work out. She needed to make that happen.