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She had spent the night and morning with Callum, yet she knew very little about the man. If she wanted to find a story about his parties or anything else worth writing about, she needed to learn more.
Ten minutes of searching the room only revealed that this wasn't Callum's actual bedroom. There were a few suits hanging in the closet and fresh shirts, socks, and underwear in the small dresser beside the closet, but that was the only evidence of someone living there. Every drawer in the nightstand was empty, as if it were a hotel room. She half expected to find a Bible left by the Gideons.
Throughout her search, she deliberately avoided looking at the bed, even when investigating the nightstand. She had put on her journalist's hat. Letting herself think about the evening and morning she had spent with Callum would only compromise her objectivity. It didn't matter how much fun she had. It was just a one-night stand … well, one night and the following morning.
Her phone buzzed, interrupting her second sweep of the room. It was a text from Alexis.U still here? If you can tear yourself away from whoever you are with, we are in the dining room. You won't believe the spread they have!
Glancing at the room service tray, Fiona could believe it. Even after Callum had devoured one of the plates of sausages and half of the giant steak, there was enough food to feed her for a week. She looked back at her phone and frowned.
It was just a one-night stand. Callum had told her to wait, but why should she listen? "Because you're looking for round three," she answered her own question. No, it was time to go. She wasn't going to wait around for some man, not even a man like Callum. As much as part of her wanted to.
He wasn’t just attractive. He had seemed caring, kind, and responsible. He had, at least, managed to pull off a rather impressive party and focus on his duties as a host rather than running around like a frat bro. These were all traits Fiona found rather impressive, and she had to resist the part of her that longed to learn more about the shifter.
Her resolve held as she gathered the garment bag and approached the door. The moment she touched the handle, however, she froze. The desire to stay and wait for Callum to return almost overwhelmed her. In the end, it wasn't enough to change her mind, though.
The hallway outside extended in both directions, with doorways lined along it. It truly felt like a hotel, or perhaps a ski lodge, given its intentionally rustic quality reminiscent of a mountain cabin but on a grander scale.
It was the world of the wealthy, after all. Fiona had seen more than gleaming luxury sports cars in the valet lot yesterday. These cars could handle a NASCAR track.
A fire map on the wall resembled those in hotels and provided directions out of the labyrinthine wing of Callum's lodge. It wasn't until she reached the main hall that she encountered other people. A few staff members were cleaning the room, and if she hadn't attended the party herself last night, she would never have guessed that hundreds of people had crowded it just a few hours earlier.
The dining room resembled a restaurant in any other context. Booths lined two sides with tall windows offering vistas of the surrounding forest. Tables for two to twelve were scattered throughout the room, with dark wood and matching chairs. Most of the booths were occupied along with half the tables while more people were queuing at a long buffet island stacked with food similar to what was on the tray back in her room, and then some.
"Looks like someone else got lucky last night," Alexis called out, waving from her table.
She and Lillian were dressed similarly, in leggings and polo shirts. Most of the people at the other tables and in the buffet line were dressed the same. Chloe, sitting across from them, still wore the dress from last night, though it was a little crumpled, and her hair had seen better days.
The workers in the main ballroom had completely ignored Fiona as she passed by them. She felt eyes on her as she approached her friends' table. A large, bearded man nearby sniffed loudly and leaned over to whisper to the woman with him. Both of them continued watching her as she took her seat.
"No comment," Fiona said before Lillian could ask her anything.
"Isn't that usually the answer people should give you, not the other way around?" Chloe remarked.
"Oh, don't listen to little Miss Boring over there," Alexis said. "While we were having our minds blown, she fell asleep in the library, reading some dusty old book."
"It was a 16th-century printing of theCanterbury Tales," Chloe retorted. "When will I ever get another chance to check it out? I want this library. It's not my fault I didn't get distracted by boys."
"Men," Alexis and Lillian corrected simultaneously.
The three of them burst into giggles. Fiona joined in and even swiped a sausage from Chloe's plate. Alexis launched into a detailed retelling of her evening's adventures. Fiona's eyes, however, kept drifting toward the doors.
She knew she had no right to wonder where he had gone. She had decided to leave Callum's room. They had only shared a one-night stand, after all. That was the purpose of these parties, wasn't it?
Still, she kept looking for him. Even after she forced her gaze away from the doorway, her eyes and thoughts kept drifting back. The others finished their meals, and they all got up to leave. On the way to the lodge's entrance, Fiona continued hoping for a sight of him.
"Damn, Fiona," Lillian said from the passenger seat. "You must have had fun. You keep staring back there just like Chloe, but I know you're not thinking about the library."
Beside her in the back seat, Chloe twisted to face forward, her arms crossed. Lillian only giggled at her glare. Fiona slowly turned her attention away from the rear window.
"Maybe I sense a story," she said unconvincingly despite Lillian shaking her head.
Two weeks later, Fiona had yet to find a hint of a story about Callum and his full moon parties. She had no idea who any of the masked partygoers were. Lillian and Alexis were forthcoming about the fun they had but shared little about the men they spent the night with.
Callum remained elusive, and even a Google search led her to his professional headshot on the company's website. Other than a brief blurb, he kept remarkably quiet for a billionaire. She hardly found any other photos of him.
He hadn't tried to find her, of course. She hadn't expected it, and his silence only confirmed that what they had shared was only a fling. Did she really believe that a man who hosted monthly orgies was interested in anything more?
Nonetheless, she leaned her chair back and clicked on the browser tab where she had saved his photograph. There was no harm in indulging in a little fantasy. It might even help to clear her head.
