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"Good. Now, we're going to bed," he said.
"We are? I'm not tired anymore.”
"Are you sure? You were yawning before."
"Hmm. I could be talked into sleeping," I teased him, "though we might get other ideas once we’re in bed."
When we reached the bedroom, the light was off. He set me right in the center of the bed before pulling back the covers.
"Come on. Let's get in so you don't get cold," he said as I discarded the robe. I was buck naked, since I didn't have any pajamas.
He slipped right next to me under the covers. This all felt so sinful with the lamps off, though there were plenty of sources of light outside. Chicago wasn't sleeping yet.
I moved closer to him so our legs were intertwined, then put my hands on his torso, moving them up and down playfully.
"You're going to tempt me the whole night, aren't you?" he asked.
I grinned. "You can be sure of that."
Chapter Sixteen
Reese
I was a bit of a mess over the next few days to the point that I didn’t even participate in the Halloween celebrations at the hotel. I just kept thinking about Malcolm's message. He hadn't sent me a follow-up, but I wasn't kidding myself. If he'd taken the trouble to write to me in the first place, he wasn't going to give up just because I didn't answer.
No matter how much I wanted to protect my family, I couldn't keep them in the dark. This affected them just as much as it did me. I considered telling just Travis and Kimberly at first. As the owner of the hotel, Travis would be the one most directly impacted, although Kimberly and I were also co-owners of the Aspen Hotel. But I felt as if this affected the whole Maxwell legacy. I couldn't imagine telling everyone at once. But if I told them separately, I'd have to relay the story several times, and I didn’t have it in me.
"Knock, knock. You here?" Kimberly asked.
"Hey, how long have you been standing there, staring at me like a creep?"
"Just a few minutes. Everything okay?"
Everything was decidedly not okay. I leaned back in my chair.
Her eyes widened. "Oh shit. What happened?"
"Think we can get the family together for a dinner?"
Kimberly stilled. "Reese, you're scaring me. What's wrong?"
"I have some things to share with everyone."
She practically ran across the office and sat in front of me. "I need to know now."
"Look, don't worry. It's just not something I want to keep repeating over and over again. That's why it's best if I rip off the Band-Aid when I tell everyone at the same time."
"It's about Malcolm, isn't it?"
I winced. "How did you know?"
"Because it's the only time you get all cagey, and I can practically see you shrinking in front of me."
I sighed. "Every time I think I've gotten rid of him, I'm wrong."
She stood up abruptly, nodding. "I'll get the family together, but not at your place. There's no space for everyone to sit down. I'll call Aunt Lena. I’m sure she’d love to have everyone for dinner.”
"Thanks, Kimberly," I said.
