“I was teasing, but if you ever need it, I’d be happy to volunteer for the job.”
The thought of Henry as my personal guide almost made me interested in antique shopping. “I’ll keep that in mind, but for now, I want to take you to lunch.”
“Lunch sounds good, but you don’t have to pay.”
Anticipating this reaction, I had a response at the ready. “Fair enough. Let me know what dinner and the room cost and I’ll give you the cash for my half.”
“You think that’s going to happen?”
Henry’s “whatever” face was adorable. It was also useless. “Are you suggesting I can’t afford to pay for myself?”
He started to answer, snapped his mouth shut, and smiled. I didn’t expect the last bit, or when Henry took my hand in his. “How long have you been working on your comeback?”
I heard the question, but my brain focused on our hands. Henry's touch was like a drug. I got lightheaded from the surge of good feels it gave me. No one had held my hand in public in a long time. The small act sent a big signal. Henry liked me enough to let others know I was with him. "Since you said you were going to take me to dinner tonight."
"Is this okay?" He squeezed my hand gently.
He looked worried like he’d upset me. As if holding my hand would ever offend me. Clearly he couldn’t read my body language. "Better than okay. I like it."
Henry smiled so wide, it enveloped his whole face. “Good, I don’t want to make you uncomfortable.”
Seeing him this happy and knowing I was the reason, erased most of my hesitation about pushing further. A part of me worried he’d come to his senses and realize I wasn’t as good as he thought, but I tried not to let my fears control my actions. “You don’t. Not even a little.”
“Great.” He rubbed his thumb over the back of hand. “Now, about lunch.”
Part of this issue was of my making, given my reaction to wealth, but the truth was, we needed to deal with it now, or it would forever be a problem. “I’m buying lunch, and that’s settled. I’m not broke or even poor. I have a good job, I’m a good saver, and I can afford to go out and still pay my bills. I promisenot to try and keep up with you—because I know I can’t—but I do want to be able to pay for us to go out sometimes. If you let me pay for what I can afford, I won’t feel too guilty I can’t do more.”
I watched him as I spoke, hoping I didn’t offend him. He didn’t react much, and that worried me. I wasn’t expecting penitent Henry, but I thought he’d show some emotions. When I finished, he bowed his head a little.
“I’m sorry, Nick. You’re right. It’s part of my nature to take care of people, but that’s not how this is supposed to work. I’ll promise not to fuss if you want to pay forsomethings, so long as you promise not to pay for more than you can afford.”
It wasn’t perfect, and we’d need to talk about this again, but it would get us past lunch. “It’s a start.”
Nick
“I’m truly sorry, Mr. Angelini,” the B&B owner said. “The room you booked online shouldn’t have been listed as available.”
The nervous looking woman wrung her hands and avoided Henry’s gaze. Her eyes flicked to me, and I tried to look sympathetic. Mistakes happened, but seriously, this should’ve been avoidable.
“I have our Major General room available and would be happy to give it to you at the same rate as the room you booked.”
Henry gripped the edge of the desk and I waited for him to respond. He’d been excited when he found the ‘perfect room’ for our trip, and this was going to ruin his mood.
“It’s not about the cost, Ms. Hempstead. The room I booked had two beds. Your Major General room only has one king bed.”
Ms. Hempstead shifted her gaze between Henry and me a couple of times before recognition registered on her face. “I understand Mr. Angelini. The room is quite large, and I can bring in a rollaway bed.”
From the set of Henry’s shoulders, I knew what he thought of her offer. “Henry? Can we talk for a minute?”
He looked up and all the joy from the day had drained away. The B&B had been a big part of the trip. Other than possibly the restaurant, staying here was what he’d looked forward to most. I didn’t get it, but I got it meant something to Henry.
It also seemed to matter a great deal to our hostess, which didn’t make sense to me. Personally, I’d have apologized, offered to help Henry find another room, and moved on with my day. We only booked one night. The lost income couldn’t be a make or break for her.
Pushing himself up, Henry held up a finger, but didn’t say anything to Ms. Hempstead. I smiled at her before leading the way outside.
I put my hand on his chest, hoping it would calm him down. “It’s okay, Henry.”
“No, it’s not. I picked this B&B because it had a room with two beds available.”
