She nods in agreement, but her lack of verbal confirmation makes me doubt if she will actually let me know of her discomfort. I know that being in a new place can be extremely distressing for introverts, and Ellie will probably suffer through an uncomfortable situation if she thinks it’s helping other people. But, I don’t think I could handle it if I knew she did that for me, so I try to make myself as clear as possible.
“I need you to know I’m being completely serious, Ellie.” We make it to our floor, and our room is all the way at the end of the hallway. I turn to her again as we walk. “This is your room as much as it is mine, so if you need some time to yourself, just let me know and I’ll make myself scarce. No questions asked.”
Her voice is soft as she responds, “Thank you, and I’ll keep that in mind. I do really appreciate everything you said, Patrick. I mean it.”
I press my keycard against the scanner and push the door open.
The smell of clean linens and jasmine fills the room as we walk through the door. Ellie strolls past me as I make a detour into the bathroom. The drive wasn’t long, but after waiting in the car and checking in, I’ve needed to relieve myself for a while now. When I get out of the bathroom, I see an abashed expression on Ellie’s face. Something is off, but I don’t know what it is.
“Ellie, is everything okay?”
“Uhhh, the bed.” She looks up at me with concern in her eyes. “There’s only one.”
“No, that can’t be right—” I move past her and see a massive bed centered on the wall. “What the fuck? I booked us a room with two beds. Maybe the other bed is in a separate room.” I search frantically, opening doors to multiple closets, but there is no secret room or second bed to be found. “This must be a mistake. I’m going to figure this out. Okay?”
She lets out a small sigh as she sinks down on the couch, picking at her thumbs. I’ve noticed the nervous tick before, and I hate that it’s my fault she is feeling that way. Dialing the number for the front desk, I sit at the edge of the bed hoping for some answers.
The multiple calls between the receptionist and hotel manager last over twenty minutes, and everyone kept giving me the same response.
Hanging up the phone, I try not to freak out.
The mattress sinks as I sit on the edge of the bed facing the couch. Not knowing how much Ellie has heard from the phone call, I feel the need to explain. “They said that there must have been an error in the system. They are claiming they’ve never had this issue happen before. Apparently, they overbooked the rooms with two beds, and since we were so late to check in, they don’t have any rooms they can switch us to this weekend.” Looking up, I watch her continue to anxiously mess with her hands. “El, I am so sorry. Do you want to go home?”
She is quiet for a moment but responds firmly, “No. We drove all the way out here. I want to stay.”
“How about I stay with Wes? Or I can sleep on the couch?” I start pacing to try to gather my thoughts, trying to come up with a better idea, but I’m overwhelmed and agitated. An unfamiliar sensation comes over me, and I know that my emotions are fighting to escape. My blood pressure is through the roof, and I’m at a loss for what to do. It feels like everything is working against us. “Fuck, El. This is not how this was supposed to go. I literally triple checked the reservation. I hate technology. I want to fix this, but I just don’t know exactly how. I’m sorry.”
“No, it’s okay. You shouldn’t have to sleep in Wes’ room or on the couch. I guess we can share the bed?” She poses it as a question like she’s not the one giving up her comfort. “I mean, only if you’re okay with it. I promise not to try to make any moves on you.”
Her smile that she offers me is sweet and a little flirty, and I’m surprised she manages to crack a joke, instantly making me feel better.
When I don’t respond, she continues, “Anyways, this couch is way too small for you, what are you, six feet tall? I don’t even think I could fit on this couch, and I’m barely 5’5”.”
It’s kind of adorable how she is trying to lighten the mood. She does a show of laying flat on the couch, and she is right. Her feet dangle off the edge, so there is no way that I would fit. Laughing at her theatrics, I notice her face brightens. I didn’t realize how tense it was in this room after the phone call, and now I feel bad.
“I’m 6’2” actually, so I guess it wouldn’t work.” I lift up Ellie’s legs to sit down with her, bringing them back on top of my thighs. The closeness instantly making me feel better. “But, I don’t want you to have to do that unless you are completely okay with it. I invited you here, so you shouldn’t have to make sacrifices because of the hotel's stupid mistake.”
Shrugging her shoulders, she looks over at me. “Yeah, but it’s a big bed. We won’t even be able to tell if we stay to our own sides. We can even make a barrier in the middle with pillows!”
“Well, now the only way that I’m sharing the bed with you is if we make a pillow wall.” She smiles softly, but I can tell this situation—and how I reacted—really stressed her out.
Chapter 19
Ellie
Everythingisgoingtobe okay.
At least, that is what I keep telling myself.
There’s no way we could have predicted that there would be an error in the hotel's booking system, and if anyone is to blame, it’s me—since I was the one who fell asleep in the car. Patrick was being so kind, letting me sleep, and he didn’t know that there would be any consequences.
Sitting on the edge of the bed, I lean back and find comfort being flat on the fluffy surface. The scent of fresh laundry fills my nose, and I take a deep breath to relax.
The main concern of sharing a bed is thatImight be the one to make a move. At least, it’s much more likely than Patrick doing something creepy. I’ll just have to stay away from alcohol since I obviously cannot be trusted with it.
We’ve had this lingering sexual tension since we were at the bar, and it’s extremely frustrating that I can’t remember exactly what happened. If I’m being honest, there’s been tension since that first kiss at happy hour, but I was able to ignore that for the most part.
The first event of the weekend is tonight—a casual dinner. I don’t even know what that means. My duffel bag is filled to thebrim with options, but that doesn’t help me know what to wear tonight. I’ll have to ask Patrick what he’s wearing when he gets back and try to match his level of ‘casualness’.
