“Oh! Of course.” She laughed a little too hard. “But seriously, if you need anything later…you know where to find me.”
He nodded politely, knowing he would not, in fact, “find” her later. She got him set up in a different SUV, and he was driving off the lot ten minutes later, in a replacement rental that smelled like new car air freshener and someone’s cologne. But it drove, and all four tires were in one piece, which was more than the first one had managed. He took the long way to Surprise just because he could. By the time the sign for the motel came into view, he’d managed to shove most of the day’s irritation to the back of his mind.
He pulled into a spot in front of the office and sat there for a moment, taking in the familiar grounds. He’d been coming here for five years, ever since they’d opened, and he liked it because it was predictable. Because every spring, he came back and nothing had changed. The coffee was still strong, the rooms were still impeccably clean, and the owners still knew when to talkand when to leave people the hell alone. It felt like what coming home should feel like.
He made sure he had his wallet and stepped out of the car. The dry heat wrapped around him, hotter than air had a right to be in February, but not quite oppressive. Across the courtyard, the pool glinted a hard bright blue, and an older couple sat at a small table under a large umbrella. They gave him a curious glance, then turned back to the game of cards between them. Evan smiled and shook his head, then headed up the steps to the lobby and pushed the glass door open.
He breathed in the scent of coffee, cookies, and citrus as he stepped inside. The front desk stood off to the side, with framed prints of cactus silhouettes in sunset colors hanging from the wall behind it. Succulents in painted pots lined the counter next to a bowl of individually wrapped butterscotch candies and a pale-blue ceramic cactus filled with pens.
“Look what the desert coughed up.” Eleanor leaned her hip against the doorframe behind the desk, bright-red lips smiling wide.
Relief loosened something in his chest. “Hey, El.”
She came around the counter and held out her arms, and Evan stepped into them. Her hug was warm, and Evan closed his eyes, letting her tight grip ground him. Her shirt smelled like lavender and dryer sheets, and he exhaled long and slow as her hands pressed between his shoulder blades.
“Rough day?” she asked quietly.
“Long one,” he murmured into her shoulder. “Better now.”
Eleanor gave him a squeeze before letting him go. Evan straightened and moved to lean on the counter as she walked around to check him in.
“You’re late,” she added, a teasing note slipping into her voice. “I thought you’d be here an hour ago.”
“I took the long way,” he said. “Needed some time to think. I told you I’d be here today.”
“True.” She turned to the computer and started tapping at the keyboard, nails clicking. “At least you’re predictable. I like that about you.”
Evan felt his shoulders drop a little more. There was something about being known in this tiny, specific way that was steadying, and he’d come to count on the routine he’d found here every spring.
“Room twelve again?” he asked.
He already knew the answer. He stayed in the same room every spring. It was quiet, overlooked the pool, and was just close enough to the laundry room that he could tell if there were empty machines without dragging his clothes there first.
Eleanor’s fingers paused on the keyboard, just for a second, barely long enough to be noticeable, and that was the second hint that the universe was out to get him.
“Yep,” she answered cheerfully.
“Eleanor.”
She sighed dramatically. “There was almost a crisis.”
Evan narrowed his eyes. “Almost.”
“Very almost.”
“I don’t know what you mean, but it’s not very reassuring.”
“It should be because the keyword is ‘almost.’” Eleanor pointed at him. “This is why I shouldn’t tell you anything.”
“Tell me what?” Evan asked with a laugh. “You haven’t told me anything.”
“Nor should I.” Eleanor rolled her eyes. “You are this uniquely difficult combination of guest and friend, and if you were anybody else, I’d keep my mouth shut and hand over the key.”
“Now you definitely have to tell me.” Evan folded his arms expectantly, then gave her a wide smile when she glared at him.
“Fine. Your room got assigned to someone else by mistake. For, like, five minutes.”
“How—”
