Page 13 of Room Service

5

Trent

Fuck. That was a bad move, Trent.

I knew what I was doing, even as I did it. But somehow, watching Jessi trying to pick herself up after she’d just given me a look like she was horrified was something I’d wanted to walk away from. There were better ways I could have done it—less harsh ways.

Why had I even said that? As if ignoring her wasn’t bad enough! I’d wanted to bang my head against the nearest wall because I knew there was no way she wouldn’t have heard me. And I’d hurt her deliberately.

But I couldn’t stop myself. Old habits die hard and all that bullshit.

I could remember what our teen years were like. Even though I hadn't thought of her in a long while, the memories came to me with such clarity. I could even remember the last time I’d talked to her. I remembered down to the last detail of what she’d been wearing and how she’d done up her hair.

And afterward, her broken-hearted expression after I’d left her.

Fuck, but I’d been an asshole back then. I haven’t changed much from that, have I?

I’d wanted to turn back as soon as I’d said those harsh words, but I’d forced myself to keep walking. Because I wasn’t sure what I would have told her anyway.

Plus, there was the fact she’d changed. And not just a little bit, but a lot! That she was suddenly so breath-taking didn’t help, and I wasn’t sure I could talk to her without staring at her body, and that would be inappropriate. She’d offered me her heart on a platter, and I’d tossed it back in her face. There was no need to confuse the poor girl by suddenly acting all interested.

Besides, she was beautiful now; so what? I’d had my pick of the most beautiful women in the world, there was no reason why Jessi of all people should have my mind all muddled just from one look at her. I didn’t need a pastry chef to fulfill my sexual needs. And the only reason I even knew her current occupation was because Dad had brought her name up a couple of times and mentioned it. I wasn’t sure when it happened but for some reason, it had stuck with me.

Or maybe it was just because this was Jessie. Besides Dad and the older servants who’d stayed at the mansion forever, she was the only other person who remembered my mother had existed. My step-mom and half-siblings… I wasn’t sure if they’d ever seen her in pictures. Dad hadn't got rid of them, but he’d moved all of the pictures of Mom we had hanging around, insisting instead that they be locked up somewhere he wouldn’t have to see them unless he went looking for them.

I would visit that room sometime during my stay. I’d taken some pictures of Mom when I’d left but I didn’t have nearly enough.

I planned to put Jessi out of my mind very quickly. Even though when I first saw her after so long, I’d felt a twinge of desire, unlike anything I’d ever felt before with any other woman.

Maybe it had been too long since I’d been with someone, I rationalized to myself. I’d been working for months on end now, using my hand for relief. After the whole deal with Dad was done, I promised myself I’d go looking for someone. It wouldn’t take me long to find the companionship I needed.

Besides all that, I needed to focus on the current problem I found myself in. Because for all I knew, my dad could be dying somewhere, and my nitwit of a sister wasn't very forthcoming with information. I wanted to know which hospital he’d been taken to. There were quite a few within the area, but I could always go to the nearest and start asking from there. I would ask the staff, but if Emily was keeping quiet on it, they probably didn’t know.

I suddenly just wanted to get out of the house. I didn’t want another chance encounter with Jessi.

I might as well unpack. I went back for the suitcase I’d left in the trunk of my car. Ted, who was still waiting at the door, held his hand out in silent offering to carry my bag for me. I just shook my head and walked past him. Like I’d let an old man carry my luggage for me when I could do it just fine.

I wasn’t sure which room I was supposed to take, but my feet moved on their own. I went up the stairs to the second floor and strode down the hallway until I stopped at a specific door. I stared at it for a moment, before reaching out and pushing it open. It was unlocked. When I looked inside, nothing had changed.

Seriously.

There was no thick smell of dust in the room, so someone must have at least cleaned it. But they could have made some changes. The room looked exactly as I’d left it when I went off to college. Shit, that was more than a decade ago.

Was this supposed to make me feel guilty?

I walked into the room feeling suspicious. I set my suitcase down, then walked around the room just a little. It should be impossible that no one had touched or moved anything in there. My memory wasn’t so impeccable that I would remember every detail, but as far as I could tell, nothing had moved. It was bringing back some memories for me that I would have rather remained buried.

After the quick tour around my room, I dragged the suitcase over to the bed. At least the bed was made, something I didn’t remember from when I’d left the room for the last time. This was worse, though, as if whoever left it like this had been waiting for me to come home.

I opened my suitcase and started pulling out clothes an item at a time. It was a pretty big suitcase with quite a few outfits, but for an impromptu trip of an unknown length of time, I’d packed lightly.

Once I had everything arranged on the bed I started moving them over to the closet, trying not to wrinkle anything. I hurried and was done in a matter of minutes. It was calming for my mind as well, and I didn’t feel quite so unsettled afterward.

I left my room, feeling like I could go start looking for my dad now. I wasn’t sure yet if I was going to go to the closer hospitals in the area or just track their numbers down before leaving. There was impatience growing in my chest because I still didn’t know the state my father was in. A large part of me was still greatly worried.

I was headed for my car the moment I got outside but I never made it. Instead, I heard a car approaching and looked up in surprise.

What the hell…?