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“You are up early? Where is your missus?”
“Oh no, Lily and I aren’t married.”
She gave me a knowing smile. “I know. She said the same thing. It’s only because you don’t see it yet. You two are kindred souls. No matter how much you try to resist, there will forever be a pull between the two of you. You were destined for one another, and what is destined cannot be stopped or broken.”
I shook my head. “I think you have this one all wrong.”
“No.” She smiled at me, causing her wrinkled face to wrinkle even more. “You are the one who has it all wrong. Word of advice from a person who has walked the earth and seen more than I care to know. If it feels right, then that is all that matters.”
She turned away from me and headed into the back room. I was left at the receptionist's desk, stunned. She was one crazy woman.
I walked out of the inn and made my way down to the corner store that I had seen last night. I was sure I would find something to eat and hopefully get Lily something to wear so that she wasn’t walking around with a torn blouse.
I arrived at the entrance of the corner store and pushed the door.When I walked through the front door, the bell dinged. The store clerk lifted her head. She looked at me for a moment before she returned to flipping through her trash TV magazine.
I looked through the aisle and picked up a few bags of chips and two cold brew coffees in cans. I walked up to the counter and paid for what I had taken.
“Would you happen to have t-shirts or hoodies for sale here?”
The cashier scrunched her nose in disgust. “Do we look like a gift shop to you.?”
No, but you do look like a health hazard. I wanted to say that to her, but I decided better of it. I didn’t need to be going at it with the cashier. I had enough problems to deal with already in my life.
I grabbed my things and made my way out for the store. It was nearing 6:30 and the sun had just woken up. There was a cool breeze in the air, an indication that winter was fast approaching.
When I got back to the inn, the old lady was gone, and a new receptionist, a much younger one, was in her place.
I made my way up to my room. When the doors slid open, I was ready to exit the lift, but I stopped when I noticed Lily standing there. Her hair was still all over the place, but she had changed.
She wasn’t wearing the clothes from yesterday. Instead, she was wearing grey sweats and a baggy hoodie I had never seen on her before.
“Hey,” I breathed.
“I woke up and you were gone.” There was so much hurt in her eyes that I had to look away for a moment. This was exactly what I was afraid of. She wasn’t going to forget this.
I had meant to be the voice of reason between the two of us. I was meant to make sure the boundaries weren’t crossed. But I had allowed the wrong head do the talking.
I lifted my hand. “I went to get us some food. Figured you would want something in your stomach since we have to leave early.”
She stared at the plastic bag in my hand like it had wronged her in some way. Her blue eyes then cut to me—my heart stopped. I could see it.
“Where did you get those clothes?” A change of subject was exactly what we needed.
“Brandi gave them to me.”
“Brandi?”
“The elderly lady from the reception. She brought these to my room, she also brought you a pair.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. I left them in my room. I was coming down to find you.”
“Okay.” I let go of the elevator door I had been holding and stepped out. “You take these, and I will go and get my keys and come to your room.”
After gathering my things, I knocked on Lily’s door. She opened it and walked back to her bed. She handed me the sweats and sat down by the nightstand. She was barely able to look at me, but how could I blame her?
I walked to her bathroom and put on the fresh pair of clothes, thankful that I wasn’t in my damp clothes from yesterday. When I exited the bathroom, I found Lily sitting at the edge of the bed staring at the wall opposite her.
