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Sam’s eyes narrow. ?
?Try reading a book. I have several that ought to put you right to sleep.”
I sigh. “I guess I just need some company.”
“Well, it ain’t polite for me to be alone with a woman in a hotel room unless she’s my wife.”
I have to put my hand over my mouth. “That’s the cutest thing I’ve ever heard, Sam.”
We have what appears to be a mini staring contest before he growls and gives up, heads back into his room for a moment to grab a shirt, and follows me down the hall.
“Hi, Officer Max,” I chirp. “We’re just going to go down to the lobby to party.”
Sam sounds exasperated. “We’re not partying. It’s games. Party games. That’s it.”
Officer Max shakes his head and talks into his radio. He says some coded numbers and stuff. “OK, you can head on down and the security officer on the main floor will meet you in the lobby.”
Sam puts his hands up. “Maybe this isn’t a good idea.”
I slip my arm through his to guide him along. “Come on, it’ll be fun.”
He’s blushing but I’m not totally sure why. We walk down to the main floor where we are greeted by a new security officer, who leads us through a vending room. “Snacks!” I shout and make a beeline for the nearest machine that has Cool Ranch Doritos. “I have a little bit of change. Officer, do you want anything? Sam?”
They both decline.
All of these grumpy men who are part of my life for the foreseeable future had better loosen up. “Suit yourself,” I say with a shrug. My steps have a little more pep as I carry my soda, Doritos, as well as some gummy worms into the lobby area. We seat ourselves around a posh looking coffee table in the modern lobby and I explain to him how to play the game.
“Fine, let’s get this over with. I’m tired,” Sam says.
I laugh. “It’s like 9 p.m. What time do you normally go to bed?”
I start the game by taking my first turn, and we chat back and forth comfortably. He seems to relax as long as he’s not making eye contact.
“I go to bed at 9. Get up at 4.”
“Oh my god, why?”
“Because I have three hundred head of cattle to tend to. Why? When do you go to bed?”
I shrug and move another piece. “Oh, it depends. I have to be at work at 7 a.m., so I go to bed anywhere from 11 p.m. to 1 a.m., depending on how much fun I’m having.”
Sam moves a tile. “What kind of fun is keeping you awake at those hours?”
“I like to watch movies. Sometimes I binge one rom-com after another until I fall asleep on the sofa. Wild times.”
He eyes me with a twinkle. “Which one’s your favorite?”
I smile wide. “While You Were Sleeping.”
He nods, seeming to take in the information. “Well. That ain’t near enough sleep for a body like yours. I mean for somebody like you. Or anybody.”
I glance up and catch his eyes darting back up to my face, as if he’d just been looking down my top. Glancing down, I see the problem. When I knot the bathrobe in front of me, it seems to put Sam at ease again.
“So, why’d you become a vegan?” he asks.
I’m pleased he’s the least bit interested. “Saw a documentary once. Really freaked me out. That’s about it.”
He nods. “Fair enough.”
