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“Do you own a hotel there too?”
“Samantha, look at me.” When she did, I made a point of rolling my eyes.
“That’s not an answer.”
“I do not.”
She tapped her bottom lip. “Does your father?”
“He does not.”
“There’s a connection, though, isn’t there?”
“It’s an hour’s drive from Aspen, a place where my family often skied.”
She pointed a finger at me. “That’s where you own a hotel.”
I wanted to deny it, but then I’d be lying, which appeared was what she was trying to catch me doing. “Yes.”
“I knew it,” she muttered. “Are we staying in one of your hotels every night?”
“I believe we’ve already determined we would not be tonight.” I saw her shake her head from the corner of my eye. “What?”
“Where are we staying tomorrow night, Beau?”
I picked up my mobile. “The code is 062598.”
She grabbed the phone and was halfway through punching the numbers in when she stopped. “That’s my birthday.”
“So it is.”
“Did you realize?”
“Perhaps,” I said with a noncommittal shrug. What I didn’t say, never would, in fact, was that Sam’s birthday had always been my password. Given my devices had additional security built in, I had no reason to change it. I liked that it always reminded me of her, and also, I’d never once forgotten to wish her a happy one.
“It’s not doing anything.”
“Right.” She handed it to me, and I held it a few inches from my face.
“Why do you have a password if you also have to use facial recognition?”
“An extra layer of security,” I responded. However, it was slightly more complicated than that. This particular device had been given to me when I began consulting with a private security and intelligence firm. Rather than using facial recognition, the device made use of my fingerprint in one place and retina in another. If either weren’t scanned simultaneously, the mobile wouldn’t operate.
“There,” I said, handing it back to her. “You can view our itinerary or at least our options. As I told you yesterday, we’re winging it.”
“Kearney, Nebraska?”
“I can assure you I own no property in that particular city.”
“So, why are we stopping there?”
“It’s approximately halfway between Glenwood Springs and Chicago.”
Sam slowly nodded. “I see.”
“Yes. I am part owner of two properties there. It’s part of the same group as the Vegas hotel.”
“Your life is too complicated for me.”
