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“No, I’m having a nice walk in the warm afternoon before I look for the hotel,” she countered, because she was enjoying the heat, something that had been lacking in her regular life for a few months now.
“I love how stubborn you can be.” He took her hand in his.
“Excuse me?” she asked, but she must have been a little drunk because she liked his hand in hers. It was warm and comforting. Or maybe it was the way he said the L word so casually about her.
“You’re stubborn, Mia Lawson.”
“I am not.”
She knew she was.
“How about calling Ruth to find out which hotel it is?” he suggested.
It was a great idea, but she had left her phone in the car. So, maybe the walk had been a bad idea. But she would never admit it. She just continued to walk in silence, holding his hand.
“How about I tell you which hotel it is if you promise to spend the night with me?” he asked, squeezing her hand lightly.
“In your dreams, Rafferty Brooks. I’m not that drunk,” she hissed at him.
“I don’t mean that. You with the dirty mind. Just in public, a show, gambling, or whatever. We do it together.”
“What about Anderson and Ruth? Don’t you want to be with them?”
“I believe they’re starting their honeymoon early. Without me.”
“Maybe if you ask, they’ll let you in,” she bit back a smile.
“I would rather see the town with my favorite waitress.” He turned on the charm.
“Hey, I’m not a waitress; I’m a business owner,” she corrected.
He turned up the charm. “Okay, my favorite business owner.”
She knew she was drunk because she found herself agreeing, and he happily pointed at the hotel they had just passed. Entering the lobby, Rafferty checked in for them both since Mia didn’t have her purse on her. To her luck, her and Rafferty’s separate rooms were across the hallway from Ruth and Anderson’s room. So, when they finally made it to the floor, they would grab their luggage from the other couple.
Mia laughed at Ruth from her door. “Just like at home. You guys are across from me.”
“Yes, but there’s less weather happening between us,” Ruth agreed.
“So, what are you guys doing tonight?” Rafferty asked. It was already close to seven local time.
“Nothing,” Ruth said with a shy smile, leaning into her fiancé.
“Good enough for me,” Rafferty stated. He wasn’t pushing the other couple to spend time with them, it seemed.
“When is tomorrow going to happen? Did you pick a time?” Mia asked the couple.
“Yep. We’ll leave here at a little before four, unless someone walks. Then she has to be there by four.” Anderson was looking at her.
“So says the crazy driver,” Mia mumbled.
“Okay. See you tomorrow at four,” Rafferty said, letting the couple get to doing nothing.
When their door closed, both Mia and Rafferty went into their respective rooms. Mia took her time unpacking, hanging the dress she was going to wear the next day. She had forgotten to ask if Ruth had a particular color in mind. Maybe she would text her and see if lavender was okay, it was all she had in her closet that she thought looked nice this morning..
Pulling out her phone to text her in case she needed to do a little shopping. Stopping when there was a knock on her door, she hoped it was Ruth, so she could just ask. Mia quickly opened the door and saw it was only Rafferty. But now he was in jeans and a soft gray T-shirt that stretched nicely across his broad shoulders. She so rarely saw him in anything but slacks and button-up shirts that it was a shock to see him in actual casual clothes.
“Are you ready?” he asked.
