Page 80 of Drive
His eyes rounded as she tucked the plastic into her left bra cup. And then she watched his irises go completely black. It should have terrified her, but instead, it made herfeel…
Powerful.
The cold rectangle of plastic against her breast seemed to make her stand taller than her five-foot-four stature, and a pulse of power coursed down her spine. She was so busy absorbing the sensation, she almost didn’t notice Jacque spinning on hisheel.
“Ashley, cancel one of those rooms. We won’t be needing it.” He brought his laser gaze back to hers, his pupils now just pinpricks instead of the nickels they had been before. “I’ll be sleeping in thecar.”
Her newfound sense of power drained out of the soles of her feet, and she lunged for his arm. “Wait! That’sridiculous.”
“And sir, I should point out,” Ashley drawled. “All persons on the premises must be registered Best Western guests with roomassignments—”
He again ignored Ashley, holding up the forearm Rainey now gripped with both hands. He looked from it back toher.
“Are you going to let me pay for my ownroom?”
Rainey swallowed. She couldn’t let him do that. One day, he’d probably be able to afford the best hotel suites anywhere in the world, but not today. And despite his neglect — or because of it — Doc Dylan Reeves had given his two girls bank accounts that their normal living expenses could scarcelydent.
“I can’t drive myself, Jacques,” she whispered. “But this is something Icando.”
He eyed her for one hopeful second before shaking his head. “No, you can’t. Because I won’t allow it.” He reached for her fingers and started peeling them from his arm. “I’ll go find a place to park my car, and I’ll pick you upin—”
“How about a compromise?” She held on tighter, planting her feet in a futile attempt to anchor him. But instead of pulling away, he met her gaze with a skepticallook.
“What kind ofcompromise?”
The idea was so simple. Why hadn’t she considered itbefore?
Because it’s madness,she warnedherself.
Ignoring her own cautious instincts, Rainey looked back at Ashley. “Your pet-friendly suite. Does it have two beds or aking?”
She couldn’t be sure, but she might have heard Jacques’s breath whoosh between hislips.
Ashley’s fingers clicked on her keyboard. “Let me check, ma’am… It’s got two double beds and a fold-out queen sleeper-sofa. It can sleep up to six,” she addedhelpfully.
Rainey shrugged as if the solution were obvious. “Well, there you go,” she said, the tremor in her voice clearly audible to anyone in the Best Western lobby. She was also keenly aware that she could only keep eye contact with Jacques for about a millisecond at a time. “Plenty of room. You can stay in the suite with Archie and me. It won’t cost you a penny, and it won’t cost me any more than what I’m alreadypaying.”
After she’d laid out her deal, she forced herself to hold her gaze steady with his. Jacques stood perfectly still, his forearm still in her grip, his face oddly expressionless. Raineyswallowed.
How could she think it would be a good idea to spend the whole night in the same room withhim?
But then again, if her only options were to let him pay for a separate room or, God forbid, sleep in his car, then it was a no brainer. Jacques would stay in her room, and she’d just have to keep herself from staring at him allnight.
At least until he fell asleep. Rainey knew from his nap in the car she’d probably take full advantage of staring at himthen.
Jacques’s eyes narrowed on her. “We split the room and call it even,” hesaid.
The man was ridiculously stubborn when it came to money, but Rainey could be stubborn, too. It had just been a while since it felt so right to dig her heelsin.
“Sorry, Gilchrist. No cando.”
His mouth twitched, and Rainey knew he’d call her bluff. With a movement that was both lightning fast and surprisingly gentle, Jacques extracted his arm from her grip and took two strides toward theexit.
“I’ll see you in the morning,Rainey—”
“Wait!” The urgency and the sheer volume in her voice made everyone in the lobbyturn.
Jacques blinked at her insurprise.
