Page 55 of The Bitterroot Inn (Jamison Valley 5)
Sliding my phone out of my dress’s pocket, I checked the time. It was well past midnight now and time for me to get my kiddo home. I shifted Coby in my arms to get a better hold, then stood. Carefully, I made my way over to the coat rack to grab our jackets and my purse. Balancing him and our stuff with practiced ease, I slipped out the doors and made a silent exit into the night.
With Coby buckled in his car seat, I climbed in the driver’s seat just as my phone dinged with a text.
Hunter: How was the wedding?
My heart picked up a beat as I typed my reply.
Me: It was really fun. We’re actually just leaving now.
Hunter: Drive safe.
The drive from the school to the motel was maybe a minute, but he still told me to drive safe.
I really, really liked that.
Hunter and I hadn’t spent any time together this week but we’d been texting. He’d sent me a message each morning, thanking me for whatever meal I’d left him the day before. I’d texted him funny things Coby had said and weird stuff people had left behind in their rooms after checking out.
Our messages weren’t serious, but there was an intimacy there. We checked in with one another. We were thinking about each other. And I liked that he was thinking about me tonight.
I pulled into my parking space behind the motel and reached over to the passenger seat to collect my stuff. When I looked up, I yelped and jerked in my seat. A man was standing outside the window of my car. I only relaxed when the figure bent low to knuckle tap on the glass.
Hunter.
My breathing was still labored when I pushed my door open and stepped out. “You scared me again.”
He winced. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to. I just thought you might want help carrying Coby inside.”
That was sweet. So sweet it chased the adrenaline away. “Well, at least this time I couldn’t physically retaliate.”
He grinned. “My balls are grateful.”
I giggled and clicked the locks so he could open the back door and collect Coby. Leading the way up the stairs, I opened the door to the loft and immediately kicked off my heels as Hunter strode past me with Coby in his arms.
I followed them to Coby’s room and stood in the doorway, watching Hunter lay my son down gently in his bed. He stepped back and I moved in, tugging off Coby’s shoes, socks and bowtie.
With his sound machine on, his starry nightlight shining and him tucked under his blanket, I closed the door to Coby’s room and followed Hunter to the living room.
“How was your night?” I asked.
“Quiet. I packed up my stuff so I can check out of that room tomorrow.”
“Do you want the key to the housekeeper’s room? I was going to drop it off in the morning, but since you’re here, I can give it to you now.”
“Sure.”
I got my keys from my purse and pulled my phone from my pocket, turning on Coby’s monitor app. With bare feet, I led Hunter down the interior stairs to the lobby. Grabbing the room key off its peg, we went outside and down two doors to his new space.
Before I unlocked the door, I turned and met his gaze. “If you hate it, if it’s too small, please don’t feel obligated to stay. I won’t be hurt or upset at all if you don’t want—”
“Maisy.” He placed a hand on my shoulder. “It will be fine.”
“Okay.” I took a deep breath, turned the key and opened the door to step inside. Though the room was clean, it was outdated and cramped. Too small for someone of Hunter’s size. “I’m going to bring over my mini fridge from the lobby so you can have that in the corner. The cable company is scheduled to come over on Tuesday to get the TV hooked up. But I know it isn’t much.”
He walked past me, inspecting the bed on his way toward the bathroom.
I stood nervously by the wall as he assessed the space. This room was not anywhere near the type of room I wanted to give Hunter, but it was all I had.
“I like it,” he said after coming out of the bathroom. “It reminds me of my college dorm except with its own shower and no farting roommate bunking above me.”
