CHAPTER 7
Scarlet
With my eyes still closed, I took a long stretch, spreading my limbs and arms straight over the bed before realizing the mattress felt different. Slowly, I cracked open my eyes, taking in the unfamiliar environment around me. That’s when I remembered where I was, and what had happened.
Images of Preston came back to mind, particularly of the long and passionate night we’d shared. In the space beside me, I could still smell traces of his cologne.
I smiled to myself, laughing at the charade he’d kept up all night, pretending to be some guy named Tobias. I had to admit, Preston had probably missed his calling to be an actor. As the night wore on, I had to admire the effort he was putting into his role-playing. He had managed to change so much about himself, from his mannerisms, to the way he kissed…
A pleasurable tingle ran through my body, wondering if when he returned, would I be treated to a date with some other man of his invention. He certainly knew how to keep things interesting, that was for sure.
Climbing out of bed, I stretched again as my bare feet hit the plush carpet. I then retrieved the first shirt I found, which was one of Preston’s. Sliding it on, it came all the way down to my knees.
I walked across the hotel suite, retrieving my cell phone from the coffee table and feeling a twinge of regret as I saw the messages I’d missed, most of them being from Mila. I scrolled through them, seeing that she had been requesting an update of my night and wanting to make sure that I was all right. When I got to the last one, it read: If u don’t say something to me within the next hour or so, I’m gonna hurt u.
I laughed, knowing she didn’t mean it literally. She was just being her regular overdramatic self, and I couldn’t really blame her. If the shoe was on the other foot, I would have been worried about my friend too. After all, it’s against girl-code to let one of your best friends run off with a guy if you don’t know much about him. Our group of friends had always had our set of safety rules when it came to hooking up with guys, although those rules hadn’t been used much lately since most of them were in healthy long-term relationships now. I was the odd-woman out these days.
Maybe not for long though, I thought to myself, thinking about how Preston and I had so easily reconnected with each other despite all the years we’d spent apart.
I stared at Mila’s messages for a while longer, trying to think of what to say. Finally, I typed: Hey girl. I’m fine. I’m with Preston, my old bf from high school.
Just as I had suspected, she must have been literally waiting by her phone for my response, because her reply came instantly. Girrlllll! Details!
I laughed and wrote back, U know a lady never kisses and tells.
Since when have u ever been lady-like, she retorted.
I snorted, stifling my laughter with my hand despite being alone. Whatever! I typed back, followed by, The night was hot tho, if u must know, with a winking emoji.
Mila responded with a blushing emoji, a thumbs up, and a message requesting that I called her later.
Will do, I replied, and then turned off my phone. I rummaged around in my purse for my phone charger, and then plugged it in to a nearby outlet.
I sighed and scanned the room, my eyes landing on a sheet of paper that had been left on the counter. I headed towards it, seeing Preston’s hurried handwriting. I had to laugh to myself once more. It had been a long time, but I remembered Preston’s handwriting from a Valentine’s Day card he had left in my locker one day. He was so dedicated to playing the role of Tobias that he had even disguised his handwriting.
“Unbelievable,” I said, before paying attention to what he had written.
Please feel free to order any room service you want. See you soon.
I smiled. From the instant I’d seen Preston, I could tell that the years had been good to him, both physically and financially. Although he still had a down-to-earth personality, there was also an undeniable sense of wealth and high-class about him. The fact that he had just given me free reign to order any room service I wanted just solidified this fact.
May as well take advantage of this good treatment while I can, I thought to myself. After my failed relationships from the past, I had learned long ago to never count my chickens before they hatched. I had only been with Preston for a night, so I wasn’t going to overestimate how long we would remain in each other’s lives. I knew that there was a very real chance that this was all a fleeting fling, so I would be sure to not get too attached.
Figuring he would still be gone for quite some time while he visited Hullen, I picked up the telephone on the nightstand, my stomach rumbling simply thinking about the breakfast I wanted to order. When it was all said and done, I had ordered a meal of pancakes, scrambled eggs, bacon, fresh fruit, orange juice, and coffee. To say I had decided to splurge a bit on Preston’s account was an understatement.
“Your order will be there in twenty minutes, ma’am.”
“All right. Thank you,” I said, and then hung up the phone. With twenty minutes to spare, I decided that I could at least shower and freshen up before my food arrived.
I headed to the bathroom, seeing the sink-counter lines with Preston’s toiletries. After searching around, I found some of the soap and shampoo provided by the hotel, which gratefully had neutral scents rather than the masculine stuff Preston had brought with him. I then found a clean towel and hopped into the shower.
Ten minutes later, I wrapped the towel around myself and headed back to my purse, where I found my comb and began working the tangles out of my wet hair. Afterwards, I towel-dried it and pulled Preston’s shirt back on, not wanting to put my party dress back on just yet since it was the only clothing I had with me.
I climbed back into the bed, thinking of how I should probably start carrying an extra change of clothes in my car, just in case of events like this. Not that I anticipated this kind of thing happening more frequently, but still, it was best to be prepared.
Finding the remote-control, I turned on the TV and began flipping through the channels. All the while, my mind kept drifting back to my time at Hullen Prep. It would have been nice if I had accompanied Preston on his visit. After all, I was an alumnus as well, even if I wasn’t one as prestigious as Preston Walker. Certainly, I would have still been welcomed to revisit my old high school campus. Plus, it would have given me the opportunity to learn more about what precisely Preston did these days at his law firm, if that was truly where he worked.
Thinking of who Preston had been back in school, I’m not sure I would have predicted that he would get involved with a law firm. I always knew he had been business-oriented; we all were after being educated at Hullen Prep. But still, I wouldn’t have predicted he wanted to get involved with law.
Then again, I really had no idea what I would have expected him to get into. We were young back then, and that kind of thing is hard to predict.
Before I could think any more about it, there was a light rapping at the door, letting me know that my room service had arrived. I hopped out of bed, suddenly feeling self-conscious about the fact that I was wearing nothing but one of Preston’s shirts. He was clearly a high-paying guest, based on the fancy hotel suite he’d been given to stay in. It would be just my luck to open the door and have the waiter relishing in the opportunity to spread gossip about Preston having some strange woman in his room.
Oh get a grip. We’re not sixteen anymore, I thought to myself, realizing my insecurities were idiotic. We were both adults. Single adults, at that. Who cares what anyone thought?
I opened the door, finding an impeccably dressed waiter standing on the other side of it. His eyes widened momentarily at the sight of me. Whether because I was barely dressed, or because he was expecting to see Preston instead, I couldn’t tell.
“Good morning, ma’am,” he said, and then tipped his head in a bow.
“Good morning,” I said, my self-consciousness quickly dissipating at the delicious aroma of the food. There was a tray beside him, covered with silver-topped dishes containing my breakfast.
“May I?” he asked.
“Sure,” I said, stepping aside to let him roll the tray into the room. He placed it at the side of the bed and then turned around, smiling.
“Are you a friend of our guest?” he asked.
“Yes,” I said, some of my nervousness returning. What did the waiter care about who I was? He continued to stare at me, and I wondered if he was waiting for me to tell him my name. I cleared my throat awkwardly, ran a hand through my damp hair, and folded my arms across my chest, remembering that I only wore Preston’s shirt. “I’m Scarlet.”
The waiter bowed again. “A pleasure to meet you, Ms. Scarlet. My name is Joe. Your breakfast awaits you. Is there anything else I can do for you?”
Yeah, leave, I thought. But instead, I plastered on the politest smile I could muster. “No, that’s all for now. I’m just really hungry, Joe.”
“Well, enjoy your breakfast, ma’am. And please don’t hesitate to call if you need anything else. It will all be added to Mr. Gentry’s tab.”
I blinked, confused. “Uhm…I’m sorry. What?”
“Please feel free to let me know if there’s anything else you want. It will all be added to Mr. Gentry’s tab.”
“Mr. Gentry?” I said, dumbfounded.
Joe eyed me suspiciously. “I thought you said you were a friend of his.”
I swallowed. “I am. I mean, do you mean…?” I paused for a moment, trying to recall the fake name Preston was going by. “Tobias Gentry?”
Joe nodded. “Yes.”
I gave a nervous laugh, realizing that Joe was looking at me as if something was wrong. Not wanting to raise any additional suspicion, I waved my hand. “Pardon me. I thought…I mean, I know someone else named…Gentry. I, uhm…Don’t mind me, Joe. It was a long evening. That will be all. I don’t need anything else. Thank you.”
Joe nodded again, although he still looked somewhat suspicious as he left the room.
I hurriedly closed the door behind him and flopped down onto the bed, my head spinning.
There was no way Preston could have anticipated running into me last night, so why would he have already checked into the hotel under a fake name? It just didn’t make sense.
I stared at my food, suddenly not feeling as hungry anymore.
Tobias Gentry? Was Preston taking this faked identity thing too far, or was he really not Preston?
Shit.