Easy Kisses

There’s a knock at my door. “Okay. I have to go, Van. I’ll call later, okay?”

“Great.”

We hang up and I answer the door, earning weird looks from the room service kid when he delivers my hot tea and cookies.

A girl deserves cookies after the day I just had.

I shut the door behind him, but before I can turn away, there’s another knock, so I open it, expecting it to be the same kid, but it’s Simon.

“I didn’t mean to treat you like a child,” he says, and my eyes fill with tears, completely pissing me off. “Hey, I’m sorry, love. I was just taken aback when I saw you and I was worried.”

“I’m not crying.”

“Okay.” He steps inside and wraps me up in a big hug, rocking us back and forth. His lips are on my head, and this could be the safest I’ve felt since I was a child and my father held me the same way. “What’s wrong, darling?”

“I’m cold and wet and embarrassed. And my sister-in-law is pregnant, but she’s bleeding, and Van doesn’t want me to come home, and I’m worried.”

“Shhh, love. It’s okay.”

It’s so not okay, but damn this feels good.

“Why don’t you go take that shower, and I’ll fix you some tea?”

“Okay.” I sniffle, mortified that I’m crying in front of him.

“How do you take your tea?”

“Lots of sugar,” I reply.

“You got it.” He steps back and waits silently as I gather some fresh clothes and walk into the bathroom. I lean my forehead on the closed door and take a deep breath before stepping into the shower. What is wrong with me? I never cry. Ever. I’m just going to chalk it up to being exhausted from yesterday’s hike and today’s wet run.

The hot water is heaven, and when I emerge ten minutes later, I feel better, but so tired. I really just want to curl up in bed and go to sleep.

I walk out of the bathroom and find Simon standing with his back to the room, looking out at the lake. My tea is steeping. One of the cookies is gone.

I might let him live.

“Do you feel better?” he asks without turning around.

“Yes.” I step toward him. “Thank you.”

“Don’t touch me.” His voice is perfectly calm, but his body is tense. “If you touch me, I won’t be able to keep my hands off of you, and I’m going to keep my hands off of you, Charly.”

I don’t even know what to say to that, so I just stay where I am, staring at his broad shoulders.

“I didn’t like the thought of you being out in the storm alone and something happening to you. I didn’t like it at all.”

“Okay.”

“And I’ve worked for a long time at not giving a fuck.”

I blink in surprise, not sure where this is going, exactly. He finally turns around and stares at me for a long moment. His face is sober, but his eyes are intense, almost tortured.

“But you give a fuck.” It’s a whisper.

“I give a fuck,” he replies softly. “And I don’t know what to do about that.”

“Maybe there’s nothing to be done.” I’m leaving soon. I’m never going to see him again after this trip.

“Maybe.” He crosses to me, stopping just short of touching me and stares into my eyes. His hands don’t reach for me. Instead, he takes a long, deep breath and walks around me. “Drink your tea. Good night.”

And, with that, he’s gone.

What in the world?

I take a sip of my tea and sigh in happiness. It’s exactly sweet enough, and just the perfect temperature.

Simon does tea well. Of course, he is British.

I grin and reach for my phone, wanting to hear Van’s voice again.

“Miss me?” she asks.

“Madly. Have you heard anything?”

“Yes, I just spoke with Eli. Kate’s fine. The doctor said that this sometimes happens in early pregnancy, and she should be great.”

“Good.” I sit on the edge of the bed, relieved. “And you’re sure that I shouldn’t come home?”

“I’m positive. Everything is fine. Are you okay?”

“I cried in front of him,” I say, surprising myself. Van laughs on the other end of the phone, and I sit here and wonder who the fuck I am.

Chapter Four

~Charly~

“I’m so damn hungry,” Violet says the next day during our lunch break. She, Heidi, and I are at the restaurant in the hotel, waiting for our orders. “Who knew that thinking so damn hard could burn so many calories? No matter how many of these retreats I come to, it always surprises me how exhausted I am at the end of the day.”

“I hear you,” I reply and long for the burger I just ordered. “I’ve eaten more since I’ve been here than I do when I’m working a sixty-hour work week.”

“It’s all of this emotional stuff,” Heidi adds. “I’m really looking forward to the dating advice later in the week.”

“That’s a fun day,” Violet replies with a knowing smile. “Simon gets lots of crazy questions.”

“I bet,” I say with a giggle. “Women can be nutso.”

“You have no idea,” Violet replies. “I won’t tell stories because that’s a breach of privacy, but Simon has seen and heard it all.”

“Is that Shelly chick still bugging him?” Heidi asks, and I remember the incessant flirting from Shelly that first night at dinner.

“No, she actually went home after Friday.”