With that, Drake walked away, determined to find Lacy and make her understand that he didn’t care about her past. He was determined to remain focused on the now, and the future, and how they could build a relationship even though they lived four hundred miles apart.
Chapter 8
Lacy fought back tears as she marched through the rest of the room. She did not stop and pick up stickers or buy the teddy bear she’d wanted for months. Instead, she walked through the room and out one of the side doors.
She needed air, but she did not want to run into either Rebecca or Drake. Rebecca’s words had hurt and embarrassed her, even though she had to admit they were true. She did wear her heart on her sleeve and fall head over heels for men who expressed interest.
Drake surprised her when he stepped in and defended her. No one had ever done that before, especially with Rebecca. Once outside the ballroom, she quickly found her way to the grand staircase and through the lobby. There was a nice garden between the hotel and the river, and she made her way there.
Stepping out, she hesitated for a few seconds as the hot, humid air swirled around her. Moving forward, she looked at the sky full of roiling gray clouds that looked like they would be dumping water at any moment. Instead of walking around the gardens, she walked to the covered patio and dropped her bags on one of the tables before taking a seat.
She wasn’t sure how she was going to handle the next day and a half until Rebecca dropped her off at her apartment. Her cousin had pissed her off, but at the same time, Drake had given voice to feelings she’d kept buried for a long, long time.
Pulling a paper napkin out of her bag, she wiped the tears that escaped and worked to get herself back under control. Sitting for a few more minutes helped her settle, as the rain began to fall in buckets, she rose, and gathered her bags to return inside.
She was not surprised that Drake was standing just inside the glass door, waiting for her.
“I’m sorry,” he said as soon as she stepped inside.
He looked truly repentant, but she wasn’t sure why. He really hadn’t done anything wrong.
“I am, too,” she said softly. “Rebecca can be something of a bitch if everything doesn’t go her way.”
“Want to go upstairs and talk?”
Lacy smiled as she decided not to waste the hours they had left before Drake had to leave for the airport. “Not really. I’d rather go upstairs and fuck.”
Drake blinked before he grinned back at her. “We can do that, too.”
Though he really wanted to pull Lacy close for a long hug and a NSFW kiss, he forced himself to hold back. There were still readers and authors wandering around and the last thing he needed was to start new rumors about his sex life. No one but them needed to know the truth.
“Okay, Lacy-girl, let’s go upstairs,” he said softly.
“Your room?”
“Well, I’m not going to fuck you in front of your cousin, so yeah, my room.” While he tried to keep the snark out of his tone, he knew he’d failed when Lacy began to giggle.
“Your room it is. But I’ll need to go to mine at some point before the afterparty to clean up and change clothes.”
“Don’t worry. You’ll have time,” Drake said as he led the way to the elevators.
There was still a crowd of authors with dollies and wagons and hotel carts waiting for the elevators, so they stepped up to the end of the line. After a few minutes, when the line did not move, Drake looked around. His room one only one floor up, and the stairs would be much faster than waiting.
“Come on,” he whispered, guiding Lacy with a hand in the middle of her back.
Once in the stairwell, they hurried up the stairs to the second floor and began to walk the entire length of the building to his room. At least there was no one to see them. After a few steps, he linked his fingers with hers before lifting their joined hands to kiss her knuckles.
She looked up at him with a wide smile, her eyes sparkling and her entire being glowing. Tightening his hold on her hand, he began to walk faster. When they finally reached his room, Lacy had her key out and swiped over the reader before he could fish his out of his pocket.
As soon as they were inside with the door closed and the lock secured, he dropped his backpack to the floor. He then took Lacy’s bags from her hand and set them down, hoping there was nothing breakable in them. Wrapping his arms around her, he shuffled them further into the room.
“I missed you,” he whispered as he dropped his head and gave her the kiss he’d originally wanted to give her downstairs.
It was long and deep and went on until he needed more. Only then did he lift his lips.
“Missed you too,” she breathed.
Dropping his hands to her ass, he lifted her from the floor. She wrapped her arms and legs around him and held on tight as he strolled across the room to the bed. Jumping into the air, he twisted so he landed on the mattress and she landed on him.
