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Standing in the doorway was the woman from earlier. She still wore the tight-fitting skirt-suit, and it hadn’t done anything for her attitude. He wasn’t sure what to say at this point. It was she that had come to see him.
“Ah, yes. You.” She forced a smile. “I didn’t introduce myself earlier. My name is Leilani Erickson.” Her stuck-up aura did her no good. Was he supposed to recognize her name?
“Cobalt Leventhorpe.” He smiled softly. “Should I recognize your name?”
“Yes. You should.” She snapped at him. “I’m the owner of a high-level law firm. Everyone knows my name.” That solved one problem. No wonder she had a high and mighty attitude. She was used to getting her way.
“I’m sorry. I don’t follow legal news outside of what’s going on in the country. Is there something I can help you with, Ms. Erickson?”
“Yes. I want your room.” She practically demanded it. Her hand shot out, presumably for the keys. There was no way they could give up their room, not with a baby on the way.
“I’m sorry, Ms. Erickson. I thought we established this earlier – we’re not going to give up our room. My wife’s pregnant.” He walked out towards her and closed the door behind him. At this point, he was happy that he didn’t have the key card on him. It meant she couldn’t get into the room, nor could she force him to open the door for her.
“Room 2440 is not the kind of room I need. I need a second suite; you don’t.” She placed emphasis on the last two words. How did they not need the second room? They had a baby on the way!
“I’m a little surprised you think that. We do need the second room. We have a child on the way.” He frowned a little as he spoke. There was no convincing her. “Look, I have an errand to run. Please don’t bother us about this again. I’ll report you to the management if you demand the room from us again.” He began to walk away, hoping she would get the message.
But to his surprise, she followed him.
“You’re no better than the common riff-raff who stay at cheaper hotels. Why should you have a separate room for your child? You’re living out of a hotel, for goodness sake! This isn’t the kind of environment you want to raise a child in, is it?” She was throwing all the parental guilt she could think of his way. Somehow, he didn’t think that she had children.
“No, but it’s the best we’ve got. Room 1449 is what we paid for. We’re not changing rooms. End of discussion.” He was beginning to regret stepping in to help Marius when she had first arrived at the hotel. Now he was stuck with trying to figure out how to get her to stop harassing him about the room.
“Who made the reservations?” She shot another question at him. He frowned, sighing softly.
“I’m not under any legal obligation to answer any more of your questions, ma’am. Please, leave me alone.” He made his way past her, and continued down the stairs. Her voice didn’t cease to call towards him, but he pretended he couldn’t hear her. There was no reason she could give that would make him reconsider.
Marius noticed what was happening and came over to him. His frown showed his concern.
“Is everything all right here, Cobalt?” He made a point to address Cobalt and ignore the irate woman behind him.
“How dare you address this man first!” She yelled at them. “He’s being completely unreasonable. I asked him a simple question, and he refuses to answer it.” Marius turned to her as she spoke, and then turned back to Cobalt when she was done.
“Is this true?” He didn’t seem sure about the simplicity of the question.
“She asked me to switch rooms. I explained that we have a child on the way, and she refused to believe that we need a second room for our child.” He told the manager the truth. There was no reason for him to lie about what had been happening. He was beginning to wonder how in the world she did so well with her clients.
“Ma’am, I’m afraid I’ll have to ask you to leave him alone.” He turned to talk to Ms. Erickson. As she screamed that she deserved that room, it came out that she was having an affair. To Cobalt’s amusement, her husband just walked into the room.
As he turned to look at the gentleman, their eyes met and their faces broke into a smile.
“Cobalt! I thought I’d never see you again.” It was one of his best friends from when he was younger.
“Terrance. It’s wonderful to see you again.” He smiled back, walking over to him. They embraced, and he got a good view of Mrs. Erickson’s surprised expression. She flushed in the face and hurried out in a huff before he could do anything.
“What brings you to these parts?”
“Leilani is my wife.” He sighed at this point. “I wish I hadn’t heard what I just did. Why was she screaming at that poor man, anyway?”
“She requested room 1449, and got room 2440 instead. She’s all huffy about the fact that 2440 has only one bed. One room. When Marius told her that my wife and I had been in the room for the past few years, she was upset that she didn’t get priority. She came to my room to demand the key, and I managed to get her down here.” He laughed a little.
“Ouch. I’m sorry about that, Cobalt. She’s used to getting her own way, especially in the courtroom. Wait, did you say your wife and you?” It took him a moment to put the two pieces together. Cobalt laughed a little, nodding. “Congratulations, dude!”
“Thanks, Terry.” He smiled. “We’re expecting our first child, and we need the extra room for a nursery.”
“That’s totally fine. I tried to make the reservations, but she insisted I’d get the wrong hotel.” He sighed. “I should go. She’s not going to be happy that I heard what she was yelling. Then again, I’m not too happy with her.”
“That’s rough. Is there a reason that she’s unhappy?” He furrowed his brows. Why was it so hard for his friend?
“I have no idea. I had suspected something was going on for a while, but didn’t want to do something wrong and ask of her. So I let it slide, and she had seemed happier. But this settles it; I’m asking for a divorce. Knowing her, it’s going to be very one-sided. I’m just glad we don’t have kids. She never wanted them.” Terrance pursed his lips.
“That makes sense, given how she treated the fact that my wife is pregnant. Anyway, go ahead. I understand.” With that, he let his friend go. When he was sure Terrance wasn’t coming back, he looked to Marius. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah. She’s actually not the worst customer I’ve had to deal with. I promise. Go up to your wife. I’ll take care of the issues that are going on. She won’t bother you again.” The owner offered up a smile at him.
“I insist you let me do something for you. I feel really bad that you had to step in. That wasn’t my intention in coming down here.” He walked a little closer.
“It’s fine, really, Cobalt. I’ve had to deal with worse.” He walked behind the counter. “Besides, I have a feeling she won’t be staying here any longer. That’s one of the few ways we lose business – when someone wants a specific room but we have other guests who have been in the room. We can’t give priorities to a person who isn’t checked in.” He laughed a little. “I’m actually not sorry to see her go.”
“Does she stay here often?” He was now curious.
“She’s stayed in the past.” Marius danced around the question. He understood that there were privacy laws he couldn’t break. “We’ve always had a hard time living up to her expectations, and honestly, I don’t mind not having to live up to them any longer.”
“All right. I guess I’ll see you around, then.” He smiled at the man. “Have a good day, Marius.”
“You too, Cobalt.” The friendly owner smiled at him, and then went off to do something else.
Cobalt walked slowly back up the stairs, trying to understand what had just happened. He was surprised that she had followed him down the stairs at all – most people would have taken the elevator.. He was just grateful that he hadn’t been confined in one small space with her. He shuddered. Just another reason he hated those things.
As he walked back to the room, he suddenly remembered that he didn’t have a key card on him. He knocked on the door and was greeted by a somewhat surprised Paulina.
“I thought you had a key card on you, honey?”
“So did I, but when I got back I realized that I’d left it behind.” Her eyes sparkled as she laughed with him, and he was struck by just how strongly he felt about her. He would do anything to protect his family.
“I don’t think we’ll have any more problems with her,” He said finally, and then explained what had happened a few moments earlier.
Paulina nodded slowly. “I hope so. We really do need the extra room. Speaking of, would you be willing to pick up and rearrange some furniture for us?” She pouted a little, and he couldn’t help but laugh.
“Of course I would be willing to do so. He smiled, kissing her cheek softly. “I will do anything to keep you and our baby safe. I promise.”
“Thanks, Cobalt. Oh, and pizza should be here in about ten minutes.” She changed topics.
“Great. It’s only now that we’re waiting for it that I realize how hungry I am.”
“Me too.”
They fell into a soft silence, reveling in the other’s company. They did this often, sometimes for hours on end.
As his mind wandered, he began to reflect on the changes that would soon take place in his life. Having a child meant that he wouldn’t be able to get a job for a while longer. He simply wouldn’t be able to, but maybe that was a good thing.
It meant that Paulina would be able to continue with her career. She was in a good position, and with a very understanding boss.
Cobalt paid for the pizza, and they enjoyed their meal together in silence. He did his best to ignore the gnawing in his gut that he had initially mistaken for hunger.
He couldn’t put his finger on it, but he knew the feeling well. There was something big coming, something bad. It was the cruel irony of his life, he thought bitterly. Whenever he was at the top the world, something always came to knock him down. It served once again to remind him that he was the last dragon-shifter he knew of. He wasn’t human, and in the eyes of everyone else, he didn’t belong on the planet.
