“Where are you?”
Michael winced at the harsh bark, pulling the phone away from his ear. Marcus was seething on the other end, no doubt. Probably pacing in Michael’s empty hotel room where he had arrived to find him missing.
“I’m out,” Michael told him. “Don’t worry about it. I’ll be back before you know it.”
“You can’t just get up and go where you want without telling anyone, Michael. You have a show tomorrow. You need to rest.”
“And I am resting,” Michael said. “I’m just not resting at the hotel room.” He sighed, leaning against his car. Around him, people walked, chatting animatedly. They milled in and out of the hotel entrance—not his own, but the one Liz was staying at in Sorrento. “Is it so bad to want to catch a break once in a while, Marcus? Why must you hound me like this?”
“Because you’re irresponsible and always manage to get yourself in trouble, that’s why. Tell me where you are. I’m coming to get you.”
“I’m a grown man, Marcus. And I’m fine. I’m… busy.”
“Busy doing what?”
“Busy having fun,” he said, knowing Marcus was not going to like that answer in the slightest. Michael’s idea of fun was Marcus’ worst nightmare. “Don’t try to track my cell either. I’m turning it off.”
“Michael—”
Michael hung up before he could say anything else. He turned off his phone, tucked it into his pocket and made his way to the entrance. The memory of Liz last night, seeing her walk towards him in that beautiful midnight blue dress, was still etched in his mind. As impossible as it seemed, she had looked even more gorgeous than she did when he spotted her in the box seat at his first performance. Even with surprise in her eyes, no doubt wondering if he really was seeing her, she was a beauty to behold. Michael had taken a lot of pleasure in not mentioning that he could see almost everyone in the box seats from where he had stood.
He made his way up to the front desk and flashed a smile at the man who stood behind it. “I’m here for Elizabeth Harley. Tell her it’s Michael.”
“Elizabeth Harley has not told us she’s expecting any visitors.”
“Because she isn’t. It’s a surprise.” Michael pouted slightly. “Tell her it’s her boyfriend, will you? She’ll be coming right down as soon as you do.”
The man didn’t look entirely convinced, but he reached for the phone nonetheless. A second passed before he said, “Elizabeth Harley? There is a man saying he’s your boyfriend in the lobby. He says he has a surprise for you.” The man paused, listened, nodded, glanced back up at Michael who gave him a smile. “I’ll send him right up,” he said after a few moments.
The man returned the phone to the receiver and faced Michael again. “She’s in room 314. You can go up.”
“Nice doing business with you, my good man.” With a salute, Michael made his way to the elevator.
He hadn’t been expecting her to call him up to her room. He’d thought she would come down to him, to maintain that distance between them she worked so hard to keep solid during their dinner. An invitation to her room was … unusual. Pleasant surprise whispered through him as he waited for the elevator to ascend.
He found the room in no time and could hardly keep himself from knocking excitedly on her door. He managed to keep it simple and short, leaning against the doorframe so that he wouldn’t hop from foot to foot in his eagerness. It was a bad habit of his and he wasn’t sure a woman like Liz would find it cute in the slightest.
Finally, the door opened, revealing Liz still in her robe. Her hair was down, as it usually was, her face fresh as if she had just gotten out of the shower. She tucked her hand into her robe, leaving one hand on the door as she regarded him evenly. “You like to make an entrance, I see.”
Michael hardly heard her. Her robe had parted slightly, revealing a bit of her flesh rising above neckline. It took an effort to drag his eyes away, to keep his breathing normal when all the blood had rushed from his brain. “If you call that an entrance,” he said, a bit breathless. “Then wait until you really get to know what I’m made of.”
All Liz did was roll her eyes and walk away.
Michael took that as an invitation to come inside. She made her way into another room, a testament to the size of this place. It was about the same as his—minus his clothes strewn haphazardly about and his still unpacked luggage. Liz, not to his surprise, was clean and tidy.
He couldn’t help the smile as he made his way further in, towards the spotless couches in the center of the room.
“I called for room service,” Liz said from the other room. “I hope you haven’t had breakfast yet.”
Michael’s brows raised at that. Had she been expecting him to arrive? “Luckily for us, I haven’t,” he said.
“Take a seat. I’ll be right out.”
Michael didn’t hesitate. He sank into the lush couch, facing the room Liz had just disappeared in, eager to see her come back out. After a while, she did, rubbing something over her hands. She took note of him getting comfortable in the couch with a levelled look.
“I hope you like waffles,” she said. “I was feeling a bit homesick.”
“I’m down for whatever you are, Liz,” Michael said, slipping something else into his tone, something he knew she would pick up.
Liz barely spared him another glance. She made her way to the door and before she was halfway there, there was a knock on the door. “Room service,” the person on the other end called.
How had she known it was already here?
Liz opened the door to reveal a young man, already blushing at the sight of her. “Hello, Jake,” she greeted, voice very warm. Michael leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees as he watched the boy rub the back of his head, clearly not knowing what to do in front of her. Michael understood the feeling. He had been close to doing the same. “How are you?” she asked him.
“I’m fine, Miss Harley,” he sputtered.
“Liz,” she corrected calmly. “You can call me Liz. Here,” she placed a bill in his hand, “for your troubles.”
“It’s no trouble, Miss—Liz,” he corrected. “No trouble at all. I hope you enjoy your meal.”
“Thank you, Jake.” Michael could tell she was smiling when she closed the door, after bringing the trolley inside.
“I think that young man has a crush on you,” he commented, getting to his feet. He made his way over to her, watching every move she made.
“Jake is a sweetheart.”
“I’m sure he is.” Before he could reach her, Liz stepped away, revealing the waffles.
“You should eat before we get started.”
“Get started on what exactly?”
“On finding Alessandro.” She faced him, crossing her arms, so that her breasts rose high. Michaels’ legs nearly gave way. “Isn’t that why you’re here? I have to admit, you really distracted me last night. I didn’t realize that when you told me you knew where he lived, you didn’t tell me where it was. I suppose you did that on purpose to make sure you had an excuse to see me again.”
“Ah, you see right through me, Liz. I told you I was an open book.”
She crooked a brow at him. “So, you weren’t trying to be discreet about it?”
He was, but there was no use admitting that when she already found him out. He shrugged, piling waffles onto his plate. “Why bother when I know you’re going to figure it out, anyway?”
“Smart.” She joined him in getting her waffles and left him standing by the trolley as she made her way to the couch. Liz tucked her legs under her, balancing the plate in her hands. “We can leave after we eat.”
Michael came and sat on the couch opposite hers. He wanted to sit beside her, but figured it would be best not to push it. “You don’t peg me as the type,” he said.
She looked at him, green eyes steady. “To eat?”
“To eat and wait instead of rushing out to get work done. Every inch of you screams workaholic.”
“Do you make it a habit to observe people, Michael?” she asked casually.
Michael tried not to beam at the way she said his name. It pleased him more than it should have. “You’re interesting, Liz. I don’t know what it is about you, but you make me want to dig deeper. Past the fact that you’re hot as hell,” he added.
Liz chewed a bit slower. He held her gaze, wondering what was going on in her head. He lowered his plate, not interested in it anymore. He was hungry for something else entirely. “Have you given my proposal any thought, Elizabeth?”
He said her full name on purpose, hoping it would throw her, hoping she would see just how serious he was. For some reason, he wanted nothing more than to get her to say yes. Liz lowered her own plate into her lap, not looking away from him. “You said I should call you when I’ve thought about it. I haven’t called you.”
“Surely you didn’t forget all about it, did you?” he asked, smirking at her, despite the slight fright that lanced him at that possibility.
She didn’t respond straightaway. Did she have any idea how her tiny pause made his heart flutter with tension? “I did give it some thought,” she said finally. “But I haven’t come to a decision. How about we get through this day and I give you an answer later?”
“Sounds good to me.” He grinned at her. Liz didn’t smile back. She didn’t do anything else but resume her eating.
He watched them get into the car, watched the way the man held the small of her back while she took her seat. A smile had been on that man’s face, from the moment they exited the hotel to now, as he jogged around to the driver’s side. Excitement. The man was excited. Eager to go on whatever adventure they had planned. And from his viewpoint, Hunter saw her turn to him through the windshield, saw something like a half-smile appear on her lips.
The sight of it made his fist clench. In all the time he had been with Liz, he had never seen her smile in that way. She always had a purpose behind her smiles, a fakeness she could never really hide. He saw right through it all, had decided that it was all he was ever going to get. It was all anyone could ever get from a woman like her.
But that wasn’t the same smile. It was small, and was gone a second later, but he saw the difference. This one seemed more genuine, more… easy. Hunter waited for that smile to return, so he could examine it, but the car drove off, leaving him staring in its wake.
It was a good thing he’d come. It was a good thing he had broken into her place and seen the notes about traveling to Sorrento, and the address of the hotel where she’d be staying. Something was wrong with her. He understood it clearly now, understood why she had acted the way she did. It wasn’t because she was really done with him. It was because of that man. He was changing her, turning her into something she wasn’t. That smile was all the proof he needed.
He knew she wasn’t really done with him. He knew it with every fiber of his being. From the moment that man appeared at the art gallery, he should have figured it out—but he had been blinded by his rage, by his jealousy. He should have seen underneath it all—to see that Liz was acting that way because of him.
Hunter considered calling a taxi, to follow them but then he thought against it. It didn’t matter if he went after her now; she was with him. That man’s presence would mask any sane thought she might have, any chance he had of convincing her to leave his side and come home with Hunter. He should wait. When she was alone. When she wasn’t being blinded.
Then, he would save her. And he would bring her back to where she belonged.