She opened the door and stepped out of the closet to find Josh eyeing her with curiosity.
“I thought I’d try talking directly to the spirits, but it was a waste of time.” she explained.
“Well, it was worth a shot.” He gave her an impish grin. “Maybe the ghosts only come to visit when you’re half naked.” He raised his eyebrows while fingering an imaginary cigar, in a poor imitation of Groucho Marx. “Want me to come in there with you to check out my theory?”
Honor rolled her eyes with amused sarcasm. “Thanks, but I think I’ll decline that generous offer. Seriously though, I’m ready for a break. How about you guys?”
“I thought you’d never ask” Josh replied.
Cody had finally gotten over his fascination with the shredder and was keeping himself entertained on the floor, playing with a few of his Spiderman toys in a nest of shredded paper. He jumped to his feet. “Can it be an ice cream break?” Then, remembering the magic word that sometimes made the difference in the reply, he added, “please?”
Honor glanced at Josh for approval.
“Cody and I don’t usually have dessert before supper, but… I guess we can break that rule this once.”
Honor turned to Cody. “I’ll race you to the Ice Cream Parlor!”
“Whoa,” called Josh, stopping their race before it began. “How about we only break one rule at a time? No running in the halls, okay buddy?”
“The last time he was doing that, he almost knocked you over, remember?” he reminded Honor.
“Oh yeah,” Honor quipped, recalling their first meeting and realizing that seemed like a long time ago. “But don’t forget, if he hadn’t broken that rule, we might never have met.”
“Point taken,” Josh conceded. “New rule - he can run in the halls whenever I want to meet new women.”
Honor laughed and shook her fist at him.
***
On one of the hotel’s many secluded porches, Cody sat at a small white table, happily gobbling the last of his strawberry ice cream cone. Nearby, Josh and Honor cuddled together on a wide, wooden glider, quietly enjoying its comforting squeak, while watching sparrows hop in and out of several hanging flower baskets, overflowing with a variety of brightly colored impatiens. As dusk began to settle, a great white egret landed on the grass by the porch steps, watching them carefully; perhaps hoping they would toss some food his way.
Almost purring with contentment, Honor tilted her head back, nibbled on Josh’s earlobe and reined little kisses on his neck.
Josh closed his eyes. “I’ll give you a couple of years to stop that,” he whispered.
She whispered back, “Why don’t we get the little guy bathed and into his jammies and then go back to my room and order a pizza? If Cody falls asleep, we can, uh… watch TV in my bed.”
Josh gazed at her, licking his lips. “I sure hope you mean what I think you do.”
She smiled and nodded, doing her own Groucho Marx imitation.
Clear about her intentions, Josh jumped to his feet so fast, the startled egret took flight. He turned to Cody. “Okay, buddy, it’s time to head back inside now. Let’s go!”
Although the large apartment had two empty bedrooms down the hall, Honor and Josh were concerned Cody might be frightened if he woke up too far away from them, especially if spirits were around. They decided it would be better if he slept on the little bed in the parlor that opened into Honor’s bedroom. Cody was excited about the proposed sleeping arrangements, and beamed when Josh agreed to hang one of his spider web pictures over his cot.
As Josh predicted, the ice cream spoiled Cody’s appetite. After picking at a slice of pizza for a while, he asked if he could go to bed early. No one argued with him.
Honor tucked an extra blanket around the little boy, to keep him warm if the spirits visited. She kissed him goodnight and cooed, “sleep tight.”
“And don’t let the bed bugs bite,” Cody responded.
Josh bent down and kissed his forehead. “Good night, buddy. Sweet dreams. And if you wake up, don’t forget we’re right outside this door, okay? If you need anything, just call me, and I’ll come right in.”
As he closed the door, Honor asked, “do you want any more of this pizza?”
He eyed her body. “Nope. I have a taste for something else.”
Honor held him at bay. “Not yet. I want to be sure Cody is asleep before things, umm… get heated. Besides, I want to change into something more comfortable.”
She giggled self-consciously and stepped into the bathroom, wishing she had packed some sexy lingerie in with her practical clothing. Then she recalled the effect the long T-shirt had on Josh that morning and decided it would work just fine. She changed and freshened-up; then opened the door.
In her absence, Josh had turned on some romantic music, dimmed the lights and folded down the comforter. Lying in bed wearing only his boxer shorts, he looked as though he might have just been ripped from the pages of a beefcake calendar. When she neared him, Josh reached out for her and Honor tumbled into his arms.
They took their time making love, exploring every inch of each other’s bodies. Honor thrilled at the way his muscles tensed with pleasure when she teased him with her tongue. He brought her body to a climax time and time again as she moaned, struggling to keep quiet so as not to wake Cody. When their sexual appetites were finally spent, they basked in the afterglow of complete satisfaction, so tangled together that it was hard to tell where one body stopped and the other started.
Josh smoothed Honor’s errant curls back from her face, staring at her so intently that she finally demanded, “what?”
“I’m trying to memorize everything about this moment because I want to remember it for the rest of my life.”
Touched by his romantic explanation, she murmured, “I love you, Josh,” catching them both by surprise.
Josh beamed. “I’m glad your heart finally caught up with mine. I think I fell in love with you almost at first sight.” His expression grew serious. “Honor, I’ve never felt like this before and I swear to you, I’m going to do everything in my power to keep us together, even if that means moving to Chicago.”
Honor’s eyes welled with tears as she tried to absorb his declaration. She wished she could come up with a poignant response, but for now, the only words that came to mind were, “I love you.” which she whispered over and over again.
Exhausted, Honor rested her head on Josh’s shoulder and fell asleep with a smile on her lips. As the air chilled, she reached for the comforter, pulling it up over them both. A moment later she was floating through the haze.
When the fog cleared, and she tried to orient herself while taking deep breaths to lessen her nausea.
Margaret was busy working at her desk. Without looking up, she said, “My ‘Uncle Ulysses’ is preparing to invest the money I was paid for handling the ‘Hannah issue.’ Poor girl. I often think about her plight. Those in the lower ranks of society are considered to have little value beyond that of a commodity - to be used and discarded by wealthy men.”
Margaret rose and began pacing. “It’s dreadfully unfair that women are judged, not by their abilities, but by the station in life to which they were born.”
She stopped directly in front of Honor. “These recent experiences have steeled my determination to do what I can to outfox the men who created the rules of this unjust system.”
Without thinking, Honor said, “Good for you, Margaret!” Instantly, she floated from the disintegrating memory, cursing herself for speaking.
When the fog cleared, Honor was sitting with the older Margaret at the small parlor table in her hotel room. Honor’s eyes shot to the small bed under the window. Sure enough, little Cody was sleeping there. She shifted her gaze to the closed parlor doors, wondering if she opened them and called to Josh, if he would become part of this experience.
Then she remembered she had gone to sleep naked.