Not Just for Christmas

Chapter 29

Chapter Twenty-Nine

W ith her body still thrumming, Erin relaxed into the feeling of bliss and was on the verge of sleep when Lewis eased his arm from under her head. She’d been curled into his chest and had felt utterly content, but she supposed not everyone was a cuddly sleeper.

“Sorry,” he whispered, pulling her back from the edge of sleep. When she realised he wasn’t just untangling himself in order to sleep but to retrieve his clothes, she felt a jolt of something unpleasant deep in her stomach.

Disappointment.

The thing she tried so hard to avoid and the reason she was happily single. Being alone meant she didn’t have to worry about people disappointing her.

“You’re going?” Maybe she was misunderstanding the situation. Perhaps he was only pulling on his boxers to go to the bathroom.

“I’m really sorry,” he said again. “I had a message from Warren.”

“Surely you don’t need to work now. It’s not a twenty-four-hour reception desk, is it? ”

“No.” He pulled his jeans on, then plucked his shirt from the floor.

Another pang of disappointment hit. Telling her he’d had a message from Warren was probably just an excuse because he didn’t want to stay over. He’d had his fun and now he was off. It seemed out of character, but she’d known him for less than a week, so maybe she didn’t really know his character.

“He fed Molly and let her out before he left,” Lewis said, fully dressed. “But he left her asleep in the lounge.”

That was at least a better excuse than having to work. “Okay.”

“I’m the worst pet owner ever. I’ve only had her a day and I forgot about her.” He smiled down at Erin. “I can’t leave her in the lounge all night.”

“No. Of course not.”

“Sorry,” he said again, and gave her a lingering kiss before he dashed away.

Left alone, Erin switched the lamp off and turned onto her back, then let out a frustrated sigh. This was the problem with getting attached to people. Previously, the glorious four-poster bed had felt luxurious, but now it felt big and empty, and it was her own stupid fault for getting carried away and making her happiness dependent on someone else.

In the darkness, her mind filled with images of the last couple of hours, and she cursed herself again. Her lack of sex life in the past few years hadn’t bothered her at all, but she was fairly sure those intimate moments with Lewis would haunt her for a while.

She was feeling dejected when a gentle tap came at the door five minutes later.

“Erin,” Lewis said against the door. Switching the lamp back on, she glanced around.

His phone was on the bedside table, as was his wallet.

“Hang on.” Considering he’d just seen her naked, it felt a little odd to worry about putting clothes on to hand over his stuff, but she hurried to put her knickers and bra on.

She only opened the door a crack. Given how late it was, she couldn’t imagine many guests were roaming the halls, but she didn’t want to risk being caught in her underwear.

“I’ll talk to you in the morning,” she said, handing over his things.

The bright light in the corridor dazzled her, but she still caught the way Lewis’s brow wrinkled. “What?”

“You’ll be around in the morning before I leave, won’t you?”

“Yeah, but…” He looked down at his phone and wallet.

“Did you forget something else?” Her gaze swept over the room, but she couldn’t spot anything.

“I didn’t forget my stuff,” he said quietly. “I left it while I nipped downstairs to get Molly.”

Her hand relaxed on the door handle. “You were coming back?”

“Yes. But if you want me to go, that’s fine.”

“No.” She felt a rush of relief flood her veins. “You can stay. I just thought you were leaving…”

“I didn’t want to leave Molly downstairs on her own. She can sleep in here if that’s okay. I brought her bed up.” He reached beside the door for it.

Erin opened the door wider and Molly brushed past her legs before setting off to sniff at every corner of the room. Eventually, she settled herself beside the radiator where Lewis placed her bed.

A moment later, he was slipping his arms around Erin’s waist. “I thought you knew I was coming back. Did you really think I’d have sex with you and then leave?”

Now that he was in front of her, the notion seemed ridiculous, but only a few minutes earlier she’d completely believed that was what he’d done. She rested her forehead against his. “I don’t do flings and stuff, so I’m not sure what the etiquette is.”

“I don’ t know what the etiquette is either.” He pulled her hips flush against him. “I just know I want to spend the whole night cuddled up with you. And I don’t want this to just be a fling.”

As her stomach fluttered, she closed her eyes and kissed him softly, savouring the feel and the taste of him. “I’m leaving tomorrow,” she said after a moment. “And I’m not sure how realistic a long-distance relationship is. Especially not with your crazy working hours.”

“I’ll take time off,” he said. “But I also had an idea I wanted to run by you…”

“What is it?”

Stepping away from her, he kicked his shoes off while unbuttoning his shirt. “How about you don’t leave tomorrow?”

“What?” Her eyebrows lifted.

He removed his jeans, then looked at her in amusement. “Is it me casually stripping off that’s making you look so surprised, or the idea of staying longer?”

“I’m totally on board with you casually stripping off,” she said, moving into his arms again.

“And how do you feel about extending your stay?”

“I don’t know.” She certainly had a lot of pleasant feelings about him wanting her to stay longer.

“Is there a reason you definitely need to leave?” he asked. “Didn’t you say you don’t have to go back to work until January?”

She gave a gentle shake of the head. “I’m supposed to work a couple of days this week, but I could also get away with not.”

“Okay, so theoretically, you could stay longer?”

“I suppose, theoretically, I could. This hotel room is only booked until tomorrow, though.”

“That is a small issue,” Lewis said, frowning. “The room has another booking from tomorrow. But I can check and see if there’s another room free. If not…” He trailed off, looking unsure of himself.

“ If not? ”

“I was thinking you could stay at my place, but I suspect that might freak you out.”

“I would definitely like to see your place,” she said. “But I think I’d feel more comfortable moving to another room in the hotel if there’s one available.”

“I’ll check in the morning.”

Erin swallowed hard as she waged an internal battle. On the one hand, she really hated the thought of leaving tomorrow, but at the same time, staying felt indulgent and spontaneous. Most of all, it felt like taking a risk which she wasn’t sure she wanted to take.

“What’s wrong?” Lewis asked.

“It just all feels a little overwhelming. I’m not sure where this is heading and whether staying longer is just dragging things out and avoiding the inevitable.”

“I already told you I don’t just see this as a fling. I’ve had such a great time the last few days and I want to keep getting to know you and see where this leads.”

“I feel the same, but ultimately I’m not sure where it can lead since you live here and I live in London.”

“It’s only a couple of hours away, so not completely insurmountable.” He sighed lightly and gave her a soft kiss. “Look, I don’t know what will happen, but I don’t want this to end yet. Can you just stay for a few more days and enjoy the time together? After that we can figure out the next move – if we want there to be a next move.”

“Okay.” She drew in a breath and nodded decisively. Since she really couldn’t imagine saying goodbye to him tomorrow, his plan felt like the only option.

She’d stay a few more days to give them time to get to know each other better.