“That’s fair.”
I had expected persuasion.
Instead, he took his phone from his pocket.
“What are you doing?”
“Finding you somewhere you can choose yourself.”
“You don’t need to.”
“No. I don’t.”
He looked up.
“But I can stand here while you do it.”
That nearly broke me.
Not the offer of a hotel.
Not the security team.
That sentence.
I can stand here while you do it.
I couldn’t remember the last time someone had made help sound like company instead of control.
Daniel quietly excused himself.
Ten minutes later, I had booked a small airport hotel using a credit card I had hidden from Ethan months earlier.
There was only $412 of available credit left.
Tonight would cost $118.
But the room would be mine.
My choice.
Adrian looked at the confirmation on my screen.
“You want a ride?”
I nodded.
“Yes.”
The hotel smelled faintly of coffee and industrial carpet cleaner.
It was beautiful to me.
There was a bed.
A locking door.
A crib the front desk employee rolled upstairs.
And silence.
Real silence.
Daniel checked the hallway while I settled Lily.
When he finished, he stopped near the door.
“Ms. Walker?”
“Yes?”
“Would you like my number?”
I hesitated.
“For security?”
“For emergencies. Mr. Prescott asked me to make sure you had a contact who wasn’t him.”
I looked past Daniel.
Adrian was standing near the window.
He pretended to be interested in the parking lot.
That small consideration affected me more than I wanted it to.
I entered Daniel’s number into my phone.
“Thank you.”
He left.
Adrian remained.
For the first time since the airport, we were alone.
Lily had fallen asleep almost immediately, curled sideways in the crib with her stuffed rabbit under one arm.
I sat on the edge of the bed.
Adrian stood near the desk.
Neither of us seemed to know what came next.
Finally I said, “You probably have someplace important to be.”
“Several.”
I looked up.
“And you’re still here.”
“My driver has instructions not to leave without me.”
“You really are a billionaire.”
He smiled.
“Unfortunately.”
“That doesn’t sound unfortunate.”
“You should see the meetings.”
I laughed quietly.
His phone vibrated.
He ignored it.
“Why were people filming you?” I asked.
The question had bothered me since the plane.
He put his hands in his pockets.
“My company announced a restructuring yesterday.”
