“How is Hailey?”
“She’s good,” I said. “Getting back into the swing of working and taking care of my sporadic rear end.”
“You’ll have to tell her I said hi,” he replied.
“I’ll definitely do that.” I smiled. “Brian, can I ask you a question?”
“Sure, anything,” he said.
“You became friends with Cameron, right?”
“Yeah, I mean, as much as I could with a guy that pretty much stayed to himself.” He chuckled. “He was a different guy when he was around you.”
“How do you mean?”
“He was alive, happy, smiling,” he said. “I have seen him here four straight seasons in a row, and he has never laughed like he did when you were around.”
“That’s sweet,” I said, blushing. “Well, did you happen to get a number for him? Or maybe a name that I could use to look him up?”
“No,” he said, making my heart sink. “Unfortunately, he left before I could connect with him again. I heard that he’s coming back next season, though.”
“Yeah, the receptionist told me that,” I said, sinking down on the stool.
“Do you want a drink? Maybe your normal?”
“No, no,” I said, breathing deeply. “Actually, could I have a big glass of ice water with lemon?”
“Sure,” he replied. “You know, when my sister was expecting, she used to chug down lemon water like it was the end of the world. Funny thing was, she never actually liked lemon until then.”
“Crazy.” I chuckled, wondering if he knew.
“You’re not pregnant, are you?” He laughed, not even waiting for an answer.
I smiled halfway, the best I could do under the circumstances. Luckily for me, he didn’t even seem to notice my hesitation. I thought about telling Brian, knowing that he was a sweet guy with a big heart. Maybe if he knew the circumstances, he would help me find Cameron. Just as I was about to say something, though, a crowd walked through the door, and I discarded the idea, burying it deep in my chest. I took a big sip of my water and smiled as he looked up at the crowd and took a deep breath.
“I’m going to leave you to it, then,” I said, smiling and standing from my stool. “If you think of anything, let me know. I’m in room 413, and I’ll be here until checkout on Monday morning.”
“That’s funny,” he said.
“What is?”
“Nothing, just that 413 was Cameron’s room when he was staying here.” He chuckled, walking around the bar and toward the guests.
How strange and coincidental was that?
Chapter 23
Cameron
On Sunday, I had pretty much hit rock bottom, not knowing what to do or what to say without Bea in my life. I sat down and talked to Glen about it, and he promised to cover the lessons so I could go look for her. The only place I knew that might have some kind of lead was the resort in Aspen. So, I scheduled a red eye on Sunday night and flew out to Colorado, hoping that there would be someone there with information on how I could find her.
As the plane flew through the clouds, my heart began to flutter, remembering all the things that had happened at the resort. Hopefully, I would be able to relax myself enough to ask questions. If nothing else, I was going to get a little bit of time alone for once. I really appreciated that Glen found it necessary to watch out for me and be there to just talk, but I could really use some good quality time alone to sort out my feelings and thoughts. When I had gotten onto the plane, I had realized I was way too tired to even think on the plane. I ordered a Bloody Mary and then set myself up for a little bit of sleep.
When the plane started its descent, I woke up, feeling more than a little groggy. I really didn’t like Colorado outside of Aspen, so I took my carry-on and jumped right into a cab, taking me over to the resort. I had booked the hotel for that afternoon, requesting my old room.
They told me it wouldn’t be ready until after noon because someone was checking out that day. I didn’t mind waiting in the lounge, drinking my same old drinks, and hoping that Bea was going to walk around the corner at any minute.
When the cab pulled up out front, I grabbed my bag and paid the driver. I stepped out onto the sidewalk and breathed the ice-cold air into my lungs. It felt so good to be back in Aspen, and not just because of Bea. I was starting to think that Aspen was one of those places that was just therapeutic to me. Maybe that was why so many people flocked there on a regular basis. Even during the summer when the slopes were closed and the pool was open, the place was completely packed. I was curious to know what it was like that time of year.