“Sure,” I agree with a degree of sarcasm, glancing over at my security detail, grateful Malibu Barbie-Marie here isn’t doubling as crazy fan.
Or worse.
But in seconds I’m feeling worse than stabbed as her new Beau takes his happy snaps of her as she drops into my lap.
She plants a wet, lipstick stained kiss on my cheek at the exact moment I finally catch sight of Lucy in the crowd.
I motion to her with my hand, trying to call out to her, but it’s too late.
She’s seen something I have no time to explain. The chaperone who was supposed to share a room with her this weekend as well as be by her side for the meet and greet.
Not Eduardo.
Once Marie is hauled off my lap by security and I watch Lucy disappear into the crowd again, looking more than just a little upset.
I take a moment, I actually do have to thank Marie before I go after Lucy.
“If it wasn’t for you, Marie. Eduardo even,” I tell them both. “I would never have met the most important person of my whole life this weekend,” I announce, pushing past them both, security, and then the few hundred people waiting in line to have me sign their books and tell them how much I appreciate them reading them all.
But right now, right at this second, the only thing that matters to me is Lucy.
Not any book signing or even the idea of books. Or contracts or fame or any of the other stuff I’ve spent years listening to other people tell me is what I’m all about.
Right now I’m just a guy who needs his girl. And I feel worse than bad that we’ve both just found ourselves in the wrong place at the wrong time.
The book signing can wait, it can get canceled for all I care. All those people still waiting will get their money back and I’ll spend the next few days signing books to post to them personally if I have to.
Right now though, I need Lucy.
I need to chase her to explain myself or what she thinks she might have seen, and tell her that Marie might not be such a bad sort and that she has given us the best gift.
I hope I never see Marie or Eduardo again, but something tells me they have might have finished playing their part in this drama finally.
It’s true, without her choice for Eduardo I might never have even met Lucy, so I kind of do owe her that. But now I have, or rather, thought I had Lucy all to myself.
Marie is forgotten as I hustle to try to catch Lucy before she disappears completely.
By the time I make it out front of the building, it’s just in time to see Lucy get into a familiar car as it pulls away, heading straight back towards our hotel suite, I’m guessing.
I flag down a cab and instruct them to follow her car. Sure enough, she’s headed back to our hotel.
And something tells me from the look in her eyes that she’s not heading back to freshen up either.
The cab driver puts up with my urging him on, telling him to hurry to keep up. Even though it’s clear to me where she’s headed, I won’t lose her a second time.
I won’t leave her on her own ever again either.
Stuffing a handful of bills into the driver’s hand before I sprint into the hotel, I’m just in time to see her curves shut behind the steel elevator doors.
Dammit!
Punching the button is useless, and the other elevator is on its way up as well.
I sigh bitterly, wondering if Lucy saw me racing after her and let the elevator leave without me. Hoping she didn’t because it would mean she doesn’t want to see me.
I lurch to my left, tearing a stairwell door open and starting to hustle up the stairs, three then five and a time, I can only think of seeing her again.
Telling her that even though I said I can wait.
I can’t.
I can’t even think without her now. Need her more than anything.
My chest and legs are burning by the time I reach our floor, but it’s nothing compared to the burning inside my chest.
My absolute need for her above anything else.
I hear myself let out a little groan when I see the door to our suite ajar, a good thing too because I’m pretty sure I don’t have my key card.
I pause long enough to take a single breath by the door before I call out her name.
I close the door behind me, leaning against it, my chest heaving and my heart still racing.
I hear a heavy zipper from her room and push her door open enough to see she’s packed her bag.
But I’m shaking my head.
“No.” I hear myself tell her firmly. I won’t let her go, not like this.