I kiss Jake fervently as we descend, gripping each other tightly and breathing hard.
We stay still in each other's arms for long minutes as our breathing returns to normal. I lean back and look into his face, grinning.
"What are you doing to me?" I ask, awestruck.
"What are you doing to me?" he grins back.
I laugh. Uh, yeah. I disengage myself from him and stand up, walking to the bathroom to clean myself up.
When I get back, Jake is still sitting in the desk chair. I grab my clothes and pull them on.
We still have an hour or so and I'd like to shower, but it's not like I can return back to work with wet hair so instead we spend our time relaxing on the bed and he tells me about his trip, making me laugh with a story about the overly chatty guy he sat next to on the plane. I giggle and tease him and we just enjoy each other until the clock tells us that I need to get back to work.
I straighten the comforter on the bed and quickly wipe down the chair we used, grinning up at Jake and then I wheel the cart out of the room, Jake kisses me goodbye and I move on to the next room. I use my walkie talkie to update my manager that the penthouse suite is clean. I can't keep the goofy grin off my face for the next hour.
CHAPTER 25
We settle into a little bit of a routine over the next week and a half. I run in the mornings, work and then, most evenings, head over to Jake's condo directly afterwards and we eat dinner together, sharing about our day. It feels natural and comfortable and I've never been happier. I look forward with something very close to giddiness to greeting Jake at the end of the day. He picks me up and holds me close, kissing me and spinning me around as if he hasn't been alive until that very moment.
But I am also restless to know him better. I've been patient and understanding, but I want to know what he isn't telling me. I want to know the things that still clearly haunt him, that give him that faraway look when he thinks I'm not paying attention. There is something that separates us, and until he opens up to me, I fear that I won't ever draw nearer to who he really is.
I'm also afraid that the reason he's not opening up to me is because he doesn't want to get closer to me and this is his way of holding back.
A week later, on Friday night, we make love ardently, as always, and afterwards, Jake wraps me in his arms, whispering intimate words to me as we drift off to sleep. But in the deep of night, I awaken alone and when I get up to seek him out, I find him standing silently on his balcony, drinking from a glass filled with amber liquid.
"Can't sleep?" I murmur, putting my arms around him from behind.
"Yeah," he sighs, "Thought a night cap would help. Go back to bed, baby, I'll join you in a minute." I notice that his face looks strained.
"Okay," I agree, sleepily, squeezing him and then letting go, walking back to bed alone and a little troubled.
In the morning, he tells me he has a surprise. It's my day off and he's arranged a spa day for me. I'm excited because I've never, ever been to a spa before. I'm getting better at letting Jake treat me, even though it's still a struggle for me. He grins at my excitement and says it's all arranged. He scoots me into the shower and says a car will be here within the hour.
"Enjoy yourself, babe. I'm looking forward to meeting your friends tonight." It sounds nice but he looks nervous and preoccupied and I don't know what to say to draw him out. Maybe he has a lot going on at work. I'll get the spa works today and then I'll do what I can to relax him tonight. I've become pretty adept at that.
"Why are you so good to me?" I ask, bringing my arms up around his neck.
"I love to spoil you. Making you happy makes me happy," he smiles, looking deeply into my eyes.
I shower quickly and then dress in dark gray yoga pants, a white tank and light blue hoodie. I pull my sneakers on and Jake and I eat a quick breakfast of cereal with fruit as I look over the brochure for the spa down the street.
I kiss Jake when the buzzer goes off in his condo and rush down to the waiting car.
I spend an amazing morning and afternoon at the luxurious spa a couple blocks down from his condo, getting the works, facial, manicure, pedicure haircut and highlights and a massage. I love everyone who works with me and I spend the day not only relaxing and being treated, but chatting easily with the people who provide services there.
As I'm walking out of the massage room, getting ready to sign out at the front desk, a blond coming down the hallway almost runs right into me. "Oh, excuse me!" I say, embarrassed.
"No problem," she mutters, stopping abruptly.
Oh my God, it's Gwen. Holy shit! Well, it was a nice day.
"Oh!" she says surprised, "Evie, right?" The look on her face tells me that she's just about as happy to see me this time as she was the last and the temperature in the spa seems to dip several degrees.
"Right. Hi, Gwen. Nice to see you." I try to make my way around her, but she sidesteps in front of me, blocking my escape.
"Funny running into you here. I'm assuming Jake sent you?" she says as if she knows very well that I could never afford to come here on my own dime.
I pull myself up straight. If she's going to make a cat fight out of this, I'm not going to slink away like I have something to be ashamed of. "He did," I say, smiling a fake smile, "He likes to pamper me."
"Right," she says back, smirking. "I'll bet. Listen, Evie, I'm going to be a friend to you here and lay it on you straight. I know you probably think you don't have a lot of reason to trust me considering the last time we met I… exaggerated a few things between Jake and me. But I feel like it might be in your best interest to realize a few things."