The Hidden

“He must be quite a guy,” Trisha told her. “She’s so picky,” she added to the others.

“Hey, my time is precious. We should all be picky,” Linda said.

“Maybe, but as stunning as you are, you deserve to be even pickier than the rest of us,” Charles said.

Linda cast him a disapproving look. Scarlet had a feeling Linda was simply offended that he would compliment another woman over his brand-new bride.

Gwen apparently didn’t appreciate his comment, either, and she must have kicked him under the table, because he suddenly grunted in pain.

Ben clearly picked up on what was happening and quickly changed the subject. “Well, I’m just glad all of you decided to stay on here. Trisha and I really appreciate your loyalty.”

“It’s kind of strange, actually,” Gwen said.

“What’s that?” Linda asked her.

“To be honest, Charles and I were torn about where to spend our honeymoon. The Stanley is just so famous, and it’s known to be haunted, plus the Stephen King connection is so cool. Years ago,” she said, reaching for her husband’s hand, “I was in the area, and I heard about this place, so I read up on its history. It’s really sad, the way Nathan Kendall and his wife were killed. And now this couple...it’s like history repeating itself. It’s tragic, but it’s scary, too.”

“And sick,” Charles said.

Everyone fell silent at that point, until Diego turned to Gigi and Clark and asked, “Did you hear anything?”

“We were in Boulder, having dinner with friends—we weren’t here,” Clark said.

“And you two?” Diego asked Gwen and Charles.

“We were...” Gwen blushed and fell silent.

“Occupied,” Charles said. They smiled at one another, still holding hands.

“I just didn’t hear anything at all...except for Charles,” Gwen said.

Scarlet could feel the general consensus around the table. Too much information.

“Then you got one of your migraines and took something for it, but you were still tossing and turning so much that I took a sleeping pill myself,” Charles said, rolling his eyes and looking at Diego. “I think Armageddon could have come and we would have slept right through it.”

“Migraines are tough,” Linda said, looking sympathetically at Gwen. “My mother used to get them. We had to keep the house dark and silent, and we kept bringing her cold towels for her forehead. If you get one again while you’re here, let me know. I’m a good migraine nurse.”

“Thank you,” Gwen said.

Diego drained his cup and said, “Thanks so much for the coffee and the company.” He smiled as he stood. “This is the first time I’ve been anywhere around here, so Scarlet’s going to show me around a bit.”

“Nice to meet you,” Linda said, and the others expressed similar sentiments.

“And nice to have you G-men—and a G-woman—around,” Charles added.

“Thanks,” Diego said, as Scarlet got up, too, and said her goodbyes.

His hand at her back, they walked out together. She was stunned to realize how much she’d missed that simple touch; Diego had a natural ability to simply touch her or put his arm around her in a way that was...

Not possessive, not exactly. He didn’t push or pull. He had always just touched her gently, a way of saying they were together that made her feel warm and wanted.