Page 8 of Nyctophilia

The eyebrows had all but disappeared by this point. “Ava Green, are you asking me to direct you to a single young man’s room at nine o’clock in the morning so you can… drop something off?”

Shit. Definitely going to be the talk of the town. Why couldn’t I have inherited my mom’s ability to make small talk? Being honest, a small part of myself was also offended. I know it was unusual for me to be seen, for all intents and purposes this morning, chasing after a guy, but come on. My casual oversized sweater and leggings didn’t exactly scream “booty call.” To top it off, itwasnine in the morning.

Thankfully, I was saved any further embarrassment by the chiming of the bell over the door. Before I could turn to see who it was, Deidra announced the arrival. “Mr. Knight, what a coincidence. Ava here was looking for you.” I turned to face the only person who could possibly make this entire encounter more uncomfortable.

After whatever you could call our experience in the park, I found myself less annoyed than usual by his appearance at yet another awkward moment in my life. This time, it actually involved him. Jasper’s hair was damp from the shower, and he was without his signature leather jacket, so I could see more of his extensive tribal looking tattoos working their way from his collarbone to his wrist. I couldn’t help the thought that I’d like to trace those tattoos from start to finish from coming to my mind. Who the hell was I?

Almost as if he could hear what I was thinking, the smile Jasper gave me could’ve melted an iceberg. “Was she now.” He probably had girls showing up to motel rooms for him all the time.Jerk.

I tried to maintain my composure. “Uh, yeah. I was looking for you to drop off that thing you forgot at the coffee shop the other day.” I crossed my fingers subtly, hoping he would play along.

When his smile grew broader, I knew I was in trouble. “Oh yeah? Remind me what I forgot again?” Double shit.

I couldn’t play it cool under the best of circumstances, and Jasper’s amused eyes and his bone melting smile were not helping the situation. I dug into my laptop bag trying to find something I could claim he had left behind. “You forgot your… oh your…” I triumphantly held out a pair of sunglasses. “Your sunglasses!”

Jasper burst out laughing. It was an absolutely delicious sound. “How could I have forgotten? Walk me back to my room, so we can drop them off there.”

Now my palms started to sweat. My body kept rebelling against me. I had functioned fine on my limited contact with men before, and yet this stranger was occupying every inch of my mind. Regardless, I followed him out the door.

“Listen… about last night…”

Jasper waved his hand, dismissing it. “We were both drinking.”

I knew that wasn’t it, but I gratefully accepted the excuse he had given me. We stopped outside room 103, and Jasper leaned his long frame against the door jam. “Would you like to come in?”

I hesitated. “Oh, um…” In a typical scenario I would not be caught dead going into a motel room with a strange man, but his tight black tee shirt was distracting me, and I couldn’t think straight…

He felt my hesitation, and his grin was back. God, his teeth were perfect. I wondered if he’d worn braces as a kid. “Why, Ms. Green, do you really think I’m inviting you into my room to do improper things to you?”

The way he said Ms. Green made me think he was mocking the way Sheriff Kelly had said my name earlier that morning. But he couldn’t be, because the only other person in earshot of our conversation had been Deidra. It was impossible for him to have heard that. Right?

Jasper interrupted my train of thought to continue his assurances he was not, in fact, thinking of any inappropriate behaviour towards me. “I simply thought you would like to talk in a more private place, Ms. Green.”

“Okay, first of all, no more Ms. Green. I’m not my mother.”

His mouth twitched, almost in annoyance. “Noted. Just Green it is then.”

I rolled my eyes but let it slide. Green was about the same, if not worse, but I didn’t think we’d be spending enough time together for that to bother me. “Second of all, how do you know I wasn’t here to drop off your sunglasses?”

He pointed to the top of his damp hair, where a pair of aviators sat.Oh. I could already feel myself blushing again. I should never have come. This had been so embarrassing from start to finish. I bet this kind of stuff never happened to other girls.

Jasper didn’t seem weirded out that I had showed up at his motel to speak with him. He smiled and held the door open for me. “So then, Green, are you coming in or are you going to give Deidra more gossip to tell her knitting circle?”

Glancing over my shoulder I saw Deidra watching us from the office window. “Actually, I don’t think that’s the greatest idea. We’re already going to be the talk of the town tomorrow.”

“Doesn’t it ever get tiring?”

“Doesn’t what get tiring?” I wasn’t sure what he was getting at.

He waved his hands in the air. “Hiding. Not doing what you want. Making sure everyone isn’t talking about you.”

I shrugged. “Of course it does. But it’s the only town I know and I don’t want people to judge me any more than they already do.”

I couldn’t be certain, but I swore his face fell when I said that. I ran through what I had said in my head, realizing he might have thought I meant people would judge me for being seen with him.

I tried to recover. “I do have some questions for you. Obviously. That’s why I’m here. But maybe we could meet at the coffee shop to talk?”

Jasper had ducked into the room as I was speaking and was shrugging into his leather jacket as he considered his response. My eyes widened at how hot he looked in it, and I tried to regain my cool before he could notice.

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