Page 35 of Sackett
Selena didn’t know how much time had passed when she got up to use the rest room.She stood, stretched, ignoring the way her joints popped as she reached her arms over her head, then dropped them and went to use the facilities.
While she was moving around, she noticed the polish on her toes was chipped and starting to look a little worse for wear.She made a mental note to go in for a pedicure soon, then went back in the living room part of her suite.
“You starting to get hungry yet?”she asked as she went back to the sofa and sat beside him.
Sackett looked up from the thin reader in his hand and blinked a couple of times as if his brain took a moment to switch gears and process her words.
“I could eat.What are you in the mood for?Do you want to go downstairs or order something delivered?”
She tilted her head to one side as she thought about it a moment.“Not sure.What kind of food are you in the mood for?”
“Whatever you want.I’m not here to make things harder for you.”
She shot him a frown.She hated deciding what to eat for every meal.She hated it so much she sometimes skipped dinner so she wouldn’t have to decide where to go or what to make.
Standing back up she went around the desk to open the drawer and pull out the binder she’d seen there when she’d been going through things as she came in.She took it back to the sofa and put it on the coffee table, then sat on the edge of the couch and leaned forward, resting her elbows on her knees.
“Let’s see what’s in here.”She flipped through it, hoping she would see something that jumped out as too good to resist.She felt him shift, but didn’t look to see as he slid forward and mirrored her position to look down at the book beside her.
The first thing food related was the menu to the restaurant that was part of the hotel.She scanned it, then waited while he did the same.There were several things she would eat but nothing that stood out to her.
After a moment, Sackett reached up and flipped the page.The next page listed several places locally that delivered to the hotel.
“Have you ever eaten here?”He pointed to the ad for a local artisan pizza place.
“I have.It’s good.”
“Their wings too?”
“Their wings are what I usually get when I go there.Or at least it is these days.But their pizza is excellent too.”
“Let’s take a look at their menu.”He pulled his phone out and searched the restaurant name, and in under a minute had a menu pulled up.After looking at it for a moment or two, he passed her his phone.“Take a look.I know what I want.”
A few minutes later, she’d called and placed their order, scowling at Sackett when he tried to give her a credit card to pay for the food.It was an argument they’d had several times, but every time, she insisted on paying, but had she told him why?
“I’ll pay for it,” she said when she got off the phone.“I appreciate the gesture, but you wouldn’t be here, you wouldn’t have the expense, if not for me.Plus, this is a business trip and while I’m not paying you to be here, you are here for business purposes.It’s all deductible.”
Sackett scowled.She was sure from the way he kept trying to pay that he didn’t like that she kept insisting she cover the costs of the trip.Something told her that he understood her reasoning, but didn’t like it any better.
“I assume it’s costs you’ll roll over to charge a client?”
“Some, but not all.Either way, the client isn’t Donna.Yes, I did go see the judge for her while I was here, and you’re here because of her case, but I only did that because I was already going to be in the area for the hearing this morning.If I hadn’t been going to be here already, I wouldn’t have made a trip, so expenses for this trip are his.He knew that going into it.But I won’t charge them all to him.”She shook her head.“That wouldn’t be right.”
He watched her for a moment then turned away.She wished she knew what he was thinking.Or maybe she didn’t.She didn’t want to know if he thought she was wrong or naive for doing what she felt was right.
Somehow, from the look in his eye, she didn’t think that was the direction his thoughts had taken.
Sometimelater,aftertheirfood had been delivered, and eaten, they settled in on the sofa again, Selena was bored with what was on TV and turned so her back was against the arm and she faced Sackett.She didn’t say anything but watched him as he read for several minutes, wondering what he was thinking, if he was thinking about anything but the book he seemed so absorbed in.She was ready to talk about the trip home, but didn’t want to interrupt him.
She didn’t know why, other than that would be rude.But why was it ruder to say something and interrupt him than to sit and watch him while he read?She wasn’t sure.
Her gaze had drifted from Sackett’s face to the bit of dim light leaking around the corner of the drapes covering the sliding glass door, though she didn’t realize it until he spoke, and she looked at him again.
“Do you want something?”His voice was calm, but he’d looked up at her and seemed to be watching her, far more intently than she’d been watching him earlier.Or maybe it just seemed that way.He was … she struggled for the right word… intense.
“Oh,” she found it hard to force her mind back to what she’d been thinking when she turned to face him, “I was wondering if you’re ready to talk about the trip home.”
He watched her for a moment.Her heart seemed to stop beating as she wanted to know what was going through his head.
