Page 87 of A Lot Like Love
Chase laughed and passed her a coffee, standing beside his brother.
“No, um, it was doctor’s orders. He wants us gone until morning. No visitors, just rest.”
Nate nodded and took a sip of his coffee. “You guys head to the car, I’ll go have a quick word with the doctor and meet you out front.”
Chloe’s hands were starting to burn from being pressed to the takeout coffee cup, but it was preferable to the burning embarrassment inside of her. She had no idea what Ryder was thinking, what he might have said back to her if she hadn’t left his room in such a hurry. All she knew was that her timing sucked.
“You okay?” Chase asked. “You seem kind of rattled.”
She nodded and fell into step beside him. “It’s just been a long day.” It wasn’t a lie, she was exhausted.
“Where were you staying?”
“WherewasI staying?” she asked back. “Just some little motel off the main drag.”
“We’ll go grab your things, then head back to the Bellagio.”
The Bellagio?The last thing she needed was to go back to a place so full of memories, the hotel where she’d first been intimate with Ryder. “It’s fine. I can just meet you guys here in the morning.”
Chase slung his arms across her shoulders as they walked, like it was the most natural thing in the world for him to do. “Not a chance. You’re staying with us now and you can argue all you like, but that’s a fact. You can take Ryder’s suite.”
She guessed Ryder’s attitude ran in the family. Chase had no intention of taking no for an answer, and if he was anywhere near as stubborn as Ryder was, there was no point in even starting to protest.
“Why the Bellagio?” she asked. It was a stupid question—the Bellagio was the best hotel in Vegas, and they had a lot of cash to burn.
Chase chuckled, taking his arm away and reaching into his pocket for the car keys as they stopped at the elevator.
“Ryder was already booked in there and we just tagged along. Why?”
“No reason,” she lied.
“Bullshit,” he said with a laugh, turning to face her. His dark brown eyes were almost impossible to look away from, his stare intense. “We asked him the same question, ’cause he never usually stays anywhere like that when he’s riding.”
Chloe squirmed on the spot, looking up to see what floor the elevator was on, then checking her wristwatch.
“Chloe?” Chase’s grin was infectious and she burst out laughing.
“All right, all right,” she muttered, shaking her head and wishing she didn’t find the King brothers so impossible to resist. It was Ryder she was in love with, but Chase was so damn charming that she just couldn’t blow him off. “It was where we stayed together.”
Chase was silent, then a slow smile broke out across his face. “Oh, I get it. He wanted a reminder of your dirty weekend away.”
She could feel her cheeks heating up, the burn slowly crawling up her neck and to her face, but she refused to look away. She raised an eyebrow and shrugged. “It was actually a midweek getaway, not a weekend. And it was purely for research purposes.”
Chase burst out laughing and gestured for her to step into the elevator ahead of him. “I can see why my brother’s so besotted with you.”
Now it was Chloe’s turn to laugh. “Besotted? Give me a break,” she snorted. “He’s probably had a different woman in his bed every night since I left.”
“No, sweetheart, you’re wrong,” Chase said, his tone suddenly a whole lot more serious. “And that’s why you’re staying with us until he’s out of here. You’re one hell of a girl, and he’d kill us if you weren’t safe and pampered while he isn’t here to take care of you.”
“You make it sound like I’m a child in need of a minder.” She was flattered, but the attention made her uncomfortable.
“Look, we’ll dote on you for as long as we need to. Your every wish is our command.” Chloe laughed at the same time he did. “Okay, so not quite. But seriously, just let us look after you. We can drink, eat, gamble, take in the sights…”
“Did you say gamble?” she asked, folding her arms across her chest as she watched Chase.
The elevator dinged and he gestured for her to step out ahead of him.
“Is that a trick question?” Chase asked.
