Page 58 of Something New

Shy

I hated it when he and Jonathan had been calling me by that name all weekend, but now I loved signing it. I was already out of that dress and back to being Sadie. Shy was someone else, and I got to leave her here, on the note and in the closet.

I set the note and two of my own camera storage cards on the table. It was my own equipment, but I wanted to be done with this party and not look at them again. I packed and within minutes, the two of us had all of my things in our arms and were heading outside.

I walked ahead of him, and we both moved quickly through the outskirts of the house to the nearest exit. We had to walk around the yard, and I hesitated from a distance when I saw the valet station at the front of the house.

"Where did you park?" I asked, turning to look at him.

"It's a little way down the street. It was my only option if I didn't want to use valet, and I didn't want to do that. Stay here. I'll go get the car and I'll pull up right there and get you."

I nodded, and John-Michael left the luggage with me and took off, jogging through the yard to the street. He was in shape, and I just kept feeling like he was such a champion. There I was, in a dark yard with all of my best camera equipment and personal belongings. I would be so stuck in this house without him. I depended on him for every step of this process.

I waited there for five or six minutes until I saw a silver convertible pull into the valet. I knew it was him by the way he whipped into the front driveway.

He got out of the car and began talking to the valet. He pointed in my direction, and I headed that way with my three bags. John-Michael came jogging toward me to help me back to the car. He had lost the mask and his shirt was unbuttoned at the collar. He was strikingly handsome, and he moved quickly and coolly.

He spoke to the valet once I sat inside, but I didn't hear any of it. I sat in the passenger's seat while he got the luggage packed into the trunk. My camera bag was back there, and I didn't even turn around to check on it. I was so ready to leave.

Within seconds, John-Michael opened the driver's door and sat in the seat next to me. He locked the door and then reached down to put the car in gear.

"You have to switch gears? Is this a racecar or something? Who drives a standard?"

He let out a laugh. "It's all they had. That's why I got a car at all. Something happened, and it was a mess at the rental car company." He moved, shifting gears and looking out of the windows to get onto the road. We drove to an intersection and took a right before he slowed down enough to type an address into his GPS.

"I'm heading to my hotel," he said. "We can put your things in there."

"Thank you."

He got up to speed and as soon as his hand was free, he reached out for mine. "You're beautiful."

"In jeans and a sweatshirt?" I asked, feeling self-conscious after the quick change.

"Yes," he said. He pulled my arm close to him and let his cheek rest on the back of my hand. I leaned toward him. "I have a suite, so you can have your own room and I'll sleep in the living room, on the couch. Will that be okay?" I looked at him when he said it. "If you want your own room, I can get that, too."

"A suite's fine. I was thinking about the couch. I'll sleep on the couch."

"No."

"It's the least I can do. And I love couches. Remember I used to be a party girl. I'm used to it. I lived on couches."

"I really don't mind giving you the bed," he said. "Or I can get you a room. We can see how you feel when we get there."

"It's perfect," I said, once I was inside a few minutes later.

It was a normal hotel room—a one-bedroom suite. I felt comfortable there with him from the first few seconds.

"I don't want my own room. I'll stay right there." I pointed excitedly to the couch, and he laughed.

He put down my bag and I went to him, landing in his arms, feeling loved and protected—rescued.

"Did that dude hurt you? Because you need to tell me if he did. I'll go over there before we leave this city."

"No, he didn't. He was just really weird. I mean, I guess he's the type of weird I would've been okay with a few months ago, but it was just too much for me."

"Was he trying to hook up with you?"

"Yes. But he didn't do anything. He just mentioned it. I'm sorry I got myself into that. I didn't think I'd need rescuing. I didn't have a car or anything. I didn't expect to feel trapped, but I did."