Risking the Crown (The Crown 2)

I wasn’t sure what time it was when I drifted to sleep. Cole climbed into bed, and I felt him lift the book from my chest and turn off the light. His arm wrapped around my waist, and he pulled me against his chest. He smelled like the beach, salty and warm. If he wanted to talk about Aiden, he would.

“I checked on Grayson,” he whispered.

“We had to read the panda book five times,” I answered half-asleep.

Cole stroked my hair. “Sorry I wasn’t here for bedtime.”

“It’s ok. He was easy.”

He shook his head. “I shouldn’t put all that on you all the time.”

“I love doing it,” I whispered.

He kissed my neck. “I know you do. You’re amazing with him.”

I tried to fight the exhaustion, but I couldn’t. I fell asleep with Cole’s arms around me.

The next morning, the sunlight smacked me in the face. I rolled to the side, reaching for Cole. Last night was a sleepy blur. The covers next to me were flat. He was already gone.

He left a note.

Took Grayson to school. See you soon.

I padded down the hall to the bathroom. The rest of the house was quiet. I was surprised he could get Grayson out of the house without waking me. I realized I didn’t have that mother’s sleep thing. I think I still slept like a non-mother. I wondered if that instinct would kick in with me. What if Grayson woke up with a bad dream? What if he had a fever and needed help? Wasn’t I the one who had to jump into action?

I pushed the train toothbrush out of the way and looked at my reflection. Did I even look like I could pass as his mother? I shook my head. It shouldn’t matter. Cole wanted me in his life. I had to focus on that.

Our last guests were checking out this morning. We didn’t have any upcoming reservations on the books for two weeks. I dried my hair, dabbed on a bit of makeup, grabbed a cup of coffee, and walked to the Dunes office.

My morning ritual always included cranking up the air conditioner in the window. I usually turned it off at night as a way to save a few pennies on the electric bill. I waited for the cool air to blow through the stuffy room. I turned on the lamp and my laptop.

An older couple walked through the door, holding one of the large brass palm tree key tags.

“We’re all packed up.” The white-haired gentleman handed me the key.

“How was your stay at the Dune Scape?” I plastered a smile on my face. They didn’t need to know I was in the midst of a relationship crisis with the motel’s owner.

The woman, who must have dyed her red hair with an over-the-counter bottle, grinned. “It was fine, but you know it would be nice if there were some

amenities.”

“Were you missing something in your room?”

The husband rolled his eyes at the wife as if to say I can’t believe you brought this up.

She continued. “Personally, I don’t stay anywhere that doesn’t have wifi. I didn’t read the details about this place very carefully.”

Wifi was one of the things I had talked to Cole about saving up for. It had become a staple of traveling for most guests. “Is there anything else?” I asked.

The woman shrugged. “It’d be nice to have a cup of coffee or something. The rooms don’t even have those one-cup coffee pots.” She sighed. “Our other snowbird friends stayed at the resorts or camped at the other end of the island, but I guess you get what you pay for.” She turned to leave.

“Excuse me, what do you mean by snowbirds?”

She pointed to her husband’s head of white hair. “You know that’s what they call us seniors. We drive down south for the fall and winter trying to escape the snow for a while.”

“You said you have friends here?”

“We do. Some of them go to Florida or Arizona. Depends on what they’re in the mood for each year. We’re looking for some place we can call a second home. We want a regular spot every year when we need to get out of Michigan.”