Too Distracting (The Lewis Cousins 3)

She blushed prettily, but I ignored the grumble and said, “Let’s eat.”

We both piled up our plates and dug in to our breakfast.

“I’d like to leave in an hour, if that’s enough time,” I began, my mind shifting to the reason we were here, the convention. There were a few contacts that I needed to make, and booths I wanted to hit straight away.

“That works for me,” Laurel replied. “What time is the dinner tonight?”

“Drinks at six, dinner at seven, and the ballet at eight. I figured we’d head back here around four-thirty to get ready, if that works for you.”

Throwing on my tux would take no time at all, but having grown up with Jazzy, I knew women tended to like a little more time to prepare when going to an event like we’d be attending that night.

“Sounds good,” Laurel said agreeably, digging into her eggs with a gusto.

I felt a niggle of pride at the memory of last night, and hoped her energy needed to be restored, in part, because of me.

I finished my breakfast and made a mental note to check with the hotel about having flowers delivered to Laurel’s room today. I wanted her to know how much I appreciated her being here with me, and how much I was enjoying spending this time with her. It was crazy, but I hadn’t thought about how she’d always bothered me when we were younger, or even thought about the old Laurel at all.

I was fully enjoying Laurel now, and couldn’t wait to see what else the weekend would hold.

I pushed back from the table and said, “I’m going to grab a shower, feel free to get ready here, if you’d like.”

“I think I’ll get ready in my room, since that’s where all my stuff is.”

Acting on impulse, I suggested, “Why not move your things in here and we can cancel your room. If we’re going to spend the weekend together, there’s no point in having two rooms.”

Laurel looked up at me in surprise, then a beautiful smile filled her face.

“Okay,” she said softly. “I’ll get ready down there, then pack and be back here within the hour.”

I reached out to brush the hair off of her forehead and said, “No need to rush, we can take the extra time. The convention isn’t going anywhere.” Then, I leaned down and kissed her upturned lips.

I walked to the shower with a spring in my step, excited about what was to come.

22

Laurel

I was on cloud nine.

This morning I’d woken up in Dillon’s arms, was blessed with the sight of him in all his naked glory in the light of day, and had moved into his room before we left for the convention.

Since we’d arrived at the convention, I’d put in an order for custom business cards, post cards, and a menu of offered services. That last one I’d had Chloe take a picture of and text me, since I couldn’t remember everything off the cuff.

Luckily, Chloe kept copious notes and was happy to answer my gazillion messages throughout the day. She assured me that everything was running smoothly back home, and told me to enjoy myself.

Little did she know, I was enjoying myself … immensely.

In addition to the print items, I’d gathered contact information for two PR companies and had a long chat with a marketing company that specialized in social media. She’d given me great ideas as well as a pamphlet to take home with me.

Dillon and I had split up when he’d been called away to an impromptu meeting. We’d met up for lunch, then had gone our separate ways again when I’d started talking to the marketing company.

All in all, it had been a very fast, very productive day, and I was so happy that I’d come. Just the few contacts I’d made had me dancing in my seat over Party with Laurel becoming a reality.

“You good?” Dillon asked with a chuckle, and I realized he’d noticed my little uber jig.

“So good,” I gushed, not even a little embarrassed. I was too happy. “Thanks so much for bringing me here with you. The contacts I made today are priceless … I can’t thank you enough.”

“No need to keep thanking me, you’re helping me out by being here, remember?” Dillon paid the driver once we pulled up in front of the hotel, and we both got out.