Declan

Chapter Five

Lexi ~

The next morning Lexi walked off of the elevator and into the lobby dining area. She had found Declan's note which informed her that he was heading down to the gym and didn't want to wake her, and while the gesture was thoughtful it was wildly unnecessary. He didn't owe her a thing, in fact it was just the opposite. He had spent the entire night in her bed acting as her own personal weighted blanket and had expected nothing in return.

Once she had reached the dining room of the hotel her eyes searched for Declan, but landed on Caleb instead. He waved her over and she took a seat across from him.

"Good Morning." he said with a smile. Clearly Caleb was a morning person. A quality that he and Lexi did not share.

"Good morning."

Eyeing his athletic attire Lexi stated the obvious "Just get finished at the gym?"

"Every morning," he said as he shoveled a bite of food in his mouth.

"I don't see how you have the energy, we were up so late."

"Eh, I'm used to it. Work hard play hard, right?"

"If you say so."

A deep voice rumbled behind her and her pulse picked up at the sound.

"Mornin'," Declan said as he sat down next to Lex with two plates of food.

"Holy breakfast," Lexi laughed. Declan's plates were piled high with every breakfast food imaginable.

"This is just an appetizer compared to what Caleb just inhaled.

Lexi turned her attention to Caleb who gave her a closed mouth smile with cheeks clearly packed with food.

"There she is," Declan boomed causing the whole room to turn and look toward the entrance.

Claire was entering the dining area and was clearly embarrassed by the attention that Declan was calling to her. Caleb stood and started clapping and Declan quickly followed. Lexi joined the fun and gave her a standing ovation of her own and laughed as Claire's face turned beat red.

"Stop it," Claire hissed with a smirk as she neared the table.

"What? It's the least we could do after your performance last night," Declan teased.

"Is that why you went to bed so early? Did you need to rest those vocal cords?" Caleb added with a laugh.

"Screw all three of you," Claire sassed.

"Especially you," she said with a huge smile as she set her sights on Lexi. Before she could react Claire slammed into Lexi and wrapped her in a hug that nearly knocked her off her feet. A smile spread across Lexi's face when she felt a large hand on her back steadying her so she didn't fall from the force of Claire's hug. She didn't even have to look to know it was Declan.

"I'm so glad you're finally here!" Claire squealed.

"Sorry I didn't come pick you up from the airport last night. Karaoke was...fun."

Both women started laughing as they sat down at the table.

"I have got the worst headache though," Claire whined. "Where is the coffee?"

"I'll get some for the both of us." Lexi replied as she pushed in her chair.

"Still like two creams and two sugars?"

"Black," Claire corrected. Tilting her head in confusion, she gave Claire a horrified look.

"Who are you?" Lexi gasped.