Thanks to judtvr for the lovely new cover!
As I said in my previous story, I'm not Canadian. Some of the information about geogrpahy, climate, scenery etc. may be incorrect. I tried to research as best as I could, so bear with me! :)
Florence
The sickly sweet smell of perfume hung in the air, its cloying scent causing my nose to scrunch up involuntarily as I took a seat in a black leather chair. Steven did the same next to me, and though he took the effort to plaster a fake smile onto his face, I continued to scowl. We sat in a small, bright room with a desk and three chairs. An air conditioner stuck to the wall behind us blasted warm air at the back of my neck. There was a woman sitting at the desk in front of us, tapping lightly on the keyboard on a computer. Her wispy blonde hair was pulled into a neat bun, and she wore a maroon shirt with the embroidered company logo attached on the shoulder. Her nametag introduced her as Lois, and she beamed at us, her hand outstretching in greeting. Her handshake was relatively firm and I could feel her recently manicured nails poking into my palm, so I withdrew and dropped my hands to my lap.
“Hi, my name’s Lois, and I’ll be your travel agent for today. I didn’t catch your name on the way in?” Her voice was cheerful, if a little squeaky.
“Robert and Fiona Reece,” Steven introduced us. I had to refrain from snorting; he’d chosen fake names for us? Even if that wasn’t bad enough, he’d insinuated that we were married.
I took a sideways look at Steven, taking in his scraggly red hair and thick black glasses. He was clean-shaven, and wore a pair of jeans and a plain white shirt, which highlighted his bright, odd hair colour. He was one or two years older than me – I’d forgotten the details – and it was entirely plausible that we could be together, other than the fact that we’d ‘married’ young. It was a shame that I was pursuing his estranged best friend – I would call it love, but it was too early for that, so we’ll leave it at ‘pursuing’.
“It’s lovely to meet you Mr. and Mrs. Reece, I understand that you’re after accommodation in the Yellowstone area?” Lois was speaking predominantly to Steven, as I was avoiding all eye contact.
My stomach twisted painfully, and it took all that I had not to cry out. I gritted my teeth and clutched both of my hands to my abdomen, trying to suppress the pain with physical force. It didn’t work.
Unfortunately, Lois took this as an indication that I had a ‘bun in the oven’.
“How far along are you dear? I can book an extra room in case of an emergency,” she eyed my belly with a smile. The lie of Mr. and Mrs. Reece was progressing quickly; now we had a fake baby in the story! I mentally groaned.
“I don’t think that will be necessary, Lois. We’re perfectly fine with one room.”
She bobbed her head in agreement and began listing off the options for accommodation.
I zoned out for a few minutes, concentrating on anything but my stomach pains. The heat of the air conditioner was too warm on my skin, my nose was itching with Lois’s perfume, and the lights in the room were just too bright. The pain erupted once more, and I felt as if my stomach was attempting to somersault inside my skin.
“Are you alright, honey?” Steven’s hot hand touched my thigh and I bit back a growl – not one of frustration, but an actual growl – at the heat that emanated from his skin once it touched my skin. Why did he have such a high temperature?
“Fine,” I bit back out, forcing a tight smile.
Steven’s green eyes narrowed, but he let it go. He turned back to Lois, who looked equally worried.
