Second Chance Cowboy

Chapter 16

Lanie awoke with a start when the door opened around 10.  The poor woman from housekeeping was mortified.  Not as much as Lanie though.  She was sprawled across the top of the bed, naked as the day she was born.  Her clothes littered the floor in a trail from the door.  The covers were a mess, and mostly on the floor.  She lifted her head to move and remembered everything in a rush.  Her head hurt. 

Housekeeping closed the door again and she heard a scraping noise.  She turned her head toward the door.  It took her foggy mind a few minutes to process what had just happened.   Then it all clicked and Lanie slowly rolled from the bed and shuffled to the bathroom.  Last night she had called the front desk to extend her stay a few more days, but she had forgotten to put out the do not disturb sign.  That much she managed to catch from the housekeeper who had put it out for her.

Red headed Sluts...Bitches.  Nasty headache.  And her mouth was all dry and nasty.   She refused to look in the mirror, stepping immediately into the shower.  Without testing the water first, she threw the knobs to full blast and squeaked at the suddenness of the cold water.  She sighed as it grew hot and then reached down to adjust the knobs slightly.  She wanted a hot shower, not a second degree burn. 

She stayed under the spray much longer than necessary, enjoying the warmth and the gentle massage from the pulsing water.  Reluctantly, she finally stepped out, towelled off quickly and again did not look in the mirror as she left the bathroom.   She crossed over to her suitcase, looked at the items she had hung and then at the clock she always travelled with.  Screw it.  She would go shopping for something to wear tonight.  

Suddenly rejuvenated, she tucked her hair behind her ears, dressed in last night's clothes and grabbed her purse as she went out the door.   At the curb, she hailed a cab and asked to be taken to a department store.  She was delivered to a mall.  After a few hours, she treated herself to a fresh blueberry-crumb muffin from Paradise Bakery and an Orange Julius.  It wasn't a healthy lunch, but it had sounded good as she had walked through the eatery.

By the time Peirce called her that evening, she had worked up some serious anticipation.  It had been a long time since she had really looked forward to anything.  Unbidden, the memory of the day Pete had removed the bandages from her eyes brought a wistfulness to her.  She shook it off, telling herself that she needed to move on.  She had almost forgotten to ask Pierce if she should dress formal or not.   He said casual was fine and they agreed on the time.

Lanie had little else to do, so she was dressed and ready well before the allotted time.  She went down to the lobby and perused the shops and bought a magazine and was passing the front desk when she heard the desk clerk say her name.  She stopped, realized the clerk was on the phone and quickly grabbed her ID and held it up to the clerk.    The clerk looked at her strangely, looked at the ID and then smiled, informing the person on the phone that Ms. Jacobson had just stepped into the lobby.

Lanie took the phone with a sense of dread.  She determined she would go out somewhere even if Pierce broke their date.  

"Lanie?" 

"Annette?  How did you know I was still here?"

"Zack.  Pierce and Zack are working together on a project.  Anyway, listen, everyone else has gone home.  It's just the four of us now, and I was wondering if you wanted to get some dinner.  I know a nice little bistro..."

"Thanks, Annette.  But I already have dinner plans."

"I know.  Zack told me.  But it was worth a try.   Come on, Girl.  I've worked with  you on other projects before and you've NEVER met up with us, and you've certainly never extended your stay and set up a second date.  SPILL!"