Chapter 31: Chapter 31

Carol sank down into one of the seats in the lobby of the luxury hotel where she and Sebastian were going to lodge, totally tired and worn out, while he sorted out bookings and stuff like that. She was surprised that he had not done it earlier, or had someone do it for him, but at this point, all she wanted to do was get into a shower and have a thorough bath, before climbing into bed and sleeping for hours on end. Who would have thought that the novelty of flying private would wear off so fast for her?

“Common, let’s go. You look very tired.” Sebastian told her, coming over to where she was sitting and almost nodding off. The statement didn’t sound like it was made out of concern. Instead, it sounded as though he was just stating a fact, which he no doubt was. Carol stood up and followed him wearily. His bodyguard, who had come on the trip with them, followed discreetly with their bags.

“I would have thought that you would have done all those things beforehand.”

“Done all what things?”

“The bookings and whatever it is that you were doing in the lobby.”

“You do know that I would have to get the key to the room even if I booked beforehand, don’t you? Or do you expect the hotel to send the keys to me in America because I’m a mini-god or something?” He asked in a condescending tone that grated on Carol’s frayed nerves. She ignored him until he paused at the door of what seemed to be one of the executive suites and produced a key which he used to open the door. He seemed to know his way around here quite well. In fact, from the way the people in the reception had greeted him, she would say that he was a very frequent customer.

After opening the door, he stepped aside for the bodyguard to drop their bags inside the suite. Carol stood looking at him expectantly until he saw her looking.

“Why are you staring at me like that?” He asked, turning away from her to enter the room after the bodyguard, Frank without waiting for an answer.

“I’m waiting for my room key. I just want to go and lay down.” Carol replied, still standing firmly by the door. Frank finished what he was doing, bade them goodbye, and went to God knows where. Carol did not care where he went. She was more focused on getting the key to her own room and going to have her much-needed rest.

“Your what?” Sebastian asked incredulously.

“Well, the key to my room.”

“Sorry to break it to you, sweetheart, but we’re sharing this room.” Sebastian sneered, looking very annoyed, but why he should be annoyed was what she did not understand.

“What? Why? I don’t want to share a room with you.”

“Why not?”

“Well, we would have to share a bed and… and…”

“Don’t worry. It’s a king-sized bed so there would be more than enough space for us not to get in each other’s way.” He said, but Carol had the feeling that he was mocking her. His next words confirmed it. “If it makes you feel better, you can use a ruler and pencil to divide the bed into two equal portions and if I invade your side, you can get have me arrested for trespassing.”

Carol glared at him, refusing to budge. “How will we bath…or dress. Besides, I prefer sleeping naked.”

“Good for you. Don’t let me stop you. You can sleep naked all you want. We have that in common.” He finished, winking at her and causing her face to flush red with embarrassment.

When he saw that she still refused to accept it, he sighed and said in a more serious tone. “Look, we’re practically married. It makes no sense to get different rooms when we are trying to make my uncle believe that we’re falling in love. You have my word that I will not touch you. Might I also add that it would not do for you to show that we’re not what we are pretending to be in front of the bodyguard or other people?”

“Why not? Am I supposed to pretend 24/7? I’m not sure I can manage that, especially when you keep treating me like I’m stupid. It makes it hard to pretend to like you, not to talk of pretending to love you.”

Sebastian continued what he was saying as though he did not hear her speak. “My uncle is a very wise man, and I would not put it past him to make his findings. Besides, he was the one who hired Frank to be my bodyguard for reasons best known to him, so I’m guessing Frank’s loyalty lies with him. It would not take him long to find out if we’re faking it or not.”

“Fine, whatever. But make sure you stay on your side…and you will stay outside while I’m undressing or whatever.”

“There’s no chance in hell of that happening. If you want to dress or undress, you can do that in the bathroom if you’re too shy to do it in front of me.”

Without saying anything else, Carol marched angrily into the room and began to sort through her clothes, leaving the door wide open. She would not win this round. she was sure of that fact. Since he was being so difficult, he could close the door by himself. Sebastian went to close the door with an amused smile on his face. She was such a funny little thing and when she stomped about like that in anger, it was all he could do not to burst out laughing.

Carol’s anger faded away as she surveyed the suite with interest though and she turned to smile widely at Sebastian who returned the smile warily. Why had her mood changed so suddenly? He sort of liked her personality. She was not the type to stay angry at people for long. It explained why her family kept taking advantage of her. Even with all the cold shoulder that he had purposely been giving her since their wedding, she still talked and acted normally with him.

“This place is freaking huge…and it is so nice!” She exclaimed, throwing herself flat on the bed and sighing in pleasure before she sprang up again and went to survey every inch of the suite. Sebastian shook his head, somehow enjoying her reaction. She looked like a kid in a candy store. It was always a marvel to him how she deeply appreciated all the little things that he took for granted.

“As it should be, considering how expensive it is.”

“Hmmm. Anyway, I’m going to take my bath now, after which I will sleep and then I'll explore the city. Gosh! I can’t wait! I’ve always wanted to visit Paris.” Carol informed him, rummaging in her bag for heaven knows what.