"Cress, wake up."
By now, Cress was already used to the way Thorne seemed to wake people up and therefore was not surprised by the rough shake of her shoulder that accompanied his wake-up call. She looked dazedly around, her eyes burning from lack of sleep. The bright sun shining into the bus didn't help.
"We're here, darling." Thorne peered down at her while slowly helping her get up and out of the bus.
Still disoriented, Cress squinted at her surroundings. They had finally arrived at the motel Jina had recommended: Oasis.
Aside from a few palm trees scattered around and a faded billboard depicting an actual oasis, the motel had little in common with its namesake. It was as shabby as Jina had predicted but it was everything Cress could have hoped for at this moment. The motel meant getting away from Jamal and it meant that she and Thorne could ask for help. Or, at least, a shower and a bed. They were safe and sound and definitely not kidnapped or murdered.
Thorne, meanwhile, was taking care of her luggage and exchanging a few last words with Jina, Nils and the others, shaking hands and thanking them for their help. Cress managed a small wave but hoped they would chalk her silence up to her sleepiness.
The bus drove away, leaving Cress and Thorne behind.
"That was a stroke of luck," said Thorne with a smile.
A stroke of luck, indeed. She knew it could have turned out very differently and Cress swore that she would never get herself into a situation like this again. But she was too tired to argue and just rubbed her eyes.
"Okay, here's the plan," Thorne said. "We'll book a room so you can shower, eat and drink something."
The reminder of food alone made her stomach rumble. "You know, if you hadn't so rudely rejected that brownie, I wouldn't have to eat something now."
"That ... brownie?" He looked at her incredulously. "Cress, you know those were pot brownies, right?"
"Pot brownies?" No way. No. It couldn't have been. They hadn't looked suspicious at all - they had halved walnuts as a decoration! Who would go the extra mile for pot brownies?! "Those weren't pot brownies."
A smirk formed around his mouth. "Seriously, why else do you think she mentioned that the brownies would relax you?"
"Because they're brownies. They're meant to be relaxing."
Thorne laughed. "Touché. But those were definitely pot brownies. Didn't you notice the smell in that bus?"
She had indeed noticed the sweet scent but hadn't recognized it as cannabis. More like scented candles. Which, admittedly, was ridiculous.
She owed Thorne an apology then. "I'm sorry, I didn't realize. Thanks for preventing me from eating it." She could have done with a less embarrassing story though.
"Ah, that's what I do. Saving upstanding damsels from the danger of getting stoned." He nudged her playfully. "So, let's book a room for you. I'll ask the owner if he can help, otherwise I'll call someone to pick us up. Worst case scenario, we book an additional room and spend the night here." Thorne scratched his neck, deep in thought before he nodded.
It sounded sensible. They picked up her luggage and walked towards the entrance.
Ten minutes later, Cress was enjoying a hot shower, happily scrubbing the sweat and dust away. She was singing and humming, not sure if the room next to her was booked, and therefore tried not to be too loud. Thorne, at least, wasn't there. The last time she saw him he had been talking to the onion-smelling owner, so Cress was only too happy to receive the keys to her room and leave. After all, he had told her that he would take of everything.
Cress stepped out of the shower, robed herself in one of the scruffy towels and shimmied to her suitcase. The business ensemble she had worn before was out of the question. Not only was it dirty but it smelled, now that she could identify the scent, like pot – a left-over residue from the bus. It was all sorts of uncomfortable anyway. Instead, Cress chose one of the simple dresses from her suitcase and sat on the mattress to brush her long hair. Suddenly, she heard a giggle from outside.
She wouldn't have thought anything of it if not for the warm, deep laughter that answered which she instantly recognized.
Thorne.
Cress quickly secured the towel more firmly, expecting Thorne to knock at her door at any second.
He didn't.
She could hear him laughing and talking and that female voice responding in kind. Cress inched closer to the door but the voices seemed to come from a few doors down and didn't carry over well.
Self-consciously, Cress tugged at her towel once more and slightly opened the door just an inch and peered out. She didn't have to search for long.
There was Thorne and in front of him ...
A bombshell.
There was no other way to describe her.
Her tight clothes accentuated all her curves and the warm tone of her skin glowed in the afternoon sun. But it was more than that. A few years older than Thorne, she carried herself with a self-confidence that spoke of the knowledge of just how desirable she had always been to men. An attitude that came with an experience that Cress couldn't even dream of.
As evidenced by the casual way she took hold of Thorne's hands, inviting him to get closer.
Which he did.
The whole scene became even more flirty, if that was possible, with the added body contact. Cress caught something about "magic hands" before she decided that she had seen and heard more than enough and closed the door.
Cress thought back to their talk about his womanizing ways: A few well-placed words to susceptible ears and you basically have your pick of the attending women.
Seemed like he could find "susceptible ears" even in the middle of nowhere.
Oh, he was taking care of everything alright.
Cheeks burning, Cress went back into her room, angrily brushing her hair, and got dressed. With nothing left to do, she still didn't dare walked out of her room until she was sure that Thorne and his pair of "susceptible ears" (along with some other impressive pairs) weren't close-by anymore.
Because Cress had no doubt that they would leave for that second room Thorne had previously suggested.
So much for getting help.
So much for the romantic wedding planner.
Cress had no idea how she could work with him. He was nothing but a fraud. And now she would have to spend time with a guy who picked up women from sketchy motels, leaving her by herself, which wasn't something she was used to. Kai wasn't like that at all.
But the thought of Kai just made her even angrier. How could he have chosen Thorne, not only to pick her up from the airport, but as his wedding planner? He surely knew everything about his friend. Granted, Thorne was good at his job, but did you really want some womanizer to take care of your most important day?
Was that why Kai had asked her? To rein in Thorne and keep him away from the female guests? Either Thorne was as good at his job as the bridal magazines had suggested, in which case there was no need for her, or his success was just as exaggerated and Kai needed her as a back-up.
Both options filled her with dread.
Not wanting to wait around any longer, Cress grabbed the purse from her travel bag, stuffed her wallet into it and strutted towards the door. She peered out but, no surprise, there was no sight of Thorne and Miss Magic Hands.
Still hungry, Cress opted to get something to eat, maybe two take her mind off things, as long as Thorne was "busy."
In the span of a few minutes, Cress learned two things: the motel didn't serve dinner and the vending machine was out of order.
Nothing, absolutely nothing was going according to plan. Not her flight, not her partner, not their trip to L.A. and not the food either.
Out of options, Cress stumbled into what she assumed was some kind of bar area. Although that sounded way too fancy for the dingy room with its pool table around which a few older men were lingering. The TV was airing some football game which two other guys sitting at the small counter were watching without sound. Instead, the radio was playing some oldies. No one turned around to acknowledge her. She spotted the onion-smelling owner behind the counter, the one that should have been helping them right now with their car as Nils had suggested (though Thorne had obviously never even talked to him about it). She went towards him when she saw the bowls with peanuts.
She hopped onto the last free bar stool with some difficulty, pulled one of the bowls towards her, and ate as many peanuts as she could stuff into her mouth. It wasn't much but the salty nuts eased the hunger a little.
"Would you like a drink with your peanuts?" came the gruff voice of the owner as he placed another beer in front of the guy next to her.
Of course, she should probably order something. Swallowing her mouthful of peanuts, Cress asked, "Do you have something without alcohol?"
"Sure." Señor Santiago, as he had introduced himself upon their arrival to the hotel, nodded. "But unfortunately my lemonade stand is already closed for the night."
The guys sitting beside her snickered as Cress turned red. She felt the eyes of the other men on her and shrank a bit under their scrutiny.
She knew she had to order something but what? She doubted they would serve her some fruity cocktails in a place like this.
She pointed to one of the bottles. "A beer?"
Señor Santiago harrumphed and went to open a bottle for her. "If you intend to eat more peanuts, you might want to order something else too, girl."
Apparently, a beer alone wouldn't cut it. There was no menu or anything, so she tried to remember some beverages she knew from watching movies.
"A whiskey sour." Wherever the "sour" part came from, she hoped it would make the whiskey into something resembling a Caipirinha or Mojito.
"A whiskey sour requires lime juice. I don't have juice. So, no whiskey sour, no Cuba Libre and no Cosmopolitan or whatever you fancy city girls like to drink. Just hard liquor."
Hard liquor was something Cress was completely unfamiliar with. Cress was more a cocktail kind of person, maybe a beer or wine sometimes, so she wasn't sure what kind of actual liquor to order. Especially on an almost empty stomach. Maybe, if she ordered a whiskey on the rocks, then she could wait until the ice cubes melted, thus distilling the drink. Or maybe she wouldn't have to drink it at all, as long as she paid for it? Yes, that sounded like a plan.
Before the silence stretched any further, Cress asked, "You have ice cubes?"
Señor Santiago nodded, still grumpy.
"Then a whiskey on the rocks." And since she was already at it, "And more peanuts." She lifted the now-empty bowl.
With a grunt, Señor Santiago went to get her drink and filled her bowl again. He also procured a bag of chips he offered her ... for a ridiculous amount of money which Cress grudgingly paid for.
Cress sipped on her beer, munched on peanuts and chips and tried to keep her mind away from Thorne and whatever (or whoever) he was doing at that moment. With a shake of her head, she focused on the football game instead (not that she knew who was playing for what but it gave her something to do), moving ever so slightly to the music from the radio.
When she tried a tentative sip from the whiskey, the alcohol instantly burned her throat and she resolved into a coughing fit. Señor Santiago grinned at her reaction as she tried to wash down the burning sensation with her beer and placed a glass with tap water in front of her.
But whatever possessed her at that moment, Cress couldn't say - maybe the haughty looks of Señor Santiago, maybe the desire to prove all these guys here wrong about this "fancy city girl" or maybe just her overall frustration about everything Thorne - but out of spite, Cress downed the whole glass. She still coughed when she slammed down the glass but she glared fiercely at Señor Santiago through a veil of tears.
"Another one."
Señor Santiago looked at her but shrugged and handed her another glass of whiskey.
For the remainder of the evening, Cress's mood increased immensely. She welcomed the lightheadedness and the buzz from the whiskey and the beer. The music became better and better and soon, she hummed and swayed along, forgetting completely about Thorne.
A/N: Thanks to everyone who is still reading and reviewing my story. I hope you're still enjoying it. And special thanks to lovelunarchron who always corrects my language so it's readable. :P