Rescue Breathing (7 page)

“
You are already saying that Travis isn't
any fun,” I laugh. “Something about revoking his man card was
discussed.”

“
I
did
say
that. Yes I did,” Marc replies with a chuckle.

“
All right, all right. Let's change the
subject from how 'lame' I am,” Travis chuckles, using air
quotes.

“
How boring was your flight, Owen?” Marc
asks as he swirls his two fingers' worth of scotch around in his
lowball glass.

“
Actually, it was pretty amazing,” I reply,
debating on whether to share my flight experience with
them.

“
Oh?” Marc says curiously. “I've never
heard anyone describe their flight as '
amazing'
before. What happened?” he asks flatly.

“
I had a sexy seatmate to pass the time
with.”

“
Why does this not surprise me?” Travis
exclaims a bit too loudly. “You always have the best dumb
luck.”

I smirk and proceed to tell them about my
ogling Olivia at the airport bar and then the irony of our being
seated next to each other on our flight to Seattle. I told them
about my incessant flirting and how I followed her into the
lavatory for a quick and dirty make-out session. Marc and Travis
listen intently and occasionally exchange knowing glances while I
share my story.

“
You fucked her, didn't you? You joined the
motherfucking mile high club! You bastard!” Travis
shouts.

“
No. I did not. There's always the flight
home though...” I answer, lifting my eyebrow.

Travis gives me a fist bump, but Marc rolls
his eyes.

“
You like her,” Marc states.

“
I don
't know her well enough to say I like her, but I do know
that I would like to see her again,” I retort.

“
Who
are
you
right now?” Travis asks. “You never want to get to know the women
you 'spend time with.'”

Okay.
I'll admit that I'm a bit of a player and obviously I tell
my friends way too much about my escapades, but Olivia is
different. A good, albeit uncertain different.

“
Maybe I'm ready for something different,”
I reply, finishing my beer.

“
A tiger doesn't change his stripes that
quickly, my friend,” Travis chides and downs the remainder of his
beer.

“
It might if it's for the right
woman.”

“
Fuck!” Marc yells, throwing his head back
and looking towards the ceiling. “Do
not
tell me that you're looking to get your man card revoked
too.”

“
A guy can to talk to a beautiful, smart,
sexy woman, can'
t
he?
” I ask with a sly
smile.

An hour passes quickly as we catch up with
each other. We covered all the important things: sports, sex,
dates, jobs, and family. We talked about how Travis proposed to his
fiancée, Lucy, and gave him a hard time about him not talking to
Marc or me ahead of time so we could have talked him out of it, but
I guess we can't all be Peter Pan forever.

“
Okay, I have a serious question for you
two,” Travis says, wrapping an arm around my neck.

Marc rolls his eyes. “Oh boy…”

“
Shut up…I
'm serious,” Travis continues in his slightly
inebriated state. “Now that Owen is here, I wanted to ask you two a
serious question.”

“
You said that already. Out with it,” Marc
grunts, starting to get annoyed. I just laugh. I really missed
these guys.

“
Okay. Okay. I love you,” Travis declares,
patting my face. “And I love you sometimes.” He points to Marc.
“And I want you both to be my best men. You both are the most
important men in my life and I want you and you”—he gestures to
each of us—“to be at my side when I marry my Lucy. Will you do that
for me? Huh? Will ya?”

“
I'd cry if I had a heart, because that was
beautiful,” I say sarcastically, “but I would be honored to be in
your wedding, Travis.”

Marc dabs the corner of his eye with a
napkin, soaking up his fake tears. “That was special. Of course
I'll be there.” Marc wads up the napkin before tossing it at Travis
and we all roar with laughter.

“
Serious though, thanks, guys. It means a
lot to me.”

Because guys are typically shitty at
expressing their emotions, we sit around the table and stare at
each other. Thankfully the waitress comes around for last call,
breaking the awkward silence.
We request another round of drinks and order is restored as
we fall into our familiar banter.

I yawn and stretch my arms out to my side,
my muscles pulling tight. “All right, guys. I'm going to be the
buzzkill and end this. I've had a very long day and my bed is
calling my name. What's the plan for tomorrow?” I ask as I take out
my wallet to pay for drinks.

“
Brunch with Lucy and her bridesmaids at
Coastal Kitchen on Capitol Hill. Kind of a get-to-know-you thing
before you all are meeting for the first time at the wedding
thingy,” Travis explains.

I groan and give him a look that
screams
Really?
as I pay
the bar tab.

Travis sees the look on my face and throws
his hands up in defense.
“
I
don
't know. Lucy thought
it would be a good idea.”

“
Is Lauren going to be there?” Marc asks
Travis with a tight smile as we all get up from the table to
leave.

“
Yes,” Travis answers cautiously.
“Why?”

“
Shit,”
Marc mumbles, pressing his palm to his forehead.

“
What did you do, Marc?” I ask with a
smirk.

“
I was a dick to her. Well, first I gave
her good dick and then I was a dick. I fucked her and never
returned her calls or texts.”

“
What?!” Travis bellows and swings around
to glare at Marc. “When the fuck did this happen? You never said
anything to me about it!"

“
At your engagement
party.
”

“
At my engagement party? The one AT MY
HOUSE?” Travis roars as we push open the doors to leave
Pete's.

“
Same one,” Marc confirms.

I can
't help but laugh. Have I mentioned how much I've missed
these guys?

“
Well, fuck me,
” Travis exclaims, flabbergasted.

“
That's what she said,” Marc laughs. “And
then I did. In your bathroom.”

I reach around Travis to give Marc a fist
bump, unable to contain my laughter.

All Travis can do is shake his head while
he laughs along with us. “So, tomorrow may be a little awkward. Is
that what you're saying?”

“
Probably.”

“
Was she any good? Think maybe I should …”
I tease and wiggle my eyebrows.

“
Meh.” Marc shrugs his shoulders.  “A
little too tame for my liking.”

“
None of this is spoken of tomorrow. Got
it?” Travis demands with as much seriousness as a drunk man can
muster. “Lucy would flip tables if she knew you fucked one of her
best friends.”

“
Got it,” Marc and I confirm in unison as
we all climb into Marc's SUV.

On the short drive to my hotel, Marc fills
us in on how Lauren ended up on his dick.
It's a good story. You should ask him about it
sometime.

“
Thanks for the ride, Marc. You got him?” I
ask, pointing to Travis.

“
Yep,” he says, grabbing Travis's shoulder.
“I'll drop his drunk ass off at his place and then be back tomorrow
at 10:30 a.m. to pick you up for brunch.”

I wave goodbye to my friends and find my
way to my hotel room. After kicking off my shoes, I flop face-first
into my turned-down bed, beyond exhausted from the events of the
day.

CHAPTER SIX

Olivia

Despite my somber mood after leaving Owen,
Charley and I laugh for the majority of the ride to the
hotel.
I've told her all
about my time with Owen and she is giddy with
possibilities.

"I
told
you something good would happen if you came out
here!
See!"

She clearly thinks that she has had some
karmic impact on my meeting up with Owen, and it's so endearing, I
can't tell her otherwise.

"I don't know, Charley. Seriously, it was
nice to flirt for a few hours, but it's not going to be anything.
I'll bet you twenty bucks I never hear from him. He's obviously a
player since he had the guts to come after me in the bathroom.
Plus, he made it clear he doesn't want anything serious. I don't
want that, you know? I'm not looking to be someone's distraction."
I stare down at my hands in my lap.

Charley reaches her hand out, taking mine,
and I look up at her. "Liv, honey, you have to have a little fun.
You have to let someone remind you why you are worthy of someone's
love, respect, and interest. I know you, and I know what goes
through your head. Don't discount this guy just because he showed
some interest in you. You are worthy of that too, you
know."

I smile over at her, tears threatening my
eyes. She knows me so well. "Thank you...for that," I sniffle.
That's all that needs to be said.

"Good," she declares in a tone that
indicates that this part of the discussion is
over
. "So
let
's talk about the
amazing sex you're going to have with this guy when you see him
again this weekend." We giggle like school girls while we fantasize
about Owen and his sexpertise the rest of the drive to the
hotel.

As we pull up to the hotel, I climb out
and grab my suitcase from the back seat. "Thanks again, Charley,
for the ride. I really appreciate it."

"Never a problem, chicky. Call me later,
okay? We'll make plans for dinner?"

"Absolutely. I wouldn't miss it," I say. I
lean back into the car and give her a quick hug before standing
back up to make my way into the lobby of the hotel.

The hotel itself is amazing. It's
beautiful. Ornately furnished and bustling with activity. It
screams of money and good taste, and I love that I feel like I'm on
vacation. This feels special, and it is. It's a big deal for me to
be here, on my own, supporting my own work, and I am downright
thrilled about it.

My talk just happens to be in a boardroom
here in the hotel, which will make it easy for me to focus on
preparing my presentation prior to giving it tomorrow evening. Just
knowing that I have that much time to prepare calms me down. I look
at the time and see that I have enough to take a quick shower,
change into something more comfortable, and head down to the bar
for a glass of wine and something to eat before calling it a night.
Even though the time difference is in my favor, I am
exhausted.

As I make my way to the elevator, I notice
a couple kissing passionately in the lobby. His hand is running
over her ass. Her hand is in his hair. They have that slightly
disheveled look of a couple who just had sex and are basking in the
afterglow. He nuzzles her ear, and for some reason, I immediately
go damp. I have a momentary flashback of Owen in the airplane
bathroom. Of his lips sliding down my neck, nibbling my ear, his
hand slithering up my thigh. I press my legs together as I turn
back toward the elevator. I regret not having just asked him to
come to my hotel.

What is wrong with me? I know nothing
about him at all. The fact that some of my walls are coming down
and that I'm entertaining some very risky behavior makes me
nervous. My legs go weak as I contemplate what it would be like to
have a physical relationship with Owen. The elevator doors slide
open and I stand inside. I turn just as the doors start to shut and
I could swear, through the rapidly narrowing opening in the
elevator doors, I see Owen walk by. Jesus. Now I'm seeing him in
places he's not.
Freak.

I walk into my room and drop my carry-on
to the floor. The room is beautiful. It is dominated by an enormous
king-sized bed, and it has a luxurious bathroom with a Jacuzzi tub.
I walk over to the bed and start to take my clothes off. All I want
right now is a hot shower, something to eat, and a good glass of
wine. But first, I need to call my brother, Simon, and let him know
I got here safely.

I grab my cell phone from my purse and
notice that I have a missed call from him.
Without listening to his message, I dial
his number and receive his voicemail immediately.

“
Hey, big brother. Just wanted to let you
know I'm here and getting settled. Just in case you've forgotten,
I'm at The Fairmont Olympic in room 1121. Call if you need
anything. Otherwise I'll let you know when I'm back in the city.” I
disconnect the call and kick off the last of my clothes before
walking into the bathroom.

I turn the shower on to scalding hot. As I
step under the water, I can literally feel my muscles relax. The
shower is decadent. It has multiple jets coming from different
angles in the walls and ceiling and a detachable wand that provides
spray of varying strengths and pulses. I pick up the wand and play
with settings. I find one that is strong with a rapid pulse and
start to slowly run it over my shoulders, my back, my arms, my
legs, my thighs…