Page 21 of Can’t Let You Go (Ivy Ridge #3)

FALLON

“ Y ou’re sure it’s okay?” I ask my mom for probably the thousandth time.

“Go,” she simply replies. “Presley and I are fine. I am happy to help, and you know I love that I get to spend time with her.”

I give my mom a look, searching her face for any hint of insincerity.

I don’t find any. I rush into her arms, giving her a tight hug.

“Thank you. I will never be able to thank you enough for all your help.” The familiar guilt is still there, but I’m grateful for the opportunity to spend the weekend away.

In all reality, I don’t think I’ve ever had an actual full weekend away from her.

Brad never wanted to be alone with her a whole weekend, so most of the time, I would end up going home a day early, or get a panicked call from him and have to leave altogether.

“Of course,” my mom murmurs into my hair, squeezing me tight. We pull apart, and I head down the hall to find Presley. She’s playing with some of her dolls on the floor of the room my mom has set up for her. .

“Alright, sweetie.” She peeks up at me. “I’ll be back on Sunday afternoon, okay? We’ll have lunch with Grandma, and then we’ll head home and watch some movies.”

“Okay, Mom,” Presley says with a soft smile. It hurts a little knowing she is so unbothered by my leaving, but I don’t show it.

“Give me a hug,” I tell her, opening my arms. She crawls into my lap, and I give her a tight squeeze. “I love you so much.”

“I love you too, Mommy.”

“Have so much fun this weekend, okay?”

“We will. Grandma said we could make cupcakes and decorate them however I want.”

“Woah. That will be so much fun,” I say. “Save one for me, okay?”

“Okay.”

I give her one final squeeze and then I stand, heading out her bedroom door, and thanking my mom again.

I climb into my car and check my phone one last time before I set up the GPS.

It’s a small number of us coming, so we’re all in a group message.

A few of us were planning to carpool, but I said I’d drive separately so I would have a bit more time with Pres.

I read the few messages I’ve missed from Isaac, and Cassidy, the assistant general manager and immediately start to panic.

Isaac

Bad news. I have some sort of stomach flu or something, so I’m not going to make it this weekend. I’ve canceled my room, but you all still have separate rooms on the company card.

Cassidy

I think I’m coming down with it too, and so is Laila.

Isaac

Crap.

So that leaves Fallon and Jason. Are you guys okay?

Me

I’m fine, but if we need to cancel everything, I would understand.

Jason

Fine here, but also would understand.

Isaac

No, you two go. Would it be too much to ask if you take peoples’ info and call me with anything that seems awesome?

Jason

Not at all, happy to help.

Me

Agreed.

My heart flutters in my chest. If it’s only Jason and me all weekend, that means there won’t be a buffer between us.

Things are still so awkward, even more so now after Lennie was sick.

I’ve been trying so hard to be extra friendly, to get him to show me that side of him I used to know so well, but he’s a tough shell to crack.

Another message comes in as I still sit in my mom’s driveway.

Isaac

You two are the best. I’ve got your rooms taken care of, let me know if you need anything. I’ll send over the PDF of the schedule and event maps.

Jason

Perfect.

I shift my car into gear and start the drive to the hotel. I have no idea what this weekend will look like, but I do know that I’ll apparently be spending a lot of time with Jason.

I’ve just parked my car in the hotel parking ramp when my phone starts ringing. I take a deep breath when I see that it’s Jason. I slide my finger across the screen, and answer the call.

“Are you here yet?” he says, voice low and irritated.

“Well hello to you too, Mr. Grumpy,” I reply.

He sighs, changing his tone. “Hi, Fallon. Are you at the hotel yet?”

“Yeah. I’m parked in the parking ramp. Are you here?”

“I’m in the lobby. Meet me here, okay?”

“Sure,” I reply, and then he hangs up without another word, ending the call.

I scoff, and turn off my car. I grab my weekend bag and small rolling suitcase from the backseat, and head to the elevator that will take me down to the lobby.

When I reach the automatic doors, I immediately spot Jason sitting on one of the plush leather couches.

He looks stressed. He’s leaning forward, elbows on his knees, and running a hand up and down his face.

I reach him and sit down beside him, sinking into the deep couch. “Hey, what’s going on?” I ask.

“They fucked up the reservation,” he replies. “When Isaac called to cancel a few of the rooms, they misunderstood and canceled all the rooms.”

“Oh no,” I breathe. “Now what?”

“They were able to find a room, and it’s an upgraded suite, but it’s only a king size bed, with a pull out couch.”

“Well that’s not the end of the world,” I say, trying to make light of the situation.

Do I really want to share a room with him?

Is it bad that I’m not upset about the prospect?

Probably. But I can’t get this man out of my head.

Much like I couldn’t all those years ago. “I’ll sleep on the pull out.”

Jason glares at me. “No way. Those things are so uncomfortable. We shouldn’t have to share a room. I tried everything, but they’re clean out. Apparently they had a waitlist with how booked the hotel was for the event, and the rooms Isaac canceled got booked up immediately.”

I’m a little insulted at the vehemence he has toward not sharing a room with me. Am I that repulsive? I suppose Brad thought so, so why wouldn’t Jason?

I think back to all our earlier interactions since reconnecting, and shrink a little further into the shell Brad shoved me in.

I let my irritation with him show in my words.

“So what then? We don’t really have many options, and I’m thinking with the popularity of the conference, the hotels in the nearby area are going to be booked up too. ”

“They are, I checked.”

“Got it,” I say, a little more snippy than intended.

I take a deep breath. “Is it really that bad to share a room with me?” I mean, clearly there’s something wrong with me if both he and Brad are repulsed by me, but am I really so bad he can’t survive a few days in a hotel room with me?

The other night, he was telling me how badly he wanted to kiss me back in college.

But that was then. This is now.

“Fuck,” Jason curses, reaching out and resting his hand over mine.

The heat of his touch sends a jolt through my body, reminding me yet again of that freaking Christmas party with his closeness.

“That wasn’t what I meant. I just… I don’t want to make you uncomfortable.

It’s one thing to be expecting a room to yourself, and another to share a room with a guy you don’t know very well. ”

I… I don’t really know what to say to that.

I want to believe him, I do, but I don’t think I would be uncomfortable sharing a room with him.

I can sleep on the couch, and make myself scarce.

It will be fine. I try to play it cool. “Honestly, are we really going to be in the room all that much, besides sleeping?”

Jason nods, his posture relaxing. “I suppose that’s true. It doesn’t make the fact that there’s only one bed better, though.”

“I can take the couch.” Jason gives me a side-eyed glare. “Oh, don’t give me that look,” I scold, giving him my best “mom” look. I shake off the earlier irritation I had, and focus on the now instead.

“I’m taking the couch,” he rebutes, and I glare at him in return.

We will see about that. The man is tall.

He’ll barely fit on the couch, and I guarantee the couch itself will be better than the pullout.

Ignoring him, I stand and grab my bag from the floor.

“Come on, let's get settled in the room, and then get to the first event.”

Jason stands and leads us toward the elevator.

He punches the button for the tenth floor, and when the doors open on the floor, I follow him.

I have no idea which room is ours, but he stops outside of ten-thirteen, and swipes the card in front of the reader, pushing the door open when it flashes green and unlocks.

He holds the door open for me, his own bag slung over his shoulder.

When I step into the room, a burst of cold air hits me, sending a shiver down my spine.

It’s a beautiful hotel room, much nicer than the standard room I usually would stay in.

To my immediate right is the large bathroom.

The light automatically flashes on with my movement, revealing a walk in shower with glass doors and a rainfall shower head.

There’s also a giant soaking tub, and a standard toilet.

I glance around the rest of the room. The walls are painted a warm gray color, and the large king size bed is in the middle of the room, made with crisp white sheets and a perfectly tucked comforter.

On the opposite wall is the couch, which, compared to the rest of the room, looks a little sad. It’s gray with small throw pillows and crooked cushions. Jason glances at it and does what he can to hide his reaction, but I see it. His face falls, a small grimace flashing on his face.

“Jason, really, I’ll take the couch.” I try to argue with him yet again.

“Nope,” he says, flopping down onto the cushion, ignoring the squeal of the springs. He sets his bag next to him, and gingerly leans against the back of the couch.

I sigh, and set my bag at the foot of the large bed.

I sit down on the edge of the bed, my body sinking into it.

Yeah, this bed is nice. Guilt starts to eat at me, but Jason sees it, and points his finger at me.

“Don’t even think about it.” I start to speak, but he cuts me off. “Knock it off, Fallon.”