Page 45 of Through the Five-Hole

I watched as Emma shook her head and continued to unpack her things while muttering under her breath.

“If you have something to say, it would be better if you actually said it out loud.I mean, I don’t want to pry, but obviously you have a problem with me, baby girl.”

“No problem,” she said, grabbing her toiletry bag and heading for the bathroom.I flipped the TV on and began searching for the sports channel.She came walking out of the bathroom and went right over to the coffeemaker, quickly ripping open one pouch of coffee and shoving it into the small machine, then opening a bottle of water and dumping it in the back.Then she plugged it in and waited for it to brew.

I was focused on watching some highlights from the games the team had played last week when I caught movement out of the corner of my eye.I glanced over and saw Emma looking a little flustered as she looked around, went to run toward the bathroom, but stopped and started mumbling, “oh no,” more to herself than to me.

“Problem?”I questioned.

“Oh god, oh god, please stop,” she cried, now fiddling with the button on the coffeemaker.

As I watched her in a panic, I saw something start to drip off the tabletop and onto the floor and knew immediately the coffeemaker was leaking.I’d dealt with these stupid two-cup hotel room coffeemakers enough to know they never worked properly unless the stars aligned.I ran into the bathroom, grabbed two towels, and then ran back into the room, gently pushing her out of the way.

“Oh my God, I’ve never seen…here, let me…” she said, trying to step in front of me.

“I’ve got it,” I said, pulling the plug from the wall to stop the flow of coffee, and dropped the towels down on the tabletop, soaking up the coffee.

“Colton, please, I got it,” she insisted, trying to grab the towel to help me.

Look, please, you’ve done enough,” I barked, soaking up the coffee with the towels.“If you want to be helpful, get me another towel.”

With her head down, she went into the bathroom and returned with another white towel, holding it out for me to take, which I dropped onto the floor and stepped on it, soaking the coffee that had spilled onto the rug.

The moment I was finished, I took the soiled towel and placed it in the bathroom on the floor and then came out to find Emma sitting at the small table, her face in her hands.

“I’m so sorry,” she cried.

Ignoring her, I walked over to the phone, called room service, and asked for a carafe of coffee to be sent to the room, then I requested some more towels.When I hung up the phone and turned around, she sat there looking at me with tears in her eyes.

“That is why you order coffee from room service.Those stupid little two-cup machines never work,” I barked, a little more harshly than I’d intended.

“I said I was sorry.”

“Being sorry has nothing to do with it.Knowing better does.”

She mumbled under her breath again and looked up at me, fire in her eyes.“You’re the same!”she yelled, causing me to take a step back.

“What are you talking about?”I questioned, frowning as she continued to glare at me.

The silence in the room was almost deafening.Then her phone vibrated against the table, and it was that moment I realized who had been messaging her every single time I’d seen her on her phone this morning.It was the only reason I could think of for her eruption a few moments ago.

His harassing ways weren’t doing her any good, and I’d had enough of it.She knew she was worth far more than that.

I walked over and picked up her phone and brought it over to her.She looked up at me with a questioning look.

“Open the message and tell him to stop messaging you,” I said through clenched teeth.

“Who do you think you are?”she said, crossing her arms in front of her chest.“Telling me what to do.”

“Emma, it doesn’t take a genius to figure out this guy is ruining you.This is fucking Heidi Pendalton all over again!”I yelled.

Emma looked like she’d seen a ghost and the shock that lined her eyes almost scared me.

I paused, not knowing where that had fucking come from.I hadn’t thought of Heidi Pendalton in years, or the exact moment I’d met Emma, but as I looked at her, it all came flooding back.

“You remember that?”she gasped.

I said nothing.Instead, I made my way over to the door and pulled it open.