He couldn’t reconcile the girl from yesterday morning with the one who had been lying in bed next to him last night. She had fallen asleep almost immediately after they started watching the movie, and when he no longer heard her laughter mingling with his, he turned to look at her.

And he was instantly and completely disarmed by what he saw.

She was all innocence and vulnerability in that moment; her blonde hair fanned out on the pillow, her lips slightly parted, her fingers curled loosely around the comforter she had pulled into her chest.

Throughout the day before, she had given him little glimpses of the girl behind the tough exterior, but to see her so totally unshielded did something to him that he hadn’t been prepared for.

He couldn’t take his eyes off her.

That should have been the signal for him to pull back again, but for some inexplicable reason, he felt like he needed to stay with her, to protect her while she was in such a defenseless state. It was completely unnecessary and ridiculous, he knew that, but he managed to convince himself it was the right thing to do. So he stayed there in her room until the movie was over, until he no longer had any viable excuse to be there. And then he pulled her laptop onto his thighs, closing out the programs on her computer one by one. After he had powered down her laptop, he gently eased out of her bed, careful not to jostle her, and turned out the lights before making his way back to his own room.

He had left the adjoining doors ajar, and now he could hear her getting out of bed and turning on the shower.

He shouldn’t have done what he did last night. It was messing with his head. And he didn’t like the feeling he had right now, almost like he couldn’t wait for the day to begin so he could get back in that car with her.

Chase exhaled heavily as he dragged his hands down his face. Snap the fuck out of it, he thought, pushing himself off the bed and walking into the bathroom.

He showered quickly, got dressed, and packed his things, keeping himself busy. By the time he was ready to go, he could still hear her moving around in the bathroom. It was already eight-thirty, and he knew she wanted to be back on the road by nine.

Chase grabbed his key card and slipped it into his back pocket as he exited the room and took the elevator downstairs, making his way through the lobby and over to the conference area where they had set up a large buffet breakfast.

“Good morning, sir,” one of the hotel workers said as he approached the food, and he nodded his greeting before sliding a plate off the large stack in front of him. He piled it high with two bagels, two muffins, and a handful of French toast sticks. At the end of the line, he slid the overflowing plate onto the table and filled two travel cups with coffee, leaving one black and putting cream and sugar in the other. After securing the lids, he scooped them both up in one hand, balancing the plate in the other as he walked carefully toward the elevators.

Chase stopped in front of Andie’s door, taking a deep breath. The one sip of coffee he had managed cleared his head significantly. He was fine. This was fine.

He used his knee to knock, quickly righting the plate as it started to teeter. A moment later the door swung open, and she smiled as she looked down at his hands.

“Complimentary room service?” she asked, taking one of the cups from him.

“Complimentary? I should at least get a tip for lugging this shit up here by myself.” Before she could react, he added, “Sorry, I meant for lugging this poop up here.”

Andie pressed her lips together, suppressing a smile as she stepped aside to let him into the room.

“That one has cream and sugar in it,” he said, nodding toward the cup in her hand. “That’s how you take it, right?”

“Yeah,” she said, somewhat surprised. “How did you know that?”

“That’s how you drank it yesterday morning. In your apartment,” he clarified.

She raised her eyebrows. “Impressive,” she said, taking the plate from his hand and putting it down on the small table in the corner of the room.

“There’s other stuff down there if you don’t like any of that,” Chase said. “Eggs, bacon, home fries.”

“No, this is perfect, thank you,” she said, taking one of the French toast sticks off the plate and pulling a piece off with her fingers before popping it in her mouth. “I’m running a little late. I’ll be ready in like five minutes.”

“Take your time.”

She smiled softly, pulling another piece off the French toast. “Did you sleep okay?”

He nodded. “You?”

“Surprisingly. I don’t usually sleep well in strange places. Sorry I wasn’t much company last night.”

He waved her off.

“And thank you, by the way. For closing everything down.”

He nodded, running his hand through his hair and looking away from her. You’re fine, he reminded himself. This is fine. “Alright, I’m gonna go pack my things. I’ll meet you outside in like five minutes?”

“Okay,” she said, and he grabbed one of the bagels from the plate before walking into his room through the adjoining doors.

And since he had already packed his things before he went down to get them breakfast, he sat on his bed for the next five minutes, picking the bagel apart while trying to pull himself back together.

After checking out, they walked to her car and piled their bags back into her trunk. Chase slammed it closed and turned to get in the car, stopping in his tracks when he saw Andie getting into the passenger side.

“What are you doing?” he asked.

She stopped halfway into the car. “I’m tired of driving,” she said simply before she slid the rest of the way into the seat and closed the door.

He stood there for a moment before a slow smile curved his lips, and he walked around to the driver’s side.

This girl was going to make him crazy.

And somewhere between his room and the car, he decided he was going to let her. For the next six hours, he was going to enjoy her company without questioning or chastising himself. There was no harm in allowing himself to have fun with her. And so what if he recognized the fact that she was beautiful? Lots of girls were beautiful. Acknowledging that didn’t mean anything.

For the rest of the trip, he was going to stop overthinking everything. It was only six hours, after all. Not even a work day. Trivial and insignificant in the grand scheme of things.

Chase slid into the seat and closed the door behind him, turning to look at her. “You’re sure about this? You don’t need a Valium or anything before we get started?”

She kept her eyes forward but held up her hand, flipping him off, and he clucked his tongue as he started the car.

“First a curse word, and now an obscene hand gesture? I’m appalled.”

Andie sighed. “I know. You’re a terrible influence.”

He laughed to himself before backing them out of the parking space, and as they headed down Route 17 back toward I-95, Chase noticed a large billboard on the side of the road, advertising some local news channel. There was a woman in a business suit with her arms folded, her hair perfectly coifed and her makeup flawless, smiling haughtily down at the cars that passed.

“That annoys me,” he said as he gestured out the window, and Andie turned her head, looking in the direction he was pointing.

“What, billboard advertisements?”

“No,” he laughed. “Did you see that woman’s name? Daisy Richards.”

Andie looked at him. “I don’t get it.”

“Did that woman look like a Daisy to you? A Daisy should have pigtails and a teddy bear, not a career in broadcasting and a designer suit.”

“So, the name Daisy pisses you off?”