“Fast Car” by Tracy Chapman came up next on the playlist.
Piper’s sister hummed a few bars. “Mood is also a factor. If I’m happy, I might shop for Weezer. If I’m homesick, I’ll look for Tom Petty . . .”
Fox’s lips twitched. “Do you listen to anything from your own generation?”
“Sometimes. Mostly no.”
“My Hannah is an old soul,” Piper called back.
Brendan’s friend nodded, regarding Hannah. “So you have songs for every mood.”
“I have hundreds of songs for every mood,” Hannah breathed, unzipping her backpack and yanking out her headphones and jam-packed iPod, pressing them to her chest. “What kind of mood are you in right now?”
“I don’t know. Uh . . .” Fox exhaled up at the ceiling, that smile still playing around the edges of his lips. “Glad.”
Glad, Hannah mouthed. “Why?”
Fox didn’t respond right away. “Because I don’t have to share a room with Brendan. Obviously.” He nodded at Hannah’s headphones. “What do you got for that?”
Looking superior, Hannah handed him the headset.
Fox put them on.
A moment later, he let out a crack of laughter.
Piper turned in the seat. “What song did you play him?”
“‘No Scrubs.’”
Even Brendan laughed at that, his rusted-motor laugh making Piper want to crawl up into his lap and nuzzle his beard. Probably best to wait until they weren’t driving for that.
Over the course of the two-hour trip, Fox and Hannah inched closer together in the backseat until they were eventually sharing the set of headphones, taking turns choosing songs to play each other and arguing over whose picks were better. And while Piper hadn’t liked the tension between Fox and her sister, she wasn’t sure she liked this any better. She’d gone on enough dates with players to spot one a mile away—and unless she was wildly mistaken, Fox had playboy royalty written all over him.
After a quick stop to pick up the chandelier and cover it with a tarp in the back of Brendan’s truck, they arrived at the hotel before lunchtime. Piper was given precious few minutes to enjoy the lobby waterfall and soothing piano music before they were headed for the elevators.
“I asked them to put us as close as possible, so we’re all on the sixteenth floor,” Brendan said, passing out room keys, so casually in charge, Piper had to bite down on her lip. “The expo starts at noon. You want to meet in the lobby then and walk over?”
“Sounds good,” said both sisters.
Although I want to jump you is what Piper was thinking.
They reached the sixteenth floor and headed in different directions—and Piper was grateful to have half an hour alone with her sister. “Hey, getting a little cozy with Fox there, eh?” she whispered, tapping the room key against the sensor, releasing the lock.
Hannah snorted. “What? No. We were just listening to music.”
“Yeah, except music is like sex for you—” Piper broke off on a gasp, running the rest of the way into the room. It was magnificent. Muted sunlight. A view of the water. A white fluffy comforter on the king-sized bed, complete with mirrored headboard and mood lighting. Elegant creams and golds and marble. A seating area with a plush ottoman and tasseled throw pillows. Vintage Vogue covers even served as the artwork. “Oh, Hannah.” Piper turned in a circle, arms outstretched. “I’m home.”
“The captain done good.”
“He done real good.” Piper trailed her fingertips along a cloudlike pillow. “But we’re still talking about Fox. What’s going on there?”
Hannah plopped onto the love seat, backpack in her lap. “It’s dumb.”
“What is dumb?”
Her sister grumbled. “That day we walked to the record shop, I might have thought he was cute. We were having a good conversation—deeper than I expected, actually. And then . . . his phone just starts pinging nonstop. Multiple girl names coming up on the screen. Tina. Josie. Mika. It made me feel kind of stupid for looking at him that way. Like there was even . . . potential.” She set aside her backpack with a shudder. “I think maybe the cleaning products we’d set on fire went to my head or something. But it was a momentary lapse. I’m all about Sergei. All about him. Even if he treats me like a kid sister.”
“So . . . no gooey feelings for Fox?”
“No, actually.” Hannah seemed pleased with herself. “I think I like him as a friend, though. He’s fun. Smart. It was natural for me to notice he’s good-looking. I mean, who wouldn’t? But it’s all aboard the platonic train. Toot, toot. Friends only.”
“You’re sure, Hanns?” Piper eyeballed her sister. “Pretty obvious he’s a lady’s man. I wouldn’t want you to get hurt or—”
“Pipes. I’m not interested.” Hannah appeared to be telling the truth. “Swear to God.”
“Okay.”
“In fact, I’m cool hanging out with him today. There’s no babysitting vibe.” She made a shooing motion with her hand. “You and Brendan can go do couple-y things.”