The taller of the two women came around the desk. “Of course we have a room. Three in fact. Four are taken, but the three left over are really nice.” She took Luca’s hand in both of hers, holding it more than shaking it in greeting. “Aren’t you a sight to behold? Look, Fran, he’s the spitt’n image of Jimmy’s boy, Mikey.”
Fran rolled her eyes. “For god’s sake, Betty, put your glasses on and quit insulting the guests.” She rummaged around on the desk.
Betty patted down the front of her dress. “Have you seen—”
Fran laid a pair of glasses next to the guestbook. Betty put them on. “Oh, dear you’re right.”
“Is that good or bad?” Luca said.
Fran put a pair of keys on top of the same book. “Good. Trust me. Mikey is dumb as a rock.”
“He can’t help that, and you know it.” Betty tsked her friend and returned to the other side of the desk.
“His kind of stupid has nothing to do with getting kicked in the face by a horse. His kind of stupid is why the horse kicked him in the first place.”
Betty batted her eyelashes at them. “Would you two like a queen bed or a king.”
“Take the king,” Fran said. “The mattress is new, and nothing squeaks.” She grazed a look over Nox from head to toe then winked at Luca.
Luca was pretty sure his face was about to catch fire. He collected the keys. Nox wrote their names into the guestbook. “Do we need to fill out anything else?”
“No, sir.” Fran turned the book around and skimmed what Nox wrote. “It’s seventy-five a night. Breakfast is at eight sharp. We meet in the dining room right around the corner. No smoking and don’t let the cats in, they shed on the blankets.” She smiled. “Do you need anything before you turn in? I think we’ve got some leftovers from dinner.”
“I’m good.” Luca glanced at Nox.
“I’ve got a few snacks in our bag.”
“Alrighty, but if you get hungry, you’re welcome to get a cold plate out of the white fridge, not the stainless one, the white one. Make sure to eat it at the table and not your room.”
“Yes, Ma’am.” Nox gave her a nod.
There were two staircases. Betty pointed to the one on the right. “Second landing, then take a right, last door on the left.”
Luca took the steps two at a time. Photos of cats lined the hall all the way to their room. He unlocked the door and flicked on the light.
A beautiful antique four-poster bed dominated the space. Mismatched furniture, just as old, offered a sitting place by the window, a chifferobe on the opposite side, a bookcase with reading material. The large window promised pure sunshine in the morning. Luca went in. Nox dropped their bag by the bed.
Polished wood floors gleamed under Luca’s tennis shoes. “This is really nice.”
“We have a voyeur.” Nox gestured at the window. A pair of golden eyes hovered in the shadows of the face of a dark brown cat sitting on the outside edge. A second one joined it on the ledge. Both watched Nox.
“More like your fan club.” Luca tugged the curtain closed. “Not sure what to think about all the cats, though.”
Nox sat on the bed. The fluffy comforter puffed around his thighs. “I think this is hand stitched.”
Everything else looked handmade, so it wouldn’t have surprised Luca.
Another door in the back of the room led to a spacious bathroom with a claw-foot tub, a separate shower, sink, and toilet. Green wallpaper with tiny pink roses covered the upper part of the wall. The bottom half matched the pale gray highlights in the flower petals.
“Bathroom is really nice.”
Nox rested his elbows on his knees.
“You okay?”
He raised his chin. “Yeah, yeah, just….” Nox rubbed his arms.
“You sure?”