If his plane left California as scheduled, Gavin should arrive at JFK at five. She’d traveled enough to know departure and arrival times changed for a variety of reasons so until he knocked on the door there was no guarantee when he’d get there. Which meant she had a few hours to kill while she waited. She’d recently picked up a novel by her favorite author but hadn’t gotten around to starting it. Today seemed like a good time to dive into it.
Curled up on the sofa, she read the last sentence in the paragraph and flipped to the next page. A knock prevented her from reading any more. Since the salad she’d ordered from room service was in the refrigerator, the only other person she expected was Gavin. Sometimes when she read, she lost track of time, but she didn’t think she’d been sitting there that long. Setting aside the e-reader, Leah checked her watch. Unless he’d caught an earlier flight out of California, Gavin couldn’t be knocking.
She’d never seen or heard of any problems in the hotel, but since it was too soon for it to be Gavin, and she wasn’t expecting any other guests, she wasn’t going to just open the door either. “Who is it?” she asked.
“Tory,” a familiar voice called back.
Tory?
Leah pulled the door open and threw her arms around her second cousin and best friend. She’d seen Tory briefly at Gray’s wedding in June. Other than that they hadn’t spent any significant time with each other in months. But usually when Tory flew out this way, she called so they could get together.
“When did you get here? And how long are you staying?” Leah asked.
“I got in late last night. My friend’s bachelorette party is tonight.” She returned Leah’s hug. “Unfortunately, I have to leave tomorrow.”
If Tory had a party tonight and was leaving in the morning, it didn’t leave them much time for visiting. “How did you know I was here?” They hadn’t spoken in over two weeks, so Tory had no way of knowing she’d be here instead of Connecticut today.
Tory ran her fingers through her hair—hair Leah had always been jealous of. Instead of being brown or even blonde, Tory had the most gorgeous shade of red Leah had ever seen, a color she’d inherited from her mother.
“I didn’t. Since I’m staying in the hotel, I decided to come up and see if you were home.”
“Good timing. I spent the weekend at Curt’s and only got back a couple hours ago.”
Only two weeks apart in age, Leah and Tory had always been good friends despite living on opposite sides on the country. But it wasn’t until they’d roomed together at boarding school that their friendship had transcended into almost sisterly.
And like sisters, when they got together they often lost track of time. Today was no different. Tory was in the process of telling Leah about the new house she’d put in an offer on when someone knocked on the door.
Leah glanced down at her watch. Assuming his plane had landed on time and he hadn’t run into too much traffic, Gavin should be her newest visitor. “Hold that thought. I’ll be right back.”
When she opened the door, he didn’t give her a chance to even say hello before pulling her close and kissing her as if they’d been apart months rather than a few days. Once he finished kissing her until she could barely stand, he pulled his mouth away and rested his forehead against hers.
“I’ve missed you,” he said in a tone that made her feel cherished and loved.
“Missed you too.” Although her body wanted to stay right where it was, they couldn’t stand in the doorway all night, especially with Tory there. So while difficult, she stepped away and closed the door. “I’m glad you’re back.”
When he traveled he never missed anyone, except perhaps his daughter. But ever since he’d left Leah sleeping in bed on Friday, he’d thought about her and having her in his arms again. Intending to get her back there now, he pulled her against him again, his hands slipping down to her ass as he lowered his lips toward hers. Fortunately, before he made contact and carried out the fantasy playing in his head, he noticed the visitor watching them.
“Act like I’m not even here,” the unknown woman called, with a little wave and smile.
He didn’t want an audience for what he had in mind. Moving his hands back to safer ground, he waited for Leah to make introductions.
Stretching up on tiptoes, she put her mouth close to his ear. “I didn’t know she was coming by,” she whispered so quietly he almost missed it. Then she pulled out of his embrace and turned. “Gavin, this is Tory. I know I’ve mentioned her a time or two. She’s here for a friend’s bachelorette party.”
Yeah, the woman’s name had come up in more than one conversation. Even before their friendship really got going, he’d known Tory Sherbrooke had been the one to introduce Leah to Harry, although he didn’t know how Tory and Harry knew each other. He also knew Leah considered the woman her closest friend but didn’t see her as much as she’d like because she called the Pacific Coast home.
“Wish I could say she told me about you,” Tory commented.
Leaving the apartment was the last thing he wanted to do, but he didn’t want to intrude either. “Do you want me to come back later?” he asked.
Tory stood, grabbed an oversized purse from a table, one somehow even bigger than the ones his twin used, and walked toward the door. “No need. I’ve got to go.” She gave him a knowing smile before she hugged Leah, and he almost thanked her. Instead he moved away so they could have some privacy while they said their goodbyes.
“Call me this week.” Thanks to his fabulous hearing, he still understood every word she said even though she lowered her voice. “I want t
o know all about Mr. Hottie over there.”
He almost laughed but managed to conceal it with a cough at the last second, causing Leah to look his way.
“Will do,” she replied, giving her friend’s arm a slight tug. “Gavin, I’ll be right back. I’m going to walk Tory to the elevator.”