Chapter 15 Hotel Room
"You're staying with Dante," my father says. He then turns to Dante, "The room has two beds, so you don't have to worry about sleeping on the couch."
"Thank you, boss," Dante says.
I'm staying with Dante? Is this real or am I dreaming? Did I really just hear my father said that Dante and I will stay in the same bedroom? Oh shit. My father is definitely suspicious of us. After what he saw when Dante and I spent our time together, it's no wonder if he's sceptical of our closeness. This is definitely a test. He's testing Dante and me. He wants to catch us off guard being too close than his liking. After he caught us, he might punish Dante. Or worse, kill him.
No. We can't fall for my father's trap. I'm not letting him take Dante away from me. Hell fucking no.
"Go to your room now and don't leave the hotel. For lunch, order room service. I need to leave again and prepare something first for tonight. Don't forget to be ready by 7 tonight," my father says.
"Okay," I say. My father and I go our separate ways. Dante grabs my suitcase and carries it while he lets his own suitcase rolls by his side. Once we're in the elevator, I push the button to the third floor. I glance at Dante and find him staring straight ahead at the elevator's door. Before long, the elevator's door open and I quickly leave the metal cubicle.
Exhaustion finally takes over my body. Once I step into the hotel room, I take off my shoes and drop myself onto the bed near the window. Finally. After a four-hour drive I finally get to lie down. It's not a very long drive, but I can't deny it's still quite tiring. Sitting for hours in a small space hurts my back.
"Do you want to order lunch now?" Dante asks after he closes the door. I don't bother to look at him and stay on the bed on my stomach. I'm not really hungry now, but I'm sure it will change in about thirty minutes. For now, I'd rather take a nap first before eating anything. Eating while feeling sleepy is not really enjoyable.
"Later. I'm going to take a nap now. Wake me up in 30. I'll order my lunch then. You can order yours now if you wanted to," I say.
"Why not now? It'll take the staff around 30 minutes to prepare our food. If you order now, you can eat your lunch right away right after you wake up," Dante says. He has a point. If I order now, then I don't have to wait too long for my lunch to arrive.
"You know what? You're right. Can you please order the room service for the two of us? I'm too sleepy to do it. I'll just have some spaghetti bolognese," I say.
"The drink?" Dante asks.
"Sparkling water," I say.
"Alright. Now go get your nap. I'll wake you up in thirty minutes or once the food has arrived," Dante says.
"Okay. Thanks."
I let my heavy eyelids finally drop and let my consciousness drifts away.
\-
"Wake up... The food's here."
Already? Ugh. I still feel sleepy, but if I wait any longer, the food's going to be cold. I'd rather eat a warm meal while still feeling sleepy rather than eating a cold one when I'm fully awake. Most meal is better served warm or hot anyway.
I roll onto my side and notice the small table by the window is already set to be a dining table. A yawn escapes past my lips as I push myself up to sit. Alright. It's time to eat my lunch.
Dante already sits on one of the chairs, eating his pizza in silence. His gaze is locked at the busy traffic outside. I take a seat across him and begin to eat my spaghetti. Silence accompany the two of us as we eat our lunch. As I chew down on a forkfull of spaghetti, the thought of my father hits me.
Right. Dante and I staying in the same room could be a test set up by my father. If we don't act carefully, we'll face the consequences later. I should let Dante know about my suspicion, but not out loud. My father might've put some hidden cameras in this room to spy on Dante and me.
Once I have my phone in my grasp, I quickly type some words onto the notes app.
I think my father is suspicious about us and our relationship.
I stare at my phone screen. Hesitation clouds over me as I think my thoughts over. I bet Dante's going to think I'm crazy if I tell him about this, but I can't keep this assumption to myself any longer.
I hold out my phone across the table towards Dante. He takes his eyes off the streets and furrows his eyebrows at the sight of my phone. I wave my phone, urging him to take it. Despite the confusion, Dante wipes his hands off of any pizza crumbs left on his hands and takes my phone. A smirk appears on his face after he finishes reading my text.
See? He definitely thinks I'm crazy.
Dante gives my phone back and I immediately read his response.
Why are you worried? We're not in a relationship with each other.
My heart skips a beat after reading his response. Well, he's not wrong but ouch. That response is such a wake up call for me. I am not in a relationship with Dante. The thought of it kinda hurts, but it's impossible for us to be together anyway. Even if I wanted to, my father won't ever let me be with him. He's just my bodyguard, for fuck's sake. Why am I even thinking about this as if Dante feels the same way as I do? I should stop with my delusions.
I know we're not, but if we act slightly sus with each other, my father might take it the wrong way.
Dante cocks his eyebrows at my reply. He shakes his head and then types his response. He hands my phone back to me, and I scowl at his response.
You're the one who's acting sus. You, worrying about his suspicion, would only make you look even more suspicious. Just calm down. Worrying only makes you look guilty.
Dante's right, but of course I'm not going to admit that I'm fucking anxious right now. And to be honest, it's not me that I'm worried about. It's him. The worse my father could do to me is punishing by making me torture our traitors again or lock me up in my bedroom or the basement, but Dante, my father could easily kill him.
I am calm. I'm worried about you. The worst my father would give for my punishment is to make me torture someone, but you, he will fucking kill you.
Dante's smirk only grows wider after reading my reply. He types a short response and gives the phone back to me.
Awww you're worried about me?
My gaze is blank as I stare back at Dante. He only smirks at me, and I can't help but to roll my eyes at his cockiness.
Is it wrong to be worried about another human being?
After reading my text, Dante's expression turns serious.
He won't kill me. Stop worrying. Now eat your damn food.
"Fine," I say out loud as I drop my phone onto the table. I guess I'm just being too anxious for now reason. Besides, my father spying on us is just a baseless assumption I made. I should not worry about something that's not even corfirmed to be true.
"Good girl," Dante says. I shoot him a glare, and he only smirks as he continues eating his lunch. I swear if he keeps acting like he has a death wish, death might actually come and bite him in the ass. He really needs to humble himself a bit. If he keeps acting like this, my father might start to reconsider having him as my bodyguard and I don't want that to happen. Without Dante, I don't think I'll stay with my father any longer for my revenge. I'd rather just leave. If the Romanos ended up catching me, then it's whatever.