1 Night (A Time for Love Series Prequel)

Chapter 7

I came to with a start and looked over at Cal. His eyes were closed and he was laying completely still. I didn't hear any noise, or see movement in his chest, so I jumped out from under the covers and moved toward him.

"Cal," I said loudly as I shook him by the shoulder. "Wake up."

When he didn't respond I scrambled off the bed and rushed into the bathroom. I filled a cup with water and hurried back, barely stopping by the edge of the bed before throwing the water at his face.

"Da fuck?" Cal shouted as he shot up to sitting. He shook his head then turned his bleary gaze on me.

"Sorry," I said with a shrug. "You weren't responding and the last thing I need is for you to die on me tonight."

"Who are you?" he asked, eyes widening as he looked down at my very full, and very fabulous, if I do say so myself, tits. "Why are you naked?"

Rolling my eyes, I asked, "How many times do we have to go over this? I'm your fairy godmother. I'm here to make sure you make it safely through the night."

Cal's brow furrowed.

"How much did I have to drink?"

"Apparently, you and your boys drank up enough to drown your sorrows over your friend's taste in fiancées ... So, a lot."

"Where are Scott and TJ?" he asked, turning his head to look around the room.

"That's the question of the night," I said bitterly, wishing like hell they'd come back so I could stop this nightmare babysitting duty I was on. "Do you remember the last time you saw them?"

"We hit up a few different places. I remember a lot of shots and a lot of lights ... Maybe we were playing poker. I remember I wanted to come back and go to sleep, and they wanted to keep playing, so I left."

"Hmmm, well, I'm sure they'll come back once they've lost all their money," I replied, not wanting to sound cynical, but this was Vegas. Shit like this happened all the time.

"I'm hungry," Cal stated suddenly.

"I don't know if that's such a good idea," I began, thinking of all the vomit from before. Then, I considered how much he'd drank, before and after we'd gotten to the hotel, and the fact that his stomach was empty, and decided that it might actually do him some good to have something in his belly. "Okay, I'll order room service."

I stood up and rounded the bed to the phone, then sat on the edge as I pressed the number for room service.

"Yes, can I get two burgers and fries?" I asked, realizing that I hadn't eaten dinner yet that night myself. "Thank you."

Once I hung up, I looked over my shoulder to find Cal leaning back against the headboard, his lower body under the covers. "It'll be about twenty minutes." I informed him, then sat next to him and pulled the comforter from the foot of the bed and covered myself.

I noticed his fingers fidgeting with the edge of the sheet and realized that he was nervous.

"Hey," I called softly, and when his brown eyes found mine I said, "Why don't you tell me about Shelly?"

The smile that lit up his face at just hearing the sound of her name made my heart squeeze with envy.

"Shelly is amazing. We fell in love when we were sixteen, and even though everyone thought we'd have a high school romance and then move on, I knew they were wrong. From the moment I saw her, I knew there was no other person I'd ever want. She's the one for me, and I'm grateful every day that I was the one for her too."

"Jesus, you're corny," I joked, keeping my tone light even though my throat was burning.

What would it be like to have a man get that faraway look in his eyes, that smile on his lips, and have his voice full of that much love when he talked about me to someone else. It was the kind of love I'd just about given up on. Thinking it must be a fairytale that would never come true.

But looking at Cal and listening to him talk about his wife, I found I was wrong, and I knew without a doubt that I wanted to find what they had. I had to believe there was someone like that out there for me.

"What about you, fairy godmother?" he asked with a grin. "Are you married, have a boyfriend, single?"

"Single, sugar," I replied with a wink and half shrug. Then sighed and said, "There was a guy I thought might be the one but it turned out he was just as disappointing as all the rest."

"What happened?" Cal ask, his eyes starting to droop.

I was about to tell him to get up, when I heard a knock on the door.

His eyes popped open and he said, "I'll get it."

Before I could protest, or remind him that he was naked, he was at the door flinging it wide open and giving the poor staff member a show.

"Can I sign it to the room?" he asked as he took the tray.

"Uh, sure," I heard a voice say a bit hesitantly. Luckily, it was a man's voice.

"Thanks, bro," Cal said and shut the door, then he turned to me with a grin, the tray strategically placed to cover his junk. "Chow time."

He set the tray on the bed and got comfortable, then we both tucked in and started stuffing our faces. After the first bite, Cal looked at me and asked again, "So ... what happened?"