Alec Hardy goes to Gracepoint

Chapter 3

Rose agrees to come to Alec's rescue

Alec's alarm went off and he got up without delay, wanting to get things cleared up with Rose before she ventured downstairs but he didn't want to be seen waiting outside her door, so he planned to stand at the bottom of the stairs pretending he was waiting for her then take her to one side and ask her for her help. She would probably either find it extremely funny or slap his face at such a suggestion in which case, it would make it realistic and make everyone think they had broken up and he would be back to square one but he would get out of this stupid idea he had come up with last night. What the hell was he thinking, coming up with such a half brained idea like that? As if someone like her would hang around with him, Rose was probably way out of his league.

Putting his jeans and a casual blue shirt on, he went down and waited, first checking she wasn't already in the dining room. He caught sight of her coming around to the top of the stairs and started up towards her, meeting her just as she was about to descend. He took her arm and led her back around the corner again so no-one would hear and she was surprised to find him holding her arm and tried to move his hand but he held onto her and put his finger to his lips and said "Sshh"

"What are you doing?" she asked indignantly, in a low voice.

"I need you to do me a favour, a really big favour and if you do, I'll buy you dinner anywhere you want and you'll never have to speak to me again."

"Well it must be a really big favour then and why the secrecy? Couldn't you wait for me to come downstairs?"

"No, because I did something really stupid last night and I need your help to get out of it."

"Right, so what stupid thing did you go and do then that needs my help?"

"I might just have told the hotel owner or at least gave the impression to her that you were my girlfriend."

"What? Why did you do that? Yeah, I'd say that was pretty stupid as far as stupid things go. Thanks. So how are you going to get me out of that one?"

"Well, we have two choices or maybe three, if you agree, that's why I need your help."

"You sound just like an old friend of mine, always had an answer but never the right one. Go on then, you may as well tell me and if and that's a very big 'if', it's good, I may just agree but it's dinner or a slap, depending on if I think it's amusing or not but be quick, I'm hungry, I hardly ate yesterday."

Alec already had a plan and was hoping her answer wasn't going to be the slap but at least it would get him out of it, a slap on the face in public with her telling him to get lost wouldn't be so bad.

"Right, that hotel owner, what's her name, tried to chat me up last night and sort of suggested she wanted to spend some time with me, in my room, well you know what for." Rose sniggered, Alec glared at her. "Well, she's really not my type and she probably only wanted a one night stand and I'm not interested so I sort of said you were my girlfriend while she was telling me about the local night life, like she was suggesting I took her out somewhere so I said, we, meaning you and I would probably check it out and sort of suggested that you like to go out." Rose was sniggering again, he thought that was a good sign.

"So, what plan have you come up with to get you out of it then, that involves me, do I get a choice?"

He had to agree. "Ok, your choice, you go along with it, just when we're in the hotel, sit with me, come down to breakfast and so on so she sees us together." Rose weighed it up and told him to go on. "Or, have a big blazing row in the dining room or reception where you get to slap me and tell me to get lost and then totally ignore me, then I'll have to fend for myself or you can still slap me and then make up when you come back in tonight." He could see her eyes lighting up at the last two, thinking at least she was going to help him out.