Chapter 28 - The House Warming (2/2)

But not here. Here, everything is elevated to an art, brought to certain heights of luxury. Claire half-closes her eyes, the warm water ċȧrėssing her flesh. If only this could last long. If only she could live like this for the rest of her life. But sadly, all this would end in less than a month. Claire has to keep on reminding herself that there's a place where she belongs, and it's not here. This is a fake engagement. Gabriel Tan is an employer, if a little kooky. But a good kind of kooky at times.

She must have fallen asleep, because when she opens her eyes, the shadows have slightly shifted. She feels good. Must have been a thirty-minute nap or so. She wills her body to move, and it obeys her command so languidly. Not an hour in this suite and already Claire's own body is clinging to the idea of not having to work your ȧss off to earn a living.

She stands up and towel-dries her body. She puts on the wardrobe she finds in a dresser, still bearing the ”Ilustrados Hotel” logo.

She walks around, exploring the rest of the suite. She checks the dining table, and discovers a bountiful spread: all kinds of pastries, fruits, with a baked turkey in the middle, its legs jutting upward so invitingly. In the corner of the table, a bottle of champagne sits in ice.

”If you're giving all this to me, Mr. Gabriel Tan,” Claire mutters, as she dances still to ”Heart of Glass” (it has been playing on auto-loop because Dale is such a wonderful concierge), ”then I will gladly take it.”

Then she pulls out the remaining turkey leg, and with it in one hand, and the champagne bottle in the other, Claire dances and sways her way back to the suite's living area.

”Once I had a love and it was a gas,” Claire sings, ”soon turned out had a heart of glass.”

She takes a big bite off the turkey leg, washes it down with the champagne, as she sways her hɨps in her bathrobe.

”Seemed like the real thing, only to find,” she sings, a little out of tune. ”Mucho mistrust, love's gone behind…”

”Uhh, Miss Monteverde,” a voice says from behind her.

She turns and sees Gabriel standing at the door. She's so shocked the champagne bottle slips from her hand.

”Uhh, I just forgot to tell you,” he says, obviously trying not to laugh. ”Please swing by Leed's later and get my clothes?”

Claire stares dumbly at him, Blondie's song still playing in the air.