She walked into the hotel and stopped looking for the front desk. She walked over to it and took off her coat while she waited for the concierge to acknowledge her presence.
"May I help you…" he looked down at her left hand that she had placed on the counter, "Ma’am", he said seeing her wedding ring. She looked down at her hand in shock before pulling it guiltily back down to her side; she had forgotten she still had her wedding ring on.
"Do you have a message for Emily", she said softly her voice husky with her nervousness. He turned away from her to check the message box. He picked up an envelope and handed it her. She tore open the envelope and pulled out a sheet of hotel stationary. She unfolded the page and read it; it contained two words, Emerald Suite and a small drawing of a four-leaf clover. She folded the page back and shoved it and the envelope in her purse, before looking back at the concierge who was still watching her intently. "Where is the Emerald Suite located", she asks.
"On the sixteenth floor the elevators are to your right," he pointed when he finished speaking. She looked to her right and thanked him. He watched her walk towards the elevator and press the up button. When the elevator door opened she continued to stand there without entering it. She looked back at the concierge who raised an inquiring eyebrow at her; she sucked in her breath thinking how much that action reminded her of him and walked swiftly into the elevator. She pressed the button for the sixteenth floor and waited. She grabbed the handle on the wall when the elevator moved upwards, she had always hated elevators and airplanes but she had gotten on both of them today for him.
When the elevator doors opened to her floor she continued to stand there gripping the railing tightly. The doors began to close again when she reached forward and pressed the door open button and bolted out when the doors opened again. She walked down the hallway before she realized she had no idea which way the room was. She turned and walked back to the elevator and looked at the signs on the wall. She wasn’t surprised to see she had been going in the right direction; she had always been able to sense him, to feel him in her head. She found the right door and raised her hand to knock, when the diamond on her wedding ring flashed. She lowered her hand from the door and turned to walk away when the door opened and she turned back swiftly. Her gray eyes connected with his blue ones and all the air left her lungs in rush and her heart began to pound.
He reached out and took her coat and purse from her numb fingers. He set them on the floor inside the doorway before he reached out and took her right hand in his. He pulled her slowly towards him and gently wrapped his arms around her; she hadn’t realized she was crying until she heard her gasping sob echo in the empty hallway. She placed her head on his wide shoulder and tried to calm her tortured emotions. He just stood there and let her cry for a moment not saying a word because he knew that words would serve no purpose. When her breathing evened out he stepped away from her and she lifted her head to look at him. He placed his hands on either side of her face and kissed her gently on the lips not once but twice. When she opened her eyes they were still sparkly with tears but the pain was gone. He stepped back so she could walk into the room, but when she continued just to stand there he bit back a smile and pulled her slowly into the room just enough so he could get the door closed behind her. He stepped away from her before he yanked her into his arms and shocked her delicate emotions with his need for her and walked toward the mini bar.
"Would you like a drink", he ask over his shoulder as he pulled the bottle of champagne out of the bucket of ice.
His voice broke the trance she was in and she looked at him blinking in confusion. He raised the glass he had just poured and she walked towards him, when her fingers made contact with his on the glass she jumped from the jolt of need that passed through her. She smiled shakily at him and took the glass sipping it until he looked away and then she gulped the rest of it down. She heard him laugh softly and turned to look at him.
"If you talk to me I will pour you another glass", he said softly. She blushed prettily and lifted the glass towards him and the light made the diamond on her wedding ring flash again. She quickly lowered her hand and the glass as he reached out for it. He raised one eyebrow at her and she looked away confused by the need he made her feel.
"I," she began, "I forgot to take my wedding ring off." She looked up at him to see his reaction to her words. He set his glass down and stepped towards her. He took the glass from her stiff fingers and set it on the table next to his, and then he lifted her hand, the diamond flashed and winked in the overhead lighting.
"Very beautiful", he said examining the filigree pattern of the platinum band.
"Thank you I picked it out myself", she said. His jaw tightened at how neglected this lovely woman was. She deserved so much more than what life had given her, why couldn’t she see that. He slowly slid the ring from her finger, the poignancy of the moment so opposite of a wedding ceremony but no less meaningful. He turned her hand over and placed a bittersweet kiss on her palm before he placed the ring there and closed her fingers around it.
He placed his hand under her chin and tilted her face up to his and kissed her again very gently, sucking delicately on her bottom lip. He moved away from her and turned his back giving her some privacy to decide what to do with the ring he had removed from her finger. He busied himself by pouring two more glasses of champagne and placing the bottle back into the bucket of ice so it would stay chilled. When that was done he sighed deeply and took a sip from his glass staring out the window his shoulders slumped in dejection.
"Baby", he heard her speak softly behind him, her voice making him jolt upright. She reached her hand out to touch him, but stopped an inch from his back.
"If you touch me there’s no going back because I won’t be able to stop myself from loving you", he spoke without looking at her and then stood stiffly waiting for her to decide. When he felt her hand touch his back he exhaled the breath he hadn’t realized he was holding. He turned around slowly her hand never leaving his body just sliding gently along him as he moved. When her hand was over his heart he pulled her tightly into his arms and lowered his head stopping when his lips were a breath away from hers. She looked deeply into his eyes while she slid her hand up from his chest and placed it on his cheek. He closed his eyes and inhaled deeply. She ran her thumb once across his bottom lip before placing her lips on his and kissing him sweetly. He stood there not daring to move, afraid she might still decide that she couldn’t go through with her decision.
When he felt the tip of her tongue caress his bottom lip he inhaled deeply and thrust his hands into her hair and pulled her head back. She gasped at his sudden movement and he took full advantage of her open mouth by placing his tongue into it. He kissed her deeply, loving her with his tongue and lips sucking gently on her bottom lip and letting her suck in turn on his.