I'd seen more than my fair share of hotel lobbies over the previous few months. But there I was again, standing at another front desk waiting to check in. This one seemed the same, only different. It was a nice hotel...another Sheraton, similar to the one Tina and I had stayed at in Northern Virginia on our trip together. But this one was located in the town that I was now going to be calling home.
The lobby was impressive. There was an expansive type area for guests to sit and read in front of the large atrium windows. Just down from that, was the entrance to the indoor pool, and the complete gym. A large sign at the far end of the room to the east pointed toward a hallway, and it referenced three different banquet rooms. Based on the how big the size of that part of the hotel looked when I drove up, they were probably pretty large ones. It was a big hotel, and that didn't even count the rooms for the guests.
As I waited at the counter, I could hear a live band playing. Poking my head around the corner, I saw that there was a pretty big bar, complete with a dance floor that was jam packed with people having a good time. And just down the hall from that, I could see the entrance to the house restaurant, which looked rather fancy, at least from the outside. From there, the hall rose up a long, gradual ramp, at the top of which started the long hallway of the first floor of rooms. And at the beginning of that hallway, were the two elevators.
For as long as I could remember, I had one view of hotels. And in that sense, this one seemed no different when I'd first walked in. It was a hotel...a place to stop and rest on the way to somewhere else. And that's the perception I was carrying with me as I stood in front of the dark black marble countertop of the check in desk.
That perception changed when Heather came out from the back and saw me standing there, waiting. She was a short brunette, with very long wavy hair, and two adorable dimples on her cheeks. She also had two adorable breasts jutting out from underneath her white blouse, barely contained in the white lacy bra that I could make out though the material of her shirt. I was guessing she was at least a 36C cup, but I didn't get the chance to measure her very well with my eyes, because I didn't want to be too obvious.
She was wearing a pair of skintight black dress pants that showed off a hot tight ass, and she stood in a pair 4 inch black heels, a killer smile appearing on her attractive face. And none of that mattered, because I was engaged, and I wasn't even thinking about how sexy Heather was. I was thinking of Ann, and how much I missed her...and it had only been 10 hours.
"Hi, I'm Heather. Welcome to the Sheraton...I hope I didn't keep you waiting too long," she said in a perky, high pitched voice that sounded younger than the mid 20's she appeared to be. And that voice was thick with a southern accent that reminded me I was back in West Virginia.
"Not long...I've been enjoying the music," I said as flashed a tired smile back at her.
"They are a pretty good band, aren't they...they play here every three weeks."
"I'll have to remember that."
"So...how can I help you?"
"Neil. Neil Thomas. I have a reservation."
"OH! MR. THOMAS. I should have known it was you," she said as she scrambled to grab some paperwork.
"I suppose you're going to tell me you've been expecting me," I said, thinking about all the times I'd heard that from someone on the other side of some counter I'd been standing at.
"Well, of course I have!"
"You have?" I said, surprised for some reason that she readily agreed with me.
"Why wouldn't I? We're going to be your home the next couple of months, Mr. Thomas."
Heather's words hit me kind of hard. I knew that there was a percentage of the population that lived out of hotels at one time or another, for various reasons. I'd just never been one of them. But when Heather said she'd been expecting me, it wasn't like all the other times I'd had someone say that when I was checking in. This time was different. And the difference wasn't really that I was checking in. It was that I wouldn't be checking out any time soon.
But that wasn't even the biggest difference I felt inside as I stared at Heather's cute face. The difference that really mattered the most at that moment...was that I was checking in alone.
I did a quick gut check, and tried pulled myself together. "Of course...why wouldn't you expect me? I AM going to be living here for a while."
Heather heard the little catch in my voice, and put her hand on my arm. "I'm sure you're not looking forward to it, Mr. Thomas...but we're going to do our best to make this feel more like a home than a hotel for you, okay?"
Her voice was reassuring, the accent making her words feel truer than they probably were. But she said it with such sincerity and conviction that I couldn't help but smile. "Okay, Heather...but if I'm going to feel at home here, you're going to have to call me Neil. My Dad is Mr. Thomas."
"It's nice to meet you Neil," Heather said, holding out her hand politely. "You know, we've had a lot of people from Armada stay here...but most of them have been a week here, and a week there. You're the first that's going to stay with us longer than 10 days."
"Gee...that's swell," I said sarcastically as I shook her hand.
Heather giggled and said, "I know you miss her, Neil. But she'll be here soon enough."
"Who are you talking about?" I asked...looking around like someone was going to show up any second.
"Ann...that's who."
"Ann? How do you know about Ann?"
"Carol told me, when she set up your accommodations. She told me that you're engaged, and that you just went out and got Ann from California a couple of weeks ago. I know it's probably hard to think about being apart from her again so soon, but I'll do what I can to make your stay as pleasant as possible. We all will."
I guess I shouldn't have been surprised that Carol had told Heather. Being the Executive Secretary of Armada Manufacturing, the company I was about to go to work for, it was her job to set up my stay. But knowing my history with Carol, I was a little on edge. She'd told Heather about Ann, was it possible that she told her about what she and I had shared...namely, that we'd had sex?
And if that was the case, was Heather coming on to me? I seriously doubted it, and it really didn't matter, since I had absolutely no intentions of sleeping with anyone other than Ann. But it popped into my head, so I had to deal with it. And I did that by putting that absurd thought out of my mind, trying to move the conversation along.
"Thanks, Heather," I replied.
"Come on...you look tired. Let's get you up to your room," she said as she had me sign in.
When she said 'let's' when it came to getting me up to my room, she meant it. Heather had someone cover the desk, and she came out from around the back and helped me unload my car onto two carts, and then she waited with my stuff as I parked the car.
There were a lot of cars in the parking lot, meaning there weren't any vacant spots close to the hotel. So, I had to run back through the pouring rain, and I was soaked by the time I got back to Heather. And she was standing there waiting, with a towel in her hand.
"Sorry about that, Neil. There's a lot more cars here on the weekends because of the bands that play in the bar. Friday and Saturday nights especially," she said as she pushed one of the carts and led me towards the elevators. I pulled the other one, watching her cute ass move in front of me.
"Not your fault, Heather...thanks for the towel," I said as I dried off my head.
The hotel part of the building was five stories, and Heather had put me on the top floor. Her reasoning was that I was going to be a long-term guest, and she didn't want me to have to worry about someone being loud over top of me each night. It was something I never would have thought about...at least until I'd been there a while. That Heather had thought of it actually made me feel pretty special.
We'd gotten off the elevator, taking a left as we got out. "I put you at the end of the hall. I've given the staff standing instructions to leave the rooms closest to you empty as long as we can. That should give you a little more quiet, not to mention some privacy. We'll fill them last out of the entire hotel...so if you notice someone next to you, you'll know we had to use the room. Otherwise, it should be quiet most nights. Weekends fill up the most, obviously."
"It seems like you're going to a lot of trouble just for me," I said sheepishly.
"Well, Armada is spending a lot of money with us, so we do go out of our way a little more than usual for people that they have staying with us. But Carol was pretty specific with instructions for your stay, since it's going to be so long...so you're getting the VIP treatment," she said as she slipped the key into the room of the door and opened it, turning on the light. "After you, Neil."
I walked into the room, and then I turned back to look at Heather, who just smiled and shrugged her shoulders.
It was pretty much a normal hotel room. Beige walls with generic artwork on them in a floral motif. A round cherry table with two chairs was placed in front of the large window covered with a dark green curtain. There was a large maroon overstuffed chair in the back corner next to a floor lamp for reading. A large desk against the wall across from the beds, which was next to the low 4-drawer dresser that had the large TV set on top of it. The only amenities it had that were unusual compared to the majority of hotel rooms I'd stayed in during my lifetime were the small refrigerator with a tiny freezer in it, and the microwave. That, and the two king sized beds, covered with dark green bedspreads that matched the curtains.
It wasn't a suite, but then again, I hadn't expected one. Not with my new company picking up the tab for two months. But, it was bigger than most hotel rooms, and I appreciated that...especially since it was my new home away from home. I also appreciated the way it seemed people were going of their way to make me feel welcome
Hanging on the back wall over the big maroon chair was a sign, welcoming me to Armada. On the table, next to a big vase of flowers, were two bigger baskets; one filled with assorted snacks and the one other filled with fruit. On the other side of the floral arrangement were a package of paper plates, a package of napkins, and a small box that had plastic eating utensils inside...all welcome gifts from my company. Or they were from Carol, depending on how you looked at it.
"Wow," I said, looking at the stuff in the room.
"The fridge is stocked too. I didn't put any beer in it...didn't know if you drink, and I didn't want to presume. Besides, if you do drink, I wouldn't know what kind of beer you like anyway."
"Heineken...when I do drink, which isn't that often," I said quietly as I looked around the room.
Heather walked over to the window, opening the curtains wide to show off the view of the mountains in the distance...but I really couldn't see them for the rain, and the darkness. Still, she was just showing off the room, which was nice of her. She walked past me, brushing close up against me as she walked back to the luggage carts. Heather placed my suitcases on the table that was designed for them, and then she started piling my other things on the floor next to the table.
