Technomancer (Unspeakable Things: Book One)

Gilling and his accusations. I figured I could save that for later or try to figure out if there was any truth in it in some other fashion. He had called her a thief, and I knew from experience he had a point there. It indicated he did really know something about her.
    The second drink was gin and tonic water. For the third round, we moved on to a junior-sized bottle of merlot. I figured if we drank everything in the minibar, I was going to be sick in the morning, but I was beginning not to care.
    Holly jumped on me after the merlot. Honestly, I was surprised. She straddled me while I slouched back in an uncomfortable chair. I hadn’t even noticed she’d taken off her jeans at some point. Her legs were warm and strong. Her panties were silky against my thighs. When had I removed my own pants? I recalled us talking about comfort and now…
    The kissing and touching began in earnest. Soon I wasn’t thinking anymore. At one point, I pushed her off and held her up in the air for a moment with our faces inches apart. She didn’t weigh much and she didn’t squirm, so I kept holding her up. We studied each other’s faces.
    “Why the sudden interest?” I asked.
    “More paranoia? Have you forgotten I was chained in a cellar, and you came to get me? You risked everything.”
    I thought to myself that I’d really lucked into finding her, but there was no way I was going to tell her that. I stared at her for a few seconds longer, then finally relented. After all, a man has to make the most of his opportunities. We made love a time or two and fell asleep at dawn. By noon the next day, I had to work hard to shoo Holly out of the room.
    “What?” she asked, fooling with her hair. “Are you out of cash already? I can pay for the room if I have to.”
    I finally explained that
no one
had paid for the room and we had to get the hell out before someone figured out this detail.
    Holly looked around the room and giggled. “You crazy bastard. I’ve pulled a lot of moves in my life, but this is a new one. It’s exciting.
You
are exciting, Quentin.”
    I hustled her out of the room before she could tempt me back to the disheveled bed. Foreign maids were the only people we met in the hallways as we left. They glanced at us with blank expressions. Did they know? I decided it no longer mattered if they did.
    It was on the way down to the lobby that my phone rang. My cell was still in Holly’s purse. She pulled it out, and I reached for it. She ignored my hand with an impish grin and answered the call.
    “Hello?” she asked, then paused. Her grin faded. “Well, who’s this?” Another pause. The grin was gone now, replaced with a twist of her lips. “Yeah, he’s right here.” She handed me the phone.
    I took it, looking at Holly quizzically.
    “It’s Jenna somebody,” she told me.
    I felt a jolt of embarrassment. She looked at me with her eyes narrowed. I sighed. I supposed these two were bound to come into contact eventually.
    I took the phone. “Jenna?”
    “Mr. Draith?” she said. Her voice sounded cold.
    “Yeah, I…” I began. I made a small move to turn away from Holly. It was automatic, but it was also a mistake. In an elevator, privacy really isn’t possible.
    Jenna was telling me something in my ear, something about where she was and needing me to come by. I finally caught on.
    “You’re all right?” I asked. “I’m staying in a different hotel now. Yeah.”
    I noticed Holly’s expression had shifted from a smile to a glare by this point. It had happened amazingly fast.
    “Sorry,” Holly said. “Let me off, I’ll give you two some privacy.” She reached out and used both hands to push every button on the face of the elevator panel. The bell dinged and she got out on the sixth floor.
    I pressed the cell to my chest to block the sound. “Come on, Holly,” I said as she flounced out. “Give me a break.”
    “You should have told me you had a girlfriend before I made a fool of myself,” she hissed.
    “I don’t have a girlfriend—she’s more of a client.”
    “That’s not what
she
thinks,” Holly said. “I heard her voice change when I answered your phone. I know men, Draith. You can’t bullshit me. Don’t even try.”
    “She’s married, Holly.”
    “Oh, that’s even better!” she said. She tossed her head, sending her hair flying, and marched away. When she reached the hallway, she stopped because there was no place else to go. There were long lines of hotel rooms onboth sides