picturing you riding a bicycle.”
Gabriel slowly leaned forward. With equally slow, seductive movements of his hands, he signed two short sentences. “Not that kind of bike. It’s a motorcycle.”
The smile slid off Ben’s face. How the hell did I get that wrong? That was an entirely different visual and a whole heck of a lot of fantasies rolled into one image. His pulse spiked up a notch. They stared at each other, the glint in Gabriel’s eyes letting him know he knew exactly where Ben’s mind had gone. Ben finally breathed when Gabriel glanced to his side at the guard and broke the trance.
Ben missed whatever the man had initially said but caught enough to read the tail end of his sentence that everything was set up in the system. The guard looked up at Ben and handed him his license and a card.
“This is your resident access keycard,” the guard said, waiting for Gabriel to interpret his words before he continued. “This key gives you access to all the floors. If there’s ever a problem with the card not working, don’t go to the front desk. They can only configure room keys. Come here and we’ll immediately get it corrected. We have your photo in our system, so you won’t need to show your ID again.”
He smiled and nodded a thanks, tucking away the license and card into his wallet.
Gabriel stilled him with a hand to his waist. “Don’t put your access card away. You’re going to need it. You’re getting a quick tour of the hotel before we go up.” With a final goodbye to the guards, Gabriel led them out of the office and back into the hotel’s lobby. They walked past the casual eatery, grab-and-go deli, and the more expensive reservation-required restaurant that only opened in the evening.
“You need your card to access the pools. Go ahead and swipe it.”
Ben swiped his card and pushed open the door to the rear of the hotel. His eyes widened at the sight, taking it all in. A small kiddie pool to his left had a slide and a handful of parents watching over their children as they jumped around in the water. A whirlpool to his far right was large and raised on a platform, surrounded by palm trees, offering the adults a little privacy. But the large pool serving as the centerpiece was the showstopper. It was long and wide in the center, then curved into man-made caves and large slides on each side. Waterfalls flowed from a high-level, shallow sunbathing pool into the main level below. And off in the distance, beyond the beautiful pools, was the endless, gorgeous ocean fading into the horizon.
“It’s beautiful,” he signed.
Gabriel nodded. “Sometimes, I like to come out here just to relax. Even if I don’t go in the water.”
People watching. Ben smiled up at Gabriel. They both shared the same habit, but Gabriel had mastered the skill of not staring when observing others.
“Beach access is through that door over there.” He followed the line of sight as Gabriel stopped signing to point out the access doors in the distance. “You need your card to get in and out. Staff will set you up with a chair and an umbrella if you want.”
Ben nodded. “You’re spoiling me.”
“The hotel is. But I want to.”
Ben stared at him, his chest heaving with each breath.
“C’mon. Let’s get out of this heat.” Gabriel led them back through the lobby toward the bank of elevators, his hand planted at the small of Ben’s back.
Ben used his card on the panel as Gabriel instructed, but they stopped at a different floor on their way up. “Gym’s on this floor.” They stepped out and Ben swiped his card on the door, pushing it open to a large room full of exercise equipment to satisfy every possible physical routine he could imagine. Definitely getting spoiled.
A woman stepped off the treadmill, wearing a tank top and knee-length tight shorts. She waved toward them and smiled. “Hi, Bull!”
Ben wasn’t one for jealousy, but he wouldn’t deny tightening his hold on the keycard in his hand.
“Hi, Katie,” Gabriel said as he signed. “Not your usual workout schedule.”
“Checking out early. Flying out tonight for a meeting. I thought I’d sneak in a quick workout before leaving.” She glanced over toward Ben as Gabriel introduced him. She smiled, her shiny ponytail bouncing with each head bob. “I finally get to meet the mystery man,” she said, extending her hand in greeting.
Ben repeatedly blinked,