Room 1208 by Sophia Renny Read Free Book Online Page A

Jealously,
bitterness and a reciprocal guilt had clawed at Maggie, bringing tears to her
eyes. She’d moved carefully off the bed, afraid to wake him, afraid to see the
acknowledgement of betrayal in his eyes.
    She’d dressed quickly without taking time to
shower. After gathering her things and doing one final sweep of the room, she’d
quietly unlocked the door and closed it softly behind her. She’d barely kept
her tears at bay during the five hour drive back to Des Moines, only yielding
to them once she was back in her own home where she could sit on her shower
floor under a hot spray of water, head bent over knees that were clutched
tightly to her chest, until the water ran cold.
    For the next two days she’d allowed herself to
wallow. During one of her first therapy sessions with Dr. Moira she’d learned
just how unhealthy it was to suppress her emotions. Sitting on the shower
floor, she’d thought back to the first time in therapy when she’d given a
primal scream, a scream that opened the doors to all the pain, sadness and
anger that had enchained her life until that point. That memory brought some
comfort. What had happened in Room 1208 was nothing in comparison to the
culmination of her life’s sorrows.
    And what had happened that night, really?
She’d finally lost—no, given—her virginity to a man who couldn’t have treated
her in a more passionate, tender and considerate way. The experience had been
more beautiful and sensual than she could ever have imagined. That he’d treated
her with such care without knowing the gift she was giving him made the memory
even more special.
    That was the memory she clung to. She wouldn’t
allow herself to feel guilty for being party to his betrayal of Rachel, whoever
she was. Despite that betrayal, he was the man who had unknowingly helped her
jump over the last hurdle that stood between her past and her present. And, for
that, she could only be grateful.
    Dr. Moira had immediately sensed a change in
Maggie at their session following Maggie’s return from Chicago. “You’re ready,”
was all she’d said.
    “Yes, I am.”
    Ready to begin a new, exciting job with a
fast-paced, energetic advertising agency, ready to post her profile on an
online dating service, ready to begin making new friends, ready to fully
embrace the new Maggie. Oh, the old Maggie was still there, tucked in a special
place in her heart. Dr. Moira had taught her to love that Maggie, to forgive
her for things that were, ultimately, not her fault. That Maggie would always
be with her as she made her way through the world.
    But sometimes…
    Maggie rose from the sofa and walked upstairs to
her bedroom. She paused in front of the bureau, avoiding her own reflection in
the mirror above. Opening the top drawer, she reached to the back corner and
pulled out a rolled up ball of white lace underwear. Unraveling it, she pressed
it to her nose, smelling him, smelling the faint but still heady mixture of
their blended passion. This was the only tangible evidence she had of their
night together, the only piece she had of him.
    Him . Who was he? Where was he? In a
country of over three hundred million people the likelihood of ever seeing him
again was virtually impossible. She pushed the underwear back into the drawer.
She thought of Mike Brosky and his teasing grin. She thought of hot, wet kisses
and dark, secluded barrooms. An idea, the germ of which had been planted
earlier that day, began to grow and take shape. Feeling a creative glow, she
raced back to her notepad.
     
     “…and it concludes with
the tagline: For the James Bond in All of Us.”
    There was a moment of silence before Rob laughed.
“Amusing, but no. What else do you have?”
    John’s face turned slightly red, but he laughed
along with everyone else gathered around the conference table as he continued
reading through his ideas. It was nine o’clock the next morning, and the
creative teams were meeting for their first brainstorming