Page 162 of Embriagado

A loud thump startled me, and I tensed on the spot. Thinking someone had walked in and shut the door, I glanced behind me, but no one was there. It also didn’t sound like a door shutting, but more like something heavy dropping to the floor.

The same sound repeated itself, and this time, I was certain something had hit the floor.

Grabbing the other suitcase, I got out of the suite, expecting to find someone in the hallway, one of the guests or maybe a maid, but it was empty. Looking to my right and left, I was the only one here, and yet, I’d just heard that sound again. But somehow, it sounded like it came from the upper floor, only there was none, right? I looked up, eyes narrowing on the ceiling, my hair standing on fucking end with how creepy this was beginning to feel. Maybe it was in my head, but I swore to God I heard footsteps.

Curiosity got the better of me, and I left the suitcase in the hall before going back to the stairway to check it out. But just as I’d already figured, this was the last floor. Still, there was a door leading to the rooftop. Walking over to it, I grabbed the door’s handle, my heart somehow beating faster as I pulled it⁠—

Locked.

I tried again, only to confirm it was indeed locked, which made sense, given the hotel wouldn’t like guests and employees climbing up to the roof. But then, something occurred to me, and I walked back to the hallway. Crouching before the suitcase, I read the room tag again. Was this really a coincidence⁠—

The sound of the elevator made me look up just in time to see its doors open, and there stood Ariyan, his eyes immediately meeting mine.

“Mr. Rivas. May I ask what you’re doing up here?”

42

SANTIAGO

“Ari, hey,” I said, a smile taking over my lips at the sweet sight of him.

“What did I say about calling me that at work?” he asked, stepping out of the elevator with a sour look on his face.

“We’re all alone.”

“It doesn’t matter, we’re still at work.” He stopped before me, one hand placed on his waist. “Now, then, please answer my question. Why are you here?”

I pointed at the suite’s door with my thumb. “The girls at the front desk were swamped with work, so I helped them out with the luggage.”

His eyes moved from me to the suitcase placed between us. “Seems like you’ve missed one.”

“Oh, yeah.” Grabbing it, I hoisted it up. “I think someone made a mistake with the floor number.” I showed him the note.

“Let me see.” He reached for the suitcase and took it from me. Surprisingly, he didn’t seem caught off guard by its weight.

“It does look like a mistake was made,” he hummed, then lowered the bag. “I’ll take care of it.”

“You sure? I can do it for you.”

He smiled, checking me out from head to toe. “Seems like you’ve already worked yourself up enough for one day.”

Brushing a hand through my damp hair, I grinned. “Yeah… I sweated a bit. But seriously, let me help you with the bag.”

I reached to take it from him when he held his hand between us. “No need. I’ll go over the security cameras later and see who checked this in.” He then looked at his watch. “It’s past lunchtime. Have you eaten already? If not, mind joining me?”

At last, this day was starting to get better.

“Fuck yes.”

He raised one brow at me, clearly not pleased with my choice of words.

“I’ll let it slide this once. Now, let’s go⁠—”

“Oh, there was this other thing.”

Ariyan stopped and turned to frown at me, eyes narrowed. “What is it?”

“I know I’ll sound crazy, but could it be that there’s someone upstairs?”