His Secret [Completed]

Chapter Forty-Six

Waking up in the hotel room surrounded by plush sheets and the faint smell of lavender was unfamiliar. The pampering and breakfast arriving via room service made her feel special, especially as the room she was staying in was one of the most expensive in the hotel - she was in a suite. But she had a hard time wondering whether it was due to guilt that Noah had made her stay in a hotel that was so luxurious. When room service arrived, Sophia declined and told the staff they had the wrong room, yet they insisted and walked past her with a trolley and a couple of different meals on top. They set up the table and one of the young men held the chair out for her. As she sat down, he draped a napkin over her lap and stood off to the side. A small note was folded neatly onto her plate, the words read: Have a safe flight.

As she placed her cutlery onto her plate feeling full, her phone chimed from the bedroom. "You're leaving?" Jasmine's voice echoed through the phone and she thought back to the simple text she'd sent her best friend in the early hours of that morning.

"Yeah."

"I haven't seen you in months and you suddenly spring this on me?"

"It was a spur of the moment thing."

"You? Spur of the moment? You've got to be kidding me. When do you leave?"

"Tonight," Sophia told her.

"Right, well get ready. I'll pick you up and we'll go for lunch and hopefully, you'll tell me what's really going on. I'll see you at the McKenzie's in half an hour."

"I'm not at the McKenzies. I'm at a hotel." Sophia gave her the hotel address and after trying to convince Jasmine there wasn't anything wrong, the phone line went quiet and she dressed.

Jasmine pulled up outside the hotel twenty minutes later and Sophia slipped into the car. Jasmine's life had been on the up and up ever since they were evicted from their apartment. She'd moved in with her cousin Derek, who had his own company, and she told Sophia that she'd been working there for the past few months. Sophia noticed how happy Jasmine seemed. She had a permanent smile etched across her face as they drove. "Where are we eating?" Sophia asked.

"A cute little restaurant I found." She smiled even wider at the mention of the restaurant and Sophia instantly felt her heart warming. Her friend was happy and in turn that made her happy. She felt lucky that something good had come from their eviction, even if it was just for Jasmine.

As they sat at a small table near the back of the restaurant, Jasmine asked the waitress for two menus. Sophia took that time to admire the interior of the restaurant, and noticed the distinct British theme it had. Small square tables were lining the sides and in the centre were rounded ones. The waitress dressed in simple black, with an apron of the same colour wrapped around her waist, walked back over and placed the menus onto the table.

"So you're really doing it, huh?" Jasmine asked while perusing the menu. "I can't believe it."

"I didn't really have much of a choice," she muttered to herself while nodding.

"Huh?" Jasmine looked over the top of her menu.

"Nothing."

"Didn't sound like nothing. Sounded like you said you didn't have a choice." She placed the menu down and focused her full attention on Sophia. The waitress walked back over asking if they were ready to order. "Not quite..." She turned her attention back to Sophia. "So?"

"I've been looking into newspaper houses all over the country," she lied, though she had been looking at one house in particular, although it wasn't as prestigious as MKT. "I applied to a bunch in Pennsylvania."

"You got an interview then?"

"Yeah, a couple."

"I'm proud of you Soph, finally doing what you've always dreamed of. Glad to see you'll be putting your degree to use."