I wanted to do something special with Amanda so I called my cousin to see if he had any connections. He told me he went to college with a girl friend who works are a very nice hotel outside of Chicago and he might be able to get me a nice room within an E3's budget for Friday and Saturday night. The deal went through and he was able to get the room for free as long as we got there before his friend's shift ended at 10 P.M.
With the hotel ready, I reserved a rental car so we would not have to worry about taking the train and a bus. Everything was a go. That week, I did really well on our testing so I was feeling great but early in the week, the chief in charge of my special detail said we had to work on Saturday. That means I had to have my dress blue uniform ready and have my crew ready for the detail. We practiced every night during the week after school to get the ceremony down so Saturday would go without a hiccup. This did mean I would have to drive to the base early Saturday morning though, but duty had to come first.
I took a bus to the rental car agency, picked up an Oldsmobile Cutlass, and went by pass and ID on the base to get a temporary sticker since I would have to be back on base so early on Saturday morning. I went by my barracks and got my bag with some clothes and toiletries in it, then to Amanda's barracks and the roving watch went and got her. She had packed a small overnight bag as well and had it over her shoulder. One of her classmates saw her and me with my bag and said, "Damn, wish I was getting the hell out of here."
Amanda replied, "See you late Sunday!"
We all laughed and headed out the door. We walked to the car and put the bags in the trunk. I unlocked her door and held it open for her to get in. After I shut her door, she reached over and unlocked mine. The car has a bench seat so she moved over next to me on the bench. We buckled up and headed to the hotel.
On the way to the hotel, she told me her boyfriend called her again earlier. During the week, he had called every afternoon, wanting to know if she still loved him and if they could get back together. I feel bad for the guy but Amanda's heart is not in it. It would be better for him if he could just let her go. She said he would probably call over the weekend but of course, she won't be there. I am not the best at telling her what to say. I have had my heart broken a few times so I can relate to the guy, but everyone is different, too.
On the way to the hotel, we stopped at a nice Italian restaurant and had supper. After that, we grabbed some beer and snacks for the next couple of days.
As I pulled into the hotel parking lot, there was a couple getting out of their Jaguar. Other than that, the parking lot was nearly empty. We were maybe 15 or 20 miles from Chicago and I don't know the area well enough to know why this nice of a hotel would be here. I was used to something like a Holiday Inn! When I walked into the lobby, it was all cherry wood and marble. Beautiful plants, high ceilings, a big curved staircase going to another level, and a lounge area.
We proceeded to the counter with our bags, hers a cheap K-Mart special, and mine just a mostly empty Navy issue seabag. We looked a little out of place.
The couple with the Jag was checking in. The woman turned and looked at us and smiled nicely. She had on a nice knee length black skirt. He was dressed in a suit and tie. She looked us up and down and said, "Good evening. Looks like we have the place to ourselves tonight. Must not be anything going on this weekend."
Amanda replied, "What is there to do around here?"
The woman replied, "Plenty of shopping, a lot of restaurants, and bars, too, if you're old enough to get into bars."
Amanda replied, "Ok, thanks!"
The woman replied, "You're a cute couple, if you don't mind me saying so."
Amanda blushed, hugged me tight, and replied, "Thank you so much! You are so sweet! What's your name?"
She replied, "Olivia, but call me Liv. And you?"
"I'm Amanda, and this is David."
Liv added, "Really, we both have Davids! This is my David, "as she grabbed her guy by the arm.
David had turned to us during the conversation and was holding his room keys in his hand. He smiled and said, "That's too funny. Nice to meet you both."
I said, "Just call me Dave. I had a great friend in school named David so we always called him David and me Dave, so it stuck."
David said, "Must be a great name to have so many of us!"
We all laughed and David added, "We're going to get settled. Maybe we'll see you guys later."
Amanda added, "It was a pleasure to meet you both. Have a great night!"
I proceeded to the counter and recognized the name tag as my point of contact. I told her who I was and she said, "Hank's cousin! Sorry about that!"
We laughed and she got the room entered us into the system and handed us our keys and told us how to get to our room. She added, "If anyone asks, you are from Johnson and Dwyer law firm from Milwaukee and have been comp'd the room."
I asked jokingly, "Am I Johnson or Dwyer?"
She added, "Hell, I don't know. Probably no one will ask anyway."
She then went on to tell us about that other couple.
"David is some big real estate tycoon in Chicago, "she said, "worth quite a bit of money from what I understand. The woman is his mistress. I was told she used to be an escort. But they are always super nice and tip well!"
"Oh, "I said, "They did seem really nice. I would have never thought they were not a couple."
Amanda added, "Other than the fact he is like 20 years older."
We went to our room and I opened the door. It was a very nice room, one king size bed, a desk with an executive chair, a big TV, a stocked bar, and a nice, big bathroom that had a garden tub.
After we hung our coats in the closet and put our bags down by a nightstand, Amanda fell onto the bed. I climbed onto the bed beside her and looked into her eyes while she stared back at mine.
Amanda asked, "What do you want to do?"