The elevator’s whirrs stop and the doors open. I start to step out but a hand grabs me by the elbow.
I turn to face him.
He shrugs off his jacket, giving me a front-row view of his bulging arms and firm pecs beneath his shirt.
I swallow. Loudly.
His eyes meet mine, a slight frown lining his forehead.
I clear my throat, gesturing around us. “The air’s a bit... warm.”
I have no scientific explanation for why that would result in an audible swallow and thankfully, he doesn’t press for more.
He drapes his jacket around my shoulders and it falls to my mid-thigh. “It’ll keep you covered on your walk down.” He nods to the hallway. “I’ve got a meeting to attend.”
“I... Thanks.”
He nods and steps back into the elevator as the doors close.
Once I’m alone, I gasp, my eyes wide. What the fuck?!
I hurry to my room, let myself in, and shrug off the jacket. Shamelessly, I press it to my nose and—good lord, there’s a hint of coconut and coffee and man. I take another whiff and fall back against the bed.
Something thumps. I sit up and search for the source of the sound. I find it next to a pillow. It’s a wallet. His wallet.
Oh, no.
I flip it open and find a card with his name—Chance Easton. Other cards line the wallet but no money and no contact info.
I was going to find him and give him back his jacket anyway. So now, I’ve got to do it quickly.
“Fucking finally.” Nat rolls her eyes as I walk into the Resort’s lush gardens. “It’s taken you years to get here. What happened?”
I give the colorful flowers a cursory glance before taking the seat next to her. “You won’t believe what happened to me.”
Nat squints. “Your eyes aren’t red meaning it wasn’t a whole lot of crying, so what?”
“Nat.” I slap her shoulder. I cried only once with her about Todd’s deceit. Now she wouldn’t let up about it. “I wasn’t crying. My dress tore.”
“Where?” Nat checks me out.
“I changed out of that dress.” Unfortunately, this one is equally sheer and fragile. “And a man helped me.”
Nat’s eyes are instantly twinkling. “You took a man to your room. You go, girl!”
“No, what?” My cheeks heat, because I thought exactly that—what if the brooding Chance Easton didn’t have his meeting and followed me up to my room?
Before Nat’s mind can run wild, I explain what happened.
“Oh, my.” She fans herself with her hand when I’m done. “Knight in shining armor much. Where’s the jacket and wallet? Let’s find him.”
“He said he had a meeting. I doubt he’d be at the hotel. I was thinking of handing them over to the receptionist.”
“What? No way!” Nat grabs me by the shoulders. “Are you insane? You’re going to hand them over to him yourself.”
“I don’t need to. Plus, I’m very embarrassed getting half-naked in front of him that way. I don’t think I want to see him again.” Even as I say so, I know that’s a lie. I very much hope to see him again.
Nat reads me like her Thriller novels. “Yeah, right. You look like you want to see him again and I’m here to help you do just that.”
