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The limousine slowed as they approached the resort. His father had come through. About two dozen paparazzi crowded around, their cameras pointed at the limousine. The driver parked and walked around the car to open Colton’s door, as his father had instructed.
Colton stepped out of the vehicle, then turned and held out his arm for Liz. She grinned at the cameras, and he realized he needed to do the same. He gave the cameras his best sexy smile, the one that showed his one dimple and had landed him his breakout job. The one he always turned to when he needed to hide.
“Okay, let the lovebirds through,” his father announced. But he made no move toward the resort doors. He stood there, letting the paparazzi take all the photos they wanted. Colton refrained from rolling his eyes. What a joke.
He slipped his arm around Liz and pulled her closer, as if protecting her from the mob. Liz looked up at him, adoration in her gaze. She was a pretty good actress.
“How long have you two been dating?”
“Did you meet on the set?”
“Can we expect to see a real-life happy ending?”
Liz blushed and Colton simply raised his hand. “No comment.”
Tired of waiting for his father, Colton finally pushed his way toward the doors, and when he’d made it into the lobby with Liz things quieted down considerably. He’d been to the Billionaire Club before, and it was always a breath of fresh air when he walked in. A massive water fountain sat in the middle of the lobby, blue and purple lights making the water look almost like colored glass, and a large mural hung from one wall with depictions of the local greenery. Everything shouted upscale, from the gold-plated door handles to the chandelier hanging over the fountain.
His father joined them a moment later, after he’d made sure all the photographers had gotten good shots. He hitched up his pants and something fell out of his pocket. “Well, I think that went well.”
Colton waited for his father to pick up the piece of paper, but instead, he walked to the counter to check them in. Maybe it wasn’t important, but Colton didn’t want to leave trash in the middle of the lobby, so he picked it up and shoved it into his pocket.
“Where are we going tonight?” Liz glanced around, her feet shifting.
“The Shrimp Next Door. It’s supposed to have amazing food. And of course, more paparazzi.”
“Ah. I see.”
A woman entered the lobby and Colton watched as she made her way toward the check-in counter. She turned and caught his gaze and her eyes widened. She recognized him. Crud. His sunglasses were in his carry-on, which had already been taken away by the bellboy. Usually he kept them on, but his father had wanted him to be seen with Liz.
Instead of rushing over and asking for an autograph, the woman held up the resort map to hide her face. Odd. Did he know her? She seemed familiar, but he had no clue where he’d seen her before. She wasn’t an actress, was she? With her blonde hair twisted up in a messy knot on her head and an oversized T-shirt, it was hard to tell. He didn’t know any actresses who would be caught dead wearing sweatpants and crocs. Still, if she were at the Diamond Oasis, she had to have money.
She edged her way to the fountain and disappeared behind it.
His father approached them and caught his attention, then held out key cards for him and Liz and let them know what rooms they were in. “Let’s meet after we get settled so we can chat.”
Colton slipped his key card into his pocket. “Sure. Hey, can you make sure they get my luggage delivered? I have to go…check on something.”
His father made a face. “Check on something? What?”
“I…uh, need to grab something. I’ll be right there.” He didn’t wait for his father to say anything. He walked toward the fountain. But when he got around to the other side, no one was there.
Huh? Where had the woman gone?
A flash of gray sweatpants caught his eye on the other side of the fountain. The woman had hedged her way around just to get away from him? What was going on? He kept walking, but she moved as well. He sped up his footsteps, and she followed suit. He rushed forward, then quickly turned and sprinted the other way.
That tricked her and she ran smack into his chest, her purse flying and landing in the water fountain. “Oh!”
He squinted. “Remi?”
He hadn’t seen her in years, but now she stood in front of him he had no doubt it was his childhood friend. With her large blue eyes, upturned nose, and the way she licked her lips when she was nervous, he knew he wasn’t mistaken. She blanched and turned from him to fish her purse out of the fountain. “No, no, no. I need my passport. It can’t get wet.”
As she reached, her purse floated farther toward the middle.
“Here, let me,” he said.
He leaned forward, but Remi stretched as well. Her foot slipped and she yelped, grabbing onto him with both hands. Her momentum carried them both over the edge of the fountain. Cold water seeped into his clothes, even though the fountain wasn’t very deep, and he thrashed for a second before he could get his face out of the water. A few passersby pulled out their phones to catch the famous actor on all fours in the upscale fountain. Great.
Remi seized her purse and stood. “I got it,” she announced before jumping down from the ledge.
