Flirting with Paradise

by Chris Keniston

  Stopping at the red light, he faced the woman who had come to mean so much to him in such a short time. "Listen, later, at lunch …"

  "Yes?" Oh, how her eyes sparkled in the sunlight.

  He swallowed hard. Telling her the truth would never get any easier. It had to be done, and he was pretty sure that once again in this case, Ava would be right. Sooner would be better than later. "I've got a few things I'd like to share with you."

  "Like what?"

  "Not now. We're almost at the hotel, and I don't want to be interrupted." And didn’t want her any place she could walk away from him before he could make her see how important she and Jason were to him.

  "It's not bad news, is it?” Her brows formed a fretful V. “You're not trying to butter me up or something?"

  "No." At least he hoped not. He had already started praying Hope wouldn't be put off by his interference and subterfuge at the hotel. "I'm hoping you'll think it's good news."

  Nodding and smiling again, she leaned back into the seat. "Then I guess I'll wait."

  And she was doing a better job of it then he was. As a businessman, he knew how to bide his time, but when it came to Hope, he seemed to have a hard time being patient. He pulled into the hotel parking lot and almost bit his lip to keep from pulling her into his arms for a quick kiss.

  Inside the hotel they worked side by side. Getting time alone with her enough motivation for him to move at lightening speed. But even with two of them working as fast as they could cleaning rooms, they were still lagging behind from where they needed to be.

  He, Hope, and a girl named Lani were working the same floor but not making much progress.

  "Does she always work so slowly?" Brad had restocked their carts twice already and Lani had yet to request a restock.

  "Some days are better than others." Hope shrugged and snapped the fresh sheet onto the newly stripped bed.

  It struck him that he'd heard this woman's name before. "Hope, are you covering for her?"

  "Everyone has hard times." She averted his gaze and tucked the bottom sheet in at one corner.

  Brad moved to the foot of the bed and reached for the other end of the sheet. "You're not answering my question."

  "And I'm not going to. My people are my problem." She shifted to another corner.

  "Then she is a problem?" He closed the gap, coming up directly behind her. When she stiffened, he took hold of her in his hands and spun her about to face him. "Who else do you cover for?"

  "No one." She closed her eyes and sucked in a deep breath, slowly blowing it out before meeting his gaze. "Lani has three kids under six, and a boyfriend who shows up long enough to get her pregnant, take what money she's saved, and disappear again. She's totally reliable and dependable when he's not around. I think he's back, but I can't get her to talk to me."

  Hope was as beautiful inside as she was out. He knew he shouldn't, but he brushed a stray lock of hair from across her cheek and tucked it behind her ear. "Covering for her isn't going to fix her boyfriend problems."

  "Maybe not. But firing her isn't going to fix anything either." The sparkle in her eyes had turned to fire. She was like a mama lion protecting her cub. This woman was amazing. So many problems of her own on the forefront but she was fighting for someone who clearly couldn’t fight for herself. Neither of them had moved. They still stood toe to toe. Chest to chest.

  Resisting the urge to kiss the chin tilted up in determination, Brad nodded. "No. You're right. But there has to be some agency that can help. I'll look into it."

  "I've tried.” Some of the fight slipped away from her. “Lani won't cooperate. I keep hoping something will change." Her gaze fixed on his, she slipped her tongue out to moisten her lower lip, and all the blood in his veins rushed south.

  "Do you have any idea how special you are?" This wasn't the time or place to get personal. He knew that more than anyone. But he couldn't resist one quick tiny peck on the lips.

  Except there was no such thing as tiny or quick when it came to his mouth on Hope. The slightest taste and he wanted more. Just like the other night, within seconds, heat spread through him, hot and scorching like flames on kerosene.

  "Brad," she mumbled against his lips, her breath warm and taunting.

  His lips eased away from hers, trailing kisses across her jaw. "Oh, Hope."

  "Yes," she muttered softly.

  For a long frozen second Brad stared down at her. "God, you are beautiful." He didn't dare share everything he thought and felt for fear she'd think him crazy. Crazy in love.

  Chapter Twelve

  Hope's cell phone sounded off. "Someone probably needs more sheets."

  He could stare at her like this in his arms for the rest of his life. "Ignore them. Maybe they'll go away."

  "I doubt it," she mumbled, her hand pressed flat against his chest she just wanted to feel his strength below her fingertips another moment.

  Dipping his chin, his forehead came to rest on hers. “You have no idea how much I want to just give them our cart and stay right here where we are.”

  Oh, yeah, she had a pretty good idea. Too bad a nervous edge was building in her gut. This was all happening so fast, and she was liking it too much. Pulling completely away she reached for her phone before it went to voice mail. "Hello?"

  “Good news,” Nina’s voice echoed on speaker. “We’re just about caught up. Call this your last room and turn the works over to Lani.”

  Stepping back, she brushed her hand nervously along her slacks. "Thanks, Nina. We're almost done here."

  She'd barely disconnected when, brushing the back of his knuckles along her chin, Brad leaned into her again. "When we're done here we'll pick up some food and go some place quiet to have that talk I mentioned earlier."

  "Food sounds great." Using a smile to camouflage her concerns, she shoved any misgivings to the back of her mind. Whatever news he had to share, she wasn't going to let her imagination ruin how fabulous she felt at this very moment. Whatever she and Brad had, she was going to enjoy every minute of it for as long as she could. Even if it meant risking another broken heart.

  She shifted to move around him, but Brad ran his fingers along her arm. Catching hold of her hand, he quickly squeezed before letting go, and she grinned like a besotted schoolgirl. Yeah, she was definitely on board for whatever this man had to offer.

  ***

  The beds made, and the bathroom cleaned, Brad opened the door to the hall and had barely gotten the cart out when an angry shout caught his attention. Backing out of the room, he strained to hear the muffled sounds of what he thought was a female voice followed by a much louder male voice.

  "That doesn't sound good." Hope craned her neck to see up the hall.

  Hairs on the back of Brad's neck came to full attention. Parking the cart to the side of the hall, he moved briskly in the direction of the argument. Hurrying faster as the voices grew louder and more agitated, he listened carefully. Several rooms away, a door flew open.

  "Where'd you effing put it?"

  The cracking echo of a hand across flesh ripped through Brad and sent him into a full gallop, rapidly swallowing the short distance remaining between him and the woman's cries.

  "I didn't hide it. I paid the rent," the frazzled voice cried.

  "Lying bi..."

  “Hey.” Cutting the man off, Brad screeched to halt. In front of him was a petite woman, her back pressed to the wall, one hand cradling her cheek, the other hand remained protectively over her stomach. He’d also come face-to-face with a bear of a man, standing, arm raised. Poised to strike again. “I wouldn't do that if I were you."

  Bear Man turned and growled out, "Mind your own business," as he pushed at the door to slam it closed.

  Brad caught the door and shoved it open all the way. "Not happening."

  A fire burned strong in the man's eyes. The guy was either high as a kite or truly a madman.

  For Brad, it didn't matter which. "Step away from her."

  "I'm ca
lling 9-1-1," Hope yelled from the hall. Other guests must have come from their rooms, as Brad could hear the din of low murmurs behind him.

  "We don't need no cops. And we don't need you. This is a family matter."

  "Not in my hotel it's not." Brad spread his feet slightly for better balance. One of two things was about to happen: this character would get a flash of wisdom and take off for safer ground, or he would start swinging. Either way, Brad was ready for him.

  "What's going on?" Out of breath, Keith rushed up behind Brad.

  "This gentleman was just about to leave before the police arrive."

  That was all the additional motivation the nutcase needed. Letting out another bestial roar, the guy lunged at Brad. Anticipating the move, Brad shifted his weight and threw a punch. In seconds they were both on the ground. Keith, unprepared for the assault, was knocked back into the hall. A woman screamed behind him, maybe more than one. Running steps could be heard in the hall. The cops or security.

  Either way it didn't matter. High on drugs, a brute this size would have taken half a dozen men to hold him down. But up close and personal, Bearman here wreaked of too much liquor. It took Brad all of fifteen seconds to flip the idiot and pin him facedown to the ground. With Brad's knee pressing all his weight into the guy's shoulder blades and restraining both his arms behind his back, Bearman wasn't going anywhere of his own free will anytime soon.

  Hotel security came up behind him.

  "Do you have handcuffs?" Brad asked.

  "Yes, sir." The young kid, built like a linebacker, kneeled beside Brad and, biting back a smile, slipped the cuffs onto the guy's wrists and jerked him to his feet.

  Brad was pretty sure this was the most fun this security guard had ever had. "Take this creep out front. Cops should be here any minute."

  "You okay?" Keith scanned Brad as he pushed to his feet.

  Brad brushed himself off and tucked in his shirttail. "Fine."

  "Good. I'll go with security to meet the cops. You all right with handling everything in here?"

  "Yeah. Fine. Go. And let the police know I am most definitely pressing charges."

  Keith nodded, and he and security escorted the still-growling man down the hall.

  "Sorry for any inconvenience," Brad addressed the few guests standing warily in the hall.

  One guy about his size and a few years older walked over and offered his hand to Brad. "I would have stepped in to help, but you seemed to have it under control pretty fast. Good job."

  "My mom will be thrilled to know all those years in high school spent getting knocked senseless as a running back paid off."

  The other guy laughed at the football joke, then turned and ushered his wife into their room.

  Brad had a feeling he was about to meet Lani. Spinning around to the woman still in the room, he was relieved to see her standing, shoulders straight. "You'll need some ice for that," he said.

  Her hand drifted again to her cheek as she shook her head. "Thank you. And I'm really sorry. I never thought he'd come to work."

  "You have nothing to apologize for. The problem is all his. And he can stew over it from the inside of a jail cell."

  "He's not always like this." A wistful expression fell over her face.

  Brad couldn't imagine a nice side to the guy he'd just wrestled with. "If you need any more help, a lawyer, whatever, just let me know."

  "Yes, and thank you again, Mr. Peyton. You really are a good guy."

  Shaking his head, he waved off the comment. "I'm just glad I was here."

  "So am I. If you don't mind,” she shimmied around him. “I have to finish my rooms."

  He didn’t like the darkening pink on her face. "I think you should take the afternoon off. Get that chin checked out. Make sure he didn't do more serious damage."

  "Maybe later. Hope has covered for me enough. I can finish."

  “For me,” he smiled at her, “would you at least take a few minutes and go put some ice on that?”

  Nodding at him, Lani stepped around him, and the last few seconds of conversation suddenly slapped him upside the head. Spinning around, he saw Hope, standing within earshot, her mouth slightly open, her eyes round with surprise, and he feared, understanding.

  Crap.

  ***

  Mr. Peyton. Brad Kane. Bradford Peyton. It couldn’t be. But there was no mistaking that Lani called him Mr. Peyton and he didn’t correct her. He’d also told her husband not in his hotel. His. Dear Lord, she'd just locked lips and come seriously close to so much more with the new CEO of the hotel. No. That couldn't be. How? There had to be a mistake. If she thought chances for anything permanent were slim before, what chance did a glorified maid with a young kid have with a jet setting billionaire?

  "Lani." Hope snapped herself out of a pity fest and turned and followed the battered woman away from the room. She could have a well deserved cry later. "Are you okay?”

  The other woman nodded. "I'm getting some ice. Then I'll be back. Thank heaven Mr. Peyton was here."

  "Yes, you said that before. How do you know him?"

  "Oh, before I worked here, I worked at the Royal Palm. Whenever Mr. Peyton was in town, he would stay there. Such a good looking man. And a nice smile. I'd always heard nice things about him, but he was the last person I expected to find here in the hall. I guess it makes sense, now that his company owns the Paradise Shores."

  "Yes.” Her luck had just run out. “It makes sense."

  Lani turned toward the infirmary, and Hope found herself walking directly to the back door. Somewhere behind her she heard her name. Brad. She picked up the pace, determined to get out of here. Shoving the door with all she had, she practically ran from the building and down the path.

  "Hope! Stop," Brad called after her.

  No. Not now. Why? Without further thought she raced past the main building and into the lot where all the employees parked. Lined against the wall were a myriad of vehicles. Sedans, SUVs, pickups, all of them older models, none of them hers.

  Brad ran up beside her, breathing heavy from the mad dash. "Hope."

  "I don't have my car." Hugging her arms, she could think of nothing else to say. She didn’t want to break down here in front of everyone and she didn’t want to face him. Not now, not yet.

  "We came in mine." He pushed the key fob and the white car beeped. "We'll get something to eat. I'll explain."

  Being stranded in the parking lot with little choice as to where to go, she turned to face him—still drowning in her own thoughts, a shimmer of anger replacing the hurt. "What's to explain? You're a rich hotel magnate, and I'm head of housekeeping." Her fisted hands landed on her hips. "And you lied to me."

  "Not to you. Well"—he raked his fingers through his hair and blew out a big breath—"it was a dare."

  "Which part? The lie? Or kissing me, making me think that maybe…" Her words trailed off. She was quickly going from hurt and confused to seriously ticked off.

  "Working undercover in my own company. I turned down the TV show, and my friends challenged me to do it anyway."

  "What?" Of all the possible explanations, that wasn’t anywhere near what she’d expected. Who uses a TV show as an excuse for crappy behavior?

  He reached for her, then thinking better of it, shoved his hands in his pockets. "My friend's wife, a very smart woman by the way, said you wouldn't like it when you found out about me. Anyhow, she’s the one originally who insisted I would learn more about my company, working here as an equal, than from reading reports. And she was right about that too."

  Was he serious? "Any idiot could have told you that."

  "Are you calling me an idiot?" A hint of a smile teased at the corner of his mouth.

  She wasn't the least bit amused. "If you're telling me the truth, then yes."

  He went from amused to stunned in nothing flat. He stood quietly a moment, and then, with an assenting dip of his head, he shrugged one shoulder. "I guess I am about a lot of things. But do I get any grace for being
a fast learner and wanting to tell you the truth?"

  "The road to hell is paved with good intentions." She shifted and crossed her arms.

  "That may be, but I specifically told you that I had something to tell you. Twice."

  Her mouth fell open prepared to bark back, when her brain cells kicked in. He had. Her jaw snapped shut and her arms fell to her sides. He’d mentioned something to tell her both before and later …

  "See. You're starting to believe me. I'm a nice guy. Really I am. And I can learn to be nicer. Or at least smarter." He moved closer to her, and she resisted the urge to step back. "I know ignorance is no excuse." He pulled one hand slowly from his pocket and fingered a lock of hair fallen lose from the bun she'd pinned to the back of her head. "But I couldn't have possibly known I would fall in love with a total stranger in just a few days."

  This time she leaned forward, not so much from will but sheer imbalance. Her world was quickly spinning out of control. "You… what?"

  "It took me two days to realize I loved you and another two days to accept the truth. All I ask of you now is to give us time for you to fall in love with me. You already like me. And I'm really the same guy, just with a pretty hefty bank account and a stupid sports car."

  "Stupid?"

  "Can't haul baseball equipment and kids around in a sports car. I'll get an SUV."

  He was talking kids and baseball. Was it foolish that her heart was swelling in her chest? That she wanted to believe him? Desperately wanted to believe him?

  A sparkle twinkled in his eyes. "We'll keep the BMW for just the two of us, once in a while."

  Oh, Lord, she was so out of her league. "I don't—"

  "Let's start with lunch. You and me. We'll talk about normal things. Everyday things. Baseball."

  There was so much hope and desperation staring back at her. Could this be real? Could the man she'd fallen in love with like a princess in a fairy tale really love her back? Was there a happy-ever-after ending in this crazy scenario? Her head bobbed, and slowly a smile tugged her cheeks into a face-splitting grin. "Yes." Damn it, yes. "I'd love to have lunch with you." And maybe something more.