Can’t Fight This Feeling
Indigo Royal Resort Book 1
Claire Hastings
Can’t Fight This Feeling
Indigo Royal Resort Book 1
By Claire Hastings
Copyright © 2020 Cara N Knott
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without permission in writing from the publisher, except by reviewers, who may quote brief passages in a review.
Names, characters, businesses, places, events, locales, and incidents are either the products of the author's imagination or used in a fictitious manner. And any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, locales, or actual events is purely coincidental
Ebook ISBN 978-1-7348291-0-5
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Printed in United States of America
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Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Epilogue
Acknowledgments
About the Author
For Drew & Denali -
For your unending, unwavering, unequivocal support in everything
Chapter One
The dude-bro standing in front of her treadmill huffed and puffed as he lifted free weights in the resort fitness suite. For the life of her, Drea Miller could not understand why people went on vacation and still got up early to work out. Why would you fly thousands of miles to paradise only to still be a slave to your alarm?
Should I ever go on an actual real vacation, you won’t catch me in the gym, she thought as she continued to pound away on the moving belt, trying to keep her focus on her own breathing and heart rate rather than the borderline-disturbing noises coming from the only other person in the room. Seriously, if she could hear him over her headphones, she could only imagine what it sounded like without.
To say she’d never taken a real vacation would be a lie. Her uncles had taken her to the mainland a number of times when she was growing up; they had wanted to make sure she saw things like the Statue of Liberty, the Grand Canyon, and the Alamo. But going on a long-haul field trip with your three bachelor uncles, disguised as an adventure, wasn’t exactly in the same category as the luxury all-inclusive experience that the Indigo Royal Resort was known for.
Dude-bro let out a loud grunt and dropped the weights in his hands, letting them hit the mats he was standing on just as Drea was starting to slow down to a speed-walk for her cooldown. He picked the weights up and walked them back over to the rack, looking in the mirror the whole time, and then winked at her. Well, there went her hope that he’d been eyeing himself in the mirror during the workout rather than her. She smiled back politely then quickly looked down at her phone, trying to push him out the door with her mind, hoping with all her being he wasn’t going to try to engage her in conversation. After a moment of scrolling through her workout playlist she looked up, hoping he had left. Apparently, she was not going to be that lucky.
“Hey,” he said, jutting his chin out with a grin, trying to be suave.
“Hi,” Drea replied, not bothering to stop what she was doing, hoping he’d take a hint.
“Glad to see I’m not the only fitness enthusiast here. The last couple of mornings I was starting to think maybe I’d have the place to myself the whole time.”
Drea had to stop herself from rolling her eyes at his lame attempt at a conversation starter. She had no idea how long he’d been at the resort, and didn’t really care. But she couldn’t exactly tell him that.
“I usually do my morning runs on the beach,” she responded. “But, I’ve got an early excursion, so...here I am.”
“Gotcha. Which one? My buddies wanna go on some boat tour thingy this morning, so we may hit that up,” he said, stepping around to the side of the treadmill so that he was now immediately to her left. She could smell the booze radiating from his breath and out of his pores as he did so, making her have to stop herself from visibly cringing.
“Oh, the Turtle Cove snorkel? That one is really fun! Totally worth the extra money, since it’s not technically included in the resort package.”
“You’ve already done it? Well damn, I was gonna see if you and your girlfriends wanted to join us.”
Drea stumbled over herself a little, but righted her step before he noticed. He thinks I’m a guest! Well, shit. Ok, just let him down easy…or…
“I could probably convince my friends to get on the boat,” she smirked. “I mean, the rum punch is to die for!”
“Well then, this sounds like a party! I’ll round up my dudes and we’ll catch you beauties in a few!” He snapped his fingers, pointed at her with “finger guns,” and winked as he walked backwards to the door leading to the lobby. Drea held up a thumbs-up as she watched him exit backwards, still looking at her.
Once the door was closed, she stopped the treadmill and just stood there, exhaling loudly, shaking her head. She should have let him down easy, should have told him the truth. But it was just too easy to play him. And maybe he and his buddies wouldn’t really get on the boat. If the smell of booze emitting from him was any indication of how much they had partied the night before, it might be another three days until the rest of that group woke up.
Hopping off the treadmill, she headed for the lobby, poking her head out to make sure the coast was clear. When she was sure her new BFF wasn’t hanging out, she dashed across the wide open-air space, dodging the massive round table that stood in the middle of the lobby, playing host to an exceptionally large fern as well as a number of different packets of information about the resort and the island. She had loved running circles around this table when she was little, trying to get one of her uncles to chase her. Her giggles would bounce off the walls and echo their way into the restaurant or out to the pool.
Making her way into the restaurant, she noticed there were already a few early risers already seated for breakfast. Based on the number of to-go carafes sitting on their tables, Drea guessed most had just returned from the beach, having taken advantage of the “Sip with the Sunrise” coffee service they offered their guests. It was something Drea’s mom and aunt used to love to do—go sit on the beach and sip coffee while watching the sun come up. Drea loved that her uncles had taken their little indulgence and made it an everyday ritual, even if the women who inspired said ritual were no longer able to enjoy. She smiled as she took in the scene, and walked along the edge of the room toward the kitchen door in the back. She slipped into the kitchen, narrowly avoiding a server with a full tray who was heade
d in the opposite direction.
“Morning, baby girl!” came a shout from the other side of the kitchen.
“Morning, Uncle Miller. Wasn’t expecting to see you up for breakfast this early. Didn’t you do dinner last night?” Drea said, crossing over to where her favorite uncle was pulling pans of muffins out of the massive industrial oven.
Although singling him out wasn’t fair, since she loved all three of the men who raised her more than anything, there was an extra special place in her heart for Uncle Miller. Maybe it was because he had been her dad’s best friend, or because he was the one who had apparently been insistent that he and his brothers still be the ones to raise her, or maybe it was just his signature “magic muffins,” the ones that always landed their resort on annual lists of best hotel restaurants. Uncle Vaughn, who was the general manager of the Indigo Royal, had always been the serious and strict one, pushing her to study and learn everything she could, instilling in her discipline and routine, but also always challenging her to try something new. Uncle Grayson, who she had always just called “Uncle Gray,” had taken on the role of fun uncle, from the funny voices he gave to her stuffed animals when she was little to teaching her how to sail, rock climb, and any number of other outdoor activities he was in charge of as activities director for the resort.
But it had been Uncle Miller who had been the biggest influence on her growing up. He’d handled the meals, bedtimes, and all the day-to-day school and extracurricular stuff. He’d been the one nursing her back to health when she was down with the flu (although Uncle Gray wasn’t ever going to let anyone forget the one time he’d been the puke receptacle when she brought home the stomach bug in the third grade). He’d been the one who very awkwardly tried to explain feminine products and “the change,” as he called it, to her after an embarrassing gym class incident, before running to Vaughn’s long-time girlfriend Simone and begging her to please take over before he scarred Drea for life. He’d been the one who had modeled love and loyalty and been her rock as she figured out the world. He also happened to be the most incredible chef, and made muffins that were simply to die for.
“I did. But Rafe’s kiddo isn’t feeling so hot so I told him to take the morning off. I remember the days of trying to wrestle a sick little one to sleep and then being up at the crack of dawn to scramble eggs,” he said with a laugh. His tall frame required that he squat down all the way to pull out another pan of muffins, and Drea noticed there was a little more gray starting to appear in his dark hair. “You just come from the beach?”
“Gym actually. We’re running a Turtle Cove trip this morning, so I wanted to make sure I was back and showered in plenty of time. There’s a lot to do on Turtle Cove mornings and while it’s not that I don’t trust Dalton…” she trailed off.
“Sometimes ‘living your best life’ doesn't always equate with being punctual.”
Drea just laughed. “That’s one way of putting it. Okay, I’m off. Love you!”
“Love you too, baby girl!”
Kyle Egan ran through the morning checklist as he got the boats ready for the day. He didn’t need to ready all three of the catamarans, but he’d had to make the quick trip to get gas for the Runnin’ Down a Dream, so he figured he might as well gas up the Livin’ on a Prayer and the Don’t Stop Believin’ while he was at it. He laughed to himself as he poured the gas into the fifty-two-foot day-sail catamaran; the fleet of classic rock namesakes might not match the uber posh Indigo Royal Resort on paper, but once you were on site you understood exactly why the owner-slash-operator brother trio had turned to the classic rock gods for inspiration. Everything about this high-class establishment was about enjoying the moment and living life to the fullest. One didn’t get to be consistently voted one of the best resorts in the Virgin Islands by not having any fun.
Just as he was checking off the last of the items, his first mate, Dalton Sutherland, casually strolled down the pier carrying a handle of rum in each hand. Kyle looked down at his watch to see that Dalton was about fifteen minutes earlier than he had expected.
“You didn’t sleep in your own bed last night, did you?” Kyle asked, grinning at Dalton.
“Now, whatever would make you say that?” Dalton drawled, his southern accent coming off strong, as he smirked in response.
“Because you’re here on time. You know I think you’re the best first mate I could ask for, but you only show up on time when you need to make a quick exit in the morning.”
“Hey now, I resemble that comment!” Dalton said, owning up to the accusation as he handed Kyle one of the handles of rum and climbed up into the catamaran.
“You resemble what comment?” said a sweet voice that sent a flood of warmth down Kyle’s whole body. He looked up to see Drea walking toward them with the stack of paperwork in hand. Her chestnut-brown corkscrew curls were still slightly wet from her morning shower and her makeup-free face radiated with an energy that was so uniquely Drea. She looked so damn cute in her running shorts and tank top, and Kyle didn’t dare allow himself to linger on the thoughts of what could be if acknowledged all the things she made him feel.
“Dalton was the picture of punctuality today,” Kyle said, giving Drea a ‘you know what that means’ look.
Drea groaned. “Ugh...please just don’t let her have been one of our guests.”
“Excuse you, I have standards, you know!”
“Do you, though?”
Dalton simply shrugged, not even bothering to look remotely guilty. “I didn’t say they were high standards.” He held out a hand and helped her step into the boat. She smiled at him and rolled her eyes playfully. “You know I would never do anything to jeopardize you, your uncles, or this establishment.”
“Yes,” Kyle injected. “Because that would mean he’d have to go home and get a real job.”
They all erupted into laughter as Dalton tapped his nose with his index finger to indicate that Kyle was exactly right. As if taking that as his cue, Dalton headed below deck to start pulling up the life jackets and snorkel gear for the tour. Still shaking her head and laughing, Drea looked up at Kyle, the sparkle in her eyes sending a shot straight to his gut. He smiled back, secretly hoping it would keep the sparkle there just a little longer.
“Ready for another awesome day?” he asked.
“Are you kidding? You know Turtle Cove is my favorite.” She flipped through the papers she was holding as she hopped down to the lower deck to the u-shaped bar where she spent most of her time while they were out with guests. “Still time for some last-minute changes, but if these numbers stick, we should only have about thirty-five on today’s tour, so, perfect size for the cove.”
The Runnin’ Down a Dream had a limit of fifty-five guests, but all three members of its crew much preferred to get nowhere near that number. With that many guests, to only the three of them, it was like herding toddlers. Add in the danger of the water and of course, the rum punch, and it made for more chaos than it was worth. Well, that was until they saw the tip jar at the end of the excursion.
“Well, if that’s all we have to deal with, maybe I’ll tell Dalton he’s stuck on deck duty and I’ll hop into the water to come play,” he said, giving her a little wink.
“Don’t you dare tease me like that, Kyle Egan! Don’t get me all excited about my favorite person coming to play in my favorite place and then back out on me.” Drea pointed her finger at him accusingly and attempted to glare at him, only to have the edges of her mouth curve up slightly, giving away her amusement.
“I’m just gonna leave the whole ‘playing in my favorite place’ thing alone,” he mused, climbing up the three little steps from the main deck into the captain’s perch.
“Kyle!”
He laughed. “You said it, not me!”
Kyle settled into the seat and sighed, smiling to himself over jerking Drea’s chain. He liked hearing that he was her favorite person; after all, she was without a doubt his. She’d not only been his first friend when he arrived i
n St. Thomas five years ago, but had been his saving grace in trying to figure out how one actually lives here full-time. She was quite possibly the best friend he’d ever had, and he couldn’t imagine his life without her in it. That funny feeling niggled at his gut again as he wondered if he’d made her blush with his comment, and he had to stop himself from peeking underneath to check. He wasn’t here to flirt—that was Dalton’s role—he was here to do a job. Putting Drea out of his mind, and his focus back in place, he continued to prepare for the day ahead.
Chapter Two
“Are y’all ready for the best day of your vacation?” Kyle yelled over the wind as they sailed out of the marina. “My name is Kyle and I’ll be your captain today. The ravishing beauty up front is Dalton, my first mate, and that adorable little sprite with the effervescent giggle behind the bar is your US Coast Guard certified bartender and cruise director, Drea. She is in charge of your fun today, while Dalton and I are in charge of your safety. You have been warned!” Laughter rang out from the guests on the catamaran and Kyle could see some of the glances being thrown at both his teammates from those checking them out. “We’ll be out of the marina shortly, where we shall stop to have a little chat about safety and what to expect. I promise to keep this part of the day short and sweet—just like all of Dalton’s previous relationships.”
Can't Fight This Feeling (Indigo Royal Resort Book 1) Page 1