Page 35 of Love In Hiding

“What?” she asked, looking around.

He moved to the mini fridge and opened it up. “I took a guess.”

She bent down and peered inside, scanning the bottles without bothering to pull them out. In an emergency, she wasn’t picky. And being trapped in a bland hotel room in a backward little fishing town with a man who managed to rile her temperandher hormones at the same time absolutely qualified as a Class A emergency.

“Damn. You sure know how to put a person in a good mood.”

“My evil plan all along,” he said. “It was more for me than you.”

She threw her head back and laughed. “I’m a lot. I know.”

“Self-awareness is the first step.”

“Toward corrective behavior, I know. But I happen to like how I am.”

“No one says you have to change,” he said and grabbed the key to the room.

“I don’t plan on it, but I also know when I can turn it up or down.”

She normally realized it after the words were out of her mouth, but she still knew.

“I saw a local pub type place when I was at the store. Not sure what else there is around here or how far you want to drive around looking.”

“I’m good with anything,” she said. “How far did you drive for the wine?”

“I didn’t. Kayleigh is very helpful when you ask nicely.”

“Yeah, yeah,” she said. They moved to the stairs over the elevator. She didn’t need to ride it for the one flight down if she wasn’t carrying or pulling bags.

“The store is across the street. Just a general one. A few down is the pub. It’s a nice night to walk anyway.”

“Notice any other stores or things in there? I need something to sleep in.”

He turned quickly to catch her glance. “You sleep naked?”

She laughed. “No. I hope you don’t. But I’ve only got a tank top and wouldn’t mind cotton shorts that don’t have a button or zipper on them. Maybe you could do the same?”

“Good point.”

They walked down the sidewalk, staying on the same side of the road. There were more people out than she thought and she wondered if they were vacationers.

“Do you think people rent houses around here?”

“There are only sixty rooms in the inn, so I’m thinking that’s a possibility.”

“It’s like you can tell the tourists from the locals. I’m not used to that. I’m always in bigger cities.”

“Come on, you can tell the tourists in New York,” he said.

“True. But not always. Where are you from? You never said.”

“Philly. And you’re from Orlando.”

“I feel at a disadvantage that you know more about me than I do you.”

“Not much to know,” he said. “I told you where I’m from and I’ve got a younger sister and who she’s married to.”

“That’s it? That’s your entire existence outside of your job? No relationships? No kids? Nothing?”