Page 14 of A Taste of Paradise

Not the best start to married life.

As Makellah proceeded with checking them in, and a relieved Erin wished them a wonderful stay, the bride marched from the lobby while her husband lingered behind her.

Erin was about to breathe a sigh of relief at a crisis averted, when a scream from nearby jolted her, and everyone else in the lobby.

Now what …

Erin looked around to see a woman in her mid-to-late forties sprawled on the floor inside the entryway, the skirt of her floral print dress up around her thighs and one leg bent beneath her body.

She quickly ran out from behind the front desk as her concierge colleague Nadine also moved to assist. They met in the middle, each trying to assess whether the guest was injured, and how badly. The floor didn’t appear wet or slippery and it didn’t seem that she could’ve tripped on anything in the nearby vicinity.

‘Are you all right?’ Erin asked, concerned, as she knelt beside the woman, who was now sitting up a little. Her cheeks were red and her brown eyes shifted to and fro as she blinked rapidly.

‘I’ll be OK,’ she answered in a low tone. ‘I tripped on the steps, I think,’ she mumbled as she attempted to fix her clothing and get up from the floor.

‘Don’t move. We should get someone to make sure you didn’t hurt yourself,’ Erin suggested, genuine worry in her voice. A slip and fall weren’t always so straightforward. She remembered a similar incident in Vegas where a visitor had tripped and broken her ankle. She didn’t realise until she’d put weight on it and a medic had to be called.

‘No, really, I’m fine,’ the guest assured her quickly, a hint of a New York accent leaking through.

‘I really think you should wait for someone to check you out—’

The guest’s pleading gaze silenced her immediately. ‘Please … ’ she glanced around at the faces staring at her predicament and turned back. ‘I really want to get to my room,’ she whispered, and Erin realised the flush in her cheeks wasn’t a result of the tropical heat outside, but embarrassment. ‘I was about to check in …’

‘I understand. Let me help you though.’ Erin offered her arm. The woman took it and got to her feet with relative ease, though Erin noted she still seemed to be suffering some discomfort in the leg that had been bent beneath her. ‘What’s your name? I’ll get you checked in quick-smart.’

‘Molly Cooke,’ she revealed, her gaze avoiding contact with anyone else’s.

‘Are you OK to walk, Molly?’ she asked, summoning a porter to assist with her luggage.

‘I’m good now, thanks.’

Erin left her in the care of Nadine while she checked the system and found the reservation easily. But there was a problem – again related to Lily’s earlier room machinations. Molly’s room had been double-booked.

Her gaze flew back to the poor woman, who looked as if she really did want the ground to open up and swallow her; to avoid any further delay and allay her discomfort, Erin quickly made a couple of amendments and upgraded this particular guest to a much nicer beachside suite.

According to a note accompanying the reservation, Molly Cooke was the daughter of a long-standing and beloved repeat visitor to the resort. Her mother, Eugenie Cooke, had apparently been coming to The Palms since its very inception back in the seventies, but had sadly died sometime earlier this year. One of her last requests was that her ‘happy place’ offer her grieving daughter the same great welcome she’d enjoyed over the years.

Erin quickly returned to the daughter’s side, key card in hand.

‘You’re all set now, Molly,’ she stated as she passed the card to the porter. ‘Jamal here will take you up. I’m Erin, by the way, the new guest relations manager. So if you need anything – anything at all during your stay – please let me know. I’ll let you get settled in your room now, and then make a point to pop up and check on you in a little while, if that’s all right?’

Molly considered her after a momentary glance, and shrugging, replied, ‘I guess. You really don’t have to—’

‘I want to,’ Erin interjected sincerely. She’d make it her business to ensure Molly had the easiest possible time while here grieving her mother.

It was the least she could do.

Chapter 13

Lily had planned events in The Palms for clients who had flown in from as far afield as Germany and Australia, and millionaires who paid top dollar for the ultimate luxury experience with hundreds of people in attendance. Most had money and connections enough to completely ruin the resort’s reputation if she made a mere misstep, but even under those circumstances, she’d felt more relaxed than she was right at that moment.

She and recently abandoned groom-to-be Shay Brady were walking along the boardwalk that ran along the nature preserve from the hotel to the closest public beach.

Islanders and tourists alike flocked to this part of the cove to soak up the sun and enjoy the clean, gentle waters – making it a perfect shallow swimming area for families with small children, and a low outcropping of rocks sheltered the area from waves.

A natural mini bay formed near the Tiki Bar, a small locally run eatery that marked the end of the shore, and now Lily’s stomach rumbled and her mouth watered as aromas from the nearby hotspot wafted across the street and filled her senses.

Following yesterday’s meeting with Erin and subsequent agreement with the caterer, she’d left a message at reception to deliver the good news to Shay about recovering some of his money, but he’d insisted on coming down to thank her in person.