Carter’s green eyes were raging like a stormy sea, but she wasn’t about to back down. After a while, he sighed once more and nodded. They walked back to reception.
“Okay, there’s nothing we can do about this. We’ll have to accept.” Maya felt much better for saying that once she saw relief flood Lisa’s eyes.
“Thank you. Thank you both so much. I am truly sorry. I’ll make sure the company reimburse you both for the inconvenience. Let me show me to your room.”
It was on the top floor. There were two storeys, plus some rooms on the ground floor. They took the lift. If Maya had possessed a knife, she’d have been able to cut the atmosphere in to ribbons.
“Here we are,” Lisa announced brightly. “Oh, and I think you’ll like it.”
“Not a cat in hell’s chance,” Carter moaned.
There was a brass plaque on the door. The words emblazoned on it did little to relieve the tension. It read, ‘Love Conquers All.’
“What the hell kind of room has that written on the damn door?” Carter muttered.
Maya had a sinking feeling in her stomach that she knew what they were about to face. Oh, boy. The fates really did have it in for her. She used her card key to enter. Her eyes widened at the sight before her. It was massive. A suite rather than just a bedroom. All decorated in blues and greens. There was a sofa to one side, a desk and chairs, a mini bar, tea, and coffee making facilities and…
“Oh. My. God. You’ve got to be kidding me,” she whispered.
“Shit,” came Carter’s response.
To one side, there was a king-sized four-poster bed.
“We have to sleep in the same bed?” she asked Lisa, her voice coming out in a strangled squeak.
Lisa could only nod and added with confidence, “Being this large, it’ll give you plenty of room. And,” she said, darting over towards a massive wardrobe, “there are enough spare pillows in here, so you can put them down the middle of the bed.”
“Please tell me this is all some weird ass dream,” Maya groaned.
“Hmm, reminds me of a song called Welcome to my Nightmare,” Carter added.
“Well, I’ll leave you to get settled. Dinner’s at seven-thirty.” Lisa fled through the door, leaving the couple alone.
Carter had yet to move away from the door. Maya left him to have a look at the bathroom. She wasn’t disappointed. There was a large shower and a big jacuzzi bath. After a thorough inspection, she headed back to the main room. Carter hadn’t budged an inch, still standing by his case. To hell with him, she was going to make the most of this.
“Which side of the bed do you want?”
“Huh?”
“Do you want to sleep on the right or the left-hand side, Carter?”
“How the hell do I know. I’m still trying to process it all.” He raised his hands to the air and let them fall back down by his sides.
His behaviour was rattling her. She was hungry and tired. Plus, she required an injection of caffeine. She strode up to him.
“Let’s get this straight once and for all. I’m not ecstatic about the situation either. But there is nothing we can do about it. We just have to make the best of a bad situation. Now, choose a side and I’ll make us a coffee. How does that sound?”
He ran a hand through his hair. “I’d prefer something stronger.”
“Me too. We could raid the mini bar, but I’d rather wait until we go down for dinner to have something alcoholic. For now, though, caffeine will have to do.”
He nodded, hauled his case to the left side of the bed, which was good for Maya as she preferred the right. As he went through the motions of unpacking, she fixed them a drink.
“Sugar and milk?” she called out.
“I take my coffee black, please. I thought you’d remember that.”
Maya chose to ignore his remark relating to the coffee incident of the other day. She left hers on the table next to the kettle and took his to him. Her foot caught underneath a rug by the side of the bed and she lurched forward. Carter grabbed the coffee from her before she covered him again.
“I’m so sorry. I promise you, I’m not usually this clumsy. I’ve just been through a rough time lately and my head isn’t in the game.”
She was concerned he’d be angry with her again. Honestly, if he shouted at her, she’d probably have been reduced to tears after all this stress. He placed the mug down on the table and studied her. His lips twitched and his eyes sparkled with mischief. That was her cue to laugh and he joined in. After the laughter subsided, they sat next to one another on the bed.
“Jesus, you couldn’t make this up, could you? It’s like one of those awful rom-com movies.”
“No, you couldn’t. But in my line of work, this would make a great story,” Maya admitted.
“What do you do for a living?”
“I work for a small publishing company. I design covers for author’s books and do some of the proofreading as well. I love my job.”
“Sounds fascinating. You’ll have to tap up one of your authors to make this into a book,” he teased.
“Yeah, you could have something there. What do you do?”
“This is a bit like being at work for me.”
“What do you mean? Are you a carer?”
“Nothing like that. I work as an advisor with a local charity for the elderly.”
“Ah, that’s why you’re so good with the older people on our coach.”
He nodded. They drank their coffee and unpacked the rest of their belongings. The wardrobe had ample room for all their clothing. She reached for her nightwear and suddenly felt her cheeks burn. What on Earth would he think about her pjs? They were black and white spotted bottoms, but the top had four Disney female baddies on with the heading, ‘Bad Girls Have More Fun.’ Plus, she had fluffy bed socks with pugs on, in case her feet got cold. She hurriedly put them under the duvet.
A distressing thought came to her. “Carter, do you wear pyjamas?”
Carter
Carter was still trying to get his head around this situation. He didn’t normally lose it and was always known for his easy-going nature. But with all the recent events, plus he was dog tired and starving, he felt like he was losing the plot. He was surprised at how calmly Maya was dealing with it. He watched as she put all her things away and tried not to chuckle when he saw what she wore in bed. Her question about his clothing was unexpected.
“I usually sleep naked.”
“Oh… oh. I see.”
He loved how her cheeks coloured at his declaration.
“Hey, don’t worry. I can sleep in my boxers and we have dressing gowns supplied so it’s cool.”
“But… but what if you roll over to my side of the bed?”
Her eyes went wide, and her blush deepened. She really was stunning, and her lips were so plump and kissable. He needed to stow those ideas.
“We’ll do what Lisa suggested and put pillows down the middle.”
She nodded and glanced at her watch. “Okay. It’s six o’clock. Do you mind if I take a quick bath? Or would you prefer to use it first?”
He smiled. “Go right ahead. Would you like me to make you another coffee? I could put some brandy in it out of the mini bar if you like. Might help with the shock of our situation.”