Total pages in book: 58
Estimated words: 54208 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 271(@200wpm)___ 217(@250wpm)___ 181(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 54208 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 271(@200wpm)___ 217(@250wpm)___ 181(@300wpm)
Randomly choosing a sidewalk, she ran. Celeste decided to always turn right, figuring the paths looped around the property. She loved the grounds of the resort. People were everywhere, enjoying the beautiful flowers, pool, and the ocean. With a smile, she put running on the beach in the morning on her to-do list.
At the third possible right, she saw an employee-only area. Her sense of direction told her the route on the left would take her back to the main building. Not wanting to go back, Celeste turned to the right. She’d had enough of doing the right thing. Look where that got me. Literally, on the run!
Chuckling at herself, Celeste ran down the path. It was even more beautiful here. She had seen no one since turning in this direction. It was almost like having her own personal paradise. By the time she made the large loop around the resort, Celeste felt much better. She’d burnt off a lot of her nervous energy. Slowing to a walk, she cooled down on the path to the main building.
“You’re making me look bad,” Sadie called as Celeste walked into the reception area.
The woman who had helped her walked around the desk to fall into step with her. “I’m headed to talk to the employees in the laundry area.”
“Oh! Thank you for saying that. Is there a machine available somewhere for guests to wash their clothes?” Celeste asked.
“There isn’t a guest laundry facility, but there is a bag in the closet you can fill with clothes and drop off at the laundry. Come with me. I’ll show you where it is. They’ll deliver it back to your room the next day.”
“That could work. Thank you.” Celeste could try it once to see if she could afford the cost. She could always rinse out her underwear and hang them in the shower.
When they reached the laundry, a man at the entrance smiled at Sadie. “Hey, Sadie.”
“Hi, Mark. This is a guest who’s interested in sending things to the laundry. I’ll leave you here, Molly, to get all the details.”
“Hey, Molly. Here are a few extra bags. We just ask that you list the number of items you have on the bags. I’ll remind you when you come down if it’s not done. That helps us keep all your things together.”
“Can I ask you what the cost is?”
“Wave your keycard over the sensor, and it will display the cost. It depends on what resort package you have.”
Turning slightly, Celeste pulled her card from her sports bra and placed it close to the machine. Free popped up on the screen. “It doesn’t cost anything?” she asked in amazement.
“Not for you. See you soon, Molly,” Mark said, looking past her to help the next customer.
Celeste whirled, and Bam! Those powerful hands spanned her waist to help her keep her balance. She raised her head, and her eyes locked with deep brown ones filled with laughter.
“I am so sorry,” she apologized. How could she keep running into this man?
“You have to be bruised by now,” he said with a laugh.
“You are hard,” she stated before feeling her face flame with embarrassment. She looked down to break their eye contact and then realized what she was looking at and slapped her hand over her eyes. “That’s not what I meant.”
“Here’s your laundry, Hawking.”
“Thanks, Mark.”
Hawking guided her away from the laundry area with a hand at the small of her back and into a small alcove. “You can lower your hand now. Mark didn’t see anything. He went to the back to get my clothes.”
“Could you just point me at a wall and go somewhere safe? I’ll count to a hundred and go hide in my room,” Celeste said, wishing the ground would open under her feet.
“Not going to happen, Little girl. I need to keep you where I can see you so you don’t run into anything harder than me and get injured.” He chuckled. “What are you doing for dinner?”
“Dinner?” Her mind seized on that instead of focusing on the endearment, Little girl. He couldn’t know—could he?
Chapter Five
“Dinner. We eat and relax. After all, it looks like we’re destined to run into each other,” Hawking teased.
“I am so sorry. Usually, I’m not so uncoordinated.” Inwardly, she rolled her eyes at that statement. When it came to working in a lab, she was incredibly on point and skilled. She could roll back and forth between a microscope and her computer with ease.
“I think something is telling us we need to get to know each other. Have dinner with me. We’ll go to The Market. It’s an outside café. There will be families and couples. The food is everything from fish and chips to salads with New Zealand wines and craft beer to top things off.”
Her stomach growled loudly. This time, Celeste slapped her hand over her flat tummy. The laughter in his eyes was irresistible. “Okay. My stomach is a traitor and has outed me for missing breakfast and lunch.”