Page 12 of Paper Hearts & Plot Twists

She swiped her card, pulled the handle, and stepped into the dark space. The whirring fan added a nice touch, ensuring a relaxing environment for guests who were arriving late. A dark room wasn’t her favorite, but she could figure out a lamp situation later. She was too tired right now.

Emily kicked her shoes off by the door and left her bag there as well. She considered changing into pajamas, but decided her leggings and sweater were good enough for sleep.

Using her knee for leverage, she launched herself into the center of the bed . . . suddenly not so plush or soft, but hard, moving, and yelling. The bedding writhed and contorted beneath her.

Emily screamed. She scrambled away while a hoarse voice also shouted and fell on her bottom on the floor. She scooted away from the bed in an awkward mockery of a crab walk. A moment later, the room was flooded with lamplight.

The looming shadow materialized into perhaps the most gorgeous man she’d ever seen. Emily’s mouth fell open in shock at the shirtless man before her. She was embarrassed to feel heat creep up her cheeks, which seemed to be happening a lot today. The man stared back in wide-eyed shock, clutching a pillow in his hands like it was a weapon rather than the fluffy antagonist in slumber party battles.

“What are you doing in my room?” they asked at the same time.

Emily scrunched her nose. “This is my room.”

“I paid for this room, and my paperwork says it’s mine,” he rebutted. “I don’t know how you got in here, but you need to leave.”

“They must’ve made a mistake. I was given this room,” Emily said. She pushed herself up to standing and wrapped her arms around her waist. She glanced around the room, trying not to stare at his shirtless chest or his much too handsome face. She was too tired to try to be tactful.

Emily hunched into herself when she heard him release an irritated sigh. She glanced up as he turned toward a suitcase open on the table, pulling out a shirt that he tugged over his head in one angry movement.

“We need to go sort out this room situation. Now!” he said, grabbing his key and gesturing toward the door.

Emily trailed behind him as though heading to the executioner’s block. She couldn’t bear to even look at the man. She’d been so close to sleep . . . and now it looked like it was hours away. She had to remind herself she was at this wonderful conference, and this too would pass. She’d forget all about a miserable day of travel just as soon as she had a full eight hours of sleep.

Chapter 7

Miles’s long legs carried him through the corridor, his pace unforgiving. Emily trailed several paces behind him, trying her best to keep up, though in no way wanting to walk directly in line with him. Her legs worked overtime and she was seconds away from having to jog at the rate he was going. Emily glared at his back, annoyed at the man for his part in this terrible evening.

Miles held the elevator door open once he was inside and realized Emily was several paces behind. At least he didn’t make her catch the next one, she thought to herself, though a second later when they were both awkwardly standing in the empty elevator, waiting for it to go down, she kind of wished he would have. What do you say to the man who stole your room and your first vacation in so many years you’d lost count?

Emily leaned against the wall and glanced off to the side. She could make out Miles’s profile in the shiny reflection of the metal surface. He looked annoyed, which Emily could already guess based on the situation alone. She felt pretty annoyed as well. He shouldn’t be annoyed when he’s the one who tried to steal her room. He must have some kind of deal with a worker here to make this happen. Well, she won’t allow him to push her out.

She breathed out a sigh of relief when the elevator stopped and stepped out, once again following Miles through the hallway toward the front lobby. At least she was more familiar with the route to and from her room. She hadn’t paid it much mind on her way there. These two trips, down and back when it was inevitably resolved, would go a long way to make the rest of the weekend run smoothly. Directions were never her strong suit.

Their footsteps echoed as they stepped into the open lobby, void of life except for the bright pink head of hair leaning on the desk on folded arms. Kat’s head popped up at the sound of their footsteps and her brows wrinkled together in confusion. Emily was sure she was wondering what was going on. It couldn’t be often that two customers came down together after midnight, especially right after one of them just checked-in.

“There seems to be a problem with our room assignment,” Emily explained softly. Judging by his attitude upstairs, he’d be a rude customer-service nightmare. Emily wasn’t about to unleash that on Kat, especially not at this hour. She ignored the look Miles sent her way. She wondered what he was planning to say instead, but she ignored it.

“What kind of problem?” Kat asked.

“She says she was assigned the same room as me,” Miles said. Emily tensed, his glare prickling her skin and raising the hair on the nape of her neck.

Emily clenched her teeth and turned back to Kat. “I was assigned to room 3740, and when I entered the room, this man was already there.”

“Already in the bed that you decided to jump into with no decorum,” Miles said slowly. Emily flushed and glanced Kat’s way, relaxing a bit when it seemed like Kat missed that comment. She didn’t need anyone to learn about that particular incident.

Kat looked at them both before pulling the keyboard toward her and typing into the computer. She frowned and typed something else, the frown deepening. “May I see your paperwork?” she asked, glancing at Miles and then Emily.

Both of them pulled out the paperwork they received when they checked in and passed it over the counter to Kat. She glanced at the papers, nodding her head occasionally before flipping the page. Finally Kat put the packets down and slid them back to their respective owners.

“I’m so sorry, Mr. Bennett, Ms. Parker. I don’t know how an error like this could’ve occurred,” Kat said as she looked back and forth between their paperwork, both showing their assigned room as 3740.

“Is there a chance you put the number in wrong?” Emily asked. She rubbed her eyes, trying to fight another yawn.

“I don’t input any of that. It’s automatically done by the system,” Kat explained with an apologetic frown and a shrug. “I’m just the customer service agent. There must’ve been some kind of technical error.”

“Well, we’ll need a room change then. You’ll have to find a new place for her,” Miles said, gesturing toward Emily. Emily glared back at him, but turned toward Kat for a response.

Kat stared at the computer in front of her, typing onto the screen. Her eyebrows drew together and her frown deepened. She continued typing. Finally, she lifted her head, looking back and forth at them apologetically. “I can comp you both the room, but there are no other rooms available, so either you can share, or one of you can find another place to stay for the conference.”

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