Page 28 of Some Like It Hott

“Um, so this is awkward,” Brianna says out loud. “You’re not Ann Arnward and Paul Stevens.”

Oh no.

“No,” I say, resigning myself to the next round of humiliation. “We’re Preston Hott and Natalie Archer. We’re here to get a tour of the spa and meet with Sonya about partnering to bring some of your services to the resort as activities. Including couples massages.”

“So, um, the thing is,” Brianna says, “this appointment was for Ann and Paul. And they’ve just showed up. There was a bit of confusion. Some communication…errors. We thought you were them.”

Natalie starts giggling. “Oh my God,” she says. “That’s—I can’t even?—”

“I’m so sorry,” Brianna says. “I thought you two were?—”

“No, I’m so sorry!” Natalie says. “I thought Sonya told you to demo the couples massage for us!”

The massage therapists are laughing, too. Natalie has propped herself up on the bed to talk to Brianna, and I am definitely not looking at her bare arms and the topmost smooth, gorgeous curve of her tits.

And I’m struck again by how nothing fazes her. By how she’s here, laughing through this mortifying moment…and how it doesn’t feel quite as awful, because she thinks it’s funny.

“We’ll get dressed now,” I tell Brianna and Amelia.

“You’re good sports,” Brianna says, patting me on the back. Then they slip out the door and close it behind them.

In the silence, Natalie giggles again. “Oh, myGod,” she says.

“I’ll change first,” I tell her.

It feels, somehow, safest, and right about now, it occurs to me that things might be a lot easier if Ididhate her.

14

Natalie

“I’m sorry again for the confusion,” Sonya says again as she shows us around Hott Spot. We’ve all apologized several times for the mix-up. I left Amelia and Briana big tips.

“It’s a good story,” I say. “I’m going to dine out on that for a long time.”

I think about Preston taking off his clothes while I lay face down and tried not to picture what was happening out of my sight.

Who knew that the sound of a zipper descending was that…suggestive. That it could hint at so many other…visuals.

But whatever. On to the next step here.

Hott Spot is a great operation, and it’s given us a bunch of new ideas beyond couples massage. Nail painting for kids. Lessons in beard trimming, bang cuts, and do-your-own eyebrows. Plus Sonya recently added yoga to the spa’s offerings, and she can open a few extra slots to make some resort-exclusive workshops and classes.

“You want to see the hot springs?” Sonya asks.

“Yes!”

She leads us through the luxurious women’s locker room and out onto the hot springs patio. The hot springs have been corralled into a stone-tile-edged pool. It’sbeautifulout here. There are rock outcroppings, a waterfall, a few small pools at different levels, and all kinds of amazing landscaping. Steam rises off the surface of the startlingly clear water. Somehow this space manages to capture both the exoticness and privacy of a jungle clearing as well as the high-end cache of a luxury spa. Not easy to do.

“God,” I groan. “That water looks so tempting.”

Preston shifts beside me. I know he said he doesn’t hate me, but I’m still not sure. It seems like everything I do or say gets under his skin.

Sonya smiles at me. “You’re welcome to use the spa any time you want after hours. Your employee keycard will get you in that gate.” She shows me.

“Seriously?”

She grins. “Don’t tell anyone. It’s just family and friends.”

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