Page 2 of Made Up for Love
It was exactly the kind of place that would suit a romantic winter wedding. Just like the one her parents had.
Stewart hopped out of the car and took Lydia’s luggage from the boot. “Do you want me to take these inside?”
“Thank you, that would be great.” Lydia opened the car door and an icy blast hit her square in the face. So much for staying warm. She hurried inside the hotel after Stewart. After giving him a small tip, they agreed he would pick her up first thing, around seven, to get her to Sadie’s shoot location.
“As long as we don’t get a whiteout overnight.” Stewart chuckled to himself. “Have a good evening.”
The interior of the hotel couldn’t have been more different to the exterior. Lydia had expected character fixtures and fittings, in keeping with the Victorian architecture. However, it was all sleek lines and monochrome decor, exuding opulence. There was a huge Christmas tree at the bottom of the stairs, that led up to the first-floor bedrooms, traditionally decorated with red garlands, poinsettias and a huge, gold, glittery star on the top. Presents wrapped in all the colours of the rainbow, and topped off with ribbons and bows, sat underneath, waiting for their recipients. It was the type of tree that Lydia planned to have in her own house one day. There was Christmas music being piped through the speakers, adding to the overall festive atmosphere. She approached the reception desk.
“Can I help you?” The receptionist, in Lydia’s opinion, was overly made-up. She could do a better job with more muted, neutral colours that would enhance the woman’s natural beauty. Biting her lip against the advice she wanted to give, Lydia tried to find Jacinta’s confirmation.
“Yes, I have a booking.” She scrabbled about in her bag again, finally pulling out the crumpled sheet of paper with the information she needed. “It’s in the name of Jacinta Blaire. But I’m not her.”
The receptionist frowned. “I’m sorry, I don’t understand.”
“I mean Jacinta made the booking.” Lydia slid the paper across the desk. “This is it.”
“And you are?”
“Lydia Hendrick.”
“Wait a moment, please.” The receptionist disappeared into a side room next to the desk.
Lydia was aware of someone behind her. She’d caught sight of a guy arriving at the same time as her and she’d got to the reception desk first. He let out a hard breath that Lydia interpreted as annoyance and she turned around to face him.
“I’m sorry to keep you waiting,” she said, suddenly wishing she hadn’t reacted. Standing in front of her was one of the most gorgeous specimens of man that she had seen in a very, very long time. Dressed in a sharp business suit with a beautifully cut woollen coat—that was certainly more suited to the weather—he had dark hair, cut close to his head and a pair of piercing blue eyes. Those eyes were currently filled with tiredness, perhaps from a long journey; maybe all he wanted to do was check in and take a long shower… Lydia banished the thought from her head. What the hell was she doing?
“Ms Hendrick? Sorry for the delay; we needed to ensure that the booking changes were legitimate. This close to Christmas, we can’t be too careful.”
Reluctantly, Lydia turned back to the desk. “Sure, I understand.” She quickly filled in the information that was needed and handed her credit card over for the security payment.
“Would you like a hand with your luggage?”
Lydia glanced at her cases. Now she was at the hotel, all she wanted to do was unpack, order room service and have a bath, not necessarily in that order. The man behind her appeared to huff again.
“It’s fine, I’ll manage.” She took a case in each hand and made her way up the stairs, sure she felt his eyes on her.
She opened the door to her room and her mouth fell open. It was huge. There was a massive king-sized bed that faced a wide-screen plasma TV, a large desk that stretched out underneath the TV, two huge chairs that were perfectly placed to curl up in and take in the view from the window and a mini-bar. Lydia made a beeline for the latter and was delighted to find a miniature bottles of spirits, soft drinks and the holy grail: a family bag of M&Ms. She grabbed the bag from the refrigerator and fell back onto the squishy bed, enveloped by the down duvet and cushions. As she popped one of the sweets into her mouth, she heard her phone ringing. Turning onto her stomach, she leaned down to where she’d dropped her bag on the floor and fished out her phone. It was Jacinta.
“You are going to be so jealous of me right now!”
“I’m jealous of you anyway, Lyds. You can probably keep water down and don’t feel like you’re one day away from death.”
“Aww, sorry, hon, are you any better?”
Jacinta sighed down the line. “Let’s not talk about me. Did you make it okay? The weather forecast seemed pretty bad.”
“Of course I did!” Lydia scoffed another one of the sweets. “This hotel is amazing; did you look it up online? This room is about the same size as our flat.”
“I did. It looks hideous.” Even from over four hundred miles away, Lydia could see Jacinta’s eye-roll. “You’ve got all the details for tomorrow, right?”
“Yes, I’ve got everything. The ancient chauffeur guy is picking me up at seven. Although there is a guy staying here who I’d gladly swap him for.” Lydia’s mind went back to the handsome stranger at reception. She wondered if she’d see him again while she was there.
“Good. Don’t be late and don’t do anything to upset Sadie. And make sure you keep an eye on the weather.”
“Honestly, why is everyone obsessing about the weather?” Lydia answered with an eye-roll of her own. “What could possibly go wrong?”
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