Page 12 of Sweeter Than Honey
She ended the call before Olive could ask any more questions.
Bitterness filled her throat. Her life was falling apart. All her hard work, crumbling a little at a time.
A loud knocking and pop from the bathroom sounded in the air, like a small explosion. Cara jumped off the bed, pulling the sheet with her. The clamoring came again, then again in rapid succession. An ear-piercing screech joined the raucous. Peering around the wall, she moved forward to see better.
A cold squish seeped between her toes. Gasping, she jerked back. A pool of water creeped from the bathroom onto the carpet, steadily spreading through the room. Before she could react, a bursting sound rolled through the bathroom, followed by the rush of water. Loud cries and shouts came from the hallway, the slam of doors, the rush of people. Flipping on the lights, she spied water flooding in from beneath her door. A geyser shot up from the toilet, the handles in the bathtub sprayed from beneath the fixtures.
There was a loud knock on her door. “Ma’am, you need to evacuate the building! Ma’am?”
Shit! Cara scrambled to gather her things. Luckily, she hadn’t taken much from her suitcase and had used the hotel’s toiletries. Not bothering to get dressed, she grabbed her bag and suitcase and flew out into the hall, the wet carpet feeling like a cold swamp beneath her bare feet. People ran down the hall, nearly running her over as they emptied into the staircase. An employee stood in the middle of the chaos, trying to direct the flow of crazed traffic.
“This way. Everyone to the lobby in an orderly—”
“Out of the way!”
“My luggage is ruined!”
“My phone got soaked. Who’s paying for this?”
The poor man got bombarded as people hurried by.
“Thank you for choosing the Miderra Hotel!”
“Fuck you!”
Cara navigated to the lower level, the marble floor slick with an inch of freezing water. An employee yelled into the phone behind the desk. Something about a water main break and major plumbing failure on all floors. There was a haphazard line at the desk waiting for his attention. Cara didn’t stop to inquire about checking out of this disaster. Barefoot, cold, she exited the hotel and stood in the fresh morning breeze, the bare skin of her arms and legs and chest exploding in goosebumps.
“Oh, shit!” Glancing down at herself, she realized her nightie fell to a risqué level on her upper thigh. Her nipples pressed through the thin peach fabric, one thin, lacy strap hanging low on her shoulder.
“If you’d been wearing this yesterday, I would have let you hit me a little harder.”
Cara spun at the voice. A coat fluttered around her shoulders and settled warmly over her chilly body as Beard appeared from thin air and took her suitcase and bag from her. Without another word, he walked down the sidewalk. She gaped after him, fully aware of his tall, broad form clad in a navy blue, long sleeve shirt and well-fitting, worn jeans. His black hair was shaggy and curling all over around his head, his beard neatly trimmed around firm, full lips.
“Wha—wait! Where are you going?”
“You hungry, or do you want to stand there with your ass hanging out all day?”
She reached behind herself. Shit! The coat and the nightie barely covered her bottom. Picking her way in bare feet over the cement, she hurried to catch up with him.
“You’re something else, you know that?” Pulling the coat tighter around her body, she increased her strides to keep up with his huge ones.
“I know.”
Her face flamed hot. How dare he just swoop in and take charge? “Give me back my things, please.”
She stopped and held out her hand, but he kept going.
“I believe my sister-in-law offered you breakfast, and if there’s one thing I know about women, it’s that they don’t like being ignored.”
Cara swiped her bag from his shoulder and put it on her own. His rich, woodsy scent hit her full in the face. Damn.
“That’s all you know about women?”
He stopped at the front door of Sticky Sweet Bakery, his hand resting a moment on the handle. His vibrant eyes swept her heatedly before he turned his gaze away and pulled the door open for her.
“I know they also always have to have the last word.”
“Do not,” she scoffed. Then realized she’d just lost this battle. Shit.
