Page 72 of Christmas with the Elkin Billionaires

Anna would much rather think about how good he looked than the fact that she hadn’t been entirely honest with him last night. Everything she said was true, but shehadleft things out.

That didn’t matter now. Anna moved down the hall to listen. “What’s going on?”

“There’s a storm,” she heard Chase say, his voice muffled by the space between the bedroom and the door. “We’re short-handed because some of our staff got stuck at home, and we’ve got people who showed up right before the storm hit.”

“Okay?” Gabe sounded confused and still sleepy. Anna slowed down the pace of getting dressed. Maybe he’d come back to bed. That would be the ideal situation. Gabe back in bed, and the rest of the world far away. She hadn’t heard anything about a storm coming to the area, either. How bad could it be?

“The booking system’s also down. And nobody knows how to fix it. Except you.”

Okay, so they weren’t going back to bed.

“We’ll be there in twenty minutes. Just let us get dressed.”

“Getdressed?What have you been doing in here? You weren’t sleeping, were you...” Gabe shut the door, cutting off Chase’s joke. His footsteps came quickly back to the bedroom.

Gabe’s eyes were filled with a determined light when he came back into the room. “It’s all hands on deck downstairs. Jump in the shower—we’ve got to get ready.”

* * *

Twenty minutes later, they descended into the lobby.

“Chasereallyundersold this,” Anna said, taking Gabe’s hand. “I thought he meant a couple of families.” There were at least thirty people in the lobby, all milling around at the front desk while the staff clicked at their computers. A general grumbling filled the space, none of the guests happy with the delay.

The mood in the air was familiar to her—and not a welcome one. It was the mood of a group of people who were inconvenienced, and they were not going to be happy unless somethingwas done. Right now.

“Jonas is up there,” Gabe said, pointing out his brother at the reception desk. “But he looks like he’s in over his head.”

They made a beeline for the desk. If Anna knew anything about people with reservations and commitments, it was that the unhappiest of them would look for anyone to unload on.

“Jonas,” she said, moving to stand next to him. “Let me help.”

He looked at her, eyebrows raised, and it seemed as though he was on the verge of saying no. At that moment, the volume in the room rose a notch.

“Trust me.” She put on her most professional, welcoming smile. “I know what to do.”

“Go ahead.” Jonas ceded her some space, and Anna went out in front of the counter and waved her arms, aiming for silence. The guests quieted down, silence spreading like a ripple in a pond outward from her.

“Welcome to Elk Lodge,” she began, keeping her smile in place, but an empathetic look in her eyes. At least—that’s how she hoped she looked. “We’re so glad you arrived safely, despite the storm outside. Unfortunately, we’re experiencing some technical difficulties that are making our check-in process frustrating. We have a person here to fix the system, and it should be up and running shortly. In the meantime, we’d like to invite you all to the hotel’s restaurant for a complimentary breakfast.”

“Where are we supposed to keep our things?” someone fretted from the front of the crowd.

Anna waved one of the reception staff members forward. “We’ll watch over any luggage you’d like to leave here while you have some breakfast. It will be looked after the entire time you’re eating until the last piece is picked up. If you’ll all follow me, I’ll lead the way.”

She held her breath but tried not to let it show.

Then the first members of the crowd came toward her, and the rest followed.

Anna got everyone settled in the restaurant, which was open for breakfast but not expecting a crowd of that size. She made quick friends with the hostess, and once everyone was seated, Anna went around to each table to speak with the guests personally.

Yes, a very sudden storm,she repeated so many times she lost count.Completely unexpected glitches with the system. We’re working hard on it right now. No, of course there won’t be any problem with your reservation.

By the time she’d made the rounds, it had been almost forty-five minutes.

She found Gabe and his brothers, along with Elin, in a large office behind the front desk. Gabe tapped quickly at a computer, windows popping up and closing again faster than she could keep track. Elin came up to her and took her hands. “Thank you for your quick thinking,” she said with a tired smile that squeezed at Anna’s heart. “I should have offered breakfast right away, but my nerves got the better of me.”

“It was nothing,” she assured the older woman. “It’sIt’s second nature to me.”

Elin’s eyes glistened with tears. “I’m so glad Gabe has someone like you.” Another flicker of guilt. If Elin only knew. “Gabe,” she said, louder. “This woman is a walking miracle. I hope you know that.”

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