Page 50 of Slumming It

Isowasn't in the mood for her games. But she was doing me a favor so I grudgingly said, "I just mean, thanks for the ride."

As I stepped forward, she asked, "What ride?"

My steps faltered. "What?"

Morgan turned to Nikki and said, "Watchthis." She returned her sunglasses to her eyes, fired up the engine, and squealed off in her little red convertible, leaving me standing like an idiot on the side of the road.

Alone.

Again.

Son-of-a-bitch.

Chapter 18

Emily

The bell on our hotel's main door gave a cheery little jingle as I shoved my way through it. From behind the front desk, Vivian stared like I'd just walked in buck naked. Her eyebrows furrowed as she asked, "Why'd he switch?"

I had no idea what she meant, mostly because I'd just returned from my craptastic roadside adventure. I stopped halfway to the front desk and kicked off my painfully high heels before asking, "Switch what?"

Vivian gave my discarded shoes a worried glance. "I don't think we're supposed to go barefoot in here."

I stifled a sigh.Yeah, and we're not supposed to murder the guests either, but hey, shit happens, right?With a grunt of annoyance, I reached down to pick up my shoes before stalking forward on blissfully bare feet. "Says who?" I grumbled as I joined her at the front desk. "Wearerunning the place, you know."

"Yeah, but…" Her gaze lingered on the shoes. "Isn't it a health regulation or something?"

At the moment, I didn't give two figs about regulations. "I don't know, and I don't care."

Vivian gave a sympathetic wince. "So, I guess your date didn't go so well, huh?"

A date.Nowthatwas funny. Too bad I wasn't laughing.

Neither would Vivian if only I were free to tell her the whole story. But for all kinds of reasons, I wasn't, so all I said was, "I just ran into Morgan and Nikki, that's all."

This made her grimace. "Oh. Them."

"Yes, them," I agreed with a grimace of my own. "And what switch are you talking about?"

She pointed toward the lobby's front window. "I was just wondering why he dropped you off in a different vehicle."

I turned to look just in time to see my ride squeal out of the parking lot and roar off to God-knows-where.

My so-called date hadn't dropped me off at all. By some miracle, the woman in the yellow sportscar happened to be passing by again, heading this time in the opposite direction – drivingintotown rather than out – less than two minutes after Morgan and Nikki had left me stranded.

Against all odds, the stranger had actually stopped a second time and offered me a ride yet again, even if she had been pretty rude about it. Once I'd gotten into her car, she'd given me the silent treatment all the way back to town, which made for an awkward trip to say the least.

Now, inside the lobby, I was still facing the front window, mostly because I didn't want Vivian to see my face while I silently berated myself for walking in through the main entrance. If only I'd been a little smarter, I would've asked the woman to drop me off in the rear parking lot instead so I could've snuck in through the side door without Vivian noticing.

Too late forthat.

I was still looking away when Vivian explained, "When the two of you left, it was in that black Mercedes. But just now, I saw you getting out of that yellow sportscar. Whatwasthat thing, anyway? It looked really expensive."

It had felt expensive, too, with its luxurious interior and heated leather seats. Best of all, those seats had been nice and warm from the moment I'd buckled myself in.

In spite of my troubles, I'd almost groaned in pleasure as the soft leather had warmed my cold backside like nobody's business. But then again, my ass wouldn't have been cold in the first place if it weren't for Reese Murdock.

The jerk.For the umpteenth time, I reached back and yanked at my shorts, which had once again migrated up my crack.