Sweet Dreams (Colorado Mountain #2)(4)

There were people on the street and I knew they were friendly because most of them smiled at me.

After I checked out the Main Street (called Main Street and it was also the only street with businesses, the rest was residential) of my new home, I went back to reception at the hotel. I bought a week’s worth of Wi-Fi from the nice lady who took that opportunity to share with me that her name was Betty. I shared my name too and decided to go ahead and pay a week in advance on my room when I got the Wi-Fi. This decision overjoyed Betty and I knew that because she told me.

“Sweetie! A week! I’m overjoyed!” she’d shouted.

She would be. Mine was the only car in the lot and she had a flower and pool habit and those weren’t exactly cheap.

Nevertheless, she was friendly and open and I decided I liked Betty.

After telling her I was glad I’d brought her joy, I went back to number thirteen and dragged out my laptop. Then I logged in. Then I ignored all my e-mail and sent a message to my parents and my baby sister that all was well, I was fine and I’d check in with more information later. I saw that they’d sent e-mails to me but I didn’t read them. I didn’t read them because I knew they would freak me out because I knew my Mom and Dad and sister Caroline were freaked out. They weren’t big on me upping stakes and roaming the country looking for nothing special. They were bigger on me moving home and sorting myself out and finding a decent man and starting over (in that order).

I shut down my computer, sat on the big, soft bed, stared at the wall and thought about the next day when I was supposed to be at Bubba’s at eleven to train to be a waitress and start my new life.

Then I smiled.

Then I watched TV until it got dark and the pool beckoned me.

Now I was standing and looking outside to see the pool looked clean and enticing and it was all lit up. In fact, the parking lot was all lit up. Seeing it, I knew four things about Reception Betty. She was friendly, she liked flowers, she was proud of her below average hotel and small but clean pool and she wanted her guests to feel safe.

That’s when I saw the car pull in. It was a convertible, an old model something. It looked like a Chrysler, not great condition but also not a junker.

It parked outside reception, the door opened and a woman folded out.

I stared at the woman.

She had thick, long dark hair and long legs most of which I could see coming out the bottom of her very short, frayed-hemmed jeans skirt. She had a tight tank top and more cle**age than Krystal (but as much as me). She wasn’t petite or slim, she was long and very rounded but it was clear she didn’t care. A mini-Buddha belly and a hint of back fat didn’t bother her. Not in the slightest. In fact, she worked it.

She sashayed into reception and I saw a man was there. He was Betty’s upper-middle-age. He smiled at her like he knew her and she waved and smiled back giving the same impression. I knew this was the truth when he handed her a key without doing any of the usual checking in business. She took the key, put both her hands on the counter, lifted herself up, booty pointed up in the air, feet in high-heeled stiletto sandals on tiptoe. She kicked back one foot and leaned toward him, giving him an across-the-counter air kiss. Then she strutted back out to her convertible, got in and drove through the parking lot to park three spots down from my Lexus. She got out, didn’t grab a suitcase and walked toward a door where I lost sight of her.

I had a feeling I was going to have to buy some tank tops to fit in in Carnal.

I dropped the curtain and went to the dresser. Most of my clothes were folded and sitting on top, there wasn’t enough room for them all in the drawers and closet. But at least they’d been released from their suitcase captivity. In the drawers I’d put my underwear, socks and pajamas. I’d also put my bathing suit in there.

Seeing my clothes laid out I thought it wasn’t much but it was more home than I’d had in a good long while and it made me feel weirdly settled.

It had been a warm day but it couldn’t be over sixty-five degrees outside. Still, I loved pools, I loved to be in water and for some reason I really wanted a swim so I figured it would be like any time you got in cold water. Once you were in, you’d get used to it. At least I hoped so. If not, so what? I’d just drag my carcass out and come back to my room.

I changed into my swimsuit, put on a pair of track pants, a sweatshirt and some flip-flops. Before I could chicken out, I grabbed a towel and my room key and headed to the pool.

I slipped off my shoes and sweats and decided to dive right in. Better to get it over with all at once. I moved to the side of the pool, braced for impact and dove.

The pool was heated.

Heaven.

I swam five laps of the short pool and had to stop because I couldn’t breathe. This, I told myself, had to do with the fact that I was in the Rocky Mountains, at altitude, and it did not have to do with the fact that I was seriously out of shape.

I forced out four more laps and had to stop again.

Then I forced out one more lap and put a hand to the edge to turn back for another lap when I heard the roar of bike pipes.

Stopped at the edge of the pool, holding on and peering over the side, my eyes followed the black and chrome Harley gleaming in Reception Betty’s parking lot lights as it glided along, pulled in and parked next to the convertible. Then my eyes watched the man shove the stand down with his booted foot and swing his leg off the bike.

His back was to me so all I could see was that he was tall and he had a great behind. He also had on faded jeans, a black, long-sleeved, thermal t-shirt and he had a head of thick dark hair that also shone in the lights, just like his Harley