Outside, the sun was shining in a perfect blue sky. Perhaps the first thing Shayna would do was head to her room, get changed and then find a restaurant where she could have a late lunch. After that, she’d find a spot under a palm tree and continue reading the novel she’d started on the plane.
Shayna got off the bus and stood to the side, knowing it would take a few more minutes for all of the luggage to be unloaded. On the right side of the wide lobby, near the front desk, a woman in a black skirt and white blouse was offering welcome cocktails to the newcomers. Shayna would be sure to get one as soon as she retrieved her luggage.
After a few minutes, she turned back toward the bus and joined the people searching for their suitcases. Hers was navy blue and she would recognize it anywhere, even among a mountain of navy blue suitcases. She wasn’t like people who mistakenly took another person’s luggage because they all looked so similar.
But she didn’t see her suitcase anywhere. It had been with her when she’d gotten off the plane. She’d taken it to the bus. It had to be somewhere.
She approached the bus driver. “My suitcase,” she began. “I don’t see it anywhere.”
“No worries, lovely lady.” The man’s eyes roamed over her face appreciatively. “The suitcases are being taken into the main lobby.” He gestured up the few steps to the left side of the large open foyer.
“Oh. I see.” How had she missed that?
“You’re beautiful,” he told her, letting his eyes roam a little lower. “You here by yourself?”
“Um, no. I’m meeting friends.” She handed the man a couple dollars in tip. “Thank you.”
Before he could say anything else, she turned and climbed the few steps into the lobby.
The smiling woman with the tray of cocktails approached her, and Shayna took one. The nonalcoholic beverage tasted like a mix of papaya and pineapple. It was refreshing, especially in the island heat, which was a heck of a lot warmer than the weather she’d left in Buffalo.
As Shayna took another sip, she spotted her suitcase, but before she could retrieve it, she was assured by a bellman that he would watch all the luggage until people had checked in. Then someone would help her get her luggage to the room.
“It’s only one piece,” Shayna said. “I’ll be fine with it on my own.”
When she retracted the handle, the man said, “You can leave it with me until you’re checked in. Is all right?”
Slowly, she nodded, though she didn’t fully meet the man’s eyes. She saw that he, too, was checking her out. Maybe he figured her for a tourist who had come to the island to get lucky.
He was cute, but she wasn’t interested—even if she did like the sound of his Jamaican accent.
Shayna went to the line at the front desk and waited for her turn to check in. As she did, her eyes roamed. There was a huge stone structure in the middle of the lobby, surrounded by a fountain and foliage. The structure sort of resembled a giant teardrop. Sort of. The floors were a cream-colored marble. The place was elegantly decorated, no doubt about it. The perfect place to spend a honeymoon.
Or a solitary vacation.
Pushing the thought aside, Shayna turned, seeing for the first time that there was a massive terrace on the far left side of the lobby. Happy people sat at tables outside, drinking and enjoying the view. Perhaps that would be a good place to get a bite to eat and read her novel, with the beach and Caribbean Sea as the idyllic backdrop.
Hearing a sudden burst of laughter, she turned and saw a group of people entering the lobby from a hallway near the front steps. It was an extended family by the looks of it, with at least a few women, two men and handful of kids. They were nicely dressed, as though they were heading to an early dinner. One of the men was holding a young girl who had fallen asleep.
Shayna had told her sister that if she never saw another man it would be too soon, but the one carrying the girl was quite something to look at. In fact, she couldn’t tear her eyes from him as he strolled across the lobby. He was tall, a little over six feet, with wide shoulders and muscular biceps. Shayna loved football, and this guy had the build of a wide receiver.
The man must have sensed Shayna was staring, because his gaze suddenly turned from his happy family and found hers. His brown eyes sent a jolt of electricity right through her.
Shayna immediately glanced away, uncomfortable. Her heart was beating a little bit faster and she couldn’t help wondering why. Guilt that she’d been caught staring?
Or something else?
The man was certainly attractive. He had skin the color of milk chocolate; a strong, chiseled jaw and a seriously nice body evident even beneath the loose white shirt that hung over his black pants. But he was carrying his daughter and was obviously married.
After a few seconds, knowing the man and his family must have passed her by now, she turned to steal another glimpse of him.
Ooh, Lord. What a behind. And those muscular thighs…He was just as attractive from behind.
The man angled his head over his shoulder in her direction, almost as if he sensed her staring again. Her face flaming, Shayna quickly turned her attention back toward the front desk, embarrassed that he would think she’d been checking him out.
But she had been checking him out. The realization startled her.
How long had it been since she’d fled the altar? Barely over twenty-four hours. Shayna didn’t think she’d be checking anyone out for many months, maybe even years.
As her pulse returned to normal, she cut herself some slack. As the saying went, she wasn’t dead. It wasn’t a crime to check out a sexy brother, even if she didn’t plan to date ever again.
And there was one reason she’d allowed herself to shamelessly ogle the sexy stranger.
He was safe territory. He was married.
Ten minutes later, Shayna was checked in and had her room key and room number, which the woman at the front desk had told her a bellman would help her find. The same bellman she’d spoken to earlier smiled warmly when she approached him again.
“What room, lovely lady?”
“18326,” Shayna said, frowning. The building certainly wasn’t eighteen stories high. “You can just direct me, and I’ll be fine.”
“No worries, mon. I’ll take you.”
Shayna decided not to argue. There was no point coming across as uptight when the man was only offering help.
The walk to the room went on and on. Every time she thought they were reaching the end, they simply rounded a corner and another corridor came into view. Shayna passed rooms that began with fourteen, fifteen, sixteen—and wondered if they’d reach her room before sunset. The walk seemed to take hours.
But finally, the bellman slowed when he got to the end of what turned out to be the absolute last hallway. “It’s a long walk,” he explained. “But you have the best view.”
The man opened the door for her, inserted the electronic key into a slot on the wall, and flicked on the lights. “When you’re in this room, you need to keep this key in the slot to get the lights and air-conditioning working.”
The room was warm, but the balcony door was open, sending in some fresh air. It smelled of the sea and also a slightly spicy scent that Shayna figured came from the flowers.
“If the balcony door is open, the air-conditioning shuts off immediately,” the man continued.
The room was beautiful. In the middle was a four-poster king-size bed. A dresser was on the opposite wall, beside which was a minifridge. There was a sofa near the balcony window. Across from