Island Fantasy. Kayla Perrin

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СКАЧАТЬ felt another jolt. Out of all the rooms in the hotel, had his gaze landed on her?

      She quickly hurried into her room, away from the man’s gaze. And then she felt stupid.

      What was she going to do—run every time she saw him? Stay in her hotel room the entire week to avoid crossing his path?

      “It’s not like you’re about to try and steal another woman’s husband,” she said to herself. “It’s okay to look.”

      And maybe that’s exactly what she needed on this trip. Some eye candy to help soothe the memory of what Vince had done to her.

      An attractive man she could admire from afar without any fear that it would lead somewhere.

      After all, he was married. Therefore unavailable.

      It was perfect.

       Chapter 4

      The next morning, the sun rose to a glorious day. Shayna stretched, climbed out of bed and immediately went to the balcony window. Pushing the curtains aside, she stared outside and sighed happily, knowing she would never tire of the view.

      The previous evening, she’d found the dining hall, enjoyed a solitary dinner that seemed more Mexican than Jamaican, then retired to her room where she’d continued reading after calling home to assure everyone she was okay. Yes, she’d hidden from the world, but she hadn’t felt up to small chat with anyone. And she’d had a pleasant time by herself. It was hard to have a bad time when you sat on your balcony and stared out at nature’s stunning beauty.

      She opened the glass door and stepped onto the balcony. Everything about the resort was magnificent. The beautiful greenery lining the stone paths. The towering palm trees and the low ones. The hibiscus flowers growing in the shrubs. The amazing contrast of light and dark blues in the ocean. The lulling sound of the ocean as it crashed against the shore. And she loved the slightly spicy scent of exotic flowers in the air, something she certainly didn’t smell back home in Buffalo.

      Shayna smiled. Yes, this was a new day. And she was in paradise. She was going to enjoy it.

      Heading back inside, she checked the time on her cell phone. It was after seven in the morning in Jamaica, which meant it was an hour later at home since Jamaica didn’t subscribe to daylight saving time. Surprisingly, there wasn’t a clock in the room. Maybe the hotel staff had figured that honeymooners would be too wrapped up in each other to care about checking the time of day.

      She hadn’t eaten much of a dinner last night, and her stomach now grumbled in protest. It was time to head downstairs for breakfast. She got into the shower first, lathering up with the scented body gel the hotel provided, thinking that it was nice not to have to worry about sharing the bathroom with another person. To make her own schedule.

      She was determined to look on the bright side.

      Once out of the shower, she put her bathing suit on—then a dress to cover it—and packed a beach bag with two hardcover suspense novels. She would lounge by the pool and decide which world to escape into next.

      Even though the walk from the front desk had been enormously long, the walk to the restaurant was much shorter. That’s because she didn’t need to backtrack through the hotel to get to the restaurant. It was directly opposite her building on the other side of the pool.

      Shayna enjoyed a leisurely stroll from her building along the path that led to a bridge that crossed over the pool. It was early, but the sun was bright and hot. To her far right, under the terrace outside of the lobby, she saw the word SPA. She would definitely take a trip there later, pamper herself.

      Shayna climbed the steps to the restaurant and opened the heavy door. The next moment, her heart caught in her throat. Because the sexy stranger who’d caught her staring at him yesterday was walking directly toward her.

      Once again, he was accompanied by three females, two other men this time and the same children from the day before. The little girl the sexy stranger had held yesterday was now wide-awake, jumping with excitement as they exited the restaurant, probably ready to head to the pool or the beach.

      Shayna smiled politely at the man and his family, then promptly looked away. She didn’t want his wife thinking she was the type of person who would do more than appreciate the good looks of another woman’s husband.

      And she didn’t dare glance over her shoulder, fearing she would give both the man and his wife the wrong impression that she was a flirt.

      At home, Shayna would have had a cup of coffee and perhaps a slice of toast for breakfast. But here at this all-inclusive resort, she had a freshly made omelet with cheese and vegetables, toast, slices of various fruits and a justbaked pastry. She ate and read at the table by herself until her stomach felt like it couldn’t hold another crumb.

      The food was delicious. If she kept eating at this pace, she’d go home with another twenty pounds on her thighs.

      She left the restaurant, appreciating the fact that the resort was as large as it was. All the walking would help burn off the extra calories she would no doubt consume.

      As she stepped outside, she scanned the nearby pool area. It was beautiful. It would be a nice place to lounge for a while and read her thriller, let the food digest. Then she would get some exercise by doing several laps in the water.

      Even though it was early, there was only one lounge chair left in the shade, at the side of the pool closest to the spa. Shayna could see the beige of the chair’s thin mattress, with no towel slung over it to indicate that it was taken. Positioned under a man-made tree created to look like a coconut husk, it was a prime seat. The mattress atop the chair’s wooden frame would certainly be more comfortable than the chairs on the opposite side of the pool, which were made of plastic and blue fabric.

      The exit of the restaurant was near the towel hut, so first Shayna got herself a towel, then walked briskly to the vacant chair in the shade. Only when she got close to the seat did her legs falter. Sitting two chairs over from the one she planned to claim was the very handsome stranger she apparently would never be able to avoid.

      “Brother,” she muttered under her breath, then told herself to keep walking toward the chair. What did it matter who was sitting there? The man was married and she could bump into him every other minute for the rest of her stay—it wouldn’t matter.

      She continued on, her dark sunglasses allowing her to avoid making eye contact with the sexy—and married—stranger. He noticed her—and stared openly at her. Shayna pretended not to notice as she went to the empty lounge chair and settled into it.

      Feeling the man’s gaze on her, she flitted her eyes to the left without moving her head. She was right. He was staring.

      Shayna couldn’t help scowling, her view on men going down another notch. On Friday night it had plummeted after seeing Vince touching and kissing and then disrobing that stripper. And now, feeling the heat of this man’s gaze, she was further disappointed by the male species.

      Why on earth was this man giving her more than a casual glance when he was here on this beautiful island with his wife and kids?

      It didn’t matter. It took two to tango, and Shayna was certainly not going to tango with him.

      Nor anyone else.

      She СКАЧАТЬ