Her ex was on the short side at five and a half feet but still taller than her and thin as a rail. His short, close-cropped hair was something that she had admired, but seeing this mountain of a man in front of her with long silky hair … All kinds of naughty thoughts danced around in her mind.
“You should stop by some night,” he said.
“Stop by where?” she asked, wondering what the hell he was talking about. Was he somehow able to hear or see all of the wicked ideas and images running through her brain?
“The club,” he said, motioning to the card in her hand.
“Oh! We’ll see. I’m not big on clubs, but this whole trip is about getting out of my comfort zone. So, I’ll think about it.”Jesus! Why am I telling a complete stranger this?she wondered.
“If that’s the case, there are about a million different things for you to try on the island. You’ll be out of your comfort zone in no time flat. Do you have a local lined up to show you the sights?”
“Umm, no. Should I?” Emmy had planned a lot of different outings, but they were all scheduled to be solo adventures. Perhaps he was right. Maybe she did need a guide for a better experience of the islands.
“Absolutely! There’s no better way, plus it will give you the chance to see all the local hotspots and find the best places to eat. I tell ya what, I have a few days off. Why don’t I show you around?”
“Are you serious?” Emmy nearly choked on the words coming out of her mouth. There was no way this sexy-ass man wanted to spend his days off showing her dorky ass around. Why would he even offer such a thing?
“Absolutely. It will be fun.”
“I don’t know. I don’t want to take your days off away from you. Surely you have something better to do than spending it with a complete stranger. Won’t your wife or girlfriend get upset about that?”
“Nope. Nothing to worry about there,” he said.
She eyed him up, full of suspicion. “Why are you being so nice to me? I don’t even know your name.”
Guys were never overly nice to her. And that was fine. She knew what she looked like. She saw her reflection every day in the damn mirror. Guys were nice to tall, skinny women. Emmy didn’t fit into either of those categories. She was shorter than shit and curvy with huge boobs that made her look like she was going to tip over at any second.
She knew the score. So did any other woman who wasn’t as tall as a giraffe and had legs for days. Oh, and she had to be as thin as a single piece of angel hair spaghetti. Those were the expectations to be considered beautiful by any conventional standard these days. She often wondered if she had been born in the wrong damn century.
“I’m Kingston Conrad, and you are?” He held out his hand in greeting.
“Kingston? Is that a nickname?” she asked, still quite suspicious.
“Nope. My father named me. And I think it would be fun to show you around. You really should consider my offer.”
She stretched her arm out and wrapped her hand around his. Awareness once again shot through her body. “I … I’m Emmy Nelson, and I’ll think about it,” she said, pulling back. She had no idea what the hell was going on with her, but she knew she had to get away from him to clear her head.
“It’s nice to meet you, Emmy. My number is on the card I gave you. Call or text me later and let me know what you decide.”
“Okay,” she nodded before rushing back to her room.
* * *
“Holy hell!”Emmy leaned against the door and panted as she had flat out sprinted back to her room. She tossed her hat, earbuds, and phone on the bed before collapsing beside the discarded items. Her mind spun from the conversation with the hotter-than-hell man … er, Kingston.
It was by far the weirdest conversation she had ever had in her life, and not just because Kingston was hotter than fuck. Thinking back over their entire five-minute conversation, she realized how bad she must have looked to such a well-dressed man.
Aside from the startling wake-up and falling into his arms, she must have looked like the quintessential crazy tourist. His offer was probably nothing more than him trying to be nice. Either way, she wasn’t going to dwell on the encounter. This trip was meant to be about finding herself. Finding out who she really was. Not worrying about what some man thought about her.
CHAPTERFIVE
“Iwas going to ask if you had any luck finding her, but I can tell by the look on your face that you found her,” Jace said.
Kingston yanked his tie off and popped open several buttons on his shirt. Suddenly, his skin felt too tight around his bones. He struggled for each breath he sucked into his lungs.
“Yeah. You need to get the hell out of here before you shift right here in my damn bar.” Jace grabbed his brother and rushed him out of the back door.
“I … I can’t leave. She’s in there!” Kingston shouted.