Libby bent over him.“Can you get up?”
“I’m trying to.”He shifted to his side and crawled like a wounded dog to the couch in the corner of the room.With a grunt, he hauled himself up and then flopped onto it.“Fuck, that hurt.”
“Keep your voice down,” she hissed.“You’ll wake up my son.”
“The pukey kid?So itisyou!What are the fucking chances?”
“I’d watch that filthy mouth if I were you.You’re inmyroom.”
“I think you’ll find this ismyroom.”With another grunt, Daniel Jones rolled onto his back.“That old man must have got you confused with my mother.”
“Well, gee, thanks.I didn’t think I looked that old.”Libby folded her arms.
“She’s the real Mrs.Jones,” he said.
“So where is she?”
“On another island.With my aunt.They’ll be here on Wednesday.”He rubbed his eyes.“I booked this bungalow for the whole of December for my honeymoon.That all turned to shit, so Mum and Zeezee took our places.Wednesday… They’ll be here on Wednesday,” he said again before giving a huffed curse, and then he flopped his arm over the edge of the couch.“Tomorrow… First thing, we’ll… As soon as I…as I get…”
“As soon as you get what?”Libby nudged him, but his head lolled to the side, and he let out a deep sigh that sounded a lot like a snore.“Hey, you can’t sleep here!”
He grumbled something and bedded down even more.She gripped his shoulder with both hands and gave him a hard shake.Man, he was solid.She wanted to kick him out, but how?He was too big, too much of a dead weight.
Should she be afraid to have a man crash in her room at midnight?If it were anyone else, she would be, but this was Daniel Jones, a much-loved public figure in the UK.Not a serial killer.And judging by the sound of his breathing, he didn’t look capable of anything right now, other than sleeping.Even old Mr.Hehu had managed to topple him with a mere backslap.
So, no, Libby wasn’t afraid.
She was…intrigued.
Last summer, when she and Karim had started their travels in the UK, she’d read all about Daniel Jones’s accident.It was hardnotseeing the headlines about the British sporting hero who’d practically been on his deathbed.And, like everyone else at the time, she’d assumed he wouldn’t make it out of his coma.
But here he was.On Raro-freaking-tonga.
In her room.
Or rather…Libby glanced over at Karim, tiny in the middle of the huge bed—a bed that, when she’d first arrived, had been adorned with heart-shaped throw pillows and a gaudy silver blanket patterned with rose petals.
A honeymoon bed?
A dim recollection of a headline snagged in Libby’s mind…something about Daniel Jones and that British pop singer he was engaged to—Arabella…Annabella…Isabella!—having to postpone their wedding.
Aw, damn.
So, this spacious beach bungalowhadbeen a little too good to be true after all.It hadn’t exactly matched the description of the “standard” double room she’d actually reserved—and of course, something wasn’t quite right when she’d handed Mr.Hehu her card to pay the deposit, only for him to say it wasn’t necessary.Confused, she’d just figured he’d made a mistake.It was late, and with Karim fast asleep and heavy in her arms, all she’d been focused on was settling him into bed.She’d planned to clarify the payment issue with Mr.Hehu in the morning, but Cranky Jones was right.This was his bungalow.
What the hell am I supposed to do now?
It was nearly midnight, there was a storm outside, and she couldn’t wake Karim, not after the day he’d had.
Cranky Jones let out a big, heavy snore.Right.Libby padded back across the room to her bed.There wasn’t anything anyone could do now, so she might as well get some sleep, too.
Sleep?
Who was she kidding?
Cradling Karim on her hip, Libby turned away from the window and continued to pace the small threshold between the bed she’d barely slept in and the small kitchen unit on the other side of the room.It was five a.m.The storm had petered out, palm trees swayed in the early dawn darkness, and her unexpected roommate continued to snore on the couch.
Okay, it wasn’t exactly snoring—more like heavy breathing—but he hadn’t moved since he’d crashed out over five hours ago.Unlike her.She must’ve walked fifty freaking miles these past two hours, trying to settle her pesky baby back to sleep.Karim hadn’t thrown up again, so she assumed—from the way he’d gulped down water—that he’d simply woken up thirsty and then become unsettled in his new surroundings.She’d been rocking him back and forth ever since, and it was only now, his head heavy on her shoulder, that she dared hope that he’d finally fallen asleep.
