“Come on. You must have noticed how grumpy he was in high school.”
“I did. But I had other names for him.” She cocked a half smile.
Karan grinned. “Oh yeah? Like what?”
She smirked. “Too horrible to repeat.”
Vishal grinned. “That sounds interesting. But he is definitely a grump.”
Karan chuckled. “It got worse when—” Vishal bumped his elbow, and he stammered, “It just got worse over time.”
“Thanks for the invite, but I’m exhausted,” Nimita said with a smile. These two were sweet.
“See you around then,” Karan said.
“Thanks.” Nimita really meant it. She was grateful. “For the room.”
He shrugged. “Of course. Looking forward to that itinerary.”
Nimita found the room. She was correct. It was a gorgeous suite that must cost a fortune, with a king-size bed, a small sitting area with a sofa and chairs, and a balcony with a full view of the ocean. A junior suite but out of her price range, nonetheless. Whatever. A couple nights, and she was gone. She was too tired to do much more than eat a piece of fruit from the basket on the table and hop in the luxurious rainfall shower before falling dead asleep.
It was good to be this tired. Kept her from thinking about the fact that she was now unemployed and heading home to San Diego in two days to face her sister.
* * *
Roshan Dave was exhausted. Hawaii was his pick for their guys’ trip this year, but who could predict multiple delays due to gate changes, mechanical issues and finally an aircraft change? His flight left California seven hours after it had been scheduled to, meaning he would arrive in the middle of the night. At least he had his laptop and had been able to read the latest studies on innovative cancer treatments while he waited.
Never waste a minute.Time was precious, and there was so much to learn. He needed to be at the top of his game. Sick children were counting on him. He could not—would not—fail them.
His friends gave him crap for never taking a break, and years ago they’d instituted a ban on any kind of work during their weeklong trips. Guys’ trips were for hanging out and catching up. They weren’t wrong—he loved seeing them. They had grown up constantly in and out of each other’s houses, rotating where they spent the weekends. And now they were scattered around the country as opposed to just a few miles from each other in the same town.
He rolled his bag to the check-in desk at the hotel. The lobby was empty save the occasional employee. At least the ocean air was cool. “Roshan Dave. I’m checking in.” He glanced at the name tag. “Kaleo.”
The young man was surprisingly perky for 2:00 a.m. “Of course.” He typed something into his computer.
“You’re wide awake, man. Been on shift long?” Roshan asked.
“Just since midnight.” Kaleo smiled.
Roshan nodded. “I remember night shift when I was in residency.”
“Well, the hotel tends to be a bit quieter than a hospital.” Kaleo handed him a key card. “Elevators are to the left.”
“Thank you.” Vishal and Karan would likely be asleep. Fine by him. He wanted to crash now and get up early to review a few charts before the guys grabbed him for whatever they had planned. It would likely include drinks and no laptop.
He rolled his bag off the elevator and searched for his room. He always roomed alone. Karan and Vishal didn’t mind sharing, but he insisted on his own room so he could work. Fun was great, and he respected the no-work thing as much as possible during the day, but he needed to stay up to date. Keep working at night. This time, Karan had booked adjoining rooms. Likely to keep his laptop away from him.
He tapped his key card and opened the door. He was aware of a pleasant floral scent in the room. Must be what the cleaning staff used. It was nice. He didn’t bother with the light, too tired to bother changing. He removed his shoes with a sigh and left his bag by the door. He considered for a moment hanging up his dry-cleaned clothes. Never mind. He was too tired.
He walked down the slight foyer and was approaching the bed when he felt a sharp blow to his side, which dropped him to his knees and stole his breath, followed by a scream and agonizing pain in his jaw as a fist made hard contact with his face. He just made out the form of a woman as her leg raised and made contact with his chest as she screamed again.
He fell back, and everything went black.
* * *
The click of the door had awakened her. Even in deep sleep, her brain was on alert. She couldn’t remember which city she was in or which hotel, somewhere between flights, but someone was entering the room. Fear, cold and clammy, gripped her. She was a woman, and she traveled alone quite often. She hadn’t taken all those self-defense classes for nothing.
She quickly and quietly made her way to the wall and kicked the man’s side as he approached. A kick near the kidney would take down anyone. She followed with a sharp punch to the jaw and finally a kick to the chest. He went down, and she ran for the door, screaming.
