“Yes, I can. I don’t want you staying at that place. It’s too dangerous.” He looked mad, for some reason.
“But…it’s expensive.”
“I don’t care. I can afford it.” He started down the sidewalk, his limp more pronounced.
She caught up to him. “Wait.”
He rounded on her. “Don’t argue with me. I’m getting you a room at the Billionaire Club and that’s final.”
She straightened her spine. “I’ll pay you back. After Daddy sees how hard I’m working, he’ll give me back my credit cards. Then I won’t feel bad.”
He made a face, but nodded. “All right.”
“And Austin…” She tugged at the hem of her blouse.
“What?”
“Thanks.”
He nodded, a small smile forming on his lips. “Of course.”
Austin seemed upset as they walked back to the Billionaire Club. He kept muttering, “What was Kay thinking?”
When they entered the lobby, Austin approached the counter. Kay smiled at them. “Austin. Dani. What can I do for you?”
Austin set her suitcase down. “Can I book another room here?”
“The budget hotel didn’t work out?”
Something about the way Kay said it made Dani suspicious. Like she knew it wouldn’t work out. Austin shook his head. “No. It didn’t.”
“Okay. Let me check our availability.” Kay clicked on some keys and then frowned. “Sorry. We’re all booked up.”
“You have nothing?”
“No. Sorry.”
“How about tomorrow?”
“We’re full for the weekend. It’s Labor Day on Monday.”
Dani exhaled and sat on her suitcase. “Oh, dear,” she said, resting her elbows on her knees. “What will I do?”
“I’m sorry. You could try the other resorts along the beach, but with the holiday it might be difficult to find openings.”
“I’ll think of something,” Austin said. He motioned to Dani. “Come on. Let’s go to my room and make some calls.”
“Good luck,” Kay called as they left the lobby.
As soon as Austin let Dani into his room, she plopped down on the couch and ran a hand through her hair. “This is such a mess. I’m sorry.”
“Don’t worry. It will work out. I just need to find you a room somewhere that isn’t the Bates Motel.” He motioned. “Make yourself comfortable.”
Exhaustion from the day of hard work set in, and she took his words to heart as she stretched out on the couch. “Thanks.”
Austin sat at the desk and opened a laptop, and she tugged the throw pillow under her head as she waited for him to find a place that had an opening. She pulled out her phone to check to see if her father had texted. Nothing. Disappointment settled in her gut. He left her stranded in another country, and he hadn’t even checked on her today? She blinked back tears and hugged her arms to herself.
How heartless was he? She pushed that thought away. She knew how heartless he was. It was something she learned a long time ago. He didn’t care about her. She needed to stop waiting for him to change. He wasn’t going to.
Austin’s low voice was soothing as he made several phone calls, and she closed her eyes. She could fall asleep right here. The couch wasn’t bad, if she were honest. And she was so tired, she didn’t care anymore.
As he spoke on the phone, she felt herself drifting off. It was fine. Austin would wake her when he found a room. She trusted him. He wasn’t Rafael, after all.
Chapter 7
Dani awoke to the sound of soft snoring. Where was she? She jerked awake, suddenly scared, in an unfamiliar place. Whose bed was this? And who was snoring? Then memories of yesterday filtered into her brain and she sighed with relief. She was still in Austin’s room. She was on his bed, and he was on the couch. He must have tucked her into bed last night after she fell asleep. How thoughtful of him.
It was still dark outside, and she had no idea what time it was. She searched around for her phone. She found it on the table beside her bed. Four-thirty. Much too early to get up. She snuggled back under the covers. He must not have found a place. Either that, or by the time he did, she was asleep and he didn’t want to wake her up.
Man, he was the kindest man she’d ever met. If she had known regular people were like this, she would have worked harder to hang out with non-famous people. Or maybe it was how he was raised. He had a Southern accent. It could be that men from the South were more considerate than men from the West Coast.
Or it could just be Austin. His personality. She liked the way he seemed to care about her, even before he knew much about her. His motives seemed pure, unlike every other person she’d ever met. He didn’t seem like the kind of guy who would stab her in the back.
She closed her eyes and let the sound of his snoring lull her back to sleep. The next time she awoke, the sun was up and the sound of the ocean came from the open patio door. She sat up and rubbed the sleep out of her eyes. Austin stood up from his lounge chair on the deck and slid the screen door open. “Did you sleep well?”
“Yeah. Thanks for tucking me in. Sorry you had to sleep on the couch.”
He waved it away. “It wasn’t a problem. I couldn’t find you a room. You might be stuck here for a while.”
Guilt made her swallow. “I don’t want to put you out.”
“I’d rather you do that then get mugged at the hotel down the street,” he said under his breath.
She pinched her lips together. She’d rather not get mugged either. But, what would they take? “They’d be pretty disappointed if they tried to mug me. All I have are some credit cards that don’t work.”
Austin looked at her like she was crazy, which made her giggle. “I mean, seriously. They can have them.” She motioned to the purse she’d tossed on the floor by the couch.
“Your bag is probably designer. They could get a couple hundred dollars for it.”
Dani nodded. “Yeah, you’re right.” Then she realized what he’d said. “Oh, my gosh. I could sell it.” Her mind raced. She’s paid two thousand for that purse. What could she get out of it?
“Are you sure you want to do that?”
“Yes. I’m starving, and I would do anything for a nice breakfast. Where can I go to sell it?”
“We walked by a pawn shop last night, but I’m not sure—”
“Great! That’s perfect. I’ll shower, and then we can go there.”
Austin’s gaze flickered to the clock. “What time do you start work?”
Work. She’d forgotten all about it. She picked up her phone and saw that it was seven-fifty-five. “Crap.” She jumped out of bed and headed toward the bathroom.
“What?”
“I start at eight.” Her heart raced as she assessed her situation. She needed a shower. And shampoo. Her expensive highlights would all wash out if she used the stuff the resort provided. But she didn’t have time to think about that. She was almost late for work, and she couldn’t lose this job. Not when she needed to prove to her father that she wasn’t a complete loser.