The woman laughed. “Oh, dear. That’s fine. Right. Let’s get you upstairs and out of those clothes. I’m Barbara, by the way.”
“Kate,” Kate murmured, holding out her hand. “Thank you. That all sounds lovely. May I just phone home first? I told my mother I’d be home this evening.”
“Of course. On you go. I expect you’re both hungry, too. Would you like some dinner sent up to the room?”
“Is that possible?” Kate could hardly keep the excitement out of her voice. “Do you have scampi? I’ve been yearning for scampi.”
“We do.” Barbara smiled. “You make your call, and I’ll sort out the food with Sam.”
Kate walked over to the telephone, trying not to drip on anything too important, and dialled her parents’ number. To her relief, her father answered.
“Dad? It’s me.” She paused for a moment while she worked out what to tell him. “Dad I’m staying out tonight. I’m with a friend from work, and her car broke down, so we’re booking into a hotel and will be back tomorrow…Yes, I’m fine, honestly. A bit wet, but fine. Tell Mum not to worry…No, my phone is out of battery, so she can’t phone me.” She took a deep breath. “Dad, I need a night away. She’s driving me mad with the wedding stuff. You understand, don’t you?” She smiled. “Thanks, Dad. See you tomorrow.” She replaced the receiver and walked over to join Sam at the bottom of the stairs. He was holding a key and smiling at her.
“Come on. Let’s go and get dry. I have to say I’m rather looking forward to this.” He led the way up the wide staircase and along a corridor. “Here we go, there’s fourteen…fifteen…sixteen and…seventeen.” He unlocked the door and stood aside to let Kate go through first.
She walked into the room and turned on the light. It was a fairly large double room with a long window overlooking the moor, and an ensuite bathroom leading off. There was a large dressing table, an armchair, and a small table holding a television, as well as a large double bed. Kate noted the bed and decided not to think about it until she was dry. That was just too much for her brain to deal with.
“You go first.” Sam pointed to the bathroom. “Don’t argue, just do it, and chuck your clothes out here so I can give them to Barbara. Here, take one of these bathrobes with you.” He held out a thick white towelling bathrobe that had been waiting on the bed. “That should keep you warm.”
Kate took it without a word and disappeared into the bathroom. She looked around her. It was small but cosy, with a corner bath and a small shower cubicle. She eyed the bath longingly but decided it wouldn’t be fair on Sam if she took too long, so she peeled off her sodden clothes, opened the door a crack, flung them back into the bedroom, and then stepped into the shower.
As she let the steaming hot water flow over her chilled flesh, Kate began to relax. She was aching all over, and a quick glance had confirmed that her whole left side was dotted with red scrape marks and bruises. She rubbed her fingers gently across a long mark that extended from her hip almost down to her knee, and winced. That was going to look dreadful in a day or so. Just in time for the wedding.
She turned the water up even hotter and stood directly underneath with her eyes tightly closed. She didn’t want to think about the wedding. Not tonight. When she was spending the night in a double room with a man she was seriously attracted to, and no clothes. In fact, as she opened her eyes and moved her head out from under the water, she wasn’t quite sure what she should be thinking about. Definitely not what she was actually thinking about. She picked up the soap and scrubbed herself clean, taking care with the bruised areas, then rinsed herself thoroughly and turned off the shower. As she got dried, she realised just how incredibly hungry she was, and hoped the scampi and chips would arrive fairly quickly.
Hanging the towel to dry on the heated rail, she slipped on the lovely warm bathrobe and went back into the bedroom. Sam was stretched out on the bed wearing the other bathrobe, his eyes closed and one arm across his chest.
Thinking he may have dozed off, Kate moved quietly around the room investigating the facilities. A small hairdryer was on the dressing table, and tea- and coffee-making things were on a table in the corner. She turned the kettle on. Just for once, she actually fancied a nice hot cup of tea.
“Nice shower?” Sam was watching her from the bed.
“Yes, thanks.” Kate turned and smiled at him, feeling suddenly awkward. “I thought you were asleep.”
He sat up with a painful grunt. “No. Just trying to get this headache to go off. Barbara gave me some painkillers, so hopefully it will before long.”
Kate walked over and looked closely at the side of his face. “That eye looks so painful.” She reached out and touched it gently. “And you still have blood on your cheek. May I clean it for you? It should probably have something put on it.” She looked around the room, and her eyes lit upon a small first-aid kit on the dressing table. “Maybe there’s something in here I can use.” She opened it and nodded. “Yeah, this should do the trick. May I?”
Sam nodded, a small smile on his lips. “Yeah, go ahead. Be gentle. It’s quite spectacularly sore.”
Kate unwrapped a sterile wipe and gently dabbed the dried blood away from the long graze down the side of his face. As she leaned forward, she was acutely aware of his proximity and felt her stomach flutter. God, she was behaving like a teenager again. She was wiping blood from his face, and she was actually getting aroused. She stood up straight and took a step backwards. “That’s better. If you’re going to have a shower now, I can look at it again after and see if it needs a plaster or anything.”
“Thank you.” Sam was watching her. “You were very gentle. I’ll have a shower now. Barbara said the food won’t be long. You still look cold. Why don’t you make us some hot drinks? I’d love a coffee.”
Kate nodded. “Yes, I put the kettle on already. How d’you take it?”
“Milk and one sugar, please.” He disappeared into the ensuite and closed the door.
Kate sat down on the bed and put her head in her hands. What the hell was she doing here? It was three days before her wedding, and she was spending the night in a hotel room with another man. Nearly naked. Well—she looked down at herself—the bathrobes actually covered them up very well, but she was still acutely aware they were both naked underneath. Her stomach did a little flip again, and she shook her head in despair. Oh, why had he had to come back now? Why had she accepted his offer of a day on Dartmoor? Why was she secretly glad both those things had happened? It was totally messing with her head.
Getting to her feet, she picked up the hairdryer, quickly got her hair into a more comfortable state, then went over to prepare the drinks. She emptied a sachet of coffee into one cup, popped a tea bag in the other, and poured the boiling water over them. It seemed odd to be having tea in the evening, but it was true she was still cold despite the hot shower. She felt cold on the inside. She added the milk and sugar, then carried her own cup over to the armchair and curled up in it, cradling the warm cup in her hands. She had just got comfortable when there was a knock at the door, heralding the arrival of their food, and by the time Sam reappeared from the bathroom, rubbing his hair with a towel, Kate had set the plates on the dressing table and was scattering salt and pepper on her scampi.
“Sorry, couldn’t wait.” She smiled at him over her shoulder. “Never been so starving.”
Sam laughed and dropped the towel on the floor. “That looks wonderful. Have to say I’m pretty hungry myself.” He joined her, picked up his plate, and perched on the end of the bed. Kate took hers back to the chair and curled up again.
“Still can’t get warm,” she remarked as she took a mouthful of scampi. “Don’t know what’s wrong with me.”
“Probably just a reaction to the crash.” Sam watched her as he ate. “We’ll have to think of a way to warm you up after we’ve eaten.”
Kate glanced up at him, but he had looked down at his plate and she couldn’t see his face. What had he meant by that? She felt a
tingle in her stomach as she tried to imagine, and couldn’t help a tiny quiver of excitement running through her. What on earth was she thinking? In three days’ time she would be married. To Richard. This was all wrong. She shovelled some more food into her mouth and chewed energetically. Or something was wrong anyway.
“This is lovely,” Sam mumbled, his mouth full of scampi. “Is it as good as you’d hoped?”
Kate nodded, not trusting herself to speak, and glanced over at him. His hair, still wet from the shower, was endearingly tousled, and the rapidly burgeoning black eye and bruised face made him look rather like a small boy. He caught her eye and grinned, then winced slightly, and his hand went up to his face.
“Is it very sore?” Kate was horrified to find her voice was shaky.
“Yeah.” Sam gave a rueful grin. “I won’t pretend it’s not. The headache is subsiding a bit, but my eye’s throbbing like mad. Don’t think it’s going to be very easy sleeping on it, actually.”
“I still think you should have seen a doctor.” Kate watched him with concern. “You might have done some other damage. Promise you’ll tell me if you feel sick or anything. You might have concussion.”
“I’ll tell you.” He smiled at her again. “But I’m fine.”
Kate speared her last piece of scampi and popped it into her mouth. “Okay, then. You’d better be. That was lovely scampi.” She stood up and took her plate over to the table. “I think I’ll have another tea to try and warm up. Would you like another coffee?”
Sam shook his head. “No, thanks. Don’t actually think it’s helping the headache, and I’ll never get to sleep with any more caffeine.” He popped the last chip into his mouth and got up. “That was really nice.” He put his plate with Kate’s and yawned. “God, I’m tired. What time is it?”
Kate glanced at her phone. “No idea, my phone is completely out of charge now. It was about six when we got here, so it can’t be very late yet.” She shivered again as she poured hot water into her cup.
“You’re still cold.” Sam had come up behind her, and she could feel his breath on her neck. “We need to warm you up. I don’t want you to catch a chill.”
“That’s the sort of thing my mum says.” Kate didn’t turn round. “I’m not even sure what a chill is.”
“Me neither.” Sam put his hands on her shoulders and turned her round to face him. “But I’m sure you wouldn’t want one. Especially three days before your wedding.”
Kate looked away from him, her heart suddenly plummeting. Just for a few minutes she had forgotten the wedding. Sam put a finger under her chin and raised it up so she had to look at him.
“Can’t send you back to Ronald with a chill. He might wonder where you got it.”
“Richard.”
“Whatever. Come on, we must warm you up.” He took her hand and led her towards the bed, pulling back the quilt with his other hand.
Kate stared at him. “What are we going to do?”
“Warm you up. Now hop in the bed.” He gave her a gentle shove and climbed in beside her. “Lie down, and I’ll warm you up. Don’t worry. You can keep your bathrobe on.” He pulled her down beside him and drew her close, pulling the quilt over them and wrapping his arms around her. “There. That’ll soon do the trick. Come on, snuggle up and relax.”
Kate let him pull her into his arms and felt herself relaxing against his warm body. She lifted her head and stared him in the eyes.
“This is nice,” she murmured, “but very wrong.”
“Nonsense. I’m just warming you up. Not even Rupert would object to me stopping his fiancée catching her death of cold.”
Kate couldn’t help a chuckle escaping, and she didn’t bother to correct him this time. “I think he might, but who cares. This is actually helping. Thank you.” She smiled at him, their faces so close that his breath was warming her cheek.
“It’s a pleasure.” He watched her, his eyes serious for once. “Did you mean what you said?”
“What?” Kate was puzzled.
“That you would have gone out with me in sixth form? And that you were worried about me when we crashed?”
“Of course!” She stared at him in surprise. “Of course I would have. And of course I was worried. You were just lying there. I thought…” She tailed off as his lips came down on hers and his arms tightened around her. She responded with a muffled moan, and their tongues gently entwined as their lips locked. Kate pressed her body closer to his, closed her eyes, and was savouring the wonderful feel of his mouth on hers when he suddenly pulled away and looked down at her, his arms still firmly around her.
“And that’s all you’re getting,” he said with a smile. “Until you make your decision.”
“What decision?” Kate’s head was spinning.
“You’ll know. Now just relax and try to get warm.” His arms tightened around her, and he manoeuvred her head onto his shoulder. “How’s that? I need to lie on this side because of my eye.”
“It’s lovely,” Kate murmured sleepily, wriggling even closer to him. “So was that kiss.”
“Yes.” Sam gently pressed his lips into her hair. “It was. Now let’s try and sleep. We’ve had a long day.”
“An’ you tell me if you feel sick,” Kate muttered, her eyes closed and her face buried in his shoulder. “Promise?”
“I promise.”
Chapter 17
Thursday 23rd July
“Good morning.”
Kate opened her eyes to find Sam’s face inches from her own on the pillow. She yawned and smiled. “Good morning. Wow, did we stay in the same position all night?”
“It would appear so.” He pushed a strand of hair back out of her eyes. “You look very sweet when you’re asleep.”
“I am very sweet.” She smiled and rolled over onto her back. “Oh, god, I ache all over. How’s your face? And your headache?”
“Headache’s nearly gone, but my face and eye are throbbing like mad.”
“I’m sorry.” Kate watched him with concern. “I think I shall insist you go to the doctor.”
“I might,” he conceded. “It’s certainly pretty bad.”
She rolled over and stood up with a grimace. “Would you like a coffee?”
“Yeah, please. Are you in pain? You winced.”
“Oh, just the bruises from the fall in the river. Nothing to worry about.”
“Show me.”
“I can’t.”
“Katy. Show me. There must be some on your legs.”
Kate rolled her eyes. “They’re all down my left side. Okay I’ll show you my leg.” She held back the dressing gown to reveal her thigh and knee, both dotted with purpling bruises of varying sizes. “Just bruises, nothing to worry about.”
“That looks really painful.” Sam reached out and gently ran his hand down her leg. “You need to put something on those. They’re going to be a horrible colour in a day or so.”
“The ones higher up, on my ribs, feel worse.” Kate was desperately trying not to react as his hand moved over her flesh. “I’ll be fine.” She knew she should pull away, but didn’t think her legs would hold her up if she tried to move. Her whole body was tingling from his touch, and she felt suddenly lightheaded.
“Are you all right, Katy?” Sam was watching her.
“I think I need to sit down.” She groped behind her and sat down abruptly on the bed beside him.
“Maybe you should see the doctor too?” he suggested, removing his hand. “You don’t want to be in pain on Saturday.”
“On Saturday?” Kate was momentarily flummoxed. “Why Saturday…oh. Oh, right.” She turned away from him, her face beginning to get hot. She had forgotten about Saturday. She had forgotten about her wedding.
Sam got to his feet with a grunt. “I guess we’d better see if our clothes are ready. My father is coming to fetch us at ten.”
Kate watched as he walked to the door and looked out into the corridor. Even covered in the thick bathrobe, his body was
wonderful, and she couldn’t take her eyes off him. He disappeared out of the room, and the door swung shut behind him.
Kate fell back on the bed and covered her face with her hands. What on earth was she doing? In forty-eight hours she would be dressing for her wedding. Her wedding to Richard. And she had just spent the night in the arms of a man she was pretty sure was in love with her. How she felt about him she wasn’t prepared to consider just now, but following the surprising revelation that Sam had broken up with Cerys so he could ask her out, her mind was in utter turmoil.
“Katy? Are you sure you’re all right?” Sam had returned with an armful of clean clothes and was watching her with concern.
She sat up and sighed. “Yeah, I’m okay.” She looked up at him. “Tell me something, honestly. Did you really come back to get a job and settle down?”
Sam dumped the pile of clean clothes on the bed and stood looking down at her. “Why else would I have come back?”
“That’s not an answer.”
“Well, it’s all you’re getting for now. Now come on, Dad will be here in half an hour. We need to get dressed.” He picked up his jeans and started to pull them on.
Kate fished in the pile of clothes, located her bra and pants, and disappeared into the bathroom to put them on. Her mind was in so much turmoil that it was actually giving her a headache. There were so many things she wanted to ask Sam, but she knew that if she did, she would be starting something she might not be able to stop.
And she really did have to marry Richard. She would be letting far too many people down if she didn’t. It was better just to let herself down. It was all her own fault anyway. If she hadn’t gone out on that first date with Sam, then none of this would have happened. She wouldn’t now be getting dressed in a hotel bathroom while the man she had spent the night with—albeit relatively chastely—was getting dressed on the other side of the door.
Breaking All the Rules Page 19
