Chapter 31
‘These people are driving me crazy,’ Erin huffed when faced with yet another demand from the Beaumonts.
The honeymooning couple truly was turning into her worst nightmare.
First, it was a different desk chair to accommodate Maria’s sensitive back when she was typing.
Then it was constant pod refills for the coffee maker to keep their minds alert while they reviewed ‘important documents’ for an upcoming meeting.
Meeting? On honeymoon?
Plus the constant complaints about the Wi-Fi, which still wasn’t up to their standard.
Erin couldn’t understand it. They were supposed to be spending their time enjoying one another, not reformatting documents and preparing presentations while floating on a cloud of caffeine-induced insomnia.
If only moving them to another room was enough to solve the problem. As it had been with Shay Brady, she mused with some satisfaction.
Following her brainwave when visiting Naomi Sparks’ room, Erin had since decided that the recent water leak was the perfect ruse to move the jilted groom out of Eugenie Cooke’s preferred room.
‘I’m so, so sorry for the inconvenience, Mr Brady,’ she’d soothed, having personally notified the guy and even assisted the luggage porter with moving his stuff to a completely different wing that very morning.
Though Erin already knew it wouldn’t be that inconvenient since Brady had barely unpacked anyway.
‘Unfortunately, the unexpected, but necessary, plumbing maintenance I talked about is happening in the room directly above yours and I wouldn’t want to risk any leaks or spillages down here. ’
While the Irishman seemed a little put out at having to move rooms yet again, he was generally good-natured about it all.
And when Erin left him safely ensconced in his new beachside bungalow, she was doubly proud of herself for not only freeing up the room, but also turning what had first appeared to be a negative into a major positive.
She’d let housekeeping take care of cleaning it for now, but in the meantime had put a reserved block on Eugenie’s room so that she could arrange for Molly to comb through it at her leisure when the time was right.
And with luck, finally, secure the key.
But, for the moment at least, she and Molly both had a busy day coming up.
‘Makellah?’
‘Yes?’ the receptionist replied, as she entered Erin’s office. She was young but incredibly efficient and in the short time they’d worked together she’d already learned Erin’s pattern.
‘Can you get Nadine on the line, or actually no – maybe the catamaran operator directly?’
The wheels of her mind were turning quickly now, and the more they did, the more her various plans were starting to come together.
‘Oh, and ask our IT technician to call me too. I need his help,’ she requested, her brain working overtime.
‘Sure thing,’ Makellah answered, turning to go out front. Then she looked back, curious. ‘What are you planning?’
Erin pressed the tips of her fingers together as her elbows rested on her desk.
‘I think it’s high time those Beaumonts got out of their cave. Just see that you get everything I asked for?’ Then she got to her feet. ‘I’m going to be out for most of the day, so I’ll need you to man the fort until I get back.’
‘I thought as much,’ Makellah replied with a grin. ‘You aren’t exactly dressed for the office.’
Erin smiled. She’d recently changed into a pink halter top with a bead-encrusted band around the middle of her ribcage, and light-blue jean shorts.
‘I might not be in the office today, but trust me, it’s still important hotel business.’
‘There you are,’ Erin enthused when a few minutes later she spied Molly coming toward her in the lobby.
‘Are you sure this is OK?’ the other woman asked, completely forgetting her manners as her insecurities resurfaced. She looked down at the flowing black and white maxi skirt and wispy white spaghetti strap top she was wearing.
It was something Erin had helped her pick out from the resort’s in-house boutique the evening before.
It had taken some prodding to get Molly to relinquish her dark and heavy clothing for something that suited the climate, but in the end, she seemed pleased about the decision, though she was still a bit nervous about the change.
Plus the outfit did justice to her slender figure. No one would have guessed that such a lovely form was hidden beneath all those layers of clothing, but Molly needed a bit more convincing.
‘You look fantastic. Just relax, today is about having fun,’ Erin replied with a comforting hand on her arm. ‘You’d bake if you’d tried to spend a day out in the stuff you brought. You aren’t wintering in Alaska, you know,’ she joked.
But Molly still looked nervous.
‘Remember, I promised I’d help you and your mom. Let this be the first step in trying something new, OK?’
The other woman brightened and she nodded assuredly at her. ‘OK. One day at a time.’
‘That’s the spirit,’ Erin affirmed, giving her another reassuring glance before her gaze drifted elsewhere. ‘Now, where are the others?’ she mumbled to herself as she surveyed a crowd gathering outside the hotel entrance.
‘The others?’ Molly asked curiously.
‘Other guests joining us this afternoon. I haven’t seen them yet.’ She continued to scan the crowd until, finally, she spotted a familiar face. ‘There’s one,’ she mumbled, heading towards him and leaving Molly to follow her.
‘Trevor, so glad you could make it,’ Erin sang and then glanced over her shoulder at Molly, whose cheeks were flushed as she gave a surprised glance in their direction. ‘I believe you already know Miss Cooke?’
‘Yes,’ he replied delightedly, not giving away any inkling of his and Erin’s previous conversation. ‘Hello, Molly. Long time.’
‘Trevor … what are you doing here?’ Molly gasped, her cheeks flushing. ‘It’s been a long time and … honestly, I didn’t expect to know anyone on the island.’
Erin smiled. More progress.
‘Since you two already know each other, would you mind sitting together on the journey?’ she asked innocently, indicating the awaiting bus. ‘I need to attend to a solo guest.’
‘Sure,’ Molly said, smiling shyly back at her old school friend.
‘That would be lovely.’ Trevor stepped closer and the two old friends started their conversation. ‘We’ve got a lot of catching up to do.’
Even with Molly still sending her nervous glances, Erin was delighted to see that at least she hadn’t attempted to retreat inside her shell.
There was hope yet. All she needed was a little push in the right direction.
‘If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you were playing matchmaker,’ a low voice whispered in her ear then, and Erin jumped in surprise.
‘Don’t do that, you startled me,’ she sputtered.
‘Well, am I right?’ Mack pressed.
Ignoring his remark, she took him by the arm and led him away. She didn’t want Molly or Trevor overhearing.
‘So what if I did?’
‘So, not only a guest relations manager and Wi-Fi whizz kid, but a matchmaker too?’
‘Not usually,’ she commented, glancing at the smiles on Trevor and Molly’s faces. ‘On this occasion, I made an exception.’
‘Why?’
‘Because everyone deserves a second chance?’ she replied simply.
‘Yes, it seems you have a thing about second chances,’ Mack retorted smoothly. ‘So what’s your big plan for me today?’
‘We should get going,’ she stated, glancing at him. ‘Everyone else has already boarded.’
‘A bus? You’re taking me on a tour bus?’ he muttered with some disbelief. ‘I assumed something … different.’
‘Hey, you know what they say about assumptions,’ Erin told him, winking as she led the way.