Anyone But You (The Love Hotel #3)

Chapter 1

HALLE

‘I’m sorry to have to tell you this, Halle, but you’re in serious danger.’ My best friend Vanessa’s face fell.

‘Danger?’ I frowned, holding my beef taco in mid-air. ‘Of what?’

‘Of your poor vagina being resealed due to lack of activity!’ she cackled, before draining her glass of red wine and slamming it on the table triumphantly like she’d just told the best joke ever.

‘Not funny and harsh.’ I rolled my eyes before sliding the last taco bite into my mouth. It was delicious and I resented the fact that her stupid comment had delayed me from finishing it by at least ten valuable seconds.

‘But it’s true! That guy at the bar has been giving you serious let me rock your world vibes all night and you’ve ignored him. Again.’

‘For good reason! Every time we come to this bar, he’s cosying up to a different woman. He’s got player written all over him.’

‘That doesn’t have to be a bad thing. You could do with a good roll in the hay.

You know I love you, but just because you’re waiting for your knight in shining armour to ride in and sweep you off your feet, doesn’t mean you can’t ride someone else in the meantime!

Safely, of course. Seriously, Hal,’ she ran her hand through her sleek, jet-black shoulder-length hair, ‘it’s been two years since you’ve had a shag.

Just go over there, tell him you want to bang and take him home. ’

‘Are you insane?’ I gasped. ‘He could be a murderer. And I don’t even know if he fancies me!’

‘Firstly, Harvey, the owner, told me that’s his best friend’s son, so if he does anything, I’ll know where to hunt him down.

And secondly, of course he fancies you! You’re gorgeous.

Your parents knew exactly what they were doing when they named you Halle – you’re the spitting image of Halle Berry.

You could easily pass for her younger sister.

Your chocolate curls are popping, your gorgeous brown skin is glowing, your nails are flawless as always, and that pink lip gloss you’re rocking suits you. Is it new?’

‘No…’ I eyed her suspiciously. She wasn’t usually so effusive with the compliments. She must really want me to get back out there. ‘Er… thanks.’

‘Just speaking the truth, babe. Anyway, I’ve lost count of the times bar guy’s checked you out since we’ve been coming here. He definitely likes you. Plus, you’re a Brit living in New York. All you have to do is say hello and he’ll get an instant boner from your accent.’

‘That’s such a cliché,’ I scoffed.

‘Works for me!’ She grinned. ‘The other day, there was a hot policeman cordoning off an area downtown, so I went over, put on my best Liz Hurley accent and said, “Oh, my goodness, officer. What an earth has happened here?” And you know the first thing he said?’

‘What?’

‘Well, after he told me someone had been attacked, which obvs was terrible, he said, “Hey! Nice accent.” Trust me. These American guys are putty in our hands. Moving to New York was the best thing we ever did. You need to take advantage of it more. It’s a dating hotbed.’

‘For you maybe.’

When I was growing up and watching TV shows set in New York, I used to think it was the dating metropolis. But the reality was that ever since I’d moved here six years ago it’d been more sexless than Sex and the City.

‘It could be for you too. If you were more open-minded.’

‘You’re not talking about threesomes again, are you?’ I narrowed my eyes.

‘No! It’s hard enough getting you to get one man into bed, never mind two. I mean, being open-minded to dating opportunities. I know you’ve got your reasons, so I understand why you’re worried, but at some point, you have to try again.’

‘I am open-minded!’ I protested. ‘I signed up to that Love Hotel place.’

‘Correction: I signed you up for your birthday.’

‘And I’m going to pay you back every single cent for that deposit because that was way too generous of you. Might take me approximately twenty-five years, but I’ll find the cash eventually.’

I still couldn’t believe Vanessa had done that for me. The deposit was over fifteen hundred dollars, but Vanessa said when she kept hearing me talk about how cool it sounded, she wanted to help.

The Love Hotel was a luxury resort where you were guaranteed to find your Mr Right.

They had locations in Europe and they’d announced that they were opening up a branch in the US soon.

I didn’t know exactly where yet, but in the unlikely event that I got selected (places were like gold dust), I’d be up for going.

‘I’m happily single and childfree and I have a great job, so I have money to spend. We’ve been best friends for practically our whole lives! So if I can’t spoil you once in a while, what’s the point?’

Our dads both grew up together in New York and fell in love with British women when they moved to London and although Vanessa was a few years older than me, I’d known her since birth.

‘Well, I appreciate it.’

‘I know. So, when was the last time you checked your emails to see if the hotel had been in touch?’

‘Er…’ My cheeks heated. ‘Maybe a few days ago,’ I lied.

If I was being honest, it’d been at least a week. When Vanessa first applied almost three months ago, I did check every few days, but after six weeks of disappointment it didn’t feel healthy to obsess over it, so I stopped.

Anyway, emails were always depressing. I didn’t need that kind of negativity in my life.

‘A few days?’ Vanessa gasped. ‘I check my emails at least ten times an hour.’

‘You’re a lawyer. Emails are important to you. I work in a juice bar. It’s not like I have customers emailing to order their morning green juice.’

‘Give me your phone!’ she ordered, thrusting her hand in front of me. There was no point in arguing, so I handed it over.

‘I should never have…’ Just as I was about say I regretted giving her my password, an advert flashed up on the TV opposite us that made my stomach churn.

‘What’s wrong?’ Vanessa asked, before following my gaze. ‘Oh, shit.’

Plastered all over the screen was my ex, Brett’s, annoying face. He was cosying up with his gorgeous supermodel wife in their huge mansion with their perfect one-year-old daughter, promoting the latest season of their reality show.

Most people worried about bumping into their ex at the supermarket, but for me, things were more complicated.

Brett was a famous rockstar and although I didn’t do social media, barely a day went by without me seeing him plastered on a billboard, hearing his songs blasting on the radio or seeing his perfect life advertised on the promos for his reality show.

Don’t get me wrong, I was totally over him. The arsehole broke my heart and I knew I was better off without him. But I just wished I didn’t have to see him again.

They say that everything in life is either a lesson or a blessing. In his case, it was both. Although it didn’t feel like it when it happened, breaking up was definitely a blessing. And the lesson I learnt was to never date anyone famous again. Just the thought of it made my blood run cold.

‘It’s fine!’ I insisted. ‘I need a drink. Want another?’

‘You paid for dinner and drinks last time!’ Vanessa protested. ‘It’s my turn.’

‘I’m buying you a drink,’ I insisted. Even though technically I couldn’t afford it, Vanessa was always so generous, so I wanted to treat her for a change.

‘And I’m going to talk to Bar Bro. You’re right.

I should have some fun.’ I pushed my chair back, stood up and strutted to the bar.

‘Another red wine for Vanessa, please, Harvey,’ I said, then turned to the guy who’d been giving me the eye. ‘Wanna get some air?’

My heart pounded. This was so not me. I didn’t ask random guys if they wanted to get some air, but there was a first time for everything.

‘Sure, honey,’ he grinned, sliding off his stool, before following me.

‘Your drink’s on the way,’ I said to Vanessa. ‘We’re stepping outside.’

‘I was wondering how long it’d take you to make a move,’ Bar Bro said as he led me down the alleyway at the side of the bar then gently eased me against the wall.

‘If you’re looking for a good time, you’ve come to the right place.

I can’t wait to slip and slide inside your ocean, baby girl.

I’m gonna give it to you so good. One ride on my jumbo jet and you’ll be begging for more. ’

My eyes popped. His jumbo jet?

I’d never shied away from sexy talk but calling his cock a jumbo jet was a first. I supposed there was nothing wrong with a bit of confidence. And this was just supposed to be a bit of fun. What this guy chose to call his dick wasn’t important.

‘Maybe we could just, er… kiss?’ I said with a weak smile.

If he thought he was going to fuck me down an alleyway, he could think again.

Although Vanessa was right about it being a while since I’d been intimate, I still wasn’t ready to sleep with anyone. Especially not with a man who was clearly a player. Not after what happened before.

Just as I was considering whether I should explain to Bar Bro that I had no intention of riding his jumbo jet, he gripped the back of my head then pushed his mouth on mine.

It took approximately one second for me to realise that letting this guy kiss me was a very, very bad idea.

He’d said he wanted to slide inside my ocean. But the only wetness happening right now wasn’t from between my legs. It was from the excessive amount of his saliva I felt dribbling down my chin.

Ugh.

This guy was plunging his tongue in my mouth like he was trying to unblock a toilet and the sloshing sound he was making in the process was gross.

My first instinct was to push him away, wipe my mouth and run for the hills, but I didn’t want to be cruel. Maybe he just needed time to warm up.

But as the kiss continued, I felt like I was being sucked into a cyclone. He was slobbering all over me like an overenthusiastic dog.

Just when I thought it couldn’t get any worse, he burped.

Yep. Mid-snog.

As the taste of raw onions and stale beer flooded my mouth and invaded my nostrils, I fought the urge not to gag.

I’d tried, but I just couldn’t do it.

I jerked away, desperate to run to the bathroom and guzzle a pint of industrial-strength mouthwash.

‘Best kiss you’ve ever had, right?’ Bar Bro said proudly, a satisfied grin plastered over his face.

‘I… I have to go,’ I said before sprinting inside the bar and straight over to Vanessa. ‘We need to go. Right now!’

‘What?’ Vanessa said. I gestured with my eyes to the door where Bar Bro was walking in. ‘Oh… okay.’ She grabbed her stuff. Once we were safely inside a yellow taxi, I breathed out a sigh of relief.

‘Remind me never to attempt to pick up a random guy again,’ I said, thinking that going to the Love Hotel was looking even more appealing.

Obviously, they wouldn’t vet guests for their kissing or dirty talk skills (imagine if someone had that job!), but the calibre of men had to be better than that guy. I’d contact them again first thing on Monday to see if they had an update.

Vanessa was right. It was time for me to get back on the horse. But I wanted to find someone decent. Picking up strangers wasn’t my thing. Neither were dating apps. Getting the professionals to weed out all the weirdos was the best way forward. It was time for a fresh start.

‘I take it from the way we ran off like murderers fleeing a crime scene, your experience with Bar Bro wasn’t good?’

‘That’s an understatement! Forget calling him Bar Bro. I’ve renamed him Burp Bro. That was the most traumatic first kiss of my life. And considering my first boyfriend’s tongue almost got stuck in my braces, that’s saying something.’

When I told Vanessa what happened, she winced.

‘That’s gross! Sorry, babe. I wish I could say that your bad dating experiences were over, but… What the fuck?’ Vanessa’s jaw suddenly dropped.

‘What’s up?’

‘I’ve got good news and bad news.’ She sighed as she looked down at my phone. With everything that had happened, I’d forgotten that I’d given it to her.

‘Yeah?’

‘So… the good news is that you had a place at the Love Hotel in California.’

‘Oh my God!’ I squealed, causing the cab driver to jump.

‘That’s amazing. I was happy to go before, but thanks to Burp Bro, I’m ecstatic!

I know how hard it is to get a place there, so I realise how lucky I am.

I’m ready, Vanessa! I’m gonna take my dating life more seriously.

I was just thinking that I’d email them on Monday morning to follow up. I’m so glad that now I don’t have to!’

Talk about great timing. This was brilliant news.

‘I mean, I know it’s in California, which isn’t ideal, especially if it’s anywhere near LA or Beverly Hills,’ I continued rambling.

I used to always want to go there. But I’d avoided it like the plague, because it was where my ex was.

‘But it’ll be fine. Hard, definitely, but fine.

Wait…’ I frowned again. ‘Why aren’t you excited?

’ Considering she encouraged me to apply and paid the massive deposit, I thought she’d be relieved that it wouldn’t go to waste.

‘Hold on. You said that there was bad news. Is the bad part the fact that it’s near Brett’s house or something? ’

‘No,’ Vanessa said solemnly and took a deep breath. ‘The good news is that you had a place.’

‘You mean have, right?’

Vanessa shook her head.

‘You had a place, but to secure it, you were supposed to confirm and pay the balance: last week.’

‘Wait, what?’ My brain scrambled.

‘They sent the original email weeks ago, Halle. You said you checked a few days ago!’

‘I must’ve got my dates mixed up… Maybe it went to junk,’ I said, trying to hide my embarrassment.

‘It was in your inbox. And they sent multiple emails. And said they’d tried calling several times… didn’t you see the missed calls or voicemails?’

I swallowed hard as I remembered a period when I got a series of calls that I didn’t answer. I’d seen voicemails too but I’d ignored them.

‘They were from an unknown number. I… you know that’s triggering for me.’

My chest tightened as a fresh wave of memories came flooding back. To the majority of the population, avoiding calls from people who weren’t in your contacts might seem OTT, but when you’d been through what I had, it was justified.

‘Maybe if I call them and explain…’

‘The last email said if you didn’t reply within forty-eight hours you’d forfeit your place and the deposit. Permanently. And that was sent a week ago…’

She held up the phone so I could see the text written in very clear bold red writing. And I felt sick.

So that was that then.

Looked like my days of picking up randos in bars weren’t over.

I had the opportunity to meet someone half decent and I’d wasted it. Along with Vanessa’s money.

Thousands of people dreamt of securing a place at the Love Hotel.

And I’d got one, but I’d blown it.

Shit.