Chapter 12
Chapter 1 2
Erica
An hour later, no one had come to fix her shower, and she was desperate to wash away the travel from her skin. She picked up a towel from the stack in her bathroom and her wash bag. Erica assumed all the cottages she’d hired were for her use and should be ready to accept guests. Walking to the nearest cottage, the one she passed up to the main house, she used the keys she was given. The place looked exactly like hers. Same décor, same layout. It made it easier for her to find the bathroom attached to the main bedroom. She stripped off for the second time. Nothing would stop her from getting under the warm water, not even the vague idea that the front door had just slammed shut.
She stepped towards the switch on the wall and reached out to press it when a man appeared in the open doorway.
“Don’t press it,” he yelled.
But it was too late. Her finger had already started its trajectory and had pressed the button. The man yelled fuck and ran towards her. The shock of electricity shot up her arm. Erica let out a scream and stumbled back, and then she fell. The man caught her as she sank to the floor, falling to the floor with her. They landed in a heap on the tiled floor. Erica was sitting on his lap, and he had his hands on her.
A rough palm of his hand cupped her breast while his other hand was on her hip.
“Shit, I’m sorry,” he said, whipping his hand away like her skin burned him.
He reached across, snatched a towel off the vanity unit, and draped it over her.
“Thank you, I think,” she said.
“How did you know the shower is trying to kill me?”
“The same thing happened to me in Emma Lodge. I fixed that one, but I hadn’t had the chance to check in here. They told me you wouldn’t be living in this cottage,” he said.
“The switch in Emma Lodge attacked me too. Are they all like this?”
“I didn’t think so, but I’ll get them all checked out straight away.”
“Now that you’ve grabbed my breast, maybe you could tell me your name?” Erica said, making no effort to move away from her position on his muscular thighs.
“I’m Archer,” he said, holding out his hand in the awkward position. She took it but didn’t shake it. Instead, she held his hand and leaned against his torso.
“I’m Erica, and I feel a bit light-headed,” she said.
“I’ll pick you up and take you to the bedroom,” he said, already rising from his seated position.
“I hope you’re a gentleman,” she said and laughed.
Talking brazenly had never been her style, but this man was strong, seemingly capable-and he gave a shit that she was about to electrocute herself .
“Always the gentleman. The lady should always come first. Shit. I mean, go first. Fuck. Be first.”
She let out a nervous laugh as he stumbled over his words. Then, momentarily startled that Archer was affected by her, she regained her composure.
He carefully placed her on the king-sized bed and ensured the towel completely covered her. Then, taking a large step back, he glanced into the bathroom and then back to Erica. She tried and failed at her perusal of the man who caught her when she fell.
“How are you feeling?” Archer asked her.
“I feel okay now. Thanks for coming in when you did.”
Erica sat up with her hand on her towel over her breasts and swung her legs over the side of the bed. Archer’s eyes darted to her thigh that was on show.
“I’d gone to your cottage first. Ralph said your shower had tripped out the electrics. When you weren’t there, I walked back and saw the light on upstairs here.”
“I’d pay a lot of money to get a shower right now.”
“I’m really sorry. I’d told the main house and suggested they put your main cottage as one of the others.”
“You’re not the maintenance man?”
“I’m not sure what I am, to be honest, but I am a qualified electrician. There is only one shower I know is working and safe for sure. But there’s a catch.”
“It’s the sea?” she deadpanned.
“Not quite, but it is outdoors,” he said with a broad grin.
“Can you turn your back for a second?”
Archer turned around. “I’m sorry my hand landed on your breast, truly.”
“Don’t give it another thought. It’s fine,” Erica said.
She would be thinking about it for some time. His rough skin, the short squeeze that he probably didn’t remember doing. Did he notice her nipple hardened? She hoped not. He didn’t appear to have recognised her, so at least there wouldn’t be headlines in the gutter press online within the hour.
Maintenance man grabs Hollywood actress tit
Wrapping the towel around her body and tucking in the edge of the towel securely, she walked to where Archer was standing.
“I need to grab my wash bag, and then we can get going. Is it far?”
“A few minutes walk. You’ll need shoes if we take the shortcut.”
“Okay,” she said, pulling on her deck shoes without socks.
Archer smiled at her, “come on, follow me.”
They walked out the back of the cottage and through a gap in the hedge. This brought them level with the end of the tall trees. He took her across the lawn at the back of the cottage she first arrived at, and then they walked between the trees. On the other side, they were almost at the back of the smaller of the large mansions she passed earlier. They walked in silence to Turner Hall, where the swimming pool was located. Archer stopped next to a wooden shack.
“In there is a shower. It’s for people who are going to use the pool. There’s warm water and a shelf on which you can put your wash bag. On the back of the door is a hook for your towel. However,” he said, thinning his lips. “There’s no lock. So I’ll stand guard until you’re finished.”
With a wary look, she stepped into the wooden slatted hut with no roof and closed the door. It had a magnetic clasp.
“I can see through the wooden planks,” she said, closing one eye and checking out his thighs .
“Do you know you’re not completely invisible in there? I can see the direction of your eyes.”
Erica jumped back like she’d been caught spying. She heard his chuckle as she turned on the shower using the large silver dial. The water shot out of the shower head and down her back. The cold water soaked her.
“I thought you said it was warm water,” she shouted over the shower noise.
“It’ll warm up. Stop being a diva.”
It wasn’t the first time she’d been called a diva, but the water was icy cold and surprised her. His back was turned to the cubicle when she glanced over her shoulder. His arms folded and his feet apart, standing guard. Erica washed her hair and body quickly, so she didn’t impose on his time any longer than necessary, and turned the water off. Once her towel was securely fastened, she pushed the door open and stepped out onto the flagstones. The sunshine shimmering off the pool was inviting.
“I can’t wait to take a dip in the pool. I’m so glad the booking allowed me to access it.”
“Was that a condition of your booking?”
“Yes. I can’t believe the luck I had with a late booking.”
“How long ago did you book?”
“Two weeks ago. To have all the cottages and the use of a swimming pool to myself is perfect for what I need.”
“Do you compete?”
“Swimming? No. I need to increase my synchronised swimming skills. I need to be as perfect as I can be in two months.”
“Did you ask for the exclusivity of the pool?” he asked, looking crestfallen.
“I assumed as I had all the rooms booked. Are there others that use it? ”
“Just me, but I can swim in the sea if you need access whenever you need it.”
“We can share, Archer. I’ll need to swim to increase my stamina and lungs, but it’s big enough for both of us.”
She asked it as a question. Erica was now desperate to see Archer in his swimming trunks, soaking wet from the water. Archer tipped his head to the side.
“What are you concentrating on?”
Erica snapped her head up and looked him straight in the eye. “Nothing, nothing at all. Look, I need to get back and put some clothes on. When do you think you can look at the shower in my cottage?”
“I can come now if you like.”
“Great,” she said, taking in a large breath and letting it out with a slump of her shoulders.
Having Archer in her house was going to be a distraction. She’d always liked a man who could fix things. Handsy. But she wasn’t here to hook up with the maintenance guy or whoever he might be. She was here to lick her wounds and learn her lines. Her afternoon’s task was to watch as many Esther Williams films as possible.
They walked to her place, and he looked at her shower once she was dressed. Archer came into the open living room shaking his head in the universal way that told her it would cost her a fortune to fix. Thankfully, it wasn’t her financial problem.
“It looks like the same problem as next door. I will check the other three cottages to see if they are okay. If they are, we can move you into one of those.”
“And if they’re not?”
“I guess I’m on escort duty for a poolside shower.”
“Are you a full-service escort? ”
Archer gave her a wide-eyed stare with a gaping mouth. She burst out laughing at his shock.
“Relax,” she said, waving away his reaction. “I’m kidding. I love movie quotes.”
“That’s lost on me. I’ve never seen a movie in my life. Can’t stand the things.”
“You’re kidding?”
“Nope. I lasted ten minutes once, never again. Who wants to sit still for two hours looking at a screen.”
“I think they call it escapism.”
“There are other ways to escape,” Archer said, taking a quick glance at her mouth. “Anyway, I’d better go look at the other cottages. I’ll be back in ten minutes.”
Erica nodded her understanding and watched him walk out of her house. Her relationship with Gregg had been over for months, and she hadn’t lusted after anyone until this guy. A man who hated films. At least she wouldn’t have a problem with him knowing who she was while she hid away.