Listen to Your Heart (11 page)

“I’m fine.” She looked into her glass
and frowned. It was empty, and she held it out.

Karen watched while Tyler poured.
“Better be careful with that stuff. It has a way of sneaking up on you.”

“I’m fine.” Morgan emptied half of her
glass and followed Rob’s progress across the patio. “Did you hear that?”
Without warning, tears started to run down her face. “He’s unbelievable!” She
drained the glass and sat down with a thud. “Wow! You’re right. That stuff is
powerful.” Tyler and Karen were starting to blur.

Karen came to her side. “What have you
had to eat today?”

Morgan heard Karen’s voice. It was
coming from far away. She was asking something about food. “I had a couple of
spoons of soup at lunch,” she said, surprised that her lips could form the
words. They were getting numb, and she raised a hand to touch them.

Karen looked at Tyler, who was none too
steady himself. “I’d better take her down.” She paused. “Then I’ll come back
for you.”

Morgan almost made it to the gondola
before she threw up. Karen rubbed her back as she heaved.

Morgan pointed to her purse. “Tissues,”
she said. Karen retrieved them and she wiped her lips, then her eyes. “I don’t
know why I’m crying,” she mumbled. “He’s not worth it.”  Laughter bubbled up in
her throat and it was interrupted by hiccups. “I do know why I’m throwing up,
though, and I should seriously know better.” She frowned and tried to concentrate
as they stumbled into the gondola. “I think I’d like to go home now.”

* * *

By the time they reached the bottom, Morgan
was slumped against Karen. The narrow benches across either end of the gondola
weren’t made for comfort, but the room clerk had managed to keep her upright.

Adrian ran from the shadows when he
spotted Karen trying to revive Morgan. “I’ll take her from here,” he said,
supporting her with an arm around her waist.

“Have you been waiting long?” Karen gave
him a curious look. “It’s cold out here.”

Adrian grinned and stamped his feet.
“I’m used to the cold.”

“Well.” She stepped back awkwardly. “I’d
better go back up top and see if I can talk Tyler into closing up.” She nodded
toward Morgan. “He’s getting that way himself.”

“Karen,” he said. “Thank you.”

The room clerk smiled. “You’re welcome,
Adrian. You’re a good guy.” She stepped onto the next gondola and waved.

During the walk to the hotel parking
lot, Morgan raised her head and tried to focus. “Where are you taking me?” she
asked.

He manoeuvred her down the ramp into the
parking lot. “I’m taking you home.” He struggled to keep her upright while he
unlocked the passenger door. “Come on, almost there.”

She crawled into the passenger seat and
sat placidly while he fastened her seat belt. By the time he went around and
got into the driver’s seat, her head had fallen back onto the headrest and she
appeared asleep.

Adrian pulled out and headed for the
Lodge.

“It wasn’t a date,” she said dreamily,
turning to face him. In the lights from the oncoming cars he could see that her
mascara was streaked. A fist closed around his heart when he realized she’d
been crying.

“It wasn’t?” He didn’t care; he just
wanted to keep her awake.

“No. I feel so foolish.” She dabbed at
her eyes and then frowned as a thought struck her. “Where did you come from? I
didn’t see you there.”

“Karen came down with you on the gondola
and I just happened to be walking by.” She seemed to accept this explanation.
“So I offered to drive you home.”

“Oh.” She turned her head the other way
and stared out the side window. “I think I’m going to be sick again.”

“Hold on, we’re almost there.” They were
pulling into the parking lot.

She was fumbling with her seat belt and
as soon as the car stopped, she opened the door and slid out, crumpling onto a
pile of snow. Adrian came running around to help her but she waved him away.
With nothing left in her stomach, she heaved several times, then reached for
the door handle and pulled herself upright.

“Come on.” He dabbed at her mouth with a
soft handkerchief. “Let’s get you up to your room.”

The lobby was empty when they entered
and they managed to get up to her room without anyone seeing her. “Room key?”
he asked.

“In there somewhere.” She braced herself
against the wall and looked down at her purse. “It’s tucked into a little
pocket.” She giggled. “Tucked into a little pocket. That sounds funny.”

“I’ll find it.” It was where she said,
and he opened the door, flicked on the light and guided her inside.

“Which one is your bedroom?” Adrian
asked.

“That one.” Morgan pointed to the far
door, but headed for the bathroom. “I don’t feel well.”

“I’m not surprised,” muttered Adrian. He
checked the refrigerator and the cupboards, ran some water in the kettle and
placed it on the stove. “Tea,” he said to himself. “I’ll see if she’ll drink
some tea.”

He walked to the door of the bathroom
and listened. “Morgan?” When there was no reply he pushed the door open. She
was sitting on the floor with a facecloth in her hands and looked up at him as
he entered, a quizzical look on her face.

“What are you doing here?” The front of
her blouse was drenched with water.

“I brought you home.” He took the
facecloth from her and helped her up. “Come on, you need to be in bed.”

“But we scarcely know each other.” She
giggled.

He tried to hide a smile. “No offence,
but I didn’t mean it that way.” He guided her to the bed and she sat down
heavily. “At least not tonight.”

She closed her eyes, but opened them
again right away. “The room is spinning,” she said, and looked down at her
blouse where he’d managed to undo several of the buttons. “Are you taking
advantage of me?”

He stepped back, and a flash of
annoyance crossed his normally placid face. “No. You’re soaking wet.”

She looked down. “Oh.” She tried to undo
the rest, but her fingers wouldn’t co-operate. “Would you do it, please?”

He complied, and removed her arms from
the wet garment.

She frowned as he knelt down and removed
her short winter boots and her socks. “At least I have my nice bra on.”

He kept his head down.

“Women worry about stuff like that, you
know. When we put our old underwear on, we always hope we don’t get into a car
accident or something.”

He looked up sharply. Her bra was a lacy
white confection and he felt an immediate stirring in his groin. He stood up,
pulled down the duvet and managed to get her to swing her feet up. He was
greatly relieved when she sank back against the pillow and he could cover her.

“I’m making some tea,” he said, shoving
his hands into his pockets to keep from touching her. “Do you think you could
drink some?”

She smiled up at him. “That would be lovely,
thank you. I don’t know why you’re being so nice to me.”

He looked into her eyes and saw the
moment realization dawned. This was not the way he wanted it to be. He’d
envisioned some romantic setting when he told her that he cared about her.
Funny how things like that rarely worked out. “I’ll get that tea,” he murmured,
and turned to leave.

“Adrian?” He turned at the tone of her
voice. It was tentative and shy. “Why is it complicated?”

He searched his mind, but had no idea
what she was talking about. “Why what is complicated?”

“When I asked you if you had a
girlfriend the other day, you hesitated. Then you said it’s complicated.”

The kettle whistled, startling him.

“You don’t owe me an explanation, but
I’d like to know,” she said softly.

He nodded. He wasn’t sure if he could
bare his soul to anyone, but if he did, it would be to Morgan. “Let me get you
that tea first,” he said. “And then we’ll see.”

Deep in thought, he dunked the teabag in
two mugs of hot water and poured milk into hers, the way he’d seen her fix it
at the restaurant. He wanted to tell her in the worst way, but was now the
right time? Tonight she’d gone through emotional trauma of her own. No, he
decided. He’d tell her eventually, but not tonight. He’d choose a time when
they were both seeing things more clearly. He tucked a bag of cookies under his
arm and went back into the bedroom with the two steaming cups.

Morgan had rolled over onto her side and
was snoring softly. So much for his big decision. He smiled to himself, placed
the cups and the cookies on the bedside table and pulled up an easy chair. He
didn’t want to take a chance that she would be sick again during the night.
Cradling the hot mug in his hands, he sat down to wait.

“So...you’re thinking you’d like to go
ahead and get some financial advice?” Dale and Chance had finished dinner and
were lingering over coffee. “It sounds like you’ve decided that you’d like to
take him up on his offer and buy the place.”

He reached across the table and took her
hand. “I would, yes. What do you think?”

She lowered her eyes to their joined
hands. “I think it’s an opportunity that might not come along again.” She
waited for panic to set in, for the urge to pull her hand away, but it didn’t
come. She lifted her head and met his gaze. “I say go for it.”

He opened his mouth to speak, but was
interrupted by the server.

“Anything else here, folks?”

“Not for me, thanks.” Dale resented the
intrusion, and was surprised to find that she wanted to know what Chance had
been about to say.

“I’m fine as well. Just the check,
please.” Chance offered his usual bright smile. “Then that settles it,” he
said, returning his attention to her. “The lease is coming up for renewal soon,
so the timing couldn’t be more perfect.”

She thought back to earlier that
evening. “The whole complex must be on the same schedule. Adrian was saying
that the restaurant lease is up for renewal.”

Chance cocked his head. “How would he
know that?”

She hesitated. “Can you be discreet?”

He pulled back. “I’m offended.” His grin
belied his words. “I think so, yes.”

“Well, Adrian’s last name is Zimmerman.
His family owns the Zimmerli hotel chain.”

“Ah.” Chance nodded to himself. “You
know, I thought there was something different about him. He’s...oh, how can I
put it...he’s restrained and quiet, but there’s something confident about him.”

She thought for a moment. “I haven’t
seen all that much of him, but that’s a good description. He seemed concerned
about Morgan earlier. I think he was going to wait around to make sure she got
down all right.”

He glanced at his watch. “Speaking of
which, I’d better get us home. You work tomorrow, right?”

“Yes,” she said, rising from the table.
“I have a feeling you’re going to be pretty busy from here on.” He held her
coat and she slipped into it. “We’re never going to get out skiing at this
rate.”

He pulled on his jacket and they walked
out into the crisp night air. “We’ll find time, never fear.” He stopped in a
pool of light and touched her face with one large, gentle hand. “I think it’s
only fair to warn you, Dale Lewis. I’m falling for you in a big way.”

“You are?” she asked, just before his
lips came to rest on hers.

He groaned and pulled her into an
embrace. She leaned against him, safe in his arms. “I think I’m falling for
you, too,” she murmured, then pulled back to look up into his eyes. “I don’t
know how it happened so quickly, but it has.” She raised her lips for another kiss.

* * *

Back at the Lodge, they’d stopped
outside her room for one last kiss when Chance looked down and frowned.

“What?” she said, following the
direction of his gaze.

The room card was stuck in the slot of
the door. Dale removed it, slid it back in again and the green light came on.
They entered quietly. The light was on in the small kitchen area and soft light
came from Morgan’s bedroom but there was no other sound.

Dale put up a cautionary hand, walked to
the bedroom door and took in the scene with one glance. Adrian had fallen
asleep, his head resting at what looked like an uncomfortable angle on the back
of the easy chair. She smiled and motioned for Chance to come. They stood for a
moment, observing the tableau and her hand crept into his. “It’s a good thing
she’s working the afternoon shift tomorrow,” she whispered. “I’ll bet she’s
going to have a massive hangover.”

Adrian lifted his head and massaged his
neck. When he saw them standing in the doorway, he grinned sheepishly and rose.
“I brought her home,” he said in a low voice, following them out into the
living area. “She was in pretty bad shape.” He glanced back toward the bedroom.
“I took off her blouse and her shoes, but other than that she still has her
clothes on.”

Dale raised an eyebrow.

“She was all wet. She threw up a couple
of times and tried to clean herself up.”