I grab the cheat sheet for the welcome dinner along with the complimentary Sutton Travel tote bags and lanyards for each passenger and head downstairs, a huge smile on my face. Things are definitely back on track and Daisy is right: No one is going to question it if I mess something up. They won’t even notice.
Mr. Magic Mouth. Who knew one night with that man would provide such a needed boost to my self-esteem? Dare I look for him again tonight? Would he want a repeat? Or is he already onto his next conquest with a woman more permanent than myself? No, not going to think about that. I wanted a one-night stand and I got it.
CHAPTER EIGHT
Jennings
At six Nan and I stroll into the small dining area attached to the hotel bar. There’s a sign indicating the area is reserved for our Sutton Travel group, so we find two seats at an open table and settle in. Three ladies traveling together from Canada join us shortly and Nan chats with them while I nod along and look at my watch, surveying the group I’m to spend the next week traveling with.
Retired couples mostly. This group of girlfriends on a girls’ holiday at our table. A few couples in their thirties, perhaps. One or two who appear to be traveling alone.
It’s interesting to watch a group of complete strangers from around the world forge an instant bond over a shared holiday. Bloody boring for me, but lovely for these people. The trip is off to a good start—people mingling and laughing, introducing themselves with a nod and a smile while exchanging notes about where they’re from and commiserating on long flights and travel exhaustion.
And then the girl from last night walks in. Straight into the area cordoned off specifically for the travel group. So I tune everything else out and focus on her.
She’s even lovelier than she was last night, if that’s possible. That glorious black hair is pulled into a ponytail, the ends of it curling in thick waves. Her lips are painted a pale pink and her eyebrows are slightly raised in concentration as if she might be looking for someone. Is she looking for someone? Her eyes dart about the room as I mentally run through the group I was just observing and try to match her with any of them. Who could she be here with? Traveling with a friend perhaps? I’ve noted a handful of solo travelers in the group but she doesn’t look like she belongs with any of them, nor did I observe any of them saving a seat.
She’s wearing a white cotton blouse. It swells slightly over her breasts and I most definitely want another go with her. Knowing what she looks like underneath that blouse is torture. Perfect rosy tits on that one. The way they felt resting in my palms and the sounds she made when I took them into my mouth. I need another taste.
Her tongue darts out to wet her lips, then she sucks in a breath and opens her mouth to speak a millisecond before I realize she’s gripping an armful of Sutton Travel tote bags and I suspect—if I was willing to take my eyes off of her to verify—the entire room has turned its attention towards her.
“Hello,” she says to the group with a little wave of her hand. “Hello again, everyone, and welcome to the Highlights of History tour with Sutton Travel.”
Bloody hell, she’s the travel guide. I laugh out loud and her head turns towards me, the smile dropping straight off her face when her eyes land on mine. Her perfect bottom lip drops and her eyes flare before she does her best to recover, whipping her gaze away from mine with an, “Um,” to the assembled group while tucking a nonexistent stray strand of hair behind her ear.
“So, um, welcome!” she repeats, but her voice is a bit breathless now and she’s fidgeting. And her eyes are everywhere but on mine. She shifts her weight from hip to hip and I relax back in my chair and kick my legs out in front of me before folding my arms across my chest with a grin. This trip just got a hell of a lot more entertaining.
What the heck is her name then? I don’t recall the guide for this trip being called Rose. I pull up the agenda on my mobile to confirm the itinerary and one Miss Daisy Hayden is the guide assigned to the Highlights of History tour this week. There’s even a picture of her at the bottom of the email, a generic welcome the company sends. Perhaps I should have opened it before picking her up in the hotel bar last night, I muse while another smile crosses my face, but this is more fun. So she’s a Daisy. I stare at her while contemplating that. I’m not sure it suits her; she reminds me of a rare flower, not a common one. Not that Rose was any better, but it’s cute the way she stuck to a flower theme for her alias.
“I met most of you earlier today during the airport pickups,” she starts with another glance darting in my direction, “but for the rest of you, my name is Daisy Hayden and I will be your guide this week on the Highlights of History tour.” She speaks with a wide smile but she seems nervous. She was more confident last night picking me up in the bar than she is right now. She rattles on about the forecasted weather for tomorrow and the amount of walking we can expect during tomorrow’s sights. Reminders about the importance of staying on schedule and notifying her if we plan to skip any of the scheduled activities so she knows not to look for you. Then she invites everyone to enjoy the buffet that’s been set out for us.