Pulling
this off would take a Christmas miracle. When Katrina Harris’s best friend,
Fiona, had asked her to sneak into Jake Pearson’s hotel room and steal
something of his, she should have outright refused to partake in such nonsense.
However… it was Fiona asking and Kat already had an internship at the hotel as she
pursued a degree in hotel management. There’d be nothing odd about her being at
the hotel.
There
would be something odd about her being
in the hotel room of rock sensation Jake Pearson though. At least Fiona had
said he was a rock sensation. Katrina wouldn’t know. She was a fan of classical
music having played the violin in the local orchestra since high school. Rock
always seemed so full of angst, and the last thing Kat needed in her life was
angst.
“C’mon,
Kat.” Fiona had clasped her hands together so tightly her knuckles were white.
“You have to get me something of Jake Pearson’s. He’s going to be right there.
In your hotel.”
“It’s
not my hotel.” Not yet anyway, but
Kat had dreams. Big dreams. One day she’d own an empire of hotels that
travelers equated with natural elegance and tranquility. Since graduating from
high school four years ago, she’d been using her college courses and free time
to work on resort designs that combined the beauty of the outdoors with luxury.
She knew she had a fresh, innovative idea, and she couldn’t wait for it to be a
reality.
For
now, she had to be content with finishing her internship at Winchester Resort
in Newport, Rhode Island.
“Okay,
okay,” Fiona had said. “It’s not your
hotel, but you will be under the same roof as Jake, and he’s been my crush
since I heard his first song on the radio. I didn’t even know what he looked
like at the time. His voice alone hooked me. It’s just a bonus that he’s
gorgeous too.”
“Why
don’t you hang out at the hotel while he’s staying there?” Kat had suggested
because she really didn’t have the time for such shenanigans. “You could easily
run into him by the indoor pool or something.” With winter raging outside, most
guests used the hotel’s many indoor amenities. Christmastime wasn’t busy in
Newport either. The hotel wasn’t booked to capacity. The odds of Fiona and Jake
being in the same place at the same time were quite high.
Fiona
had paled at this notion. “Run into him? Run into Jake Pearson? Are you
insane?” She’d let out a high giggle as if she might actually be the insane
one. “I don’t want to meet him. I
think I’d drop dead at his feet if I saw him in person.” Fiona had fanned her
face. “God, I just want to worship him from afar.”
“And
have some personal belonging of his.”
“Right.
See? You understand.”
Only
Kat hadn’t. Not really. “What will you do with this stolen item?”
“Cherish
it until my dying day.” Fiona had sighed and pressed her hand to her heart. “Look,
you do this for me and not only will I consider it an acceptable Christmas
gift, but we will also be totally square on what I did for you.”
Kat
couldn’t refuse that. Not when the request was viewed as payment… for something
Kat would never really be able to pay in full.
“Fine.”
She’d huffed out a breath. “But you’d better set aside some bail money. Just in
case.”
Now,
as she stood in the hallway at Jake Pearson’s hotel room door, her palms were
soaked and her heartbeat was loud enough for the world to hear. If she got
caught in his room—any guest’s room really—she’d lose her internship and fail
her final class. She’d probably be denied a request for another internship
because her reputation would be shot. To have come this close to earning her
degree and then not get it would be a tragedy. An expensive one.
But it’s for Fiona.
Fiona
who hadn’t let anything stop her from rescuing Kat when she’d needed it most.
Kat
lifted a shaking hand and wrapped her fingers around the doorknob. Hotel gossip
had told her Jake and his people were having breakfast with another musician in
town at her Newport mansion. His room should be empty for a few hours. Plenty
of time for her to pop in, swipe a T-shirt he’d never miss, and get the hell
out.
She
slipped the keycard into the slot, the little light taking forever to flash
from red to green. With a glance to the left and right, Kat verified she only
shared the hallway with a Christmas tree. The flickering lights adorning it,
however, reminded her of flashes from a camera. Would that tree catch her in
the act? Would the hotel put security cameras in a Christmas tree?
Don’t be an idiot.
Kat
turned the knob and pushed the door open. Surprised that the curtains were
still drawn, she slid into the darkness and closed the door behind her. The air
conditioner was pumping and the room was freezing. Not too many people ran the
air conditioner during a New England December. A light dusting of snow covered
Newport for crying out loud. Why would anyone want it this cold inside?
She
ran her hands up and down her bare arms, wishing she’d worn a sweater over her
green, short-sleeved sheath dress. The rest of the hotel wasn’t this frigid,
and when she was working, she usually ran on the warm side.
Especially
when she was breaking and entering.
Fiona, Fiona, Fiona. The actions may have been
wrong, but Kat’s intent to compensate her best friend propelled her deeper into
the room.
The
lush carpet muted her steps, and Kat felt like a nighttime critter, prowling
the streets, using the shadows for cover. Of course, the darkness made it hard
for her to locate something to steal for Fiona. She should have brought a
flashlight, but she hadn’t thought about that, this being her very first—and
hopefully last—foray into burglary.
I’ll just slide one of the
curtains open a bit. That would provide enough light for her to search the room.
Kat
crept closer to one of the room’s large windows and tugged the curtain over to
the right a bit. When she turned away from the window, a long rectangle of
sunlight cut into the carpet a few feet in front of her.
Revealing
a pair of bare feet.
A
man’s bare feet.
“Why
do I get the feeling you’re not room service?”
Kat squeaked, incapable of forming a single word. She bolted for the door, but he was faster.
Tune in tomorrow for Chapter Two! In the meantime, head on over to Small Town Hearts on Facebook and enjoy holiday fun with me.
Happy Holidays!
Chris
www.christinedepetrillo.weebly.com
8 comments:
Cute. Great beginning, Chris. Can't wait to read more.
Hooked, hooked, hooked. Excellent start. Poor Kat? Or no?
Love it, Chris! I guess we have to wait until tomorrow to see what was bare other than his feet! LOL
I'm chuckling. This is fun.
OMG....love this!!! Such a great opening. Definitely hooked. You did a great job of layering in the senses and the tension. Can't wait for Part 2!
Well done, Chris. I'm in for tomorrow. Nice tension...and Kat is interesting!
Thanks, ladies! I always have such a blast writing these tales! These characters are younger than the ones I usually write about too. Not sure where they came from, but I like them!
Oh my gosh, too fun! Great hook at the end. I'm glad I'm reading these late...I can just go right to part 2! :-)
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