Touch of Paradise. Dara Girard

as she’d imagined and feeling even more embarrassed that he felt he had to look after her. She didn’t want to be a bother.

      “You brought her here?” she heard a woman say.

      “Keep your voice down,” Aaron said. “She could hear you.”

      “But why didn’t you just take her back to her room?”

      “Because I didn’t think it would be appropriate for me to spend the night in one of the guests’ bedrooms.”

      “You could have just asked one of the staff to stay with her. You didn’t have to look after her yourself. You should have convinced her to go to the hospital.”

      “She doesn’t like hospitals, and she’s one of our guests. Besides, it shouldn’t have happened.”

      “Oh, Aaron,” a younger female said. “You’re such an old man. Things like this happen all the time.”

      “All our guests should be safe. I knew those party boats would be a problem.”

      “What are you so worked up about? They’re not even part of our business. If she wants to sue, she can sue them—what happened has nothing to do with us. You always take on more responsibility than necessary. Send her home.”

      “Not until I’m sure she’s okay. I just wanted you to know why she’s here, not for you to try to change my mind.”

      “Well, you certainly need to change your clothes,” the older woman said. “You’re dripping water everywhere.”

      He snapped his fingers. “Oh, right, she needs clothes. Candace, could you give her something?”

      “Aaron,” the older woman said, irritated. “Just have the staff go to her room and get some of her things.”

      “Mum, it’d take too long. She could catch a chill and get sick.”

      “What chill? It’s perfectly warm, and I doubt she’s that delicate,” the younger woman added. “You’re such a protector.”

      “I don’t have time for this. I have to go change and then keep an eye on her. Will you help me or not?”

      “Okay, just this once.”

      Rebecca pretended to watch TV when she heard his footsteps. He stopped and looked in on her. “Why aren’t you sitting down?”

      “I didn’t want to get the sofa wet.”

      “Right, I’m sorry,” he said, looking contrite. “I forgot about that. My sister will have something for you to wear in a minute. I’m just going to get changed, and I’ll be right back.”

      “You really don’t—” she started, but he’d left before she could finish.

      Rebecca looked around the elegant room, feeling even more awkward than before. If his family didn’t want her there, maybe she should have gone to the hospital. She felt fine. She wasn’t nauseous and was steady on her feet, and she didn’t like feeling like a stray cat he’d found.

      She put his jacket down, then poked her head out into the hallway. No one was around, and if she left, then the problem would be solved. She started to tiptoe to the doorway when she heard an amused female voice. “That’s not a good idea.”

      She turned around and saw an attractive young woman, a little older than Aaron, grinning at her. “He’ll just come and find you.” She held out several clothing items. “Just get changed, and get used to being here.”

      “But I’m really okay,” Rebecca said, reluctantly taking the clothes.

      “My brother takes his responsibilities seriously,” the woman said, leading Rebecca to a bathroom. “He’s going to look after you until the morning, so you might as well get used to the idea. I’m Candace, by the way. If you haven’t figured it out by now, my family owns the hotel where you’re staying.”

      “Rebecca,” she said, following the woman’s example. Rebecca walked into the bathroom, then turned to her. “This is all so embarrassing.”

      “Embarrassing? You have no idea how many girls would love to be in your shoes.” She winked and then closed the door.

      Resigned, Rebecca changed, then looked at her torn dress. She’d designed it herself, but the stitching hadn’t been strong enough. She’d have to take better care in the future. She didn’t want them to think she’d fallen overboard on purpose. Then her thoughts turned back to her rescuer. He was wonderful, and she could understand why he’d be a hot catch, but she didn’t want to give him or his family the wrong impression. But since she was going to have to stay, she decided she’d make the best of it.

      In truth, she was curious to know more about him and wanted to spend as much time with him as she could. Once she put on the skirt and top Candace had handed her, she looked in the mirror and wasn’t too surprised by the image she saw. She looked terrible. While the skirt and top would look stunning on the other woman’s tall willowy frame, Rebecca looked awkward and dumpy because she was almost a foot shorter and a little wider.

      But she was used to wearing secondhand clothes, and as a fashion major she knew that clothes could be made to fit the woman. She rolled up the skirt at the waist, so it fell shorter, just above her knees. Then she folded up the arms of the top and pulled and tied it in the back, then looked at her reflection, satisfied. She heard a quick knock on the door. “Can I come in?” Candace asked.

      “Yes.”

      Candace came in holding a bottle in one hand and a hair dryer in the other. She stopped and stared at her. “Wow, I’ve never seen those items worn like that before.”

      Rebecca shrugged. “I had to make some adjustments, but don’t worry, none of the changes are permanent.”

      Candace walked around her, impressed. “Very creative.” She set the hair dryer and bottle of moisturizer down. “I thought you might want this for your hair.”

      “Thanks.” Once Candace left, Rebecca plugged in the blow dryer, then lathered her bare skin with some of the moisturizer. She had exchanged her heels for a pair of plush slippers once she had entered the house and felt more comfortable. Before leaving the bathroom, Rebecca checked her reflection. With the help of the blow dryer, her hair looked slightly tamed, and she had wiped off her smudged makeup. That would have to do, she thought with a shrug, then left. She found Aaron sitting in front of the TV dressed in khaki pants and a T-shirt. When he turned and looked at her, he stood up and smiled. “Now you look much better.”

      Rebecca looked down at herself. “Liar.”

      He rested his hand on his chest as if she’d wounded him. “Why would I lie?”

      “Because you’re sweet.”

      He winced. “Ouch, you really know how to hurt a man’s ego. You want the truth?”

      “I didn’t say that.”

      He handed her a phone. “Here.”

      “What’s that for?”

      “In case you want to call someone and let them know you’re okay.”

      “Oh, right,” she said, taking the phone. “Thanks.” She dialed her friend Marie and told her what had happened.

      “You really should go to the hospital,” Marie said after Rebecca had finished. “I heard something bad happened on that boat.”

      “Shh, I’m all right,” Rebecca said, wishing that Marie didn’t have a habit of shouting over the phone.

      “Who is this guy? What if he made up his story about chaperoning the boat and plans to take advantage of you?”

      Rebecca glanced over at Aaron, who continued watching TV, hoping he couldn’t overhear her friend. “I’ve already met his sister, and his mother’s here, too,” she said in a low voice,