Crazy for You (6 page)

“C’mon. It’s just a week. Stay and loosen up
a bit. Do you some good to get out of those stuffy old clothes for
a while. Kick off those wing-tips and bury your toes in the sane.
Relax. Sunbathe. Get in on a little nightlife. Share a Jacuzzi with
me. Heck, wear a toga and party all night. Might be fun.” She
grinned wickedly at him.

“You’re crazy,” he told her.

“Yeah, I know. You’ve told me once or
twice.”

“Look, there’s not another bus until the
morning. It’s late. You’ve been traveling all day and you’ve got to
be tired. Not to mention the jet-lag. At least spend the night and
think about it. Just get in your room and stay there for the night.
In the morning, things may look differently.”

“Yeah. I’m tired all right.”

Tasha could tell that he was.

“I’m tired of you being everywhere that I am.
I’m tired of your crazy, nut-like personality. I’m tired of always
trying to get myself out of messes because of you. Quit following
me.”

“I’m not following you. You were following
me.”

Andrew snorted. “Yeah, right.” He faced the
hotel and ran the fingers of both hands through his short hair, an
exasperated look on his face. She wished his hair were just a
little longer, she’d like to run her fingers through those golden
tresses herself.

But maybe she’d found her ace in the hole. He
was tired. And maybe it was of her, but he was tired. It had been a
long day. And she wasn’t ready to let him go yet. He was a
challenge if she ever saw one. And she was up to a challenge any
day. Besides, she kind of liked that look on his face when his gaze
trailed over her body earlier.

“So stay.”

He looked at her then for a long, lingering
moment. Tasha felt his gaze trail over her lips and down her neck
to the rounded collar of her T-shirt. She watched his chest heave
as he slowly inhaled and then let the breath out on the breeze.
Shivers trailed down her spine. She liked him looking at her like
that.

“No!” he emphatically replied and turned
away. Shaking his head, he started away from her. “No. I’m not
staying. I’m getting the hell out of here and away from you as fast
as I can.” He stalked off.

“Where do you think you’re going?”

“To find another bus.”

“Might be a while.”

“I don’t care. I’ll wait. I’ll wait all the
damned night if I have to.”

“Are you that eager to get away from me?”

He swirled and faced her, dead on. “Yes. Yes,
ma’am. I am.”

Tasha’s cheeks grew hot. His bluntness
actually hurt. “Well then, if that’s the way you feel about it, I
wouldn’t want you to stay. I wouldn’t want you to loosen up that
noose around your neck and live a little. I wouldn’t want you to
unwrap those mummy clothes and let your skin breath. You know what?
I think you’re afraid, Andrew Jacob Powell III, that’s what. I
think you’re afraid of losing a little control. Of having a little
fun.”

Andrew’s gaze narrowed. “You don’t know a
damn thing about me lady. You damn liberal...hippie!”

A surge of anger gather up inside her.
“Hippie!” she screeched. “I am absolutely not a hippie! A liberal,
yes, but a hippie? No, sir. Not me. I’m not a hippie. No. I like to
refer to myself more as a free spirit, thank you. Hippie is too
passé.”

“I bet you’re a Democrat to boot, aren’t
you?” he taunted.

Tasha’s hands went to her hips, balled in
tight fists. “And damn proud of it you conservative little—”

He held up his hand. “Don’t. Don’t say
another word.”

Tasha chuckled. “You little...”

He glared at her.

“You. You little...Republican!”

“What?”

“You heard me,” she confirmed. “I called you
a Republican.”

“And that is supposed to be an insult?”

“Well, yes!”

Andrew’s face turned beet red. “Let me tell
you about the Republican party, little girl...”

Tasha bit her lip, trying to conceal the
smile that was beginning to stretch her lips. While Andrew was
ranting, her gaze was drawn behind him to a commotion a few yards
away. She watched while he ranted. Her eyes grew wide with the
bubble of laughter trying to explode in her throat. She crossed her
arms over her chest to hold it all in while he raved in front of
her about the merits of the Republican party.

Finally, she could conceal her laughter no
longer. It burst out of her with an eruption of giggles and guffaws
that made her bend over at the waist because it simply hurt to
stand upright.

Andrew stopped his tirade and stared at
her.

“What’s so damn funny?” he impatiently
queried.

Tasha bit her inner lip to try and stop her
laughter. “You.”

He shifted his weight. “Me?”

“Yeah, you...and the Republican party.”

She could tell Andrew didn’t think any of it
was funny. “Look, have you no respect? All throughout history the
Republican party—”

Tasha shook her head and held up a hand. “I’m
not laughing about the Republican party, you dope. I actually
couldn’t care less. I’m laughing at what is going on behind you.
And how that is going to slightly mess up your plans.”

She giggled again and Andrew just stared at
her. “What in the world are you talking about?”

Still smiling, she replied, “Sorry, but I
don’t think you’ll be going anywhere tonight. Or tomorrow for that
matter.”

He narrowed his eyes. “And what makes you
sure about that, Ms. Smarty Pants.”

“Turn around.”

“Excuse me?”

“Just do it. Just turn around.”

And when he did, Andrew came face to face
with the thing that made her so tickled, and was about to make him
blow his top.

BUS DRIVER’S STRIKE, the picket signs
said.

And every one of the busses and their drivers
were lounging in the parking lot in chaise lounges, drinking pina
coladas, and listening to a little reggae.

They were having a wonderful time.

Andrew turned and looked at her.

Tasha shrugged. “Guess that settles that!”
she remarked.

“Settles what?” The look on his face was
priceless.

“You’re staying.”

He shook his head in disbelief. “Uh-uh.
No.”

“Uh-huh,” she confirmed.

“I can’t stay here. With you. In this
place.”

Tasha laughed. “You don’t have to stay with
me, silly. You’ve got a room, right? So what’s the big deal? It’s
late, you’re not going to take a bus out of here tonight. And you
certainly can’t walk out of here. So...let’s go check in.”

He nodded, reluctantly it seemed, and leaned
against the side of the hotel. Closing his eyes, Andrew exhaled,
long, and shook his head. “I can’t believe this is happening.”

Hooking her arm in his, Tasha slowly led him
back toward the lobby doors. And he let her. Without a fight.

“I need sleep,” he told her while pinching
the bridge of his nose. Tasha took in the weariness in his
eyes.

“Don’t think about it,” she offered. “Just
think about a hot shower, a comfortable bed, a nice little room
just for you. Peaceful bliss. It will be great. Then, in the
morning, you can decide what you want to do. I’ll even help if you
want.”

He groaned and nodded. It almost seemed he’d
allowed himself to slip into a stupor. “In the morning?”

“Yes,” Tasha offered as the proceeded across
the pavement.

He shook his head from side to side as the
walked. “I don’t think I can take any more of this today,” he
mumbled as they entered the double doors again.

Tasha patted his arm and smiled. “There,
there. It’s okay. Just don’t think about it right now. I’ll take
care of everything. Everything will be just fine. I’ve got
something in my bag that works wonders for stressful days like
this.” She chattered on and Andrew’s shoulders slumped in defeat.
“It’s an herbal combination, very safe, a mixture of nettle leaf,
pennyroyal and uva ursi...”

Twelve

Eden II

Andrew sheepishly stepped up to the
reservation desk. He tried to concentrate only on the tasks at
hand.
Number one
: get his room.
Number two
: take
drugs to make him sleep.
And number three
: get out of this
godforsaken place first thing in the morning.

The thing he didn’t try to do was look any
where other than the face of the man behind the desk. He was a
buff-looking specimen to be sure. Muscles bulging, pecs shining,
hair slicked back into a shiny blond ponytail—and he was nude,
Andrew was sure of it, although he didn’t venture a look behind the
depths of the desk. To say he made Andrew uncomfortable was an
understatement.

One glance at Tasha’s reaction to him told
him all he needed to know. She was practically drooling.

No one, by any stretch of the imagination,
would dare call Andrew Jacob Powell III a prude. Even though his
values were conservatively based, he’d had his share of good times,
stretched one or two out to the limits even, but spending time with
nudists was where he drew the line. This was not a comfortable
situation, and he readily admitted to himself that he was not
comfortable.

He glanced to his right. Tasha smiled back.
Of course she seemed perfectly at ease with the entire scenario.
Lord, this probably wasn’t an accident for her, she’d probably
planned
to spend her vacation here, running around in her
birthday suit.

It was not a scenario he wanted to dwell on
for long.

He jerked his gaze back to the
reservationist. Name? Where did one put a name tag when one was
nude? Andrew glanced lower. Name plate. On the desk. Todd, it
read.

“Sir,” the voice behind the desk interrupted,
“We seem to have a bit of a problem.”

Why that didn’t surprise Andrew, he didn’t
know. “Oh all right. Let’s hear it. Todd.”

Todd turned and started to round the
counter.

Andrew pushed out his hand. “Stop!”

The man arched a brow at him. “Excuse
me?”

“Stop. Don’t come out from behind that
counter.”

Todd hedged closer.

“I repeat, don’t do it!”

He rounded the corner. Andrew covered his
eyes and then quickly turned to Tasha and covered hers.

“Andrew, what in the hell are you doing?”

Slowly, Andrew lowered his hands from his
eyes, and Tasha’s, and turned back around. Todd stood next to the
counter, wearing long, wildly patterned shorts and sandals.

“Oh.” Andrew let out a huge sigh.

Todd arched a brow again. “And you were
expecting?”

Shaking his head, Andrew turned back to the
desk. “Nothing.”

Tasha giggled.

He ignored her.

The Adonis look-alike picked up some
pamphlets and brochures and returned to behind the counter.

Andrew thrust his thumb out toward the huge
glass windowed wall. “Are those people nude out there?”

Todd laughed out loud. “In the pool? Oh no.
Not there. Just looks that way through that mottled glass. The nude
pool is further away from the hotel.” He looked back down at his
paperwork.

Andrew cringed. Nude pool?

“And the nude beach and Jacuzzi are adjacent
to the regular beach.”

Nude beach! Nude Jacuzzi!

“So, let’s settle this thing with your
reservation.”

He had a hard time getting his mind off the
nude beach. “Yes. My reservation. I need my room immediately.” He
also needed a handful of aspirin and a nice, cool bed, too.

“We have a slight problem.”

Oh, hell. Panic landed heavy on his stomach.
“What is it now?”

“We don’t seem to have one.”

Andrew gritted his teeth. “Don’t seem to have
one what?”

“A reservation. We don’t seem to have any
record of your reservation.”

“Impossible.” Andrew reached for his
briefcase, then mentally swore. “I have a reservation number, but
it’s—”

He tossed Tasha a look. “It’s somewhere in
the Atlantic, I assume.”

Todd eyed him suspiciously. “It would be
under your name, would it not?”

“Yes, it would be under my name.”

“But it’s not.”

Andrew closed his eyes. Damn Doug Johnston.
“Try Hayward & Pendleton Pharmaceuticals.”

He raked his gaze over the books. “Sorry sir,
no.”

Andrew gave him several other names. No
luck.

Heaving out a sigh, he replied, “All right,
then I’ll just make one now.”

Todd tilted his chin upward. “That would be
quite impossible.”

“And why so?”

“Because all of our rooms are full, sir. It’s
peak season.”

Geesh. Of course. “You don’t have anything?”
Andrew willed himself not to panic. No car. No luggage. No
room?

“No, sir. I’m sorry.”

With his hand drawn into a fist, Andrew
pounded the desk. “Call me a cab, I’m getting out of here.” He
paced several feet in front of the desk.

“There is no cab service, sir.”

“Then how do I get out of here?”

“Sir, may I remind you that we are deep into
Jamaica and there is a bus driver’s strike—”

“So you are telling me there is no way out of
here?”

“Unless you would like to hike or swim or
snorkel your way home.” Todd chuckled at his humor.

Andrew wasn’t amused.

Staring off past Todd’s head, Andrew had
nearly forgotten Tasha was standing by his side until she laid a
hand on his forearm.

“Do you have a reservation for Tasha Smith?”
she inquired.

He smiled at her then lowered his gaze to the
books, running his finger over the reservation list. “Ah, yes. Here
it is, room 214, Oceanview, king-size bed, no smoking. Just one
minute and I’ll get your key.” He turned to the board behind him
and Tasha turned her smile on Andrew.

“Problem solved,” she said.

Andrew eyed her. “What problem is
solved?”

“Your reservation problem.”

“You’re going to give me your room?”