A Case of Extreme Mistaken Identity - Victorine E. Lieske Page 0,14

herself drifting off. It was fine. Austin would wake her when he found a room. She trusted him. He wasn’t Rafael, after all.

Chapter 7

Dani awoke to the sound of soft snoring. Where was she? She jerked awake, suddenly scared, in an unfamiliar place. Whose bed was this? And who was snoring? Then memories of yesterday filtered into her brain and she sighed with relief. She was still in Austin’s room. She was on his bed, and he was on the couch. He must have tucked her into bed last night after she fell asleep. How thoughtful of him.

It was still dark outside, and she had no idea what time it was. She searched around for her phone. She found it on the table beside her bed. Four-thirty. Much too early to get up. She snuggled back under the covers. He must not have found a place. Either that, or by the time he did, she was asleep and he didn’t want to wake her up.

Man, he was the kindest man she’d ever met. If she had known regular people were like this, she would have worked harder to hang out with non-famous people. Or maybe it was how he was raised. He had a Southern accent. It could be that men from the South were more considerate than men from the West Coast.

Or it could just be Austin. His personality. She liked the way he seemed to care about her, even before he knew much about her. His motives seemed pure, unlike every other person she’d ever met. He didn’t seem like the kind of guy who would stab her in the back.

She closed her eyes and let the sound of his snoring lull her back to sleep. The next time she awoke, the sun was up and the sound of the ocean came from the open patio door. She sat up and rubbed the sleep out of her eyes. Austin stood up from his lounge chair on the deck and slid the screen door open. “Did you sleep well?”

“Yeah. Thanks for tucking me in. Sorry you had to sleep on the couch.”

He waved it away. “It wasn’t a problem. I couldn’t find you a room. You might be stuck here for a while.”

Guilt made her swallow. “I don’t want to put you out.”

“I’d rather you do that then get mugged at the hotel down the street,” he said under his breath.

She pinched her lips together. She’d rather not get mugged either. But, what would they take? “They’d be pretty disappointed if they tried to mug me. All I have are some credit cards that don’t work.”

Austin looked at her like she was crazy, which made her giggle. “I mean, seriously. They can have them.” She motioned to the purse she’d tossed on the floor by the couch.

“Your bag is probably designer. They could get a couple hundred dollars for it.”

Dani nodded. “Yeah, you’re right.” Then she realized what he’d said. “Oh, my gosh. I could sell it.” Her mind raced. She’s paid two thousand for that purse. What could she get out of it?

“Are you sure you want to do that?”

“Yes. I’m starving, and I would do anything for a nice breakfast. Where can I go to sell it?”

“We walked by a pawn shop last night, but I’m not sure—”

“Great! That’s perfect. I’ll shower, and then we can go there.”

Austin’s gaze flickered to the clock. “What time do you start work?”

Work. She’d forgotten all about it. She picked up her phone and saw that it was seven-fifty-five. “Crap.” She jumped out of bed and headed toward the bathroom.

“What?”

“I start at eight.” Her heart raced as she assessed her situation. She needed a shower. And shampoo. Her expensive highlights would all wash out if she used the stuff the resort provided. But she didn’t have time to think about that. She was almost late for work, and she couldn’t lose this job. Not when she needed to prove to her father that she wasn’t a complete loser.

Austin stuck his head in the room. “What can I do to help?”

“Nothing. I’m going to have to just get dressed and run.” She grabbed her uniform from her suitcase and ran into the bathroom. Two minutes later, she ran a hand through her hair and called it good.

By the time she made it to the back room that housed the housekeeping carts, she was ten minutes late. She rushed into the room and looked on the chart to see her assignment. Her cart