in close to Kurt, who wrapped an arm around her lower back. She leaned into him and he gazed down at her, knowing she was the one I had to please. He already looked like he knew he’d won the lottery. “This is perfect, Katie. Thank you for everything you’ve done. We’re going to have the perfect honeymoon. I can feel it.”
I moved to the door. “I’m glad to hear it. If you need me for anything at all, I’ve left my contact information on the notepad on the coffee table. There are also the details for room service and other in-room services like massage or laundry and what not. Whatever you need. No request is too small. Just call.”
“We will,” Giselle promised.
I let myself out after wishing them a good night and made my way down the hall. I always felt fulfilled after spending a first day with a new couple at the resort. It was a lucky thing to witness new love like that and to see it so frequently. Sure, I’d had my fair share of couples who clearly weren’t in love but were going through the motions, but for the most part, I’d been lucky in my career. Couples like Kurt and Giselle made everything worthwhile.
Even the last three hours of my night, which I was off the clock for.
My stomach rumbled with hunger and I pressed a hand to my belly as I stepped on the elevator. I needed to eat something and to put my feet up. My heels and the balls of my feet were aching horribly. The blisters on my heels and pinky toes had all but gone numb and I knew that probably wasn’t a good sign.
I stepped off the elevator on the first floor, pushed through a double door that read “Staff Only,” and made my way down a winding corridor to my suite on the ground level facing north. I didn’t have scenic beach views, but I didn’t mind. I saw the water every day and it was just a short six-minute walk down to the beach if I wanted to go for a swim.
I stepped into my suite, locked the door behind me, and immediately kicked off my sandals. My feet sang with sweet relief and I stood there on the cool marble floors, letting the cold and the flat surface ease the pain away.
I groaned. “Yes. That’s the stuff.”
Part of me knew I could go down to the staff quarters where we had our own bar and sitting area to sit and eat dinner together. I just couldn’t muster up the energy. I was too hungry and too tired to even consider more socializing, so I decided to order room service.
As always, I ordered the Thai chicken bites with a garden salad. My mouth was watering before I even hung up the phone. While I waited for my dinner to arrive, I stripped out of my orange dress and changed into my lounge clothes, a taupe-colored silky pair of pajamas with black stitching. I filled my bathtub with cold water and soaked my feet in it until room service knocked on my door. After they dropped it off, I took my food out onto my balcony.
I ate in solitude and stared out at the gardens surrounding my suite. It was fairly private, extremely comfortable, and quiet.
Almost too quiet.
I loved my little slice of paradise, but over the last year, I’d begun to feel a sense of loneliness that had never bothered me before. For the longest time, I’d been more than content to be by myself. Sure, I’d dated men, but I hadn’t been in a relationship since I started working at the hotel. I simply didn’t have time for it. My job was my life.
But there were other needs and desires that a job could never fulfill.
Like family.
Even I might not be able to fulfill that wish. Suddenly, I no longer wanted any more food. I pushed my plate away.
It was a privilege to see true love every day at my job, but it was torture trying to keep myself from wanting it for myself. Every couple was a daily reminder of what I didn’t have and what I desperately wanted. Every couple reminded me that soon they would go home and most likely start families of their own.
My chest tightened and my heart ached at the thought.
Birds chirped and sang their songs in the trees around my patio. I listened and wished someone was there