“Your eyes are the color of really good chocolate…Godiva milk, I think. And your hair looks like fudge sauce. Rich and dark. It contrasts nicely with your pale, pale skin. Your rosy cheeks are the…cherry on top.”

She downed the rest of her drink in two monster gulps.

Chapter 4

I’m sorry,” she groaned. Sweaty strands of hair clung limply to her face and temples.

“It’s all right lass.”

“I’m so sorry.”

“Don’t fret. I’ve been puked on before.”

She groaned again, this time in complete humiliation. She hadn’t thrown up near him. Hadn’t thrown up around him. Had actually barfed on him. On him!

“You promised to kill me,” she reminded him hoarsely. The elevator doors slid open, and he scooped her easily into his arms and carried her down the hallway. “Don’t forget.”

His chest rumbled as he choked down a laugh. “Now, I didna promise to kill you, sweetheart. Just to take you up to my room so you c’n get your strength back.”

“I’ll be all right once I get off my feet,” she lied. Death was coming for her! She could feel its icy grip on the back of her neck. Or was that the ice from her third—fourth?—daiquiri? “Just need to get off my feet,” she said again.

“Sweetie, you’re off them.”

“Oh shut up. What do you know?” she said crossly, getting more and more dizzy as the ceiling tiles raced by. “And slow down. And kill me!”

“Usually ladies wait until the second date before begging me for death,” he said, straight-faced. He paused outside a door, shifted his weight, and somehow managed to produce the card key, unlock the door, and sweep her inside without putting her down.

Two hotel maids and a woman in a red business suit were waiting for them. Giselle had a vague memory of the woman in red examining her while the sound of running water went on and on in the next room. She kept fuzzing…that was the only way to describe it. One moment things would be crystal clear—too sharp, too loud—and the next she could barely hear them for their mumbling. It was annoying, and she told them so. Repeatedly.

“—lukewarm bath will make all the difference—”

“—just got so sick, it’s verra worrisome—”

“—mild food poisoning—”

“—she’ll be okay in no—”

“—close to your Change for it to be a problem?”

“—canceled my flight earlier so she can—”

“—push fluids—”

She reached up blindly. What’s-his-name

(Alec? Alex?) caught her hand and held it tightly. “What is it, sweetie? D’you want something to drink?”

“No, I want you to STOP YELLING! How can I quietly expire if you keep screaming?”

“We’ll try t’keep it down.”