Cristiano bent forward, hand outstretched to help her back to standing. She took it, feeling a spark of electricity race through her body as he used his honed muscles to pull her up. She ended up stopping a mere inch from him. The air conditioning blasted on them. It felt like a scene from a romance movie.

“Is it hot out?” Cristiano asked, his dark eyes burning into her.

“Very,” Keira replied in a whisper, feeling dumb. She hoped it excused her disheveled appearance.

“Shall I take that for you?” Cristiano asked, moving away.

Keira looked behind at her case, lying messily on the floor of the foyer. Before she answered, Cristiano had already done so, lifting it as though it weighed nothing.

“Come, it is this way to check in.”

Keira followed him, her legs wobbly beneath her.

“I feel very bad about the mix-up,” Cristiano said as they walked. “Did you have to get here on your own?”

“It was no problem,” Keira replied. Then on second thoughts, she added, “Actually I was pickpocketed, which wasn’t great.”

Cristiano looked horrified. “This is all my fault.”

“Not at all,” Keira replied. “Once it’s morning in New York my company will sort everything out.”

“Until then, you must take this,” Cristiano said, holding out some bills.

Keira shook her head. “I couldn’t.”

“You must,” Cristiano insisted. “It is my fault. And you must be hungry. Let me take you to dinner to apologize.”

Keira wasn’t about to turn down the opportunity to dine with the hunky Cristiano, so she nodded her gratitude.

They made it to the reception desk and Cristiano conversed in quick Italian with the woman. Keira felt like everything was running smoothly now that she was in his care. If only he’d been the person she’d met at the airport instead of Antonio!

The receptionist handed her a key and pointed her in the direction of her room.

“I will wait for you,” Cristiano said. “Take your time. When you are ready I will take you to a beautiful restaurant on the cliffside. We will have a wonderful dinner. Is that okay?”

Keira wanted to squeal with delight, but she kept her cool. “Sure, that sounds fine.”

She followed the corridor until she found her room. To say it was better than the last was an understatement. Though the room was tiny, it was clean, tidy, and brimming with character. The last room felt like it had been given the cheapest decor possible, whereas this one seemed very authentically Italian—the word chic sprung to Keira’s mind. She’d be quite comfortable here.

Keira looked out the window at the view. The sun was starting to set over the ocean and it looked phenomenal. Even her fear of heights was not so bad here!

Remembering that Cristiano was waiting for her in the foyer, Keira dressed quickly, trying to cobble together a confident and sexy outfit. When she looked in the mirror she saw with horror that her makeup was smudged. She cleaned her face quickly—wiping away the sticky residue left from yesterday’s shower—and put on a fresh face of makeup as fast as possible. There was no time to sort out her hair, so she twisted it up onto her head in a casual messy bun. She wasn’t completely satisfied but at least she looked halfway human now, rather than a sweaty, sunburned mess! Although she had to accept that she was no match for the gorgeousness of Cristiano, unfortunately.