Rebecca Hagan Lee Read Online Free PDF Page A

had a place to sleep if he needed one, but was denied immediate access to his personal belongings. James glanced down at his bare feet and the wedge of naked chest left exposed by his robe. Personal belongings like socks and boots, shirts and jackets. He wiggled his bare toes. He had to give Elizabeth credit for her resourcefulness. And for limiting his. He wouldn’t have any trouble reclaiming his belongings once he got the door to his room open, but he wouldn’t be able to gain access to his room without drawing attention to his predicament. As far as he could tell he had three choices: stay in Elizabeth’s room until a maid or other hotel employee wandered by, kick in the door to his room, or appear at the front desk downstairs half-clothed and keyless. And no matter which solution he chose, James knew he’d have to do a bit of explaining. A man couldn’t be found half-clothed in a room registered in the name of an unaccompanied woman without giving some sort of explanation. Neither could he kick in the door of his room or traipse into the main lobby ofone of San Francisco’s premier hotels, barefoot and shirtless, without supplying the management with an apology and an explanation guaranteed to delay his departure. And any delay for James, no matter how brief or how long, provided Elizabeth with more time to disappear into the foggy San Francisco environs.
    James clenched his teeth in frustration. Look what he got for trying to be a good Samaritan—for offering comfort and solace to a distraught woman, for spending the night folded into a damned uncomfortable wing chair designed for someone a lot smaller, and at least a foot shorter, than his six-foot-three-inch frame. He was locked out of his room and forced to make explanations to an obsequious hotel staff in order to gain access to his personal belongings.
    James was honest enough to admit that being forced to provide explanations for his appearance and his predicament in a hotel jam-packed with his railroad employees galled him more than having Elizabeth sneak out with his room key. After all, Elizabeth didn’t owe him anything. He had freely offered his help and words of comfort. Elizabeth hadn’t asked him to stick his nose into her personal business. She hadn’t asked him to intrude on her private grief.
But she had asked him to stay. She had asked him not to leave her alone. She had allowed him to hold her in his arms.
    He shook his head. It didn’t matter if he’d dared to dream a bit while she lay curled in his embrace, or if he’d toyed with the idea of taking a few hours off from his many business obligations to spend the day in the company of a beautiful woman. Elizabeth hadn’t been privy to his thoughts. She had no way of knowing he was looking forward to escorting her down to breakfast in the hotel dining room, then spending the remainder of his day introducing her to San Francisco.
    She hadn’t stayed long enough to face him in the morning light. She had sneaked out while he slept, almost as if she were afraid to face him, almost as if she thought he’dthink less of her for crying herself to sleep in a stranger’s arms. And although James’s first inclination was to scour the streets of San Francisco until he found her, Elizabeth had made her feelings perfectly clear. She obviously didn’t want him to follow her. She obviously didn’t want to be found.
    And, James decided, he’d be better off taking care of his own business. He’d be better off if he forgot all about Elizabeth. His railroad and mining interests required all of his attention at the moment. The foremen in the mining and timber camps had reported incidents of labor unrest and he still had a few important details of the rolling stock deal with the Central Pacific to wrap up here in the city before he could return home. And he had several even greater obligations back home in Coryville. The sooner he swallowed his pride and marched down to the front desk, the sooner he’d