Turn The Page (Kissed by A Muse Book 2) Read Online Free PDF Page B

find herself. Luckily, her mother had approved of the plan and Leigh just knew that the woman, who was every bit as romantic as she was, was counting on Leigh coming home with some gorgeous, NYC investment banker who’d been waiting his whole life to meet an Aussie waitress/blogger who had a mean backhand and more books than cents. Leigh didn’t think that was likely, but she was happy to give it a go if the journey towards her ever after involved bubble baths, squirrels and monstrous waterfalls!
    By the time she pulled herself out of the bath and shrugged into the complimentary robe slung over the door hook, Leigh was in a serene and optimistic state of mind once more- and crinklier than Greta had been. Feeling light-headed from the steamy bathroom, Leigh did the mambo all the way to the phone while humming ‘Love Is Strange,’ and dialled room service, ordering herself a bowl of pumpkin soup, a rack of crusty herb bread and a latte. It was probably twice as expensive as anything she could have gotten outside of the ritzy hotel, but Leigh didn’t care- she had the appetite of a ravenous wolf most of the time and that could get costly, but ravenous wolves could survive on McDeal’s for the rest of her trip, if it came to that.
    Tonight, I go all out! Best room, best food, best view, ooh la la! And tomorrow I’ll get my frugal on again, in case I end up having to hop a steam ship home…
    It was still freezing in the room, despite the fact that she had the heating on, and so Leigh blow-dried her hair in front of the mirror while she waited for her food, watching the movie in the reflection behind her and not needing to hear it over the whirr of the hair dryer, for she’d seen it so many times that she knew it off by heart. Just as the top layers of her hair had begun to lighten from their wet, fudge-colour to her actual, honey-blonde hue, there was a knock on the door, and she put the dryer down and skipped to answer it.
    ‘Bruce! Hey!’ she greeted the young concierge warmly, when he grinned at her over the stop-catch. She fussed with the latch and once she had it open, tried to return his broad smile without salivating on the silver-lidded plates balanced artfully on the tray before him. The scent of pumpkin and pine nuts felt like a welcome home in a strange land, as it was one of her mother’s ‘staple’ dishes from her real life. ‘Wow, the concierge delivers food too? Now that’s service!’
    ‘Not usually, Miss Dallas-Hone,’ Bruce said, stepping into her room while she darted off to her purse to grab a five dollar note. ‘I just happened to be in the kitchen when your order was put up, so I volunteered.’ He glanced at her over his shoulder, and Leigh took a moment to admire how his apple-red cheeks contrasted against his pale Canadian skin, making him look like he’d just come in from hunting, even though he was wearing a sharply cut suit. ‘Would you just like it on the table?’
    ‘Yes please,’ Leigh followed him, feeling that awkward ‘tip’ feeling coming over her. It should have been such an easy thing to do: give someone money, but she still hadn’t gotten used to it and fretted every time that she was either tipping too little or too much. Math had never been her friend, after all, not the way words had been, and most of the people she had to slide the tips to had been wearing suits, adding to the oddity of it all for her. She much preferred Australia’s custom, of simply overcharging for stuff so the employees could be compensated by their wages accordingly.
    ‘You seem to be in much better spirits,’ Bruce noted, without looking up at her. ‘That’s good to see.’
    ‘I am,’ Leigh admitted, ‘thanks to you. I mean- this room is wonderful! How can anybody sulk while there are racks heating their towels?’
    Bruce chuckled, brown eyes sparkling up at her before darting shyly away while he arranged her plates on the table. ‘Heated towel racks not much use down under,