Free Claire Delacroix by Once Upon A Kiss Page B

sir.”
    Marissa looped her hand through Baird’s arm and her voice dropped to a throaty purr. “You’re so very decisive, darling! I just love a man who takes charge of things...”
    “Marissa, there may really be a fire,” Baird interrupted tersely. “Why don’t you go outside with the others?”
    “But it’s raining!” Marissa raised a meticulously manicured hand to her cheek. “My hair will be ruined!” She chuckled huskily and wrinkled her nose as she leaned closer. “Why don’t we just stay inside together, darling, and look for that pesky fire ourselves?” She walked her fingers up his arm. “We might start in my room.”
    Fortunately, Julian darted down the stairs and across the room, his arrival saving Baird from making a reply. “Is there really a fire?” Julian eyed the departing workmen with concern.
    “There might be. Where’s the princess?”
    Julian shrugged. “In her room, I guess.” He glanced over his shoulder and coughed. “You know, fires can move through a building this size with remarkable speed, making our liability quite considerable. The greater weight of our insurance coverage, as you know, does not begin in earnest until the grand opening of the resort. We should think about getting everyone out as quickly as possible and minimizing our risk in this.”
    “Oooh, Julian, darling, you don’t say?” Marissa batted her lashes at Baird. “We could be in dire peril at this very moment!”
    Baird shook himself free, his mind on other concerns. The hall was emptying quickly, but Aurelia had made no appearance at the top of the stairs, despite the insistence of the alarm. What if she had fallen asleep? Or hadn’t heard the alarm?
    Or didn’t know what it meant?
    “I have to go check on Aurelia.”
    “Fourth room on the left,” Julian supplied.
    “But Baird, darling!” Marissa wailed. “You can’t abandon me here in the midst of this chaos!”
    Baird looked pointedly around the nearly deserted foyer. It was far from a disorganized scene. He looked at Julian and that man winced, as though he guessed what Baird would say.
    “Julian, could you make sure Marissa gets outside with the others? I’ll be right there. I just want to check that our princess isn’t left in her room.”
    Marissa inhaled dangerously, but Baird was already striding away. He scrutinized the hall as he went, fearful that his renovation would be lost to flames even before it was done.
    But he couldn’t catch even a hint of smoke in the air. There was no evidence of fire at all in the hall upstairs.
    Baird knocked on the fourth door, but no one answered.
    He knocked again, more insistently, but there was still no response. Baird leaned closer and listened.
    There wasn’t a sound from inside. Baird knocked again, more forcefully this time.
    Where was she?
    When his fourth heavy knock brought no answer, Baird hauled his passkey from his pocket and opened the door.
    Not only was there no sign of fire, there was no sign of the Princess Aurelia.
    In fact, it was as though she had never even been in the room. A primal panic swept over Baird and a single thought echoed in his mind with startling clarity.
    He had lost her again.
    An odd sense of loss swept over him, one greater than anything Baird had ever felt before. He felt bereft, as though a part of himself had been torn away.
    And he knew without a doubt that he had felt this way many times before.
    Great. Baird shook his head savagely. Now she was making him nuts.
    But Baird couldn’t completely dismiss his fear, even knowing it was irrational. What if something had happened to Aurelia? What if she was lost in the hotel and this wasn’t a false alarm?
    Baird lunged for the stairs, fighting for his usual calm as the alarm rang insistently. He met Julian halfway down the stairs.
    “The fourth room?” Baird demanded.
    “Yeah. But one of the guys saw a woman leaving from the back fire exit.” Julian’s sober gaze locked with Baird’s. “Blond hair,