Free Her Unexpected Detour by Kyra Jacobs Page A

emotion battled for her attention as she stepped toward the dining room: disappointment. She brushed off the feeling and silently scolded herself. Seeing Brent would only complicate things. And probably get her all hot and bothered, which would be entirely counterproductive. This was much better, she told herself. No messy good-byes, no strings attached.
    “Good morning, dear. Did you sleep well?” Ruby called from behind the bar top by the kitchen entrance. Her face was as bright and cheery as ever, free of suspicion as to what might have transpired between Kayla and her grandson in the night.
    Kayla breathed another mental sigh of relief. Silly as it may be, she didn’t want to leave that type of impression on her gracious hostess. Especially since she’d never dreamed of having a fling before. Ever. Good girls like her just didn’t do that type of thing. She slid into a seat at the bar and pushed her oncoming guilt trip aside.
    “Slept like a rock, and I don’t usually sleep well when I’m away from home. Had to have been that amazing bed. If I had a bigger car I’d try to smuggle it back home with me. I’ve never slept better.”
    Kayla clamped her mouth shut. She was rambling, a sure sign of guilt. Thankfully, Ruby appeared unfazed by it.
    “I’m so glad to hear that. We upgraded all our beds a few years back, after Miles read about a direct correlation between comfort and satisfaction in some study on successful hotel chains. All those statistics and what not are just stuff and nonsense to me. But Miles? He eats it up.”
    She poured Kayla a cup of coffee, then brought over a little caddy holding dainty containers of cream and sugar. “Hungry, dear? I’ve still got plenty of pancake batter in the back, and some bacon. I could even make up some eggs. Or fruit, perhaps?”
    “I don’t know, it all sounds so good.” Kayla laughed. “Guess I’m just not used to having more than cold cereal as a breakfast option.”
    “It’s no wonder you’re skinny as a rail. People should eat real food for breakfast, not something out of a box.”
    “You know, bacon and eggs do sound pretty good.” Kayla peered at the wall clock across the room. “I’m just not sure how long I have until the tow truck arrives, though. Have they called yet?”
    “No, the phone has been quiet all morning. Which means we should have plenty of time to get some food in your stomach. How do you like your eggs, dear?”
    “Um, scrambled would be great, thank you.”
    Kayla waited for Ruby to disappear behind the kitchen door before allowing her shoulders to slump with disappointment. She was itching to get on the road, to get home and start plotting her revenge. There had to be something she could do to get back at Joe for setting her up. But what? And could she do it without burning what was left of the smoldering bridge between her and her boss?
    Before she could come up with a suitable ploy, the kitchen door swung open again. Ruby stepped out, a heaping plate of bacon and eggs in her hand.
    “Oh, thank you, it looks amazing. But you made so much.”
    “Just do your best, sweetheart. Wouldn’t want to send you off still hungry.”
    Kayla took those words to heart and began to devour her breakfast. After the night she’d had, it was no wonder she was starving. Had bacon and eggs ever tasted so good? She glanced up in Ruby’s direction when she paused to take a drink of her coffee, and was surprised to see the older woman frowning down at the clipboard before her.
    “Everything all right, Ruby?” Kayla asked.
    “Oh, yes. Just so much left to do before we open for the season. I’m usually further along in our preparations by now, but we’ve had some issues come up unexpectedly that set us back a bit.” She waved off the list and came over to refill Kayla’s coffee mug. “Nothing we can’t handle, I’m sure.”
    “Does it take a lot of people to run a place like this?”
    “Not really. For the longest time it was just