Read Online Death Takes a Holiday by Elisabeth Crabtree - Free Book Online

glancing at his watch, “fifty-five.” He rose to his feet. “Okay, let’s go.”
    Somewhat surprised, Grace turned toward the door.
    “You know, ” Kyle said, stepping around her and reaching for the door, “there’s really no reason you should go. I mean, I already know the way. You should be relaxing.” He snapped his fingers and smiled at her. “Hey, I have a great idea. Why don’t I get you something to eat and bring it back? We’ll eat in here. Just the two of us.”
    Grace stepped in front of him , blocking his way out. “Tell me, when was it exactly that you developed this fear of enclosed spaces?”
    He took a step back. “Um, a few years ago.”
    “Because you were buried alive.”
    “Yep.”
    “Sounds pretty traumatic.”
    “ Oh, it was.”
    “Hmm. Funny how it’s never come up until now.”
    “I don’t like to talk about it.” Kyle reached around her to grip the door knob. “I’ll bring you back a chicken sandwich.”
    Grace took another step forward, causing him to let go of the door knob and take another step back. “Now that I’m thinking about it, it must have been such a struggle for you last week.”
    “Last week?”
    “Uh huh.” Grace crossed her arms. “Didn’t you tell me how you spent the day stuck in a crawlspace trying to find the squirrel living under Mrs. Pierce’s house?”
    “Well . . .” He took another step back.
    “Or a month ago when my little brother bet you that you couldn’t escape from the trunk of my grandfather’s car.” Grace took another step forward. Her red tipped fingernail pointing at his chest. “You couldn’t wait to climb into that trunk.”
    Kyle’s back hit the ensuite bathroom door. “It’s a 1962 Cadillac. You can’t really consider that a small space. That trunk was bigger than my apartment in New York.”
    “I don’t believe you!” she hissed, pacing the length of the room.
    “What?”
    “We’re stowaways. That’s why you want to hide in here.”
    “No, we’re not!”
    Grace turned to glare at him.
    He looked at her sheepishly. “ Well, I’m not. Anyways, I didn’t lie about my fear of enclosed spaces,” he said, sliding open the bathroom door and stepping inside. “They did have to dig me out of that grave and ever since I get a little twitchy when locked in a small room.”
    Grace gave him a withering look.
    “Like now for instance. I’m practically terrified standing here.”
    Grace walked forward and slid the bathroom door shut.
     
    *
     
    “ I don’t handle confined spaces very well ,” she mimicked as she walked through the observation car too irritated to enjoy the view of the mountain looming overhead.
    “ Grace, slow down. Where are you going?”
    She threw him a dirty look over her shoulder as he came up from behind her. “ You’re a lunatic. I’m not speaking to you. Why didn’t you tell me the ticket wasn’t for me?”
    “You were so excited. I didn’t want to disappoint you. Besides, I figured once we got here, I could just buy you an extra ticket and everything would be fine.”
    The rocking of the train suddenly increased, causing Grace to sway slightly.
    Kyle helpfully cupped a hand under her elbow to steady her while he continued his defense. “I didn’t know they were sold out. Someone had bought the last ticket over the phone just as I had reached the ticket counter.”
    “ You should have told me that when we got here.”
    “And ruin the surprise ?” He dropped his hand. “Look, I have a hotel room waiting for you at the ski resort. I just needed to get you there.”
    She turned and looked at him. “ What exactly was your plan? Were you just going to keep me locked up in the room until we reached the hotel?”
    Kyle held up his hands. “Okay. I’ll admit it. It wasn’t a great plan, but I didn’t have a lot of options.”
    “Why are we here, Kyle?”
    “We’re going to the Crystal Palace for a fun week on the slopes. Rest and relaxation.”
    “Wrong.” She shook her