Read Online Sunset Waves by Jennifer Conner - Free Book Online Page A

his body needed was a little break. He’d told his boss that he needed a week off and then he’d be back on top of things like he’d always been.
    If he relaxed and got some rest, everything would be normal.
    Normal and back to his perfect life.
    Once his head cleared, he jumped back in the car and restarted the engine. The sun was setting over Sunset Beach. He never seemed to notice the sunsets in the city. Maybe, it was because he always had his head buried in work. On most days he arrived at his job in the dark and left when it was dark.
    Following the GPS on the dashboard, he took the last few curves until he pulled up in front of a large blue house. Gravel crunched under the tires as he steered into a space.
    “ You have arrived at your destination ,” the navigation voice stated.
    “Huh…” Mateo said as he looked around. He figured the place would be booked solid this time of year and surprised to see that his was the only car in the parking lot.
    Mateo popped the trunk and removed his duffle bag. He’d packed light. He had no intention of doing anything other than putting his feet up on a beach lounge and drinking a few—okay, many― beers and then sleep like the dead.
    He yawned. Lately, he always felt tired. He prided himself in being a non-stop kind of guy but for that you needed sleep and also a grip on your sanity.
    Mateo took the front porch steps two at a time and walked through the front door of The Sunset Beach Spa and Resort. There was no one at the front desk and he didn’t hear anyone in the back room. There was no bell on the desk to ring.
    “Hello?” he called.
    Silence.
    “This isn’t good,” he muttered to himself. He dropped his bag and went through the French doors that led to the pool and deck overlooking the water. The sun was low in the sky and made the water shades of deep purple and pink.
    Mateo came in and shut the door behind himself. “Well there has to be someone here.” The floorboards above him creaked. He ascended the stairs and followed in the same direction where he’d heard someone singing. He knocked on one of the hallway’s doors and when he didn’t get an answer, - pushed the door open with his foot. “Hello?” he called out, as he entered the room.
    A woman stood with her back to him and bopped her head to the music through her ear jacks. She lifted fabric swatches and one by one held them next to wallpaper samples - taped to the wall. Her dark brown ponytail bounced to the beat along with her cute rear end. He was going to stop her, but enjoyed the view way too much. He grinned when she did a little impromptu dance move.
    Just then, she turned around, screamed, and dropped everything in her hands onto the floor. She whipped the buds out of her ears.
    “Sorry,” Mateo said as he held up a hand. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”
    “Well…you did.” The woman still clutched her chest. “I thought I was here by myself. Can I help you with something?”
    “Do you work here? Can you tell me where I can find the person at the front desk so I can check in?” he asked.
    “What?” Her eyes widened slightly. “You must be in the wrong place. We’re not open for business yet.” She picked the samples off the floor and laid them back on to the table.
    “I’m not sure what’s going on here. I booked and paid for a room last week.”
    “That’s impossible.” She shook her head. “You must have the wrong place.”
    “Listen,” he tried to keep his voice even. “I’ve had a bad week. I’ve had a really bad week. I booked a room at The Sunset Beach Resort and Spa . That’s what the sign on the door said and my GPS told me I was here. Is the manager around?”
    “I am one of the managers. There are four of us who own the place.”
    “Okay, can you get a hold of the person who took my reservation? Can I talk to them? There must be a mix up somewhere.”
    She pointed to the door. “Let’s go downstairs and we can try and sort this all