Not that this had anything to do with Daniel, of course. Why would it? It wasn't as if she was falling in love with him! A little in lust, maybe, but that was easily handled. Self-restraint was all it took, and Laura was a master at it. She might have to work a little harder this time, admittedly, but she could start by making her position clear to him.
By the time she went to bed, she genuinely did have a headache. After tossing and turning, when she sat up in bed to see it was three in the morning, her sleep-deprived temper snapped. Enough was enough! She would not lose one more wink of sleep over a stupid boat trip. Yes, she had a duty to Paulo to make his guests welcome. She did not, however, have a duty to go with them wherever and whenever they wanted. When Daniel called for her tomorrow, she would be far away on a long drive. If he was the professional businessman his Web site would have her believe, she doubted her behaviour would affect any decision he might make regarding the hotel—if there was one to make.
Her mind made up, she settled back down under the covers to fall into an exhausted sleep.
****
Despite the sun streaming through the curtains, it took the shrill bell of the alarm to wake her and a long shower to open her eyes fully. With no time for breakfast, she grabbed a roll and coffee from the breakfast bar and went straight to reception.
Thankfully there was only a trickle of requests to deal with, giving her a fighting chance to come back to the land of the living. It was surprising what simple daylight could do; her common sense was intact once more, and the worries that had kept her awake half the night felt more like molehills than mountains now. She couldn't think why she'd made such a big deal out of it. She'd agreed to go on the trip and then she'd changed her mind—which she had every right to do.
As she left reception, Maria waved at her from the garden. "Join me for a cup of tea?"
Laura followed the older woman into the kitchen. She had to be off soon if she wanted to avoid Daniel, but there was time for a quick cuppa.
"Have you heard from Paulo?" she asked Maria.
"Yes, he phoned yesterday. He spent most of the conversation complaining about the rain!"
Laura laughed. Paulo had it in for the British weather—although to be fair, the British weather seemed to have it in for him, too. "I hope you told him we can manage perfectly well without him."
"Of course, but you know Paulo, he never quite believes us." Maria sighed. "I told him to stop thinking about work and enjoy his holiday. That boy has too many worries. Rachel is determined he should forget it all for a while and relax. She even joked about making sure he loses his phone!"
Laura frowned. "What worries, Maria? I thought it was all going well here?"
"Oh, it is, for now. We're not in trouble or anything, but . . ." She hesitated a moment. "I think of you as family, Laura, you know that. Between you and me, Paulo is worried that the British company we block-let some of the rooms to might not come up to the Costa Verde at all next year. There's a rumour they're thinking of concentrating on the Algarve."
"What will he do if that happens?" Laura asked tentatively.
"I don't know," Maria admitted. "Paulo doesn't think the Web site will generate enough business in itself. We have word of mouth, of course, and plenty of repeat visitors, but that won't fill the rooms all summer. What with the laundry, cleaning, breakfasts, staffing the bar, and maintaining the pool, I don't think we could afford to have too many empty rooms, especially in high season." She sighed heavily. "We do well with weddings and such, but keeping the rooms filled makes all the difference." She lowered her voice. "Teresa is so keen on that course in hotel management next year, and of course we all want to support her, but . . ."
"But it will cost money," Laura finished for her, upset to see her friend's eyes brimming with tears.
Maria nodded. "And then of course there's Rachel . . ." She stopped suddenly, and glanced at the clock on the wall. "Oh! Shouldn't you be getting ready for your boat trip with Mr. Stone?"
Laura jumped at the mention of Daniel's name, and her heart dropped to her feet. After Maria's unexpected revelation, she could no longer tell herself that Stone Brothers' possible interest in the hotel might not matter to the Silvas. Seeing how worried and tired Maria looked, she considered telling her the truth about her guest, but at this stage, she felt it would be foolish to get Maria’s hopes up.
"Yes, I'd better get changed," she said, rising from the table. "Thanks for the tea, Maria. I'm sure everything will work out."
Kissing the older woman quickly on the cheek, she hurried off to her room to pull on jeans, T-shirt, and a light sweater in case it was breezy out on the water. There was no question in her mind that she must go on the trip now. If Daniel had any interest in the hotel whatsoever, then that business could be vital to Paulo—and Laura was the only person at the moment who could do anything about it.
****
When Daniel knocked at her door at eleven, he didn't expect her to answer. She'd made it clear she'd changed her mind,
