No Reservations: Ryan's Version (A Romantic Comedy)

Chapter 17

Will I go into a bit more detail about "the facemask incident"? I suspect you want me to . . .

Valentine's weekend was a big weekend for the hotel. Valentine's was also a bit of a hard time for me as I always remembered that party where I missed my chance to kiss Iona all those years ago. I'd got over it eventually during my years with Kelly but, as soon as I was single again, my hatred of it had came flooding back almost immediately.

This year was going to be even weirder with Iona actually here as my right-hand- woman. I wasn't sure how to feel.

We were staggering our shifts that weekend, with Iona taking the earlier shift each day and me working the later one. I really wasn't looking forward to the next few days. But, on the upside, the hotel was closing for a few days for renovations as soon as the last guests left on Monday, so I knew I had a few days off to relax at the end of all the drama.

Friday was actually going pretty well. We had a special Valentines package, so Iona had double-checked the rooms to make sure they all were equipped with a bottle of prosecco and luxury chocolates, as per the deal. Then we both helped out the receptionist, getting guests checked in and shown to their rooms, and making reservations for the restaurant. Shortly after that rush, Iona finished her shift and headed back to the accommodation.

I knew she wasn't far away but somehow I still missed her. The rest of my shift dragged and, when the clock turned to ten, I was delighted to be finished.

"Just give me a shout if there's any issues," I told Angus before I left; he shot a joking salute in my direction. I headed directly for the kitchen in the staff block, wondering if I actually had anything to eat in there. It had been a while since my last shopping trip.

I swung the door open to find Iona's head emerging from a cupboard. She was holding a bag of Doritos, and appeared to be wearing red Valentine's themed pyjamas. The pyjamas were covered in massive white hearts; the hearts had arms, legs and faces. They were each clutching an object: a rose, a box of chocolates, a Valentine's card. They were somehow adorable and terrifying at the same time.

"You done? Any notable incidents?" She asked. I knew she was looking for Valentine's themed guest gossip but unfortunately - or fortunately, really - there hadn't yet been any.

I shook my head. "Thank God," I muttered. She looked sympathetic . . . And, now I properly looked at her, really weird. What the heck? Her face was the wrong colour, a light shade of yellow, and somehow shiny and wrinkly? I couldn't work it out at all.

"In the nicest possible way, Iona," I said slowly, not wanting to offend. "What the fuck is going on with your face right now?"

Her free hand flew to her face. "Oh holy crap, I forgot about my face mask." Ah. That made more sense.

I moved towards her, examining her face more closely. "You look a bit like you're made of plastic."

What a line, Thorne. Smooth, real smooth. Inwardly I gave myself a mental smack around the head.

"It's a peel-off mask," she explained. "It's my favourite beauty treatment."

"Why?" I was genuinely curious. And hoping to distract her from my previous words.

"Do you remember when you were a kid, the first time you accidentally got glue on your fingers? How much fun was it to peel it off when it dried?"

I laughed at that childhood memory. "A lot. Sometimes I'd end up deliberately getting some on my skin just so I could peel it," I confessed.

"Exactly." She nodded, clearly pleased at my response. I felt as if I'd won a Blue Peter badge "Well, a peel-off face mask reminds me of that. It's actually kind of therapeutic. Here." Unexpectedly, she grabbed my hand, pulling it up towards her face and resting it on the edge of her jawline. "Give it a go."