Room for Love

By Roni Denholtz

Jaclyn Rosetti loves her job as the front end manager of a hotel. She knows Adam O’Toole is really a visiting efficiency expert, there to assess the hotel and employees. She’s promised her boss, the hotel’s manager, to keep Adam’s identity secret. But she finds herself falling for Adam.

Adam’s very attracted to Jaclyn, and the more he gets to know her, the more his feelings grow. But a past experience with a girlfriend who lied to him has made him wary of trusting women.

Can Jackie help Adam realize that there’s room for love in his heart?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Roni Denholtz
• Release date: Jun 1, 2018
• ISBN: 9780463434413

Book preview

Room For Love, Copyright 2018 Roni Paitchel Denholtz

Published by Roni Paitchel Denholtz

Cover and Interior Layout: www.formatting4U.com

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All rights reserved. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems—except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews—without permission in writing from the author. Please contact the author at [e-mail]. This book is a work of fiction. The characters, events, and places portrayed in this book are products of the author’s imagination and are either fictitious or are used fictitiously. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental and not intended by the author.

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They walked almost all the way down the hall before Jackie stopped. This is my room. She turned toward Adam. Thanks again.

He was bending towards her, and in an instant she knew he was about to kiss her.

She tilted her head toward his.

His lips pressed against hers lightly.

It was a soft, friendly kiss. But Jackie found even that brief contact electrifying.

Adam pulled back slightly, and their eyes met. Jackie’s breath wedged in her throat.

And then he bent toward her again. His hand cupped her face gently, and this time his lips lingered on hers.

Warmth, and yearning, coursed through her. Their lips clung.

DEDICATION

FOR MY WONDERFUL DAUGHTER

AMY LYNELLE DENHOLTZ LEWANDOWSKI

WITH LOVE!

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Thank you to Jane Swaszek for the information on hotels. Any mistakes are my own.

Thank you to my editor Gina Ardito for all your help.

Thank you to my formatting and cover artist guru Judi Fennell for all your help.

ALSO BY RONI DENHOLTZ

One of These Nights

Stuck in the Saddle with You

Setting the Stage for Love

Borrowing the Bride

A Taste of Romance

Salsa with Me

Marquis in a Minute

Negotiating Love

Somebody to Love

Lights of Love

CHAPTER I

Seeing the check-in line beginning to grow, Jaclyn Rosetti left her office and stepped behind the counter. Next in line, please, she called out with a smile. Today, of all days, she wanted the hotel’s front end to make a good impression. Any one of the male customers standing on line could be Mr. O’Toole, the efficiency expert. The one whose name she wasn’t supposed to know. The person her manager was so nervous about.

A tall man with wavy blonde hair moved toward her. Hello, he said in a husky voice.

Jackie met his bright blue eyes, and instantly, an electric jolt zinged through her.

He was over six feet tall, and handsome. Jackie stared at him for a moment.

His good looks didn’t explain the zap that coursed through her. She’d met hundreds of good-looking men without having this strong a reaction. Both here at the hotel where she worked and outside of it.

Welcome to Hutchinson Hotels, she said, continuing to smile. He towered over her five feet four inch frame. Her words came easily--she’d said them hundreds of times before. But as her eyes met his, the air surrounding both of them seemed to sparkle. He must be a new guest; she would remember meeting him if he had stayed here before!

She braced her hands on the cool, smooth fake marble of the inner counter, steadying herself.

He gave her a smile, and she caught a glimmer of amusement in his eyes--which only made him more appealing.

Thank you, he replied.

Your name? she asked.

O’Toole. Adam O’Toole.

The efficiency expert!

Jackie struggled not to gape. She’d been expecting an older man, maybe in his forties or fifties. Not this young man, who must be in his late twenties. Certainly not a handsome, personable man who seemed to make the air crackle with a positive charge.

Mr. O’Toole? She strove to sound smooth, as if she hadn’t recognized his name. She clicked on her computer. We need your credit card and an ID."

That’s me. He grinned.

Well, we hope you find your room to your liking! she said. And immediately regretted her blurted words. He musn’t suspect that Helen had warned her of his visit; even without naming him.

Normally, Jackie wouldn’t be so flustered. But gazing up into his handsome face, his upturned smile and his eyes alight with something—humor or something more?—she felt off balance.

Not to mention the fact that Helen had let his visit slip, then begged Jackie to keep it a secret.

I hope so, he said genially. He took out his wallet, slid out a driver’s license and credit card, and handed them to her.

Would he find everything to his liking? She caught the faintest whiff of his woodsy aftershave as she tapped on her keyboard, calling up his reservation on the screen. Jackie guessed he would determine some areas of the hotel needed improvement. Hopefully not too many. Especially the front end area, which she managed!

I see your room’s ready, she said, clicking the keys. She looked up at him again. With that eye contact she felt another zing through her system.

She couldn’t remember experiencing such an instant attraction, not since she was a teenaged girl and had a crush on her young math teacher. She’d certainly not had a reaction like this when she’d first met Brad.

She quickly wiped away the thought of her ex-boyfriend.

It’s on a non-smoking floor, right? Adam O’Toole asked. I requested that.

Yes, non-smoking, Jackie said, and transferred her attention back to the computer. She finished processing his check-in, returned his license and credit card, and then handed him the plastic credit-card sized room key.

Here’s your key. And we have your cookies! She turned and grabbed the bag always given to guests checking in. Each person got two large cookies—a chocolate chip and an oatmeal raisin, freshly baked. The aromas of chocolate and brown sugar wafted up from the bag.

My favorites, he said, taking the brown bag from her. Their fingers brushed for an instant—and hat small contact sent a wave of electricity up Jackie’s arm and right into her middle.

Thank you… he peered at her name tag. Jaclyn Rosetti. Thanks, Ms. Rosetti.

You can call me Jackie, she said.

Jackie, it is.

Would you like the bellhop to help you with your luggage? she inquired, noting he had quite a few pieces. Of course he would have a lot of luggage. Helen Wendt, the hotel’s manager, had told Jackie the efficiency expert would be staying for a few weeks.

I’m so worried about his visit, Helen had confided.

Jackie hadn’t understood why her boss was so concerned. It was not unusual for a hotel to check on things with an anonymous efficiency expert. Maybe they were thinking of adding something—or cutting back personnel. Whatever it was, when she’d come in to ask Helen a question this morning, Helen had been flustered, and abruptly voiced her concern about the visit when Jackie had asked if anything was wrong.

She hadn’t told Jackie the name of the expert. If Jackie hadn’t been outside her office, waiting for Helen to get off the phone before seeing her, she would never have heard her manager exclaim Adam O’Toole! in a loud voice to whomever she was speaking with. As she’d left Helen’s office, she had surmised that this Adam O’Toole must be the expert her boss was so worried about.

Yes, a bellhop would be helpful. Thanks, he told her now.

Jackie waved to Frank, a young man who was also a part-time college student, who was standing alertly by the bellhop station. Frank quickly approached with a luggage rack.

Mr. O’Toole is staying in Room 542, Jackie told Frank.

Let me get those bags, sir, Frank said.

Adam watched silently as Frank did his job. The elevators are this way, Frank said, then led the way.

Before following him, Adam gave Jackie another smile.

Have a wonderful day! she called after him.

You too, he said, and followed Frank.

Jackie stood watching them for a moment, still feeling keyed up. Then she glanced at the next traveler waiting to check in. Can I help you? she asked, and the man moved forward.

She proceeded to check him in, and when he was done, she had a moment to catch her breath. Her assistant, Cassie was finished checking in a businesswoman, and only George, an older man who worked part-time, remained busy with a family.

With no one else on line at the moment, Jackie could go back to her office. Let me know if it starts to get busy again, she instructed Cassie.

Cassie grinned. You’ll know anyway. You’re always checking the front end during our busiest hours.

It was true. Jackie could hear from her office on the side of the counter if things got busy—and if she leaned back in her chair, she could catch a glimpse of the front end. Once she returned there, leaving the door ajar, Jackie paused and breathed deeply, reaching for her bottled water.

She couldn’t shake off the intensity she’d felt on meeting Adam O’Toole. And she didn’t know how to explain it to herself.

She’d met lots of handsome men—and she’d had her share of boyfriends in high school, college, and afterwards. She hadn’t felt deeply about anyone, though, until Brad. But it had never been quite like this-- so intense a reaction. It was as if she was a piece of metal and Adam was a magnet. She’d felt an immediate pull. A drawing towards him, so strong it was almost physical.

And here he was the efficiency expert that the hotel was waiting for! How weird was that?

Just a few days ago, Helen had warned the assembled department managers at their weekly meeting that there could be a few changes upcoming at their hotel. With last month’s corporate merger, I wouldn’t be surprised, she’d said.

Some of Jackie’s coworkers had been nervous. Corporate mergers could mean job losses. The staff at this northern Pennsylvania location was proud of the hotel, but what would the new corporate owners think?

Mario DelTufo, a fatherly man who was the banquet manager, had told Jackie after the meeting that the new corporation might hire more staffers. Don’t worry, he had said.

She would try to follow Mario’s advice. Now, enough introspection, Jackie told herself sternly, she had work to do.

She sipped her water, then placed the bottle back down and had just opened a folder with notes about a writing conference when there was a tap on her door.

It was Madeline Townsend. Hey, Jackie, I just heard an interesting tidbit, she said.

Oh? What? Jackie asked. Madeline, who was around thirty, always had an ear out and seemed to hear any news first. Jackie wondered now if Helen had slipped and said something about the efficiency expert to her as well as to Jackie. Madeline could have been an investigative reporter, Jackie concluded, like her own brother.

Remember Mrs. Wendt said Hutchinson was acquiring four more small hotels since the merger? Well… she paused dramatically. I just heard that one is in the Caribbean!

Really? Jackie said, surprised. So far the small chain of Hutchinson Hotels were all in the United States—mostly on the East coast.

Yes. Madeline nodded her blond head vigorously. Somewhere in the Bahamas, I think.

And where did you get this information? Jackie asked with a smile. Although many of Madeline’s tidbits turned out to be true, Madeline had been known to mix things up.

Madeline gave her a conspiratorial smile. I heard Helen Wendt on the phone yesterday with Corporate. As the events coordinator, Madeline was all over the hotel, coordinating with every area, from banquets to the front end.

That’s interesting. Maybe we’ll all get a chance to vacation there! Jackie said lightly.

I hope so! Madeline declared. Hey, I also heard a rumor that corporate may be sending out an efficiency expert.

Since Helen had sworn Jackie to secrecy after divulging that bit of information, Jackie just raised her eyebrows. Really?

Really, although no one has confirmed it. Madeline frowned.

Jackie shrugged. Hotels do that all the time.

Yeah. Well, I’ve got to talk to Mario. See you later. Madeline hurried away.

When she left, Jackie got up and peeked over at the counter. It was a Tuesday in mid-August—not one of their busiest days. But being right off Interstate 80, their Pennsylvania location was one of the most popular of the Hutchinson chain. Although she was the front end manager, there were plenty of times they were swamped with check-ins and Jackie stepped in behind the counter to work alongside her employees.

She observed George checking in one couple but there was no one else on line.

Cassie walked back to talk to her. We’ve got a lull. What did you think of that guy you checked in? He’s really handsome.

Yes, he is, Jackie agreed. And how, she added silently.

Yeah. Cassie nodded, her short, curly dark blond hair bouncing. I could go for a man like that.

He’s probably going to be fighting off all the females around here, Jackie said lightly, and was surprised to feel a twinge inside at her own words. She didn’t like the picture she had just painted to Cassie.

I’m sure. Cassie sighed. Oh well. I’m sure he’ll never notice me.

Now, I told you to stop putting yourself down, Jackie reminded her. You’re pretty and friendly and you’ll find the right guy.

Cassie shrugged.

Since she’d first hired her, Jackie had known that Cassie didn’t have enough confidence in herself. She was a high school grad, but had floated from one job to another in the last couple of years. She’d told Jackie later that she’d barely squeaked through high school; and after graduating, had no idea what she wanted to do, but went from secretarial work to being a salesgirl to waitressing, all within less than a year. And then she took a job in housekeeping at a small motel, and discovered she really liked the hotel environment. She’d switched to a receptionist job, and then had come here, wanting to work at a nicer place.

Jackie was proud that she had convinced Cassie to go back to school, and Cassie was now taking a couple of night courses at the local community college, working towards her associates’ degree. She was a hard worker and had become Jackie’s assistant a few months ago.

You’re only twenty-one, Jackie reminded Cassie. Give yourself time. I have no doubt you’ll find the right guy.

What about me? a little voice in the back of Jackie’s head asked.

She pushed it aside. She was young herself, she thought. She’d just turned twenty-six. Plenty of people didn’t settle down until they were older than she was.

But she had to admit that she hoped someday she would find the right guy, marry and have a family. Like her parents.

When Jack Rosetti had met Jill Naporano during her freshman year in college, it had been love at first sight. Jack was two years older, and they had married as soon as Jill graduated. Now Jackie’s parents had been married over 30 years and they were still a close couple.

Jackie sighed.

Something wrong? Cassie asked.

Jackie shook her head. No, I was just thinking… that customer Mr. O’Toole sure is hot, isn’t he? She forced herself to grin.

Madeline’s probably going to flirt with him, Cassie said. You know her. Even though we’re not supposed to come on to our customers.

Yeah, Jackie agreed. Okay, let me know if you need help in the front.

Okay, Cassie replied, and disappeared.

Jackie got back to work, and was surprised when she heard a commotion and looked at the clock. An hour had gone by.

An anxious female voice pierced her concentration, plus the sounds of items falling—suitcases maybe?

Cassie was on the phone, apparently talking to a customer who was having problems with a key. George was talking to Congressman Thomas Stanz, who held a cell phone to his ear. His aide, Holly, looking flustered as usual, was staring aghast at the mountain of suitcases that had toppled over in the lobby. Frank was coming from the elevator area with a luggage rack, and as Jackie approached, Frank hurried toward them, sizing up the situation.

Let me help you, Jackie said, approaching Holly.

The pretty, short young woman looked up gratefully, her glasses askew. Her honey-colored hair was in a French braid but wisps stood out and her tan short-sleeved suit looked wrinkled.

Oh, thank you! she said. I thought we could get these in ourselves, but… Her voice trailed off.

Let me. Frank reached them, and together he and Jackie began piling the suitcases on the luggage rack.

Tom Stanz glanced back. Everything ok? he asked in his genial voice. Apparently he’d been so deep in conversation he hadn’t been aware of the falling suitcases.

Fine, Holly said quickly, handing Frank the last, small suitcase.

Jackie pushed aside a garment bag to make more room for the final suitcase.