StealingThe Bride Read Online Free

and safety. Just because
he was working at the hotel didn’t mean he wasn’t one of the men that attempted
to con and “date” single American women. “How did you know that?”
    Bowing
his head in understanding, he said, “It is my job to know our guests. Besides
when you walked by earlier, Utama pointed you out.” He gestured toward a female
attendant who was assisting another person at the end of the counter.
    Finally,
he held up a clipboard. “Also, your picture from your identification is on our
roster, for safety reasons.”
    “Oh.”
She felt a little ridiculous. She probably showed her ignorance of staying at
such a high-dollar hotel. There had been other establishments just as fine to
stay in, but she decided to splurge on her hotel when she took the trip. She’d
noticed the clientele the hotel catered to moving through the resort and in the
dining room; most of them probably made more in a week than she earned in two
months.
    “How
can I be of assistance to you, Ms. Greenwood,” he asked in excellent diction
even though his voice carried a heavy accent.
    “I
wanted to sign up for some of the hotel’s complementary activities.” She
reached inside her bag and pulled out her flyer and placed it on the
countertop.
    “What
were you interested in?”
    “Tomorrow
I’d like to either learn how to snorkel or scuba dive. Possibly take a tour
through the cities the next day.”
    “These
are no problem. Whatever day you would like to tour, just
call down to the desk that morning before eight and we will get a guide or add
you to a group. For the water classes or rentals you will need to speak
with the employees that handle that service.”
    “Okay.
Where can I find them?” She folded her flyer and stuffed it back into her tote.
    He
gave her directions to an area located on the far end of the resort on the
beach. She thanked the clerk and followed his instructions to the water sports
cabana. Once outside the hotel the warm breeze of the island caressed the back
of her neck and blew the hem of her sundress around her legs. She would never
get tired of the view of the Gunung Agung in the distance; it was a massively
breathtaking mountain. Glancing out over the ocean she could see that the sun
was beginning to set, it would be nightfall soon.
    She
continued around the outer bungalows, and she hoped to make it to the cabana
and back before it got dark. She wasn’t afraid of being out after the sunset;
the hotel’s paths were well-lit and security patrolled even though it wasn’t a
congested area like other tourist spots in Bali; her reason for picking it. She
didn’t want to be harassed with each step she took by tourist mongers for every
coin in her pocket.
    Finally,
she reached the hut with panduan untuk
laut on a sign above it, which translated to “guides for the ocean” or “ocean
guides”. She was disappointed to see it was already closed for the day. She had
thought maybe someone would still be manning it. All the Jet Ski’s were chained
together, and there were boards of various types and sizes inside a locked case
around the outside.
    As
she went to turn around to head back to her room she heard a sound coming from
the other side of the cabana. She moved around the side and saw a light coming
from an open door, the light shined over a pool where scuba tanks sat beside
it.
    “ Halo … halo ,”
she called out in Indonesian as she moved closer to the door.
    There
was no answer, but as she stood in the doorway she could see all the colorful
snorkeling masks, wet suits hanging on hooks, still dripping water on the floor,
and other aquatic paraphernalia. Evidently, they had recently returned from the
last class for the day.
    She
heard another noise of something scraping and said, “ Saya membutuhkan bantuan .” Asking for assistance about capped her
out in the things she could say without pulling out her translation dictionary.
The only things left were “how much does that cost” and “no