Page 100 of Never Too Late to Date

Vicky passed the cup to Alex after crossing herself, and he repeated her actions.

‘Yamás! Here’s to you, Bruce.’

It was hard to turn her back and leave Bruce there alone. Vicky couldn’t stop the shivers that ran through her body.

‘Hey, are you cold? Take my jacket.’

Alex helped her into the coat and held out his hand for her to hold. It had been a curiously intimate ceremony, and it had taken it out of her, burying another animal she cared about so soon after saying goodbye to her beloved Scout.

‘You look washed out.’

‘Thanks.’

‘You’re coming back to my place. You need a hot drink and a warm bed.’

‘Hang on…’

‘And I’m not taking no for an answer. I can sleep on the sofa. You shouldn’t be alone tonight.’

She couldn’t disagree with him there, and once they got back to the sanctuary’s courtyard, she let herself be guided to his car. It was only a couple of minutes before they pulled up at a low white one-storey house, small, but blessed with what she knew would be a fabulous view out to sea by daylight.

Inside, it was all neatness and light, from what she could see: white walls everywhere, neutral rugs and furniture, and plenty of wood. It was obvious this man had never had kids; it wouldn’t have stayed like this for more than five minutes.

He sat her down on one of the big squashy sofas and brought her over a small glass of something that looked suspiciously like alcohol.

‘It’s Metaxa, Greek brandy, good for shock. It will warm you up. I’m going to have one too to keep you company.’

From what he’d confided in her earlier about his father, she knew this wasn’t a regular occurrence, so he must be feeling the weight of the evening too.

She sipped the liquid and winced at its strength, but as soon as it hit her stomach, the heat spread through her whole body. When both glasses were empty, he pulled her up by both hands.

‘OK, let’s get you into bed.’

Their eyes met, forcing a smile out of both of them.

‘Obviously, on your own. And don’t worry, the sheets were clean this morning.’

She was past worrying about anything. If he’d said he hadn’t changed them in a week, she’d still want to crawl in. This was the bed he’d told her about in such poetic terms.

He opened a door that led to another tasteful room with a huge bed and exposed brick walls, hung with artwork of coastal scenes. While she examined them, he rustled around beside her and produced a large white T-shirt from a wooden chest of drawers.

‘Here, put this on.’

Their hands touched as he handed over the T-shirt.

‘I’ll leave you in peace then.’

The desire not to be alone washed over her.

‘No, please stay. This bed is enormous. We don’t even have to touch each other.’

Stop talking about touching, her brain warned her.

‘I really don’t want to be alone tonight.’

Uncertainty was etched on his face.

‘Are you sure?’