Page 43 of Never Gonna Happen

The second kiss began like the first – curious and tentative, just a gentle touching of lips. She could feel herself trembling, the heat in her stomach drawing down into a warm, pulsing throb between her legs. She made an involuntary noise, just a tiny out breath that lived somewhere between a sigh and a gasp, but it seemed to light a fire under Jamie. Suddenly his hands were in her hair and his lips were on her neck and the zip of her coat was slowly heading south so he could slide his hands around her waist and up her jumper, trailing his fingers across the bare skin of her back. He tasted of champagne and woodsmoke, and Emily couldn’t imagine ever wanting him to let go.

They came up for air, both of them breathing heavily. The snow was now coming down in a heavy white curtain, making tiny hissing noises as it touched the flames.

‘Shall we go inside?’ he asked, a question steeped in promise and possibility. Emily nodded and took his hand.

Chapter Twenty-Two

‘Holy shit,’ said Jamie, standing at the window. ‘Have you seen this?’

Emily propped herself up on one elbow, admiring his naked backside. ‘It’s very impressive.’

‘Very funny,’ said Jamie, scurrying back to the warm bed. ‘Go and look.’

She sighed and threw back the covers, pulling on her long jumper from last night. Jamie might be fine parading around the room naked, but Emily wasn’t nearly confident enough to put her bum on show.

She walked over to the window, hoping he wasn’t looking at her thighs. ‘Oh my God.’

The window of Jamie’s bedroom overlooked the paddock where they’d had a fire last night. It was a blanket of white, with the bottom rail of the fence buried below the snowline. She couldn’t see the bonfire as it was immediately below them, but it was reasonable to assume it had well and truly gone out.

‘I’ve never seen this much snow before. Have you?’

‘Not in this country.’

Emily felt momentarily stupid, remembering that Jamie was the kind of person who went skiing in the Alps. He smiled sleepily at her, a come-back-to-bed look that took in her morning bed hair, her tugged-down jumper and her long legs. ‘Stop looking at me like that,’ she said shyly.

‘I can’t help it,’ he said. ‘You’re lovely.’

‘You’re sleep deprived,’ said Emily, shivering as she snuggled in next to him. ‘What’s your plan for today?’

‘I should probably take a trip around the estate, make sure there aren’t any fences down. Maybe check in on Derek.’

‘The Estate Manager?’

‘Yeah, he looks after the dogs when Dad’s away. His cottage is in the far corner of the estate down a rough track – we keep offering to tarmac it, but he’s a miserable old bugger who prefers not to have visitors. He’ll be cut off right now, and he only turns his phone on when Dad’s around. Do you want to come?’

‘Sure,’ said Emily. ‘I need to go back and get changed first. Shall I grab the key to the Land Rover?’

Jamie shook his head. ‘I think we should take the horses; I can cover more of the estate that way.’

‘Is it safe in the snow?’

Jamie laughed. ‘Horses are naturally four by four.’ He smiled at Emily’s doubtful face. ‘They’ll already be ploughing the main estate roads, and we’ll take it really slowly.’

‘OK. Does that mean I have to get up now?’

‘Why?’ said Jamie, stroking his finger down her arm and kissing her shoulder. ‘What else did you have in mind?’

‘Ha ha,’ she replied, feeling her skin break out in goosebumps. ‘That’s quite enough for one night. It’s only the first day of the year.’

‘Oh yeah,’ said Jamie. ‘Happy New Year.’ They had been far too busy doing a comprehensive audit of each other’s bodies to celebrate when the clock struck midnight.

‘Happy New Year,’ said Emily, wanting to kiss him but conscious she hadn’t cleaned her teeth for over twelve hours. ‘I’m going to go back and have a shower and change, get some breakfast.’

Jamie put his hands behind his head and watched her pull on her clothes. Emily had no idea what he was thinking, but the smile playing on his lips suggested it was post-watershed. She remembered the way he’d touched her last night, the feeling of the cold air on her skin as she rode him, the look on his face as he reached the point of no return. Her skin tingled, like every touch of his fingers and tongue had left an indelible print.

‘Put some extra layers on and a double pair of socks,’ he said, snapping her back into practical mode. ‘It’s going to be cold out there. And take some boots from the tack room, you can’t walk back in those.’ He nodded at the trainers Emily had worn last night, which looked woefully unsuitable for knee-deep snow.

‘OK.’ She gave Jamie a smile and a tiny wave from the doorway before heading down the stairs and out into the yard.