AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Well, you use that thing on your face called a mouth, and you speak to him about what you want.”
“Angela Morris, are you actually suggesting I try to have a serious relationship with a guy I’ve known for a week?” She lowered her voice self-consciously when she saw the old barman prick his ears in their direction. A few of the regulars from town were in enjoying a Saturday afternoon drink, and she loathed the idea of anyone finding out her business.
“Why not? What’s so crazy about that? Believe it or not, lots of people would think hot sex for a week was a great basis for an ongoing relationship.”
She shook her head. “For one thing, it’s not what he wants.”
“How do you know?”
“He’s told me. A hundred times. And it’s not what I want, either. What if we got involved – seriously involved, and it didn’t work out? What if Maxie came to love him, and he wasn’t in it for the long haul.”
Again, she thought of the contract sitting on her office desk, and knew she should sign it. That she probably would. But she assured herself that the decision was only to do with her own aspirations, not the hope that it might make things easier for her to have a future with David Trent. And yet… what if it did? The secret hope blossoming in her tummy was too tender to be shared. She held it close to her heart, but she did hope, desperately.
“That’s a lot of what ifs, Kitty. Sometimes, you just have to trust your gut.”
“I am,” she lied, firmly. “Believe me. David Trent is a bit of fun for now, and that’s all.”
CHAPTER SEVEN
“Your coat, ma’am?” Marcus stood at the door to the bed and breakfast, heart-stoppingly beautiful in black pants and a pale shirt.
Katie crinkled her nose in amusement but shrugged out of her winter jacket regardless. “Here you are, sir.”
He took the coat and also the bags of groceries she had hooked over one arm, the weight of which had already ring barked her flesh. She followed him into the Bed and Breakfast, and froze.
“Oh, something smells amazing,” she said, and then, spinning around, she saw that the whole lounge area had been lit with hundreds of little candles. “My goodness, it must have taken you an hour just to light these bloody things!”
His face was deadly serious. “With Maxie at a friend’s house, it seemed like too good an opportunity to resist. Seeing as you won’t eat out with me…” he injected some humor into his voice as he caught her hand in his and pulled her towards the kitchen, “I thought we could eat in.”
She stepped into the kitchen and sucked in a breath of air. “This looks so beautiful,” she swallowed convulsively, feeling tears well up in her eyes. “No one’s ever done anything like this for me before.”
“No one?”
“No.” She shook her head, taking in the crisp white tablecloth, the arrangement of peonies in the centre, the two glasses of champagne fizzing away in the centre. “Thank you.” She thought of her conversation with Angela that afternoon and confusion swirled through her mind. “It seems like a lot of trouble to go to for a casual fling.”
He didn’t rise to the bait. Hadn’t he gone out of his way to make her know he could only ever give a snippet of his time? “Some flings are worth the trouble.”
It made her feel better, and worse, to hear his quick agreement with her characterization of their relationship. “Some flings are,” she whispered slowly, lifting her eyes to his. His face gave nothing away, his expression was wiped of all emotion.
“Here.” He passed her a champagne flute and lifted his own to it. “To you, Katie Collins. A woman with integrity, class and beauty.”
She closed her eyes. “This is getting into dangerous territory, David.”
“Just for tonight. Just let’s not think about the future, or the past. Maxie’s with friends, we have the house to ourselves, and I want to have dinner with you.”
“But why?” She shook her head, feeling an inexorable tug towards him.
“Why not?” He pulled her against him gently, loving the way her lips curled up at the corners.
“We agreed to keep it light…”
“And we will.” His heart beat frantically in his chest as he willed himself to say the sentence he’d prepared. “In fact, that might be beyond our control, anyway.” He saw the way her face shuttered in immediate wariness. Feeling like the worst kind of pig, he pushed on with his prepared speech. “I have to get back to London. Something’s come up.”
Katie’s ears were ringing as his statement chased itself around and around her brain. Something’s come up. He’s leaving. “When?” To her credit, she sounded less affected by this news than she actually was.
“Tomorrow. It’s a long drive and I’ll need to be back by Monday.”
“Oh.” She took a sip of champagne to buy some more time.
