AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Huh?”
“What’s up?”
“Nothing.” She chewed on her bottom lip, shot him a quick look, but didn’t hold his gaze.
“Georgie?”
She sighed. “I feel weirdly nervous.”
“You’ve no reason to be nervous.”
“I guess not. It’s just that these are your people. I’m meeting your people for the first time.”
“And they’re going to love you.” He pushed the car door open, looking back at Georgie until she did the same. Grabbing their suitcases from the trunk, he stopped to press a kiss to Georgie’s temple before taking her suitcase and walking towards the wide front door.
Sharon opened the door before he could knock. “You made it!” She gave them both a wide smile, her brown eyes sparkling, before throwing her arms around Ryan’s neck and giving him a smacking kiss on the cheek. “I’ve missed you.”
“I’ve missed you too.” He pulled back, putting his arm around Georgie’s waist. “This is Georgie.”
“Hi Georgie. I’m so pleased to meet you. Come on in.” She stood back, holding the door wide for them to step through.
“Likewise. It’s a lovely home you’ve got here.”
“Thank you. We’re pretty rapt with it. Leave your bags there.” Sharon waved her hand, indicating for them to dump the suitcases near the sofa in the living room before moving into the kitchen. “We’ll have coffee before I take you to the bungalow. Andrew’s been called into work and won’t be back until dinner and I’ve got a few calls to make. So we’ll have this coffee, then I’ll give you some space for a few hours, if that’s okay.” Pulling out the makings for coffee, she smiled at them over her shoulder, her brunette ponytail swishing about as she moved. “You can have a swim, or a nap, or whatever suits.”
“Sure, that’s fine.” Ryan sat down on a stool at the kitchen bench, pulling Georgie with him, keeping his arm around her waist.
“Great. I thought we might go to the gorge tomorrow, if you haven’t got any plans. No doubt Andrew will have some bugs or something he’ll want to show you.”
“Bugs?”
“He’s an entomologist,” Sharon explained to Georgie, bringing their coffees and a plate of biscuits to the bench. “Bugs are his passion, so you be careful not to get him started on it, unless you’ve got hours to waste.”
“I could say the same about you and crocodiles,” Ryan teased.
“Ha, yeah, that’s true. Don’t get me started on crocs, Georgie, unless you’ve got hours.” Sharon grinned as she leaned against the counter, sipping her coffee.
“I’ll keep it in mind,” Georgie replied with a laugh.
They went quiet for a moment after that. Ryan didn’t miss the quick, assessing look Sharon shot Georgie. He caught her eye and raised his brow at her. She shrugged, giving him an impish grin that let him know she had every intention of pulling him aside at some point and grilling him about the beautiful blonde he’d brought to visit her. “So everything is all sorted for your big night?”
“Mostly.” Sharon reached for a biscuit. “We’ve got a local Councilor to act as Master of Ceremonies.” She rolled her eyes. “Avoid him if you can, although he’s going to want to hit you up.”
“What on earth for?”
“Because there’s a tiny part of the evening dedicated to thanking the donors that made the research facility possible and he’s going to want in on that photo opp.”
It was Ryan’s turn to roll his eyes. “I said I didn’t want any of that bullshit, Sharon.”
“Then you should have donated anonymously,” she fired back, laughing at him.
“Hey, you didn’t tell me you were a donor.”
Ryan shrugged at Georgie. “It’s a small matter.”
“Not to me it isn’t,” Sharon said, suddenly serious. “But we’ll talk more about that later.” She glanced at her watch. “I’ll show you to the bungalow, then I’ll get a few hours of work in before dinner.”
The bungalow was a one bedroom, one bathroom cabin tucked in at the back of the garden, situated to allow maximum privacy and a beautiful view of the swimming pool. It was sumptuously decorated with polished wooden floors, a king-sized bed and large spa bath. “She’s lovely,” Georgie observed once Sharon had left.
