Holiday with the Mystery Italian by Ellie Darkins

Author:Ellie Darkins
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2016-02-23T16:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER SEVEN

BY THE TIME she emerged from her bedroom the next morning, dressed in combat trousers and T-shirt, ready for their hike on Mount Etna, she’d made a decision. Last night, looking at the stars with Mauro, had been foolish.

She’d let her curiosity get the better of her, asking about Mauro’s ex, and it had steered them into very dangerous waters. Today, she had to be sensible. She had to put that kiss behind them and forget any crazy ideas she had had about Mauro and her. So today was all about Operation Forget the Kiss. She hadn’t meant to make Mauro change his mind about relationships, but show him that his assumptions about his last girlfriend might have been off the mark. Somehow, after Mauro’s thoughtful silences, she suspected that she needed to be more careful than ever.

But she had her defences firmly in place, so she’d spend her last couple of days enjoying the island and not fantasising about her and Mauro.

‘Morning,’ she said, flicking him a wave on her way to the coffee maker already steaming on the stove. ‘Sleep well?’

‘Like a baby,’ Mauro answered. ‘Were you up early? I thought I might see you in the pool.’

‘I got in a quick session before you were awake. I didn’t want to presume on any more free coaching.’ And she hadn’t trusted herself to be in the pool with him. That was a key part of the plan—be sensible. There was no reason why two adults couldn’t get through two days together without locking lips. Even two adults who found each other attractive. And were living together. And had already kissed once anyway. They just had to make a resolve and stick to it.

He didn’t comment further on the fact that she hadn’t waited for him, and she took that to mean that he understood why she had done it.

‘So I never asked,’ Amber said. There she went again, being sensible. If they strayed into risky topics, like, say, whether they should be in the pool together, then she should change the subject as quickly as possible. ‘This hike that we’re heading out on. How’s that going to work? Not in that chair, surely?’

‘I’ve got a hand cycle,’ Mauro replied, smiling and looking at her closely. ‘It’s been a while since I’ve taken it out so I’m looking forward to it.’ His words sounded stilted, and she wondered if he was thrown off course by her attitude this morning. He shouldn’t be. It was what they had talked about yesterday. But for some reason, it seemed Mauro still wasn’t happy about it. Well, it was nothing. He’d get over it, she was sure. There’d be someone else along to entertain him and distract him soon enough. He wouldn’t be lonely for long.

‘Are you looking forward to the walk?’ he asked. ‘You’ve brought boots and stuff?’

She’d not worn her walking boots since a weekend to the Lake District that had involved a lot more wine than walking,

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