Three Amazing Things About You by Jill Mansell

Author:Jill Mansell [Mansell, Jill]
Language: eng
Format: epub, azw
Tags: Fiction, General, Romance
ISBN: 9781472208842
Google: 5uVDBAAAQBAJ
Publisher: Headline
Published: 2015-01-15T05:00:00+00:00

Chapter 29

‘Hallie! And Bea – oh my goodness, fancy bumping into you two here! Hallie, how are you?’

Nobody ever wanted the truth when they asked that question; it wasn’t an invitation to launch into a list of oxygen saturation percentages.

‘I’m good, thanks. You’re looking great. Who does this puppy belong to?’ Having patted her knees, Hallie had persuaded the little dog to leap up on to her lap. ‘He’s gorgeous.’

‘I know,’ Christina said proudly. ‘Isn’t he perfect? And don’t faint, but he’s mine!’

Christina, Luke’s ex-girlfriend. She’d always been blonde and elegant without needing to try too hard. Today she was looking particularly glamorous in a pale pink dress and matching coat, with flat pink ballerina-style pumps accentuating her slender tanned legs. Her hair was loose and shiny, her make-up light. But it was the look in her eyes as she gazed down at the dog that really made the difference; she was clearly a woman in love.

‘Hang on, though,’ said Bea. ‘I thought you didn’t like dogs.’

‘I know, I thought so too!’ A couple of the Carranford locals had habitually brought their large dogs into the White Hart, and Christina had always shuddered and given them a wide berth. Now, she gave a cheery shrug. ‘Turned out I just didn’t like other people’s big scary dogs. My mum gave me this one for my birthday in January and I couldn’t believe it; I told her I didn’t want a dog! But she said I should give it a week to see how things went, and if I still didn’t want him after that, then she’d keep him for herself.’ Christina gazed adoringly into the eyes of her unexpected birthday present. ‘Well, that was it. By the end of that first evening, I was completely besotted. His name’s Daley, and now I couldn’t imagine being without him . . . he’s my little darling, aren’t you? Oh yes you are!’ Blowing ecstatic kisses at Daley, she added cheerily, ‘Honestly, I’m a changed person. My mother couldn’t be more thrilled!’

A waiter approached, a round of drinks was ordered and Christina pulled up a chair to join them. She’d been invited along today by a couple of horse-mad neighbours who’d had a ticket to spare and who were currently walking the course.

‘So do you still have the snakes?’ said Hallie.

‘No.’ Briefly shamefaced, Christina shook her head. ‘It’s a bit of a crazy story. Audrey died just before Christmas – she was my Burmese python – and I wanted to replace her right away, but my mum got really upset. She told me I was obsessed with snakes and it was no way to live. Then in January she gave me Daley. She did it on purpose, of course, but that’s mums for you.’ Christina reached over to fondle the dog’s ears. ‘Plus, she was right: it turns out dogs are a million times more fun than snakes. And it wasn’t easy to keep both at the same time – Daley used to bark

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.