Fling with Her Hot-Shot Consultant by Kate Hardy

Author:Kate Hardy
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2020-04-01T18:21:11+00:00

* * *

On the Monday evening, Georgie practically bounced into the cottage after her late shift; she’d been quiet for the last few days, so Ryan had been trying to work out how to ask her if he’d upset her. Maybe it hadn’t been him at all; maybe it was something to do with her late husband.

‘Hi. I’ll just heat your stew through,’ Ryan said. ‘And there’s a jacket potato.’

‘Thank you. That’s wonderful.’

‘You look pleased,’ he said.

‘I am. Ben’s definitely on the mend,’ she said, accepting the bowlful of stew gratefully. ‘And there are clear skies tonight.’

‘That’s great to hear about Ben, but I don’t get what the fuss is about a clear sky tonight.’ Ryan said.

‘There’s a meteor shower tonight, and it’ll be amazing because out here it’s practically pitch black skies.’ Her eyes sparkled. ‘Come and watch them with me when I’ve finished dinner.’

Standing with her under the stars.

Part of Ryan thought this was a dangerous move: he was already finding himself thinking about her at odd moments of the day. But part of him couldn’t resist the idea of being close to her—even if she was only offering friendship. ‘OK.’

After her meal, they went out to the garden.

‘I love the stars out here,’ she said. ‘I never get to see them so well in London because there’s too much light from the city.’

‘So you’re a star-gazing fan?’

She nodded. ‘I’ve always wanted to see the Northern Lights. I’d just about talked Charlie into agreeing to go on holiday to Finland, to stay in one of those hotels where the rooms have a glass ceiling so you can watch the sky as you fall asleep and hopefully see the Northern Lights.’ She shrugged. ‘But then he was killed. And going on my own, or even with a friend, wouldn’t have been the same.’

That gave him pause for thought. A couple of times now she’d hinted that her marriage hadn’t been completely great. But what she’d just said: did it mean Charlie was the love of her life and she was still broken-hearted over his death? ‘I’m sorry,’ he said awkwardly.

‘Thank you.’

She looked embarrassed, and he wished he hadn’t been so clumsy. ‘There’s a good chance you’ll see the lights while you’re up here.’

‘Wouldn’t I have to go to the Orkneys or something, to be far north enough?’ she asked.

‘No, they’ve been seen here in Edinburgh.’

‘Maybe I’ll get Dad to forward his text alerts to me, then,’ she said. ‘Oh! Look up!’

He followed where she was pointing, and saw a meteor streaking across the sky.

‘That’s beautiful,’ he said. ‘I get why you like the night sky. I’ve never actually noticed a meteor before.’

‘They’re not hugely common, except when there’s a big shower, and then if the moon’s bright you might not actually see that many.’ She smiled. ‘You’re supposed to wish on a falling star.’

What would he wish for?

A magic wand, perhaps, to fix things for people when they went wrong.

Or maybe to fix the broken parts of himself, so he actually had something to offer someone.

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