One Hundred Proposals. Holly Martin

      ‘I know, I know! I’m sorry. You know you’re the most important woman in my life, heck the world. I know I need to get my priorities sorted, but Suzie is pretty damned important too.’

      I smiled, hugely flattered, although that wasn’t going to go down well with Sexy Samantha.

      ‘Look, just make yourself comfortable and I’ll be back real soon.’

      I heard him give her a quick kiss, then another muffled noise as he no doubt picked up his phone.

      I heard his footsteps run down the stairs and his front door slam and the phone went dead.

      Crap. The last thing I wanted was to come between him and his girlfriends. He would be pissed off when he got over here to find the only thing that he had left his hot girlfriend for was a stupid little letter.

      I heard the key in the lock and then his footsteps as he ran up the stairs towards me. Crap, crap, crap.

      He appeared in the lounge, took in my worried face and in a second was across the room and holding me in his arms.

      ‘Oh Harry, I’m really sorry, I shouldn’t have called,’ my voice was muffled as my face was pressed into his wonderful hard chest.

      ‘Yes you should. You always should.’

      ‘I didn’t realise I was interrupting a night of passion.’

      He pulled back a bit to look at me in confusion.

      ‘I heard you on the phone, talking to Samantha.’

      He laughed. ‘I was talking to Jemima.’

      For a second I wondered if he had moved on already from Samantha to a new woman – it wouldn’t be the first time – then I remembered his beloved cat.

      ‘I was asleep, she was lying on my chest. She wasn’t impressed about being moved.’

      I laughed. ‘Well, please send her my sincerest apologies. And I’m sorry to you too, I didn’t mean to wake you.’

      ‘Oh, don’t worry about it.’ He shrugged.

      ‘It’s nothing though, nothing serious.’

      He was going to hate me.

      ‘It’s obviously something or you wouldn’t be calling me.’

      I sighed and pulled away completely. I picked up the letter and showed it to him. ‘It’s from Jack.’

      Harry’s eyes widened. ‘Now that does sound like something serious.’

      Oh God, I loved this man.

      ‘Have you read it?’

      ‘No, I wanted you to be with me when I did.’

      He smiled. ‘I’m honoured you would think of me. Where did you get it?’

      ‘I had dinner with Jules tonight, she found it amongst his things.’

      He pulled me down next to him on the sofa.

      ‘How’s your gorgeous niece?’

      He was delaying, trying to distract me, and I let him as I curled up at his side, the letter in my hand.

      ‘Beautiful, getting more beautiful each day. God she looks like Jack. The same dark hair, the same eyes. Even the same feet. It breaks my heart that she’ll never know him. He would have made a wonderful father.’

      ‘He met her though. Got to hold her. And when’s she old enough you can tell her all about him. Play all the practical jokes on her that he played on you.’

      ‘I’d like that.’

      He looked at the letter. ‘Do you want me to read it to you?’

      ‘No, I want to read it.’

      I stared at it. He stared at it. It would have been so much easier if the letters were like the Howlers in Harry Potter, where the envelope would simply shout the contents at you, whether you wanted to open it or not.

      ‘Come on love.’ Harry put his arm round me. ‘It’s a big deal, I get that. But are you not dying to see what he says. I know I am.’

      I quickly slid my thumb under the flap and ripped open the envelope. The letter inside was small, so no huge reams of big brotherly advice then.

      I pulled it out and opened it. Harry respectfully waited for his turn to read it. As I started to read, Harry’s fingers stroked the back of my neck.