The Mills & Boon Sparkling Christmas Collection. Kate Hardy

left his mouth before he’d thought it through.

      ‘Thanks, but actually I’m already bringing someone.’

      ‘Oh?’ Kat threw him a cool look. ‘Well, I guess I’ll need to find someone else then.’

       Chapter Nine

      ‘Ta-dah!’

      With a flourish, Eva revealed the cake she had made for Fraser’s twelfth birthday party. Heather looked in admiration at Eva’s butter icing creation, complete with glitter sugar and chocolate sprinkles.

      ‘Wow, that looks great, thanks.’ She beamed at her friend gratefully. Eva placed it on the table in Heather’s dining room already groaning with sandwiches, sausage rolls, biscuits, and bowls of sweets.

      ‘Are you sure you’ll manage with all these boys in your house?’ Eva asked as Jamie took off in the direction of what sounded like general mayhem.

      ‘Are you kidding? I wouldn’t know what to do with myself if I didn’t have a house full of testosterone. Plus I have my secret weapon.’ She peeked opened a cupboard door, pointed to a bottle of Merlot, and shut the door again. Heather’s husband Douglas emerged from the kitchen holding a giant helium balloon, emblazoned with Happy 12th Birthday, and greeted Eva with a peck on the cheek.

      ‘It’s too late for me but you should escape while you can,’ he implored Eva before Heather shooed him away.

      ‘Honestly, I can stay and help if you want.’ Eva giggled.

      ‘Nope, I’ve got it all covered. Food, films, and sleepover although I doubt much sleeping will get done.’

      ‘Sounds perfect.’

      ‘What about you? What will you do?’

      ‘All sorted. I also have a bottle of wine and I’m sure there’s an episode of Friends I haven’t seen fifty times yet.’

      ‘Really? Nothing else you’d rather do?’

      ‘Like?’

      ‘A gorgeous woman like you, a night of freedom. The possibilities are endless …’

      Eva rolled her eyes at her friend.

      ‘Okay, I know. But you will be all right won’t you?’ Heather asked with genuine concern, fully aware how nervous Eva was being separated from her son.

      ‘Don’t worry about me, I’ll be all right,’ Eva reassured her.

      ‘And Jamie will be too. I promise I’ll look after him.’

      ‘I know you will.’

      ‘Anyway, have you not seen the forecast?’ she said tipping crisps into a bowl. ‘A storm warning’s been issued for the east coast. You’d better get going.’

      Eva made her way back to her car, a little shiver running down her spine as she looked up at the sky, which had grown ominously dark. The drive home was a nightmare. Within minutes of leaving Heather’s house the rain had started and was lashing against the windscreen and bouncing off the road. Gripping the steering wheel she negotiated the massive puddles that had sprung out of nowhere, vaguely listening to a voice on the radio explaining the weather system responsible for the storm and predicting worse to come.

      Relieved when she finally reached home, Eva slammed the front door gratefully behind her. She spent the rest of the afternoon securing everything outside and making sure the chicken coop was safe. Hamish ran around manically, refusing to leave the garden, and looked up at Eva accusingly. ‘They’ll be fine,’ she reassured him.

      In her living room Eva lit the log burner and poured herself a glass of wine, determined to try and relax despite the wind howling down the chimney and buffeting the windows. She’d be fine tonight on her own, she told herself, but deep down she wasn’t looking forward to it. She knew other mums who would relish having a night to themselves but it filled Eva with dread.

      Suddenly, the lights flickered on and off. Poor Heather. She could imagine the boys at the sleepover were probably hyper by now. She took several large sips of wine as she flicked through the channels deciding what to watch. The remote almost flew out her hand when Hamish, with some canine instinct for impending doom, let out an almighty whine at the precise moment the room plunged into darkness. Only a small light given out by the fire remained; other than that everything was black.

      Eva froze for a moment wondering what to do. Surely it would only take a few moments to restore power? Carefully she made her way over to the window to look outside but couldn’t see a single light from anywhere. The sky was suddenly illuminated by a flash of light and Eva quickly turned from the window and gathered Hamish up as the inevitable roll of thunder followed.

      Remembering the supply of candles she kept in the hall cupboard, she went in search of them. She felt her way along the wall using the light from her phone, Hamish following behind her. Eva’s heart hammered in her chest as she fumbled her way around, finding candles and matches and lighting as many as she could. She took another mouthful of wine, telling herself not to be ridiculous. Every bone in her body seemed to jump when she heard knocking at the door. She picked up Hamish again and held him close as the wind and rain rushed in through the open the door.

      Ben stood there and the sight of him almost made Eva weep. Whether from relief that he wasn’t a crazed psychopath or that his solid, muscular form filled the doorway she didn’t know. He spoke but the roar of the wind made it impossible to hear properly. She gestured for him to come in and quickly closed the door behind him, leaning her back against it. In the hallway he seemed huge, the darkness somehow enhancing his presence.

      ‘Are you okay?’ he asked.

      ‘Yes,’ she replied, surprised to hear the shakiness in her own voice.

      ‘Where’s Jamie?’

      ‘He’s at a sleepover.’ The thought that he might be here to check on them was as unsettling as it was unexpected. She really didn’t want to sit through this storm alone and the several swigs of wine she had consumed gave her enough courage to ask him to stay. ‘Would you like to come in for a while?’ Eva braced herself for a polite decline but to her relief he smiled.

      ‘It’s not a night for being alone,’ he replied.

      The last time she’d seen Ben he was being whisked away by his colleague and since then Eva had distracted herself by pouring all her energy into sanding and varnishing the floorboards. She felt slightly foolish now for thinking there might be something between them. Seeing him with his colleague and discovering he’d been a city trader, she realized she didn’t have him figured out at all. Finding him so attractive – what woman wouldn’t after all – and easy to talk to didn’t amount to really knowing him.

      Eva led the way into the front room and realized she may have gone slightly overboard with the candles, the flickering lights suddenly looking more like the setting for a romantic seduction than one for making polite conversation with your neighbour. Eva watched Ben’s dark silhouette make its way to the sofa.

      Depositing Hamish back down on the floor she asked Ben if he’d like a glass of wine.

      ‘Sure, thanks,’ he said.

      Feeling more accustomed to the dark, Eva brought another glass from the sideboard and sat down beside Ben. She poured him a glass and topped up her own just as another gust of wind shook the window, prompting a pathetic cry from Hamish. Ignoring her normal no-dog-on-sofa rule, she allowed him to jump up between them, thankful for the small canine barrier between her and Ben. Hamish nuzzled closer to Ben, clearly happy to relinquish his role as alpha male.

      ‘Was it Jamie who wanted a dog?’ Ben asked chattily.

      Eva nodded. ‘He kept asking and I kept resisting because of the business. But eventually I gave in. I’m not sure if Jamie chose Hamish or Hamish chose Jamie, but it was love at first