New Year, New Man. Laura Iding

word. ‘Why would he bother, when he has the likes of Chloe in his bed?’

      Flora wrinkled her nose. ‘I suspect Madame Chloe is fast reaching her use-by date. I’d watch myself, if I were you, when you swan downstairs tomorrow wearing one of those sexy new dresses of yours.’

      Sarah’s mouth dropped open. ‘How do you know about them?’

      ‘Couldn’t sit around doing nothing all afternoon, so I unpacked for you. Which one are you wearing tomorrow? The red and white one, I’ll bet.’

      ‘Flora, you’re an old sticky-beak!’

      Flora remained quite nonplussed at this accusation. ‘How do you think I get to know everything? I also put all those lovely Christmas cards you got from your pupils on your dressing table. Didn’t leave room for much else, I’m afraid, so I set out all your new make-up and perfume and skin-care stuff on the vanity unit in your bathroom.’

      Sarah didn’t know whether to be appreciative, or annoyed. ‘So, did everything get your seal of approval?’

      ‘Let’s just say I think you’ll give Chloe a run for her money in the beauty stakes.’

      ‘I sure hope so.’

      ‘And who knows? Maybe your Derek will take one look at you and decide to take your friendship to a different level.

      ‘Somehow I don’t think that’s likely to happen.’

      ‘You never know, love. You just never know.’

       CHAPTER FIVE

      SARAH woke to a less than gentle shake of her shoulder and an unshaven Nick leaning over her. Surprise and shock sent her eyes instantly wide and her heart racing.

      ‘What is it?’ she exclaimed. ‘What’s wrong?’

      When he straightened she saw he was already dressed, in jeans and a T-shirt. ‘Nothing’s wrong,’ he said.

      Then what on earth was he doing in her bedroom at some ungodly hour in the morning?

      ‘Flora sent me to wake you,’ he went on, his voice carrying a measure of exasperation.

      ‘What for?’ Confusion in her own voice.

      ‘For breakfast and present-giving.’

      Sarah blinked. ‘This early?’

      ‘The men with the tables and blinds are due to arrive at nine and it’s already eight.’

      ‘Eight!’ Sarah sat bolt upright, pushing her hair back from her face as she glanced first at her sun-drenched balcony, then at her bedside clock, which confirmed that it was indeed, just after eight. Yet she had set her alarm for six, wanting to be looking her very best for present-opening with her hair done, make-up perfect and dressed to impress in her sexy new jeans and a very pretty green top.

      ‘I must have slept through the alarm,’ she said with a groan.

      Or perhaps she’d fallen asleep without actually setting it. She’d stayed up quite late, doing everything she could the night before in preparation for Christmas Day.

      ‘Just get up and come downstairs,’ Nick said impatiently before whirling and striding from the room.

      ‘I…I’ll be down shortly,’ she called after him.

      ‘You’d better be,’ he called back.

      It wasn’t till Nick left that Sarah realised she hadn’t wished him a happy Christmas. Still, he hadn’t thought to wish her the season’s greetings, either. He’d sounded tired and grumpy. Probably hadn’t had enough sleep. She hadn’t heard him come in last night, so it had to have been very late. Probably went to Chloe’s place after the party and…

      ‘Don’t think about last night,’ she lectured herself aloud. ‘Just get up and get on with things.’

      Scooping in a deep breath, Sarah threw back the bed-clothes and dashed into the bathroom, where she washed and cleaned her teeth in two minutes flat.

      Then she stared at herself in the mirror.

      D-Day, she thought with a wild fluttering in the stomach.

      In a way it was a good thing that she didn’t have time to dress. It would make her transformation later on all the more eye-catching and dramatic.

      At the same time, she didn’t want to look a total dag.

      No time to do much with her hair except brush it, then twist it up into a loose knot on top of her head. Definitely no time for make-up.

      Thankfully, her nightie was new and pretty, a lavender satin petticoat that had a matching robe. She slipped the robe on, looped the sash belt and hurried back into her bedroom, only then realising she had nothing suitable for her feet.

      She never wore slippers. Sandals didn’t seem right and neither did her flip-flops.

      Oh, well, it wouldn’t be the first time she went downstairs for Christmas breakfast barefooted and in her night things, though usually the latter were a bit longer. This nightie only reached mid-thigh, the robe to her knees. She would have to watch herself when she sat down. At least her legs were nice and smooth, all the way up. Sarah had taken herself off to a beautician late last week and had a full wax. Painful, but worth every penny not to have to worry about shaving for ages.

      It felt a bit odd when she wasn’t wearing panties, however. Like now, for instance.

      Sarah might have slipped some panties on, but there really wasn’t time for any more delay. It was already seven minutes past eight. And it wasn’t as though anyone would know.

      Sarah sucked in one last, long, calming breath, exhaled slowly, then set forth for the staircase.

      Breakfast on Christmas morning was always very light; croissants and coffee served in front of the tree during present-opening. The family room in Goldmine was huge, with three distinct sitting areas. The Christmas tree was always placed down the far end, where there were two brown leather sofas facing each other, and a sturdy wooden coffee-table between them.

      Everything was set out in readiness by the time Sarah made it downstairs, delicious aromas hitting her nostrils as she padded down the steps into the family room.

      Her entry was quiet, due to her bare feet, giving her a second or two to survey the situation and work out in advance where she would sit.

      Flora and Jim occupied opposite ends of the sofa facing the terrace, with Nick sitting in the middle of the sofa opposite, sipping coffee. She didn’t want to sit next to him, not after what had happened yesterday. She certainly didn’t want to sit next to him without her panties on. Physical proximity to Nick made her body—and her mind—go absolutely haywire.

      Whilst Sarah was still resolved to go through with her plan to doll herself up for Christmas lunch—and to pretend Derek was her new boyfriend—she no longer held any hope whatsoever that Nick’s eyes would be opened to her attractions as a female. She’d come to the dampening conclusion that after her father died Nick had mentally placed her in a box marked ‘legal responsibility’, thereby killing off any possibility of a personal relationship between them.

      Suddenly his head turned her way, his dark eyes travelling swiftly from her tousled hair down to her scarlet toenails before moving back up again.

      Was she mistaken, or did his eyes stop to linger on her breasts?

      Whatever, her body responded instantly, a tingling feeling spreading over her skin whilst her heartbeat quickened and her nipples peaked alarmingly against the satin.

      Sarah swallowed. Surely she was imagining it, as she’d imagined yesterday that he’d been going to kiss her. Yes, of course she was. The man was just looking, the way any man would when a pretty young female