Suitably embarrassed by standing there wearing only a bikini and a bobble hat, Libby thanked him and quickly pulled the robe around her body.
‘Nice hat,’ he said, looking back in her direction. ‘You need that in this weather to keep you warm.’ There was a spark of humour and a glint in his eye. He grinned at her and instantly Libby felt herself blush. She hoped he would attribute it to the cold.
‘My thoughts exactly,’ she replied, giving back a little banter.
‘I was looking for…’ Guy glanced towards the hot tub. ‘I was looking for my dog, who seems to be swimming in your hot tub.’
‘Aww, it belongs to you.’
‘She does. Every time I look at her, I wonder how I got so lucky.’ Guy rolled his eyes in jest. ‘I’m Guy.’
‘Libby. And this is…’
‘Branston.’
Libby raised an eyebrow. ‘Branston. That’s an unusual name for a dog.’
‘Named after Branston Pickle. For two reasons: the first reason being that the day I brought her home I was eating cheese and crackers for lunch with Branston Pickle and after I left the room for two seconds, she managed to knock the jar off the coffee table and lick out most of the contents. The second reason speaks for itself.’ Guy nodded towards the hot tub. ‘She’s always getting herself into a pickle. I tend to call her Pickle.’
Libby laughed.
‘I suppose I better get her out of there, before she overcooks. But she doesn’t seem to mind the hot water.’
‘Are you going in?’ asked Libby, clutching her the neck of her robe tighter. She had no intention of slipping it off and climbing back into the hot tub in front of Guy.
He looked down at his outfit, a classy mixture of designer brands.
Libby continued with a straight face. ‘I think it’s a bit soon in the relationship if I’m in a state of near undress for the second time in five minutes,’ she joked before her face broke into a warm smile.
‘Oh, I don’t know, I’m up for that,’ he teased, giving her a wolfish grin that revealed a perfect set of white teeth. They stared at each other for a moment, and Libby’s stomach gave another little flip.
She watched as he turned, walked to the rear of the lodge and unhooked a large blue net that was attached to the wall. Pickle was still ducking and diving but not for much longer as Guy extended the net and scooped her straight out of the water. Libby was on hand with a towel, which she passed to Guy, who wrapped Pickle up tightly then balanced the net against the wall. After a quick towel dry, Guy placed Pickle on the ground. She woofed playfully and tried to grab the towel but with no luck. Pickle then turned her attentions to Libby and the energetic whirlwind began to tug at the bottom of her robe with surprising force, her bum waggling as she growled softly then rolled over on her back, waving her paws in the air.
‘She has no shame,’ announced Guy, tickling Pickle’s damp stomach.
Pickle was the cutest ball of dappled brown that Libby had ever seen. ‘Oh my life, just look at those eyes.’ Libby scooped up the potbellied puppy in her hands and took the towel from Guy, wrapping Pickle tightly once more. ‘She’s absolutely gorgeous.’
‘Don’t let her good looks fool you. She leaves a trail of destruction everywhere she goes. She’s chewed several pairs of shoes, armchairs, rugs, a laptop charger … the list is endless. Get a dog, they said, it will enhance your life. It’s costing me a fortune. Do you have any pets?’
Libby had always wanted a dog and on many occasions had come close to getting one, but with the change in her lifestyle next month, she was glad she hadn’t.
‘Me? No. I have trouble keeping the three potted plants on my kitchen window alive. They’re constantly fighting for survival.’
Guy laughed. Taking Pickle from Libby’s arms, he said, ‘Sorry again for the intrusion.’
‘I don’t mind. This one is cuteness overload,’ she said, giving Pickle one last pat.
‘No doubt we’ll see you around.’ He raised his eyebrow hopefully.
‘I’m here until after Christmas,’ she replied.
‘Late Christmas Eve for us, as soon as my work commitment is completed. And if I’m truly honest, that can’t come soon enough.’
‘Surely it can’t be that bad?’
‘Believe me, it is. I’ve been roped into a job that isn’t going to be… Oh it doesn’t matter, you need to get inside before you catch your death.’
Libbywasbeginning to feel chilly. She had every intention of grabbing a shower and sitting in front of the log fire as soon as possible, but something made her pause. Why wasn’t Guy looking forward to the next few weeks? All he had to do was trail around after the happy couple catching their magic moments on film. This was her opportunity to drop into the conversation that actually the next few weeks might not be as bad as they seemed, since they were going to be working together, but she decided to keep that snippet of information to herself for now, wanting to find out a little more about Guy first.
