‘You’ve had Noah Jones sitting on the rug, drenched to the skin, on a Sunday afternoon?’ She narrowed her eyes at Elle. ‘And?’
‘And just before he went, we may have shared another kiss.’
Pippa’s eyes widened. ‘I’m loving this. I wasn’t expecting that.’
‘I wasn’t either – it just happened. And as he was about to leave he noticed his business card on the pin board and told me to ring him.’
‘This is promising.’
‘I think you might be right,’ replied Elle, feeling a nervous flutter in her stomach at the thought of seeing him again, chatting with him on the phone.
Pippa held up her glass. ‘Let’s have a toast.’
‘What are we celebrating?’
‘Thunderstorms, love, life and libraries … because if it wasn’t for the Library on Love Heart Lane, we would both be dateless.’
‘I’ve not got a date yet.’
‘Yetbeing the key word!’ retorted Pippa. ‘You’ve just kissed him again. Some girls can only dream of kissing him and here you are on a Sunday afternoon…’
‘I’ll drink to that.’
‘Cheers!’
They clinked their glasses together.
‘To the Library on Love Heart Lane,’ Elle repeated, wearing the biggest smile.
‘Was it a good kiss?’ asked Pippa.
Elle laid her hands on her heart. ‘Just the best.’
Pippa squealed with delight. ‘You’re forgiven for not cooking the roast. Pizza?’
‘Sounds good to me.’
ChapterThirty-One
‘Come on, Elle, hurry up. We’re going to miss the bus at this rate,’ Pippa shouted from the bottom of the stairs.
Elle stared into the bathroom mirror. Yesterday, after they caught up with each other’s news and after she’d climbed into bed, her mood had dipped a little. Noah had made her feel completely at ease and she’d easily shared information with him, but after she checked out his social media, she realised that once his book tour was over he’d be heading back to London. In the grand scheme of things it was silly to be worrying about it, knowing she was getting ahead of herself. They weren’t even dating and had only shared a couple of kisses. But Elle had lived with the feeling of rejection and abandonment for years and it was a feeling she didn’t want to have again any time soon.
Last night she’d lain in bed looking at the business card. She wanted to text him, but was it too soon, if she’d only just seen him that afternoon? There was nothing from him in her messages and, feeling a little disappointed, she eventually put her phone down on the bedside table and drifted off to sleep with Noah still very much on her mind.
Elle shouted back, ‘I’m coming.’
‘You took your time.’ Pippa was waiting impatiently, holding open the front door while Elle grabbed her bag and coat.
‘There’s still plenty of time, and anyway I’ve never known you this keen to get into work before,’ Elle teased, even though she knew that this time they were really cutting it fine.
* * *
On the bus, Elle wasn’t in a talkative mood. She sat in her usual seat, gazing out of the window and watching the town whiz by.
‘Right, come on – what’s up with you?’ Pippa probed. ‘Last night you were on a high, and this morning you’re not your usual self.’
‘Nothing, honestly. I just didn’t get much sleep.’
