‘I’m sure you are, but I’ve not seen him,’ came the soft-voiced, unperturbed reply.
The man opposite Hannah smiled and mouthed a Heavenward, ‘Thank you.’
But then heels began to tap towards them and he winced, pushing himself back into the chair.
Tap, tap, tap.There was a determined staccato to their beat and the man closed his eyes as if that might help hide him.
Hannah had no idea what impulse propelled her to act but act she did. Standing up quickly, she swapped seats. He let out a slightooofas she plunked down into his lap, his eyes widening in shocked surprise.Tap, tap, tap.As the footsteps grew closer, she bent her head towards his so that her curtain of corkscrew curls hid his face.
With nowhere to turn, the two of them stared at each other as the high heels faltered. He pulled her a little closer so that now they were nose to nose. Her breath caught in her throat as she stared, mesmerised, at him.
‘Oh, excuse me.’
The steps began to back away but both of them remained frozen until they receded out of earshot.
‘I ought to thank you,’ he whispered, still gazing at her, an engaging grin curving his lips.
‘You ought to,’ she replied.
‘How do you suggest I do that?’ His eyes dropped to her lips with blatant suggestion and she took an involuntary breath.
Don’t do anything with your lips, Hannah. Don’t draw attention to them. Don’t even so much as move your mouth.But, of course, she did. She pressed her lips together and ever so slightly moistened them with her tongue in a silent invitation that had her hormones’ fingerprints all over it.
And, of course, he followed right up on that invitation with the kiss that had been hovering in both their minds. His quick, gentle, teasing brush of the lips made her sigh into his mouth, without even thinking about it. And that, she told herself later, was her mistake. As she melted into the kiss with unexpected abandon – it had been a long time since she’d been kissed – she felt him pause momentarily and then he deepened the kiss, his mouth beginning a tentative but thorough exploration of hers. That was the point when everything changed. The hazy, dreamy, gentle kiss became something else entirely; every nerve ending went on alert as if several thousand volts had been switched on. He must have felt it too because he pressed forward and suddenly she was locked in the most delicious, passionate, wonderful kiss, giving back as much as was being given. It was like a firework burst on a dark, silent night. Shocking, thrilling, and totally out of character.
As she settled into his lap, the kiss became more leisurely and she certainly wasn’t about to fight it. Why would she? She melted into him as he put his arms around her, one hand sliding into her hair, stroking her neck with feather-light touches. Apparently she’d taken leave of her senses when she stepped on the plane this morning and wasn’t about to gather them up any time soon.
‘Er, excuse me, Conor.’
They both jerked apart. Hannah felt the blush staining her cheek. She couldn’t have been more mortified at being caught in such a public clinch.
‘The young woman has gone.’ The barman nodded and began to step away, but not before they both caught the wry smile on his face.
‘Thanks, Niall,’ called Conor, while Hannah closed her eyes. She was stuck. On a complete stranger’s lap. At least she knew his name now. She couldn’t bring herself to open her eyes and she had no idea what to do.
And now she was being ridiculous. What was she, six? Even so, she opened one cautious eye to find the man named Conor smiling at her.
‘Perhaps we ought to introduce ourselves.’
She straightened and with as much dignity as she could gather somehow managed to slither from his lap and back into her own chair.
‘Yes,’ she squeaked. ‘Although you’re Conor.’
His smile faded a little. ‘Of course, you have the advantage there.’
Slightly perplexed by the change in tone she said, ‘That is your name, isn’t it?’
‘Don’t you know?’
She frowned, feeling a little as if she were standing on the edge of a bog: one false step and she’d be up to her neck in it. A bit like being back at work confronted with a legal argument before she’d had the chance to check the precedents. ‘Not unless I’ve developed some kind of psychic skills in the last few minutes, no. Did the barman make it up? I assumed he knows you.’
Conor, if that was his name, considered her for a moment and she could almost see him weighing things up. She knew she’d been found innocent of whatever crime he’d initially supposed when his face softened.
‘Sorry, you’re English. Yes Conor is my name. And now I’ve been churlish when you so charmingly came to my rescue.’
‘Yes, you have,’ said Hannah still feeling as if she’d stepped into another dimension. ‘Although I don’t normally rescue people. Not like that anyway.’
‘I’m glad to hear it.’ Suddenly he was all smiles again and she felt back on solid ground, although she wasn’t sure what to say now. What did you say when you’d just been kissed senseless?
