Eighteen
There was a knock at the front door, and my stomach flipped.
It could only be him.
I was ready and waiting in my Firefly jacket, with just my underwear on underneath. Was that too slutty?
Oh God.
‘Just a second!’ I shouted; I’d lost my nerve and pulled on some jeans. It had been a while, and I had zero confidence in my old seductress routine. I’d shaved all over and slathered myself in oil, and I already felt naked without my body hair.
‘Oh hi!’ I said, swinging the door open and trying to act casual. ‘Fancy seeing you again.’
‘Fancy.’ Henrik stood smiling in jeans and a soft, red jumper, which looked very much like cashmere. For a man of the woods, he didn’t scrimp on his clothes. His hair was swept up in a ponytail and he’d combed his beard like a good Boy Scout. I nearly fell into him trying to smell his neck as he walked past.
So good.All woody and fresh. I’d assumed his scent was au naturel, or from some Scandinavian soap, but now I thought about it, that aftershave was nose-on for Tom Ford. He clearly hadn’t given upallhis finance-bro habits.
‘I’ve come to do another check on that wood burner,’ he said with a cheeky smile. ‘And I brought us some drinks – in case it takes longer than expected.’
My eyes lit up as he pulled a bottle of red from his coat. I couldn’t wait to drink like grown-ups, then snog like teenagers.
‘That’s very sweet of you,’ I said, taking it from him.
‘Not a problem. Hmm, just as I thought.’ He nodded at the picture-perfect fire I had going, where three chunky logs were burning nice and slow. ‘It’s malfunctioning.’
It looked totally fine to me. ‘Is it? How can you tell?’
‘At the back there, on the end. Looks like an overactive airflow.’ I bent myself double to see around the logs and he laughed. He’d got me.
‘Let’s open the wine and keep watch,’ I said, playing along. ‘To make sure it doesn’t explode.’
‘It isn’t wine, but close enough. Sorry to disappoint you twice in one day.’
Bloody hell.‘Not at all! Who needs alcohol, right?’
There weren’t any wine glasses, so we made do with plastic tumblers, and the ‘wine’ looked like Ribena as I poured it out. I missed my daily glass, and occasional bottle, of Chablis, but I didn’t miss the hangovers. I had so much more energy since I’d got here which could only be down to cutting out the booze. My candles glowed green and red along the window ledge, and with the fairy lights twinkling and the snow outside, it felt like Christmas as I carried our drinks over.
‘How was your tree-hugging session?’ Henrik asked, taking his tumbler. My skin tingled where our fingers brushed.
‘Good! I think I’m getting the hang of it. The hardest part is letting go, but Willow was warm and welcoming as always.’
He nodded. ‘It takes time and practice to master, but you’ll get there.’
‘You obviously know what you’re doing when it comes to your mind and body,’ I said, trying to shift the tone. ‘Throwing me over your shoulder like that earlier.’ My voice went gravelly as I relived it. I’d never envisaged myself as a hapless woman, but actually…
Henrik smiled. ‘That’s taken time and practice, too. My body didn’t look like this when I was in New York. I was living offtakeaways and carrying an extra twenty kilos.’ He slapped his abs. ‘I had that grey, overworked look about me, you know?’
‘Only too well!’ I said, pointing at my face. ‘Being a barrister is non-stop brainwork and I’m always too tired to cook. My exercise regime went out the window a while back.’
‘You look good to me,’ he said with a wink. ‘It’s hard to do it all. The closest I got to the gym back then was walking past it twice a day, to and from work.’
I couldn’t imagine him pale and overweight. Lucky me, to have this version instead: rustic and outdoorsy, and solid in every way. I tried to see him as anything other than an absolute hunk, but he caught me staring at his arms and cleared his throat. ‘So, are you enjoying it here after all? Glad you stayed on?’
‘You know… it’s not the kind of trip I wouldeverhave deliberately booked. No offence. But it’s growing on me. I’m glad I randomly found you.’
‘High praise indeed! Can we quote you on the website?Would never deliberately book.’ He sat back and laughed. ‘Pappawill be delighted.’
I threw a cushion at him. ‘I’m trying, alright? What can I say? I like an all-inclusive holiday. I wasn’t expecting to have to bungee into breakfast and abseil down to dinner.’
