“The job is at a hotel in York.”
Silence filled the kitchen as Grace stared at her phone and Ryan, in turn, stared at her. When she looked up, his expression was clouded.
“That’s… a long way away,” he said, and then, with some effort, cleared his expression and gave her a smile. “It sounds like a terrific opportunity, though. Do you think you’ll apply for it?”
“I’m honestly not sure,” Grace said. “I just got the email a few moments ago, and I’d have to find out a lot more about the job and whether I might be the right fit for it. Plus, it’s inYork. I live here, in Hamblehurst.”
“Is it similar to the job you would’ve been doing if your promotion had gone ahead where you’re working right now?”
Grace thought about it. “It’s in the same ballpark. It’s a full manager role, which is certainly a big attraction. I’d be handling a different hospitality portfolio to the one I would’ve taken on at the Hamblehurst Manor once I got promoted, but it’s still work I’d enjoy very much.”
Ryan nodded and fiddled with the cafetiere for a moment before speaking again.
“In that case, maybe you ought to consider whether moving somewhere new is what you need to do in order to get the career boost you want?”
Grace wasn’t sure why Ryan’s supportive words should leave her feeling so oddly out of sorts, but they did.
“It would be a huge upheaval,” she said. “Moving to York, I mean. That’s assuming I even got the job.”
“You won’t get the job if you don’t apply. I think you should go for it and see what happens.”
His words sounded so simple and straightforward, and he wasn’t saying anything unusual or controversial. Yet his immediate encouragement for her to apply for the job left her wondering…
Left her wondering what, exactly? If he’d miss her if she left?
They’d only known each other for a week, for goodness’ sake. The romance that had sparked between them during that time might have been wonderful, but it’s not as if they’d been together for ages and were now in love and determined to live life as a couple, a couple who had to talk about huge decisions such as relocating to the other end of the country.
Except only part of that is true, Grace thought.Because Iamin love with him.
The truth of this realisation hit her like a speeding freight train.
“I thought I’d come and find out what’s happened to our coffee and pastries.”
Grace turned to see Miriam arriving in the kitchen with a warm smile on her face. Relief at the welcome interruption flooded through her.
“Sorry,” Grace said, and pushed away the tumble of thoughts that had just careened through her mind. “We were just about to bring everything through.”
“Good, because those pastries we picked up earlier while taking Stanley for his morning walk are calling to me,” Miriam said with a laugh.
Ryan picked up the tray bearing the cafetiere, coffee cups, and the milk and sugar, while Grace lifted the plate of pastries. She followed Ryan and his grandmother through to the living room on the other side of the house, with Stanley at her heels.
The news she’d just received about that job opportunity should’ve filled her with excitement.
So why did she feel so empty instead?
