His Irresistible Darling - Sarah Randall Page 0,79
me, Miss Darling?”
“Errrrrr…”
Busted.
Chapter Eleven
“So you’re not bothered that Malik and Melina know about us?” she asked Jumal as they walked hand in hand along the picturesque, busy seafront near the office—the soft sandy beach on one side and shops on the other. “And I think Reeta on reception saw you hold my hand,” she added, shaking her head. “It’s likely the whole office will know when we get back.”
He smiled down at her. “You finished?”
She pulled them to a halt. “I’m serious, Jumal.”
“So am I. I’m not bothered. You told me, quite frankly if I recall, that you didn’t want to be my—and I quote ‘dirty little secret’.”
“Yes but—”
He cut her off, raising her chin slightly and planting a quick kiss on her lips before giving her a wolfish grin. “No buts.” He looked over his shoulder. “I need caffeine if you’re going to carry on arguing with me. Do you want anything?”
She sighed. “Skinny latte and a chocolate brownie but—”
“Yeah, yeah, not the one with nuts in,” Jumal predicted. “I’ll be back in a minute,” he promised before dodging through the dawdling shoppers and beach goers into the well-known coffee store.
Pip leaned against the metal barrier separating the beach from the shoppers and gazed out to the sea, loving the smell of salt, sand and sun cream and something sweet in the air like toffee apples or popcorn. She closed her eyes and inhaled the smells; they were reminiscent of her childhood holidays with her parents in Devon. She opened her eyes and smiled at the memory of Matt sulking when he was told to make sandcastles with her. But she knew he secretly loved it, especially when she let him put the flag in the top turret. She spotted the children here making sandcastles and chasing each other into the sea, filling buckets with water and hurling them at each other excitedly. She’d miss this, she thought. Yorkshire would always be her home, but this she would miss.
She turned her back on the sand to try to spot Jumal in the shop. It looked packed so he would likely be a while. She dug around in her bag for her sunglasses, exchanged them for her normal glasses, closed her eyes and allowed her head to drop back to soak up the sunshine. Was the developing ache in her heart because it was Jumal or Dubain that she would miss? The countdown had officially started—two weeks until she was due to return to England.
Jumal decided that it was a conspiracy against him. That everyone had decided that they wanted caffeine precisely two minutes before he did. The queue had started out the door but he was now within striking distance of the barista. He finally placed his order, paid and joined his fellow patrons in another queue to pick up his order.
He caught glimpses of Pippa as she took in the sunshine and leant forward against the railing. Two weeks. That was all the time she had left in Dubain. How had nine months passed so quickly and why had he wasted the first few months she’d been here? Ah yeah, he’d been engaged! He stayed the panic that threatened to overtake him at the thought that she was leaving. Yes, his employees were likely aware of the fact that they were having a relationship but that was never an issue for him really. He just wanted to keep Pippa to himself as much as possible.
His parents and Matt—they were the insurmountable hurdles that would have to be overcome if they were to ever have a chance at a relationship…along with Pippa of course. She had made no mention of any longer term commitment. He thought she’d enjoyed her time with him but he’d never gotten the impression that she was so charmed by him that she’d give up her life in Yorkshire to stay with him, and it wasn’t as though he could simply pack up and join her. He had a business to run and people who depended on him right here. Not to mention his horses.
His heart jumped in his chest as he saw Pippa turn towards him and pop on her sunglasses before shielding her eyes to look for him. He brought his hand up in a quick wave but it was unlikely that she could see him in the crowded shop. Perched against the rail with her hair blowing wildly around her shoulders, she looked like the poster girl for youth and vitality.