Page 25 of Starry Nights over Dragonfly Lake

She couldn’t believe that Jeremy was actually there and could feel everyone’s gaze on her as she left. She didn’t want to see him, she realised. It was too soon after he had broken her trust and her heart.

In actual fact, she had begun to wonder whether she had really missed him these past twenty-four hours. Or was it just the idea of him that she had missed? Had she tried to make him into something that he wasn’t? Was he as awful as her friends kept reminding her? She still wasn’t sure. Even so, she took her hair out of her bunches and smoothed it out before she left the kitchen, wishing she was wearing her miniskirt and not her dungarees.

She went out into the reception and there he was. Her ex-boyfriend. Her cheating ex-boyfriend.

Jeremy’s blond hair was damp from the rain outside, causing it to stick against his forehead in a not particularly flattering way. He was wearing a tweed jacket, shirt and smart trousers, along with brogue loafers. It all looked in stark contrast to everyone else’s more casual dress. Not that he seemed to care. He appeared to be all effortless charm and ease that morning.

‘Sweetheart,’ he said, with his wide generous smile, and he opened his arms to greet her. ‘How lovely to see you.’

As a couple of guests came out of the dining room, and not wanting to make a scene, she felt she could only stand there and accept the kiss that he gave her on her cheek. ‘You’re looking as gorgeous as always.’

‘Hi,’ she stammered, wondering what on earth this could be about.

‘Good morning,’ said the elderly couple as they headed across the hall towards the entrance to leave.

‘Good morning,’ replied Jeremy, looking totally at ease andnot at all like the panicked man she had left behind only two days previously.

‘Come with me,’ said Beth quietly, taking his elbow and walking towards the lounge.

Finding a couple of guests already in there, putting on their coats and also getting ready to depart, she smiled and nodded her greeting and carried on towards the snug, which was thankfully empty at that time of the morning. Outside the window, the rain swept across the glass as the storm outside grew more intense. Beth’s stomach felt equally squally at that moment.

She led Jeremy to the far side of the room, well out of earshot of any hotel guests, and immediately spun around to face him.

‘What are you doing here?’ she hissed, still keeping her voice low. ‘And how did you find me?’

‘You’ve talked about this place often enough,’ he replied, maddeningly calm and seemingly in control of the conversation. ‘Thought it was time to check it out for myself.’

‘You shouldn’t be here,’ she told him.

‘It’s a hotel,’ he replied, laughing. ‘I was hoping you’d be here and I was due some leave. Shall I book a room for us?’

‘I have a room already and there is no us,’ she snapped. ‘Do you not remember our conversation on Saturday night?’

‘You mean that ridiculous speech of yours about how I was cheating on you?’ he asked. ‘I put it down to hormones, to be honest.’

Beth had to physically stop herself from growling at him. ‘It wasn’t hormones,’ she told him through clenched teeth. ‘I know what I heard.’

He laughed again. ‘Darling,’ he carried on, drawing her into his arms. ‘How could I possibly cheat on you? You’re utterly adorable.’ He gave her a tap on the nose with his finger,smiling down at her.

‘I heard you,’ she told him, rigid in his arms. ‘Talking to another woman.’

‘An innocent mix-up,’ he said smoothly. ‘Something we shall laugh about in time, I’m sure. You left so quickly that I didn’t have a chance to defend myself and show you just how innocent I am. You really must control that quick temper of yours. You know, that may be part of the reason why your career has never flourished, I’m sorry to say.’

Beth took a sharp intake of breath. It was a sore point with her that despite all of her studying and hard work, she had never had a full-time job in astronomy. She felt she had so much to give and yet nobody appeared to want what she was offering.

Jeremy hadn’t sneered quite so much at the jobs she had needed to take to earn a living, such as administration and barista work, but he had baulked when she had told him about a part-time cleaning job which she had eventually declined.

Feeling a little perturbed, her hand automatically went up to the star pendant she always wore. At the end of their tenancy in the shared house in London, she had given Lily, Hannah and Ella the same pendants. Why? Because they were her personal stars. Her support crew. It was a lovely necklace but more important had been the promise when the gift was given that the four friends would always look out for each other wherever they were in the world.

She felt the pointed edges of the star and drew strength from her friends who she knew were still nearby in the kitchen, ready to support her no matter what.

She straightened up and looked Jeremy square in the eye. ‘I don’t believe you,’ she told him. ‘I know what I heard.’

‘The woman was just an old colleague, a bit pushy between you and me,’ said Jeremy, reaching out to rub Beth’s arm. ‘There’sreally nothing for you to worry about. Now, shall we discuss next month’s column?’

Beth temporarily stopped worrying about Jeremy’s other woman and felt a rush of relief. ‘I’m still writing for the magazine?’ she asked.

Jeremy raised a sardonic eyebrow at her. ‘Yes. You know, I had a conversation with Mike, the Associate Editor, this morning and was surprised to learn that your little column is one of the most popular features in our magazine, according to feedback. Who’d have thought it?’