A Winter's Wedding Read Online Free PDF Page B

she was suddenly to develop an acute interest in cube shelving.
    ‘Same to you,’ he said, smiling warmly at her.
    They stood looking at one another, neither one wanting to be the first person to say goodbye.
    ‘I’ve got some more boxes at home, if you’d like them?’ Emily said in a flash of inspiration.
    ‘Sure, the more the merrier,’ he said.
    ‘I’ll drop them off later today, then,’ Emily told him. She had one hand on the door handle.
    ‘Thanks again. I’m going to stay open until six. I’m Dylan,’ he said.
    ‘Okay, right. And I’m Emily.’
    ‘See you later, then, Emily,’ he said, beginning to unpack the box. He lifted out a pair of gemstone-encrusted stilettos and raised one eyebrow. ‘And if I don’t see you again before Christmas … well, merry Christmas.’
    ‘Yes, merry Christmas.’
    But she definitely hoped she’d be seeing him again, she thought to herself.
    ‘Nice shoes,’ he laughed.
    ‘I didn’t pick them myself. They were gifts from a dear friend. Bye for now,’ she blushed.
    Emily slipped out of the shop and went tripping giddily to her car. She could barely feel the cold wind snapping at her heels. It wasn’t often she felt so attracted to a man. Of course, he was unbelievably good-looking. But there was more to it than that. Clearly he had a strong social conscience, working in a little charity shop in the suburbs when he could have been a model, or something much more ambitious – a stockbroker, or whatever. It was nice to fancy a man again after all that had happened with Alex, she thought to herself. It was nice to know she might be getting over her very major romantic setback. Even if it was hopeless – knowing her luck, Dylan would turn out to be married, engaged, in love with an old flame, or gay. Still, there was no harm in getting rid of those other boxes. The shop was clearly in dire need of new donations. Oh, she was so transparent! She’d wait until later on that afternoon, she decided.
    No need to go back straight away and risk looking totally desperate.
    *
    By the time Emily returned at four o’clock, the light in the sky was beginning to fade. She’d had lunch in McDonald’s with Arabella, who was still fuming about her stubborn husband David decamping to a mystery hotel. For a full ninety minutes Emily had had to console poor Arabella as she ranted and raved about how it was okay for David to dither and dally about making a baby, but how every single day that passed without a pregnancy was a huge setback for her. And then Arabella had flirted shamelessly with the mortified teenage boys working behind the counter, going up several times to ask for extra sachets of sugar. And they weren’t even having tea. In the end Emily had had to beg her boss to behave herself.
    After lunch Emily had gone home and relaxed in a bubble bath. And simply daydreamed away the afternoon, imagining Dylan and herself strolling along a beach somewhere with the sun beating down on them. Somewhere very far away from this endless London winter. Then she’d blow-dried her hair into a sleek ponytail, curled her fringe, painted her nails, applied full make-up and swapped her old anorak for a smart denim jacket with a soft pink beret and matching scarf.
    She carried the rest of the boxes down to her car and loaded them into the boot. It took ages to make everything fit. She’d have liked to just pile it all up on the back seat, but she was wary of an opportunist thief smashing the window and leaving her with the hassle of booking the car in for repair at the height of the breakdown season. Sometimes it is a curse being so sensible, she thought to herself. Then she drove back to Dylan’s shop with her heart racing, her mouth going dry and her neck perspiring like a honey roast ham.
    ‘Hello again,’ she said lightly.
    ‘Hey, it’s my lucky charm come back to me,’ he smiled.
    ‘What did you say?’
    ‘All that stuff you brought in this morning, I’ve sold it.’
    ‘All