Reasons to Leave (Reasons #1) Read Online Free PDF Page B

sardonically. “You should be careful, Jason. Lots of things here to…you know…fall over.” She growled as she used his own words against him before turning and walking as fast as she could back to where the coach had parked.
    The coach was nowhere to be seen, and suddenly she was overcome with emotion as realisation and the reality of her discovery began to sink in. Her rush to get away had left her winded and she bent double, resting her hands on her knees as tears stung behind her eyes. She gulped the fresh air deeply into her lungs trying her best to rein herself in.
    Ten years he’d been gone, and of all the places she should bump into him, it had to be when she was completely out of her comfort zone, in more ways than one. The shock knotted her stomach, and her heart was forming a brand new erratic rhythm all of its own.
    The last thing she needed was to have to fabricate something on the spot if she was discovered in her current distraught state. Once she had gathered herself, she wiped her clammy hands down her jeans and made her way in the direction of the log cabins.
    “There you are! I’ve been worried sick! I thought you’d been dragged off by a mountain lion or something.” David looked relieved.
    “David, we’re in the Cairngorms, not the Yukon,” she snapped.
    Her colleague raised his eyebrows. “Sorry…I…I was just worried.”
    She softened her face. “I’m sorry. I got a bit…lost…but don’t tell the kids, okay? I’d never live that down.”
    He smiled. “My lips are sealed. Hang on… Did you fall or something? Your knees are all scuffed and dirty.”
    She bent and tried in vain to brush the dirt from her jeans. “Yes. I tripped over a stupid branch. I’m fine though.”
    “Okay…if you’re sure… Look, I hope you don’t mind but rather than leaving it outside I took your bag into your cabin. Come on, I’ll show you the way.”
    She followed him to a row of log cabin dorm rooms where their charges were happily unpacking their belongings. They were surprisingly quiet, probably exhausted from their long journey. David kept his hand at the bottom of her back, a gesture that seemed a little too familiar and intimate for work colleagues, but she let it ride for now, seeing as she was devoid of the energy to protest. He gestured to a small cabin at the end of the row, which sat opposite a cabin of the same size. “This is you, and I’m opposite.”
    “Thanks, David.”
    “No worries. Your bag’s on your bed. I drew the line at unpacking for you. Didn’t think you’d like me going through your smalls.” He grinned and blushed.
    She shook her head without smiling. “No. I wouldn’t. I’ll just get unpacked. What are the arrangements for dinner?”
    “Dorcas says there’ll be a barbecue in about an hour. She’ll come and collect us before that though, as there’s a briefing first.”
    She scrunched her face. “ Dorcas ? What kind of name is Dorcas ?”
    “A biblical one,” David replied, looking rather proud for knowing that little snippet of useless trivia. “She was the little blonde girl who greeted us. She’s very sweet, and I think a couple of the boys already have the hots for her, so we’ll have to watch them. Anyway, I’ll leave you to it.”
    He turned on his heels and made his way over to a group of kids who were messing around with cups of water and squealing like banshees. Turning her back on the ridiculous scene, she climbed the steps into her small cabin and closed the door. She walked over to the bed and sat, glancing around at her new surroundings. The cabin was simply furnished but comfortable with a single bed, bedside table, dressing table, and chair. There was a small en-suite shower room at the end too, which she was relieved to discover.
    Inhaling a deep breath, her mind wandered back to the startling encounter that took place only minutes before. Hindsight is a wonderful thing, and she would not have boarded the bus if she’d known that he