Undertaking Love Read Online Free PDF Page B

business off the ground.
    But there was a lot more to this than practicalities.
    There was a far
more pressing reason for Gabe to pour oil onto the troubled waters between him and Marla Jacobs.
    Because the simple, inescapable truth was that from the moment Marla Jacobs had opened the chapel doors and deliberately insulted him, Gabe had known with utter certainty that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with her.
    It was just a shame that she couldn’t stand the sight of him then.
    A few feet away from Gabe, Tom was leaning against the bar, his BlackBerry in one hand, a glass tumbler in the other. He wasn’t usually given to drinking after work, but then today wasn’t the usual kind of day. He looked from the flashing message icon on his mobile to the whisky, and after a moment’s pause he tipped the twelve year old malt down his throat. Fortified, he clicked the message open with a grimace.
    Hey u!
    Don’t forget we’re due at docs at 6.15. Don’t be late, receptionist is a jobsworth and don’t want to miss appt!
    Luv Em xx
    Yeah, he knew what a jobsworth the receptionist was. He also knew what a drama-queen Emily could be, and that she didn’t trust him to remember their appointment without reminding him at least ten times. He was starting to feel more and more backed into a corner with every passing day, and he didn’t like it one bit.
    He nodded at the landlord for another whisky.
    The following afternoon, Emily stepped out into the sunshine and locked the chapel doors. She lifted a hand to shield her eyes and squinted towards the funeral parlour. Going by the amount of banging she could hear, there was still someone at work over there. Maybe she could try to speak with Gabe one to one, plead Marla’s case whilst she was safely away at that tricky meeting with the local bakery. They had a Star Trek wedding in a few weeks time and the bride had her heart set on a four-foot-wide Starship Enterprise cake.
    The front door of the funeral parlour was locked, so Emily made her way around the back and clicked open the gate. She stopped short at the sight of a huge black hearse with its bonnet popped and a pair of navy overall clad legs poking out from beneath it.
    ‘Hello...’ she called out hesitantly, bending down a little to make sure Gabe heard her.
    ‘Just a sec, darlin’,’ a deep voice rumbled up, and a moment or two later the owner rolled smoothly out from beneath the jacked-up chassis. Emily looked away quickly. His overalls were un-popped right down the front, affording her a prime time view of his conker brown chest and a six-pack that would make Jonny whimper.
    It wasn’t Gabe.
This guy had none of Gabe’s brooding Heathcliff qualities, but he had his own charms. He made Emily think of sunshine and freedom and surfers with lips that tasted of sea salt. He jumped up when he saw her and wiped his oily hands on the front of his overalls.
    ‘I was looking for Gabe?’
    He shook his head and shrugged his arms out of the sleeves of his overalls, turning slightly to reach for a T-shirt that hung on the car aerial. Emily swallowed as she glimpsed hard muscles and a large tattoo inked across the smooth skin of his back before the peach-soft pale blue cotton slipped over his head. It clung to him like a second skin.
    He shoved the overalls off, and Emily thanked her lucky stars that he did at least have jeans on, although she couldn’t help but notice how the faded, frayed material did precious little to disguise his attributes. He balled up his work gear and chucked it aside, then stuck out his hand with a wide grin.
    ‘Nah, sorry, sweetheart. The main man isn’t around. I’m Dan. Will I do?’
    She took his big brown hand and shook it.
    ‘I’m Emily, from the chapel.’
    ‘Well hello, Emily from the chapel.’
    Dan’s blue eyes danced when he smiled again.
    He leaned inside the kitchen and hooked a couple of bottles out of the fridge.
    ‘Fancy a beer?’
    If it had been a different day, and if