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It all worked a olden glow frohter, so her ht of to to be got through with gritted teeth and a determined smile Here she didn't have to pretend to anyone She shopped locally but, apart fro the time of day with the shopkeepers, kept herself to herself In London she had been the arious of souls, here she was positively her She felt reborn

And so thein on the crest of a heatwave as the weather turned even warmer

It was on the second of the month, some three weeks after she hadits way past the cottage one Friday evening as she was throwing a ball for Harvey in the garden She froze, her eyes fol¬lowing the vehicle as it disappeared fro

As far as she knew, Travis hadn't" been around since that first night She supposed heof him

Harvey barked to rea all on edge Which was ridiculous, plain daft in fact, but she couldn't help it

Had he noticed her in the garden? She became aware that she was in a pair of her oldest jeans and a thin vest top, h ponytail to keep her neck cool She looked a mess

As the realisation hit her, Beth hurried back into the house but there brought herself up short She was not going to change or brush her hair or anything else What on earth was the matter with her? He wouldn't come to see her anyway

Deliberately she lass of wine and then walking through into the tiny back garden, which was only big enough to hold a profusion of flower-filled tubs and an old wooden bench It was a sun-trap though, and she often spent the last daylight hours lazily watching fat honey-bees buzzing busily from flower to flower

Harvey flung himself down at her feet and pro in his sleep now and again as he dreamt Beth envied his placid equanimity

It could only have been twenty minutes later when the knock came at the front door She couldn't pretend she hadn't heard it, not with Harvey waking up with a start and barking his head off Setting her glass down, she forced herself to walk cal a long deep breath, she opened it She had no doubt who it would be

'Hi' Unlike her, Travis looked unruffled and cool, his dark blue shirt open at the neck and his light cotton trousers crease-free 'Neighbourly visit to see how you're doing,' he drawled easily 'How are you? Everything OK?'