Page 2 of Alluring Adventure

“I think they have a construction company as well and offices around the world. I had a first video meeting with them last month and they were both down-to-earth lads.” Tommy opens the door to the outside and two men get up from their seats.

“Sorry for keeping you waiting, gentleman. Cooper McKenzie, Ben Whitmore, meet Oliver McCallum.” Tommy introduces me.

I roll my shoulders to shake off some of the tension, then put on my best customer service smile.I’ve got this.

I can’t wipe the grin off my face as I head back to reception. I still can’t believe what these guys are willing to fork out. Apparently, it’s their company’s anniversary, so no expense is too high. We’ve practically sealed the deal. I just need to send them a programme by next Monday, including a mix of skydiving, paragliding, and canyoning, alongside extensive climbing trips and gentle walks for those who aren’t adrenaline junkies. Hannah can lead the walks, and I might bring her best friend Jake, who runs a small sailing school, in on the package with some boat trips.

Securing this deal will be fantastic for next year, and they’re willing to pay a fifty percent deposit upfront, which would certainly help with cash flow over the winter months. But as amazing as this deal is, it’s only one week. I still need to bring in business for this year, which is why I’m heading back to reception with a pack of new brochures.

Marisa and her staff get a twenty percent commission on any adventures they book through me, and since we struck this agreement, they’ve been keen to send bookings our way.

“Hey O-Dog,” Marisa greets me in her quirky half American half British accent.

“Hey Mars,” I chuckle.

“Ah, don’t call me that. You know I hate that.”

“Well, stop calling me O-Dog then.” We both grin because we have the same bloody argument every time.

“I have new brochures for you ladies. We’ve had to increase the prices a tiny bit.” Couldn’t really help it in this economic crisis.

“Don’t worry, people will still book you!” she assures me.

“Maybe. Hannah is doing an online course at the moment to up our social media game.” I despise social media and consequently haven’t really used it a lot to market my company. But even I have to admit it might be time.

“Oh, you need to get a blogger in!” There’s a twinkle in her eyes.

“Easier said than done. I wouldn’t even know where to start with that.” I shrug. How do you meet these influencers and convince them to write about you? I really hope Hannah’s course will teach her about that.

“What would you do without me?” Marisa grins before waving at someone behind me. “Keeley, meet Oliver. He runs Alluring Adventures. I know you were looking to write about some adrenaline inducing action: he’s your man. Oliver, this is Keeley Hallett. She has a travel blog called Thrill Seekers Diary and is currently researching her next posts.” I turn and for one second wish the sentencehe’s your manwere true because I’m faced with a vision. The woman approaching us has long chocolate brown hair with a soft wave to it. Her eyes are dark and full of expression. Freckles are sprinkled on the bridge of her nose and her cheeks are glowing in a natural pink. Her soft curves a delectable and when she smiles, small laughter lines appear at the corners of her eyes and mouth.

Get a grip.I swallow hard.

“Hi, nice to meet you.” I hold out my hand.

“Hi,” she smiles, “So what are these adventures? Counting sheep? Coffee shop crawl?” She laughs. I think she’s trying to be funny but I’m a proud Fellsider and she is hurting my pride.

“We offer canyoning, sky diving, paragliding, climbing and few other things.” I cross my arms in front of my chest.

“Oh, sorry… I didn’t mean to offend.” Her pink cheeks turn crimson. “I was just—”

“Mocking Fellside?”

“No, … no, I was just, there’s mainly old people around so I didn’t think—” She doesn’t finish her sentence.

“There are no age limits to an adventure. As long as someone is fit they can take part in most of our trips. Last month we took a group of sixty-year-old ladies paragliding.” My tone is quite harsh.Calm down, you idiot. You need her.

“Oh. Sure. Well, maybe I should check out your company,” she mumbles. I grab a brochure from the reception desk and hold it out to her without another word.

She fumbles as she takes it, gives me a shy smile and then hurries away. She is cute… and I’m a bloody idiot.

Chapter 2

Keeley

The stairs creak underneathmy feet as I head to my room on the first floor.

I can still feel my cheeks burning from our interaction. I was just joking. Fine, it was a stupid joke but when those piercing blue eyes landed on me I was lost for words for a second. I have a certain habit of putting my foot in whenever I get flustered. My ex-husband thought that was my most endearing feature but I’m not so sure I agree with him. And it can’t have been that endearing, considering that he left me because he was no longer in love with me.

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