Page 45 of Once upon a Summer Night

“We didn’t mean to startle you,” he said, his voice smooth and deep. Decidedly British accent and a smile that went all the way into his light blue eyes.

Ellie gave a quick, embarrassed smile, tried to reconcile the fact that he was British, and disentangled herself with a muttered, “You didn’t, no worries.”

“You’re British as well?” he asked, surprised.

“Well, sort of…I mean, I am. I live there. But I’m not really, by birth, I mean—”

Tamryn held out her hand, interrupting Ellie. “I’m Tamryn.”

“Reginald. And you are…Eleanor,” he replied, peering at her name tag.

“Yes, but I go by Ellie. Sometimes El; that’s what my friends call me sometimes, right? So mostly Ellie, though—”

Colin interrupted quickly. “Ellie currently lives in London, and Tamryn works in the financial field. Perhaps you’ve heard of her company, Reg?”

Reginald and Tamryn chatted for a couple of minutes, but he quickly turned his attention back to Ellie. “Are you in finance too, Ellie?”

“Ah, no.”

“What things do you do to fill your time?”

“I read a lot. I’m a bookseller. Well, I mean, I sell books, but they’re not the easy-to-find ones, you know.”

Tamryn snorted before covering it with a cough. Ellie wished the floor would open up and swallow her—or that Colin would move Reginald onto the next pair already. Her palms were sweaty, and she knew Tamryn was judging her responses, and worse, maybe Colin was too, and she couldn’t even remember that she was a successful business owner in a very tough field…

“British literature?”

Ellie blinked out of her nerves. “Well…it depends on my mood, really. Lately I’ve been reading a bit of early American modernism.”

“Ah, yes.The Great Gatsbyalways fascinated me. And thatgreen light…It was the highlight of my high school education.”

Ellie let out a small laugh, the tension easing slightly from her body. “Isn’t it everyone’s highlight? I’ve always found the parallels between Gatsby and Fitzgerald fascinating. He put a lot of himself into Gatsby, didn’t you think?”

“Yes! Didn’t Fitzgerald have a relationship with someone who inspired Daisy, and the story plays out that dynamic?”

“That’s the suspicion,” Ellie agreed. “I’ve yet to read a biography on Fitzgerald, though. I think that would offer great insights into the man, and his life.”

“Tamryn, your life has been quite busy lately,” Colin cut in smoothly. “Have you been able to find any time for pleasure reading lately?”

“I have, actually.” She sent a radiant smile Reginald’s way. “Last month, I was on a plane to Thailand, where I helped fund an orphanage. I used the down time to readThe Five People You Meet in Heaven.”

“Oh, I adored that book!” Ellie exclaimed. “Mitch Albom is such a wonderful writer!”

“I haven’t read that yet,” Reginald said.

“Oh, you must! It’s a sweet, almost heartbreaking tale of—what?”

Colin was giving her little head shakes and tightening his lips.

Oh. Right. It was Tamryn’s turn to chat with Reginald. Ellie’s flushed, feeling suddenly foolish. She floundered for something clever to say, but ended up just staying silent.

And red faced.

“I think what Eleanor was trying to say is that it’s a great little book,” Tamryn finally said. “But my last professional read was the latest by the new CEO of…”

Ellie tuned out and tried to remain invisible for rest of the conversation, but every time she risked a glance up from hershoes, Colin was watching her, a look of concern playing about his features.

Finally, the two men made their way to the next group, and Ellie headed for the refreshment table, where she hid for the rest of the hour.

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