Page 5 of Mistletoe Kisses at Cwtch Cove

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‘You’re not supposed to do that,’ Jack said quietly.

‘What?’ Ellen Chenery looked up from the croissant she’d just bitten into. ‘Jack! You gave me a fright then.’

He smiled. ‘That was the last thing I wanted to do, especially in light of your condition. I don’t fancy delivering the little one on the supermarket floor.’

Elle frowned. ‘I don’t fancy giving birth on the hard tiles here either. Imagine you shouting at me to push and all the shoppers gawking at my… my bits.’

‘That would never do.’ He shifted the shopping basket to his other arm. ‘How’re you feeling?’

‘Constantly starving — hence me tucking into a croissant I haven’t paid for yet, but amdefinitelygoing to pay for! I also feel fat, bloated, swollen, tired, constipated and need to pee every five minutes.’

‘Ellen!’ A woman had appeared behind Ellen and she was shaking her head. ‘You can’t discuss things like that with random men.’

Ellen laughed. ‘This isn’t a random man, Lucy, it’s Jack.’

‘Jack?’ Lucy knitted her brows.

‘Jack lives in the village. He’s our local paramedic and a real-life hero.’

‘I don’t know about the hero bit.’ Jack lowered his gaze to his basket as his cheeks grew warm.

‘You are a hero! Lucy, you should have seen him spring into action in the summer at the beach. This little boy fell off his scooter and broke his arm, and Jack knew exactly what to do. He took command of the situation and it was amazing.’

‘I have to know what to do in these situations. It’s my job.’ Jack looked up and found Lucy staring at him, one eyebrow raised.

‘Anyway, Jack, this is my sister, Lucy. She’s come to look after me while Billy’s away.’

‘Nice to meet you, Lucy,’ he said.

Lucy smiled as she held out a hand for him to shake. He took it, and when their hands met a jolt of something shot up his arm. Her pupils dilated and her lips parted slightly while a rosy hue coloured her cheeks. He was struck by how beautiful she was with her curly black bob and emerald eyes surrounded by shapely brows and thick, dark eyelashes.

‘It’s nice to meet you too,’ Lucy said as she released his hand.

‘How long will you be staying in the village?’ he asked.

‘The plan is to be here until after the baby’s born then I’ll head back to Cardiff.’

‘Perhaps,’ Ellen said. ‘Unless we can persuade you to move here.’ Ellen fluttered her eyelashes at Lucy. ‘I’d so love you to relocate to Cwtch Cove.’

‘I don’t think that’s going to happen.’ Lucy sighed. ‘I have a life in Cardiff.’

‘You have a room in a rented house and friends there, but you have familyhereand one more family member on the way.’ Ellen picked some croissant crumbs off her belly. ‘Isn’t that right, Jack?’

‘Uhhh…’ He felt the gaze of both women heavy upon him. ‘Perhaps I shouldn’t get involved.’

‘You’re a family man, Jack. I know you love your parents.’ Ellen smiled. ‘And I love my sister and would be so happy to have her around. It’s not like you can’t move anywhere in the world with your job, Lucy.’

‘What do you do?’ Jack met Lucy’s gaze.

‘I’m a writer.’

‘A writer? Wow! That’s impressive. Have you written anything I might have read?’

‘Perhaps.’ Lucy gave a small shrug.

‘Like?’ Jack tilted his head.

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