“You’re misunderstanding me. You can stay with us for as long as you like, but I don’t want to leave you when we’re away in the summer.”

“You’re worried I’m going to have a massive party and trash the place?”

He laughed. “No, I’m worried about missing you. And whatever happens, you are not moving into another crappy apartment, Flora.” He reached across and took her hand. “We can do better.”

She probably should have been nervous about how much she liked the “we” in that sentence.

“I’ll try to make sure the next one isn’t so crappy.”

“I wish I could move you from the spare room to my room. It’s starting to drive me crazy.” His thumb made a slow circle of her palm and her heart beat as fast as it had when she’d been running.

“Me, too, but we have to take things slowly, I understand that.”

“If this feels bad, I can’t even imagine how it will feel to be on different continents for three weeks during the summer.” He tightened his grip on her hand. “Come with us to the Lake District. I mean it.”

Excitement and euphoria mingled with trepidation.

He wanted her to join them on vacation. She was flattered. Excited. On the other hand, lakes? He was asking her to spend time in a place with lakes? She hated large bodies of water. The thought made her hyperventilate. She was a dry land person. She could tell him, but then he’d want to know the reason and she wasn’t ready to talk about that. Not even with Jack. She never talked about that.

But staying here meant three weeks with no Jack—and also no Molly—

Why couldn’t it have been the Caribbean? But then she would have had the sea to contend with. A nice city break? Paris? London? Anywhere but a place called the Lake District.

She shuddered.

“Do you think the girls would be okay with me coming?” She pushed her uneaten food to the side of her plate. “It’s the first time you’ve been on this holiday without Becca.”

“All the more reason to take you with us.”

“All the more reason to keep things as normal and familiar as possible.”

“It won’t be familiar.” He rubbed his fingers across his forehead. “Normal doesn’t look the same as it did. Whether you come or not, it’s going to be different. So come. Unless you don’t want this to be more than it already is.”

So far their relationship had drifted along. This was the first time either of them had made an attempt to define it.

“I...do want more.”

“Good. Because I do, too. So spend the summer with us.”