8

I awoke the next morning with a throbbing headache, a queasy stomach and a throat that could give the Sahara Desert a run for its money. So, this was how you felt when you drank a bottle of wine all by yourself and barely ate a thing.

Unable to remember the last time I’d had such an intense hangover, I groaned as I rolled over to check the time. The digital alarm clock on the bedside table flashed 11:06 am and I couldn’t remember waking up even once since I’d fallen into bed late last night.

If it wasn’t for this physical torture, maybe I’d take to a bottle a night to numb the pain. At this thought my stomach revolted and I fled down the corridor to the bathroom, only just making it in time to avoid throwing up all over the floor.

As I retched into the bowl, I cursed Adrian. ‘Look what you’ve done to me, bastard.’

Of course he didn’t reply, the only sounds in the apartment coming from the kitchen, along with the tastebud-melting aroma of coffee. I splashed water onto my face and rinsed my mouth. Coffee might be the only thing that would stop me crawling right back to bed and pulling the covers over my head.

‘Good morning,’ said a deep, gravelly voice as I entered the kitchen. It took my alcohol-addled brain a few moments to register that this was not my sister-in-law.

‘You’re not Hayley,’ I said, feeling a little exposed in my pyjamas. Granted, they were thick flannelette ones, but I wasn’t wearing a bra.

The owner of the voice, who happened to have a handsome face and a rather nice body to match, chuckled. ‘No, I’m Wei.’

I didn’t know where to look. His chest was bare, and he wore nothing but a pair of boxer briefs.

‘I work with Hayley,’ Wei elaborated as she herself appeared, wrapped in a silky dressing gown.

‘Oh, I see you guys have met.’ Hayley smiled as she crossed the kitchen to squeeze the man-child’s bum. ‘This is my best friend, Ashling, who also happens to be my sister-in-law, poor darling. And this is Wei Jiangsu. Isn’t that the sexiest name you’ve ever heard? Wei’s a first officer and we …’

Her voice drifted off, but I didn’t need an explanation.

‘Can I get you a coffee?’ Wei asked, gesturing to the machine.

Although I desperately needed caffeine, I did not want to be a third wheel over breakfast while these two made googly eyes at each other. ‘No, thanks. I was just about to hit the shower anyway. Nice to meet you.’

I was already backing out of the kitchen when he replied, ‘You too, Ashling. Hope we meet again.’

I doubted that, I thought as I made my way back to the bathroom. Hayley’s relationships never lasted long—she enjoyed the thrill of the chase and usually got bored once she’d succeeded at conquest. But she also normally kept business and pleasure separate. What was she thinking sleeping with a first officer?