Lorcan stared at me for several beats then burst out laughing. And with that single action, his whole face, his whole demeanour changed. The cynical frown and questioning eyebrows were replaced by warmth and joy, which only enhanced his attractive features. Mean and moody was all well and good but its appeal was short-lived – at least for me. This version of Lorcan was far more approachable, and even more attractive, if that was possible. Oh crap.

‘I promise not to do it again. And just for absolute clarity, I would never, ever kick a puppy, or any other animal.’

‘I didn’t think you would.’

‘So Bod’s saved my reputation.’

‘I wouldn’t go that far. He’s excessively cute but I’m not sure he can work miracles. Now, which airline are we flying with?’

With a flurry of things to attend to at short notice, I’d been happy to let Lorcan make the arrangements as he’d suggested.

He named one of the north American lines and began moving off, apparently already knowing where to head without checking the signs.

‘Really?’ I asked, catching up with him and taking two steps in my heels to his one long-legged ones.

‘Yep. Why?’

‘I… I’m just surprised.’

‘A lot of the regular European ones don’t let animals in the cabin. I want Bod with me. This airline allows that. Hence, here we are,’ he said as we approached the desk. He gave a winning smile to the attractive woman behind the desk, advising he’d already checked in online and going through the last items with her and confirming Bod’s inclusion.

‘Will he be all right for the flight?’ I asked as we walked away.

‘Yeah, he’s an experienced flyer already.’

‘No… I mean. His needs?’

Lorcan glanced at me. ‘Don’t worry. He won’t wee on your expensive shoes.’

‘I wasn’t worried about me. I was thinking about him.’ I stopped suddenly and Lorcan pulled up short beside me. ‘Why do you always want to see the worst in people?’ I snapped. ‘You assumed Tom is after something with his kind offer and I just asked a perfectly reasonable question and you immediately jump to the worst possible reason for me asking it. Did it ever occur to you that I was concerned for your dog’s comfort? I’ve never taken an animal on board a flight before so I don’t know how that works.’

Lorcan was looking down at me. I’d worn heels but he still had quite the height advantage. He remained silent.

‘I’m going to have a look around the shops. I’ll catch up with you later.’ He was still holding the boarding passes in his hand. I plucked them from his fingers, took mine, and handed the other back to him before heading off towards the security check.

7