Jake looked down at me and I tilted my head to meet his gaze. ‘This is much better. Were you really intimidated by me?’

‘Well, you know I was a fan of your books so I was nervous to meet you, and you were…’ I trailed off, not wanting to be too harsh when we were naked and still in a delicious post-orgasm state together.

‘A twat?’ Jake supplied, making us both laugh. He pulled me closer. ‘I’m sorry. You must have felt let down meeting me. I wish I could go back to that first meeting six months ago and do it differently. I know it’s not a decent excuse, but I wasn’t myself. I am slowly getting back to him. You have no idea how much you are helping. But when we met, I was bitter and angry and hurt, and I was taking it out on the world. I’m sorry, Freya. I want to make it up to you.’

‘Why were you like that? Because of what had happened in your personal life?’ I asked, wishing that he would trust me with the story.

‘Yes,’ he whispered. He moved then, scooting down and rolling onto his side to face me on the bed. He reached out to stroke my arm as he held my gaze in the semi-darkness of the room. I hooked a leg over his and he smiled. ‘You know when you asked me why I started writing, and why I started writing romance books when we were on the way to the Brooklyn Bridge?’

I nodded.

He reached down and took hold of my hand in his. I squeezed it reassuringly.

‘I didn’t tell you the full story. After I read Emma, I asked Mum why it was her favourite book, she said it was because the first time she read it, she had been at university. She said she was on a bench in the middle of the campus, and my father…’ Jake trailed off for a minute, his jaw clenching. He took a breath and continued. ‘He had come and sat beside her, and asked her what she thought of the book. They had ended up talking for hours. Mum said she had known he would be important to her from that day.’

‘That’s so romantic,’ I swooned. ‘Like something right out of one of your love stories.’

Jake sighed. ‘Exactly. I thought that was so sweet too. Their story inspired me. I thought I would love to have that kind of romance one day. I looked at my parents and wanted what they had. That, along with reading romances, inspired me to write my own one.’