‘Okay then.’ His eyes left mine and I let out a puff of air as I followed him to find the Romance Readers Club organisers. The conference was run by two women – Nora Davis and Christine Adams – who had set up the online club ten years ago to unite romance lovers from around the world. This conference had become an annual event, which seemed to grow bigger and more popular each year.

‘Nora, Christine, it’s lovely to see you both again,’ Jake said when we reached the two women. ‘I’m delighted to be here.’

Nora, who I estimated to be in her fifties, was my height and wore a grey bob and a flattering trouser suit. She eyed Jake over her glass of champagne. ‘Ah, Mr Richards, we were in two minds about having you here, but your agent is very persistent and to be honest, we knew it would generate publicity.’ She flicked her hand and we both looked over to the side where a photographer was rapidly taking photos of this conversation. I tried to make sure I was smiling and didn’t have a resting bitch face. ‘Everyone is very interested to hear what else you have to say about romance books.’

The emphasis was clear. A prickle ran down my spine.

‘I look forward to obliging you,’ Jake replied in his politest voice. ‘I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised.’ He turned to Christine, who was a blonde woman in her forties with funky, pink glasses framing her face. ‘You two, Christine.’

‘Well, we shall see, won’t we?’ Christine replied. She looked at me. ‘Hayley was too nervous to come herself?’

‘The opposite,’ I replied, as calmly as I could manage. ‘She has complete confidence in J— Mr Richards,’ I said, correcting myself to copy how they had addressed him.

‘And in Freya,’ Jake added. ‘Ladies, we mustn’t keep you; I know you’ll be in high demand this evening. I hope the conference will be as successful as it always is. Shall we get a glass of champagne ourselves, Freya?’ He gestured and I shook off my rabbit-in-the-headlights expression and nodded. I quickly followed him and we headed straight to the refreshments table. I wondered how many glasses of champagne it would be polite to down because I felt like I needed several to get through the rest of the next hour and a half.

8

‘There you are!’

Relief at seeing a friendly face flowed through me when an hour later, Liv burst through a group of people to pull me into a quick, tight hug. ‘I’ve been looking for you for ages; this place is packed. You look stunning.’

I eyed her red dress. ‘Right back at you!’

Liv leaned closer. ‘How’s it going so far with Jake?’ she asked in a lower voice, glancing at Jake, who stood a couple of feet away talking to another author.