When he got back, he looked at her ankle and said, ‘Perhaps we should go and get it X-rayed.’

She couldn’t bear the thought of spoiling this wonderful day be spending several hours hanging around in Emergency. ‘I’m sure it’s only a sprain, Ben. I broke my arm once and it was quite different, a much sharper pain. Truly it was.’

‘We’ll see how it is when we get back to the hotel.’ He helped her into the car, then produced a plastic bag and grinned at her. ‘However, I did a first aid course once and they suggested this as an emergency treatment.’ He opened it up, produced a big bag of frozen peas, then placed it on her ankle.

‘Clever.’ She adjusted it, then sat back to enjoy the return journey.

The tension gave way to a warmer feeling of companionship as he began to tell her of his other visits to Edinburgh and the things there were to do there – if she hadn’t sprained her ankle. In return she told him about the Cotswolds, the small towns and villages she loved and some of the places tourists usually missed. After which she found herself talking about the protection of endangered species again, at his instigation.

‘I’ve been too busy making money to play an active part in any projects like that,’ he said, sounding genuinely regretful. ‘But I have helped financially from time to time.’

‘We need money as well as helpers,’ she assured him.

‘Do you chain yourself to trees?’ he teased.

She shook her head quickly. ‘I couldn’t do that sort of thing. I’m more a behind the scenes helper. What I mostly do is observe, count the wildlife, deal with paperwork, that sort of thing. You need facts if you’re to win support and anyway, I love watching how other creatures live.’

After a while they fell silent, and she leaned back with a sigh.

‘Ankle hurting?’ he asked softly.

‘Not much.’ As she looked round at the big silver car, the tall handsome man and remembered how it felt to be swept up in his arms, she couldn’t help smiling.

He glanced sideways. ‘What’s so amusing?’

‘Us.’

He looked puzzled.

She risked being honest. ‘A luxury car and a handsome man. You’ve swept me off my feet – quite literally at one stage – it’s like something out of a corny film.’

He flushed slightly. ‘Merci du compliment.’

‘De rien, monsieur.’ Aha, she thought gleefully, that’s thrown him off his stride, for once. ‘You’re the one who’s blushing now,’ she teased. ‘You must know you’re handsome.’

‘I’m not used to being told so openly by a beautiful woman.’ He concentrated on his driving.