‘I’ve been working mostly in… er, real estate, but I’ve sold my business and I’m closing down a couple of other operations now.’

He sounded quite well off. Real hero material. ‘What will you do next?’

‘I’m not quite sure. Take a break till I’ve worked out what I want to do with my life for the next few years.’

‘It must be wonderful to have a choice.’

A waiter brought her entrée and she stared down at it in anticipation. ‘This is a work of art. It seems a pity to spoil the pretty patterns.’ But she loved seafood, and one bite made her forget the elegant display and concentrate on the food, as he was doing.

A pianist appeared and sat down at the baby grand piano. She was good, too. Megan listened in pleasure as she ate. She hadn’t enjoyed herself so much for ages.

When Ben asked her to dance, she went willingly into his arms, and though he held her in a light, easy grip, once again she was very aware of him and his firm body.

‘I haven’t been dancing for ages,’ she said.

‘You do it well.’

So did he. Unlike most men she’d danced with, he was leading her confidently round the small floor, avoiding other couples and still managing to maintain a conversation.

If only Sarah could see her now. Only, she couldn’t pull out her mobile phone and ask a bystander to take a picture of them, so maybe her cousin wouldn’t believe her about how attractive he was, how elegant this all felt.

Over the main course Megan inadvertently revealed her interest in wildlife and the preservation of threatened species, something she didn’t usually brandish in front of people. She found Ben well informed on the topic, not at all scornful like a couple of the guys Sarah had introduced her to.

In fact, their discussions all showed him to be a thinking man and they only stopped talking to eat.

By the time the dessert trolley was brought to their table, the restaurant was packed with the conference crowd, who were making a lot of noise.

He grimaced. ‘They’re only going to get worse as they get drunker, you know. Would you trust me enough to eat dessert in my suite?’

She stared at him in surprise, then a loud burst of laughter behind them was followed by several people whistling piercingly. ‘Can we do that?’

He beckoned to the maître d’hôtel and within seconds Megan was following Ben out of the restaurant.

His room was an oasis of peace after the noisy restaurant, and it was even bigger than hers. She sighed in pleasure as she sank down on the sofa. ‘That’s better.’

He settled beside her, close but not too close, and began to rub his forehead.

‘Headache?’

He nodded.

‘Then maybe I should leave?’