Jack shook his head. ‘No, of course he didn’t. I should have known better, of course. But I trusted him.’

‘What did you do?’ Ninni watched him.

Jack waved his hand. ‘I told him to go to hell, then I came here.’

‘Oh, I see. That must have been quite an upheaval. You seem to be handling it all very well.’ Ninni smiled at him.

‘Not really. I’m a bit of a mess, but I’m getting there,’ Jack said.

She finished off the rest of her food and leaned back. ‘I’m so full.’

‘I don’t have any dessert, I’m afraid. Unless you have more of that chocolate left.’

‘There’s half a bar in the reception, if you want it.’ Ninni stood up and started to clear the table.

Jack moved the pot to the oven. ‘Breakfast,’ he said.

‘Britt told me that the restaurant, your restaurant, could lose the opportunity to get that Michelin star. Is that because you’re here?’

Jack nodded. ‘That, and the fact that I took the book with me when I left.’

‘The book? What book?’ Ninni turned towards him.

‘Every chef has one. It contains all the recipes I have developed and used in the restaurant,’ Jack said.

Ninni lifted her hand. ‘I bet they didn’t like you taking it, did they? There was a woman in the article online – I can’t remember her name – she’s the new owner, isn’t she?’

‘Fedra. She’s his daughter, and she’s furious that I took the book with me.’

‘And you like that, don’t you?’

Jack looked slightly embarrassed. ‘I can’t deny that I enjoyed messing with them, no. When I confronted Roland with his promise, she stood next to him and I could see the smug triumph in her face. So I walked away.’

‘With your book.’ Ninni smiled. ‘Good for you.’

‘It wasn’t my finest hour, I’m afraid. I actually considered hitting a seventy-five-year-old man. And his daughter.’

‘But you didn’t, did you? I think you should get some credit for your self-control. I’m impressed.’

He smiled and Ninni’s heart jumped at least three beats.

‘Impressed, ha? First my food, then my ability not to hit people. That’s not bad.’

‘I was impressed long before that,’ Ninni said.

‘You were?’ Jack’s smile deepened.

Ninni took a step closer. ‘Absolutely.’

He kissed her then, and Ninni sank into him and into the kiss. It was even better than the first time.

Chapter 15

Jack leaned back in the boat. He felt infinitely better in his own clothes now that they’d dried, the weather was nice again and Frikk, resting his chin on his leg, was alert, although a bit knackered.

‘The swelling has gone down,’ he said.

Ninni smiled at him. She seemed relaxed and happy. He wondered how much of it had to do with the dog and how much with what had happened between them.

It had heated up rather nicely, he thought. But there was no way they were going to have sex for the first time on a smelly sofa in a vet’s surgery.