He gaped at her and she had to bite back a smile at the grimness of his expression, although the tightening of his features emphasised his dark good looks. Today he was channelling ‘angry pirate’, especially with that five o’clock shadow dusting his jaw.

Big mistake. For a moment she allowed herself to remember the feel of those bristles across her skin and it brought back a flood of sensation that made her knees wobble. OK, it had been quite a night but not so mind-blowing that she’d lost her wits and come chasing after him as he seemed to assume. God, the man had some ego.

As she tried to steady her stupid noodle legs, another thought suddenly crossed her mind. What if Fergus had got it wrong? What if the she who missed the ferry was a he? Please God don’t let him be my housemate. That would be a nightmare.

‘What are you doing here?’ she asked, her voice cracking a little in anticipation of the answer. It would be an absolute disaster if they had to share this gorgeous little cottage.

‘Funny, very funny. You know damn well I live here.’

‘What? Here, here?’ She glanced over her shoulder.

‘Don’t be facetious. You know what I mean.’

No, she didn’t, but she refused to give him the satisfaction of admitting as much. She had absolutely no idea what he was talking about. Her mind raced a mile a minute. How the heck could she have possibly known he lived here? And what were the chances? It was the coincidence from hell. Things like this just didn’t happen in real life. She gave him a bland smile. ‘If you say so. Did you want something?’

His lip curled as he looked at her. ‘No, I don’t.’

Ouch, that stung. He didn’t need to make his dislike that obvious. Clearly she’d been a safe bet as a one-night stand but now he was embarrassed by her showing up on his doorstep, wherever that was.

‘I brought you a message. The guest due to be sharing with you had to turn back. The next ferry crossing was cancelled and she had a call to say her father had been taken ill.’

Hannah’s stomach clenched. ‘You’re not moving in here, are you?’

‘Why would I want to do that?’ The horror on his face made his feelings quite plain.

She shrugged, a wash of heat rinsing her cheeks.

‘Unfortunately for you and your plans, you won’t see very much of me at all. Sorry about that, but your scheme has backfired big time.’ With that he turned on his heel, leaving her wondering if she’d just fallen down a rabbit hole. She still didn’t know who he was or why he had this peculiar idea that she’d followed him here.

Chapter Five