She wasn’t opposed to either, but he had just referred to her as a one-night stand and she wasn’t quite sure how she felt about that.

When she didn’t answer, he poked his head round the door, eyebrows raised. ‘Is that a yes or a no?’

Hannah ran a self-conscious hand through her hair. They had both just rolled out of bed, but he was looking surprisingly fresh and sexy in a slightly scruffy, dishevelled way, while she was pretty certain she looked like she had slept in a hedge. ‘I guess so. Maybe.’

‘Hannah, is this going to be weird now between us?’ he asked, coming towards her, a faintly amused look on his face.

‘No of course not.’

‘Good, because it was just sex. It doesn’t have to complicate anything.’

Just sex? Okay, well that told her. Maybe she was a little out of practice, but she’d never had any complaints.

‘It doesn’t,’ she agreed a little huffily. ‘Anyway, I need to go.’ She found her bag and pulled out her keys, waving them at him. ‘Dogs are waiting.’

‘So I’ll see you later?’

‘Sure. Whatever.’

Bloody just sex. For a writer, he certainly had a way with words.

She stewed a little on the ride home, struggling to lift her black cloud.

And even later, when she was on the beach, the dogs frolicking in the waves, she couldn’t shake it.

It was her own fault, she supposed. She had pushed for last night, even when Liam had tried to stop her. And of course it was just sex. Yes, there was an attraction there, but he had never intimated that he wanted more. He didn’t even live around here and would be gone in a few days. Hannah had known exactly what she was getting into last night. She only had herself to blame.

It didn’t stop her brooding and when her phone rang and she saw it was her mother, her heart sank further.

She didn’t need to answer to know why her mum was calling. It was going to be about the anniversary party again. When they had last spoken, her mother was trying to pin her down for an answer. Hannah had promised she would let her know within the next couple of days.

Guilt swamped her as she stared at the phone, not in the right frame of mind to answer. If she said no, they would get into a fight. Hannah would be reminded how important this party was for her mother and that she was a selfish and inconsiderate daughter, her mother having no concept of how difficult it was for her to return home in the first place.