Hired Girlfriend, Pregnant Fiancée?. Nina Milne

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       CHAPTER TWO

      GABBY HAD NEVER been so glad to see Monday morning arrive, and as soon as she entered the university library the world felt a better place. The feeling was further enhanced by the fact that she was dressed in cropped navy trousers and a cream blouse, her hair caught up in a ponytail, without so much as a vestige of pink, let alone any bunny motifs, in sight. Even better, she was surrounded by the familiar dense quiet of her workplace—a blanket of calm after the neon pink of the weekend.

      Sure, she’d enjoyed herself, but it had been overwhelming, as well. The fact she didn’t really know the other women very well but they knew each other had been an eerie reminder of her early life. As a child she had always been the outsider looking in—too shy, too awkward, too scared to try to join in. Cliques and friendship groups had formed and she’d missed the boat.

      But those days were behind her, and as she walked towards her office, the library environment offered a comforting mix of technology and history, computers mingled with shelves of books—all enough to propel the weekend into the dim and dark recess of her memory.

      Well, most of it anyway.

      It would take a while before that kiss ceased to haunt her—days later she’d swear her lips still tingled. Ironically, the only physical evidence that the kiss had even happened—the sole picture she’d managed to take—had come out so blurry as to be useless. On her way back to the party she’d entered an upmarket fashion store, located a mannequin and he’d been her ‘hot stranger’. If only she’d thought of that earlier.

      However, even if she had snapped That Kiss, and had the guts to display it, she’d have been disqualified anyway—kissing your teenage hero probably didn’t count as a ‘hot stranger’.

      Back in high school she had liked Zander Grosvenor—but not because of his looks or his rebellious cool kid image or even his prowess on the sporting field. It had never occurred to her that she could have a chance with him and that had been fine with her. Admiration from afar had suited her, because perversely she’d liked him because of his evident loyalty to his girlfriend. True, Claudia had been one of the prettiest, most popular girls in school but nonetheless...he had never so much as glanced at anyone else.

      And she’d admired that; the traits she still valued were loyalty and trust. So she hadn’t acknowledged that her interest in him was a crush, even though his presence had always brought on her nerves and she’d had to fight the impulse to try to ‘accidentally’ be wherever he was. The one time she had genuinely bumped into him by mistake had been so nerve-racking she’d dropped her books and actually had a conversation with him.

      Enough. That was the dim and distant past and now she needed to banish Zander Grosvenor from her mind—and her lips, for that matter. At twenty-nine she was way too old to crush on anyone, let alone a man like the one Zander had become. Rich, successful...not her type at all. Time to focus on work.

      Her day was divided between a reclassification project, a stint on the front desk and work on an online course she was putting together to help students access relevant information—more than enough to absorb her attention. So, apart from the occasional memory lapse to Planet Kiss, she was on her way back to ‘Gabby as normal’. Enough so that at the end of the day she was able to close down her computer and look forward to a quiet evening at home.

      The actual library was still open, and as she walked through the book-lined area she exchanged pleasantries with a few of the students. She stopped at one of the tables to pick up a couple of books that had been left, turned—and her sandal-clad feet screeched to a halt. Surely it couldn’t be...? Zander Grosvenor? Her imagination must be messing with her head.

      But then, there he was.

      ‘Hi, Gabby.’

      ‘Zander,’ she said, and her voice echoed as hollow as her tummy.

      For an insane second Gabby considered a dive beneath the table—though what she hoped that would achieve she had no idea. She needed to remember that she was no longer a cowering three-year-old, caught up in her mother’s chaotic lifestyle, nor even a scared nine-year-old, terrified she would be taken from her grandparents. Back then, hiding had been her go-to strategy and she’d built dens wherever she could, cocooned herself away from the world.

      But it really was not an option in the present situation, so she forced herself to stand tall and face him. Unfortunately, that necessitated looking at him, and her hormones did a flip before standing at attention.

      Today Zander was suited and booted—the suit a faintly pinstriped charcoal grey, the shirt a pristine white. The whole ensemble epitomised wealth and success and a wow factor she really could do without. Dark blonde hair, just a little bit too long, blue-grey eyes that pierced...and suddenly the vast library seemed to shrink around her.

      Eventually she located her vocal cords. ‘What a surprise. Were you looking for me?’ Please let this be some strange coincidence.

      ‘Yes. You mentioned you worked as a university librarian—I did a bit of research and here I am.’

      It occurred to her that despite the suave suit, he was uncomfortable; something in his expression indicated that the expensive shirt felt constrictive round his throat and the square jaw held a hint of tension.

      ‘So, how can I help?’

      ‘I was wondering if...if you’d have dinner with me.’

      For a moment she couldn’t hold back the instinct to smile. She felt a bubble of anticipation at the idea that their encounter had sparked this—a desire to follow up. Though something warned her that her reaction was misplaced and she dialled down the smile—an instinct justified by his next words.

      ‘I’ve got a business proposition I want to discuss.’

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