Henry hesitated. ‘Possibly. Probably not. It’s not like I haven’t seen your body before. If we weren’t in a relationship, I wouldn’t have stripped you.’

‘We’re not in a relationship, you dumped me, remember?’

‘I didn’t dump you. I was angry at you, there’s a big difference.’

She shook her head. ‘I’m grateful that you came to rescue me, but I didn’t call you because I wanted to get back together with you, I called you because I thought you might be next door and you were the nearest person. I’d quite honestly be happy if I never saw you again.’

Pain squeezed at his chest with that comment. But then how could he expect anything different? He had yelled at her, told her he never wanted to see her again. But would she really throw it all away over one stupid thoughtless moment?

She suddenly looked angry. ‘You have no right to be hurt over this, everything was perfect and you ruined it. You promised that you would never hurt me and you did.’

He gritted his teeth. ‘Shit, I’m sorry, I never meant to hurt you.’ He kissed her softly but she didn’t kiss him back. He looked at her but her eyes were hard. He kissed her again but she still didn’t respond. Panic surged through him again. He’d lost her. She was alive and breathing and wrapped in his arms but he had lost her due to his stupid temper.

‘I’m sorry.’ He kissed her throat, trailing tiny kisses across her collarbone. ‘I talked to Daisy, she told me everything you said to her. You were wonderful, you handled it so much better than I ever would. I was just blindsided. I never expected for one second to walk in there and find her in that compromising position with the condoms that you gave her. It was a shock and I know I overreacted but I’m so sorry.’

Tears filled her eyes again. ‘I don’t think I can do this, Henry. If you really cared about me as much as I care about you, you wouldn’t shout at me like that. You wouldn’t get so angry that you finished with me.’

Henry stared at her. It was over. She wasn’t prepared to fight for him. Well, he was damned well going to fight for her.

‘Wait a minute. I love you. I fucking love you so much. I thought you loved me too. Daisy told me what you said about making love to your second boyfriend and how perfect and beautiful it was. I know you meant me and it was perfect and beautiful because we were made for each other. When you love someone you love everything about them, you love them when they’re sad or angry or stubborn or overreact. You love them through the good times and the bad. When you love someone, you love them when they snort with laughter, when they turn up in your house for dinner with their hair like a tangled bush, you love them when you kiss them with morning breath, you love them when they make cakes just because they’re angry, you love them because they make you laugh and cry. I love you and if you love me you’ll forgive me.’

He watched her face soften slightly.

‘I’m sorry, I really am.’ He kissed her and was relieved that after a few seconds she kissed him back. ‘We’re OK, aren’t we?’

She raised a weak hand to run through his hair and eventually nodded and he kissed her again. He pulled her tighter against him. After just a few moments the kisses turned to something more; it was needful and the need had come from her.

Her hands wandered down his back to the top of his jeans and slid round his hips to the front

He pulled back slightly. ‘Penny, I think we should get you to a hospital, just in case. I…’

She kissed him again and he hated that she was crying, that he had caused her to cry.

She fumbled at the front of his jeans again and he helped her, wriggling out of them as quick as he could.

He knelt up and pulled her up too, his mouth not leaving hers as he dragged her bra off her and her knickers. He lifted her onto his lap and as she straddled him, he pushed inside her. She wrapped her arms round his neck, kissing him hard and without any space between them, they started to move. It was fast and urgent and desperate and, as they both tumbled over the edge, he knew he could never let her go.

Penny lay on top of Henry’s chest watching the flames dwindle and die as he played with her hair. Her breathing was just about returning to normal.

‘I think we’re OK,’ Penny said.

‘I am sorry. I promise I’ll never shout at you again,’ Henry said, running his hands down her back.

She looked up at him. ‘Don’t make promises you can’t keep. We will have rows and we will shout at each other, but you can’t break up with me every time you get angry. It’s not fair.’

‘I know, I’m sorry. I’m not handling any of this well. I’ve not had a relationship like this before. Even with the semi-serious relationships, they never felt like this.’

The back door slammed open. ‘Penny, Dad!’ Daisy shouted, her voice filled with panic.

Penny scrabbled up, grabbing the blanket, leaving Henry to cover himself with the duvet as he stood up quickly too. Daisy ran to the cool room door but before she opened it she spotted them. Daisy’s face showed a myriad of emotions, from relief that Penny was alive, to disappointment, hurt, humiliation and finally anger.

Chapter Twenty-Four

‘You’ve been sleeping together?’

‘It’s not what it looks like,’ Henry said, wrapping the duvet around his hips. ‘I was trying to keep her warm.’

Penny stared at him in horror. Now was the time to apologise for keeping it from Daisy, explain why they had done it and come clean, not lie about it even more.

‘Jesus, Dad, don’t lie to me. How long has it been going on?’

‘About a week,’ Penny said.

Henry glared at her then moved towards Daisy. ‘Look, we didn’t want to upset you.’

‘So you lied about it, sneaked around behind my back, treated me like a child? Why the hell wouldn’t you tell me?’

‘Because you asked me not to date her and—’

’And look at how well you respected my wishes.’

‘Listen, love, you were happy here and you were scared that I would cock it up with Penny and we’d have to move out. I just wanted to get to Christmas, give you a bit more time to settle in, before I told you how important Penny was to me.’

Daisy, clearly not sure who she should be more angry at, turned her attention to Penny. ‘And that’s why you were being so nice to me, teaching me about ice carving and taking me out, buying me clothes – you were just using me to get to my dad.’

Penny was horrified. She stepped towards her, wishing more than anything that she didn’t have to have this conversation naked, with only a blanket to protect her modesty. ‘No, Daisy, honey. I would never do that. I genuinely love spending time with you, you make me laugh, you’re so creative and I love how insightful and kind you are. I was happy to spend time with you long before me and your dad got together. If we broke up now, I’d still be happy to teach you about ice carving and take Bernard for walks with you, I said that the other night after Henry had shouted at me. I would never be that manipulative to get what I want. And I know you’ve only known me a short time, but you should know that what you see is who I am, there has never been a hidden agenda with me.’

Daisy was clearly not to be talked round. She turned her attention back to her dad. ‘What is it with you and women? Is sex so important to you that you can’t stay single for longer than a few months?’

Henry looked furious. ‘Damn it, Daisy, this isn’t just sex, I’m not just messing around here, I love her, I’m in love with Penny, I have been for a while.’

There was a silence in the room then, punctuated only by Bernard snuffling on the sofa.