Kisses at Sunset

She followed him on autopilot, her legs feeling like lead as she picked her way over the rocks towards the bottom of the valley.

They met Jack, coming up. His eyes gleamed when he saw them.

‘Just checking up on you.’

Sean gave him a wry look. ‘Go on, say it. What the hell were we playing at?’

Jack laughed and rested a foot on a rock, surveying the view with obvious pleasure. ‘Enjoying yourselves, I imagine.’

Ally blushed furiously. ‘Sorry, Jack.’

‘What for?’ Jack shrugged and fell into step beside her. ‘You didn’t drag me out of my bed.’

‘We must have worried you.’

Jack glanced across at Sean. ‘Can’t say you did, really. If I had to get lost on a mountain with someone and it couldn’t be Jennifer Aniston, I suppose I’d be glad it was Sean.’

Ally stared at Sean, her eyes skimming over his powerful physique, remembering the way he’d made love to her—despite everything, she was glad it had been Sean, too…

‘Can I give you a lift home?’ Jack gestured towards his van in the car park, but Sean shook his head and caught Ally’s arm in a vice-like grip.

‘No, thanks. We need to sort out this gear and have a debrief.’

‘A debrief?’ Ally glanced over her shoulder and waved as Jack pulled away, before turning back to Sean who was unlocking his car.

He gave a wry smile and heaved their gear into the boot. ‘I think we’ve got things to talk about, don’t you?’

Somehow that didn’t sound very lover-like and Ally’s mouth dried. If he was regretting last night then she certainly didn’t want him to spell it out. She was much too tired for a confrontation.

They both climbed into the car and Sean started the engine, his breath clouding the freezing air until the interior of the car slowly warmed up.

Finally he turned towards her, a muscle working in his cheek. ‘Right, then. Confession time.’

‘Confession?’ Ally blinked, confused. This wasn’t what she’d expected. ‘What do you mean, confession?’

He frowned impatiently. ‘Oh, come on, Ally! Don’t play more games. How come I found myself making love to a virgin instead of a woman with a child of five?’

Her heart was thundering in her chest. He seemed angry. Why would that make him angry? ‘Why does it matter?’

‘Because you lied to me, dammit!’ He slammed the palm of his hand against the steering-wheel and drew a deep breath, obviously controlling his temper with difficulty. ‘OK. Let’s start at the beginning. Who the hell is Charlie’s real mother, then?’

‘My sister.’

There was a long silence and then he turned to look at her, his expression baffled.

‘Your sister?’ He shook his head slightly as if to clear it. Obviously he was also suffering from the total lack of sleep. ‘The one who died?’

Ally nodded. ‘She was madly in love with Rob, even though she knew he didn’t care that much about her.’

‘Hold on, let me get this straight.’ He rubbed his temples with those long, strong fingers and took a deep breath. ‘Rob was her boyfriend, not yours?’

‘That’s right.’

‘And she got pregnant?’

‘It was an accident.’ Ally stared out of the window, not seeing the outline of the fells that she loved so much. All she could see was her sister’s face. ‘She rang me and told me and she was so thrilled—you can’t imagine.’

Sean’s voice was rough. ‘Even knowing that Rob was a louse?’