Chapter 1 #3
Quickly ushering Colin into the living room, Alba closed the door behind him before he had a chance to protest. The last thing she needed was Colin launching himself enthusiastically at her boss the moment the door opened.
She smoothed a hand over the front of her dress, took a breath, and pulled the door open. “Hi.”
“Hi, Alba.”
Eloise’s bright blue eyes met hers, the glow of the streetlights catching her shoulder-length blonde hair and making it shimmer against the darkness. Even standing casually on the doorstep, Eloise carried herself with a natural composure that was impossible to ignore.
Alba had noticed that about her from the very first moment they’d met. Her beauty wasn’t the problem; it was everything else that came with it. The authority, that confidence, her…presence.
Had she noticed Eloise the moment she’d sat down across from her during the interview?
Of course she had. It had been impossible not to.
But the feeling hadn’t been intimidating in the way authority sometimes could be.
Alba had experienced that before. The harsh questions and cold evaluations…
people searching for reasons to dismiss her.
Eloise had been different, though. She had been kind and attentive.
She had been genuinely interested in every answer Alba had given.
They’d laughed together, talking about geography modules and lesson structures, but on the whole, Eloise had asked thoughtful questions and listened carefully to every response.
Alba hadn’t realised it at the time, but Eloise had put her completely at ease from the moment she’d walked into the room. Considering the chaos Alba’s life had been in at the time, that had meant more than she’d been able to articulate.
Eloise lifted a bottle of champagne and held it out towards her. “This is for you. To say welcome to the area…and congratulations on your new home. Your new job, too, I suppose.”
“Oh, thank you.” Alba stepped aside quickly, taking the bottle from her with genuine surprise. The champagne looked expensive—far nicer than anything Alba would have bought for herself lately. “Please, come in. I’ll just be a few minutes, and then we can get going.”
Eloise stepped inside the house and closed the door behind them. “No rush. We’ll arrive when we arrive.”
Alba didn’t know much about Eloise yet, not really, but what she was learning already painted a picture of someone calm, accommodating, and far more laid-back than Alba had expected from someone in her position.
Even Alba’s closest friends had never been this gentle with her time. “How are you with dogs?”
“I’d like to own several when I retire.” Eloise’s smile widened as she paused in the middle of the hallway. “Why?”
“I have a dog. I’ve locked him in the living room, but now I realise that was a mistake because you have nowhere to wait.”
“I’m more than happy to wait with your dog. May I meet him?”
Alba’s pulse picked up when that smile appeared again.
Eloise was a strikingly beautiful woman, there was no denying it, and that was precisely why Alba needed to tread carefully.
“Of course.” She opened the living room door, praying Colin would be on his best behaviour.
“He’s harmless. He’s just a big lump, really. ”
Eloise gasped the moment she stepped inside, immediately dropping to her knees. “Oh, my! Aren’t you a beautiful boy?”
Colin approached her without hesitation, his tail wagging enthusiastically as he leaned into the attention.
“See, Colly. I told you we’d make a new friend when we moved here.”
Eloise glanced over her shoulder at Alba, her expression soft with understanding. “It’s not easy, but you’ll make it through. I promise you.”
“I’m doing okay. Colin misses his brother, Ralph.”
Eloise scratched gently beneath his chin. “Well, Colin, you may share the same name as my ex-husband, but you’re much more handsome.”
Colin flopped dramatically onto his back in response, his legs sprawled in the air.
That movement earned a bright laugh from Eloise. “You’re a friendly chap, aren’t you?”
“He really is,” Alba said, smiling as she watched their interaction.
There was something unexpectedly comforting about seeing Eloise sitting on the floor with her dog, completely at ease.
“I don’t know what I’d do without him. It feels as though he’s always been in my life, rather than just six years of it. ”
“Dogs are wonderful companions. And gorgeous boys called Colin are just the best of the bunch.” Eloise rose to her feet and wandered towards the couch. “Colin and I will be just fine while you get ready. But please, don’t rush.”
“God, I wish everyone else in my life was like you.” Alba laughed as she shook her head. “I’m usually being rushed around by my friends.”
“Rushing doesn’t get us anywhere. I find it better to take my time. It’s much less stressful.”
Alba sighed inwardly. Why couldn’t everyone be like Eloise Hamilton?
“I’ll just be a few minutes. I was almost ready before you arrived anyway.”