Page 56 of The Wisteria Tree Cottage

‘OK, good, I think she’ll be fine, but she’s definitely a bit wobbly.’

Heath stood up and stretched. ‘Didyouhave a good night?’

‘Well, I wasn’t really there long, the webcams took a lot longer than I thought they would to set up.’ That and he’d spent a lot of time thinking. ‘But me and Meadow apparently matched, according to their fandangled computer software.’

‘That’s not a surprise, you two are closer than some married couples. It was bound to pick up on that.’ He moved to the stairs and gave Bear a wave. ‘I’ll see you tomorrow.’

Bear nodded and walked out, retrieving the leaflet from his pocket. The leaflet was very clear, the software was trained not to pick up on family or platonic love. The body language in those cases was very different to that when you were near someone you were attracted to. After their chat tonight he was more convinced than ever that Meadow had feelings for him too. He wasn’t going to wait any longer, first thing tomorrow he was going to talk to her, tell her how he felt. And then he’d find out once and for all if she wanted the same thing.

CHAPTERTHIRTY-SIX

Bear sat back from his computer after writing a complicated fight scene with a dragon. It had turned out quite well. He was really enjoying this book.

He checked his phone and saw he had a message from Twilight. He smiled and opened it.

Hi… I’m a bit drunk.

He smiled and wrote back.Did you have a good night?

Her reply was instant.Not really. I went to this dating event where we mingled with lots of different men and I was hooked up to a camera so it could look at body language of the men I was talking to see if any of them were attracted to me.

God, this was too much of a coincidence. There were far too many similarities here between the two of them. But if it was Meadow, then who the hell was Iris Starfish? If Twilight was a local girl looking for love then it was quite plausible that she was attending these dating events at the same time Meadow was.

He sent a reply.Did you match with anyone?

No. Well apart from one person but he doesn’t count.

He frowned and was just about to ask why that person didn’t count when she sent another message.

There was one guy there who was clearly only interested in sex. Is that all men think about? When I meet men and we’re sitting in a pub chatting, are they just nodding politely and really thinking, when can I get this woman into bed?

Crap, she’d had a rubbish night by the sound of it. He had to answer that carefully.I think men do think about sex a lot more than women but any decent man would take the time to really listen to you, to enjoy your company and conversation for you, not for what may or may not happen at the end of the night.

She was quick to reply.When you go on dates, are you hoping for sex at the end of it?

He thought how to answer that question.Not any more. I’ve been on several dates where for the women the end goal was sex and that’s always fun but I’m looking for something more now. Maybe I’ve grown up but sex with a woman I barely know doesn’t appeal to me any more. I’m looking for someone I can spend forever with. I think when I find that person, of course sex is going to be a part of our relationship, being intimate with someone is a way to show them you love them, but it’s not the end goal.

There was a long gap this time before he could see she was writing a message back. Finally, her reply pinged through.

When I started online dating, I didn’t really think about sex. I just wanted to find someone to love but of course sex is going to be part of that. I don’t feel I have anything to offer in that department.

What do you mean?Bear asked.

Oh you will laugh at me now. I’m sure what I’m about to tell you will guarantee you want nothing more to do with me but you should know what you’re letting yourself in for before it goes any further. I’ve only had sex once in my life.

He felt his eyebrows shoot up.That doesn’t scare me away. Was your first time an unpleasant experience? Has it put you off doing it again?

Her reply came through quite quickly.My first time was pretty crappy. I was so young and when I look back at that time I cringe about what happened. I wouldn’t say it’s put me off, I know sex can be so much better than that, but I suppose it has put me off dating. I’ve been busy raising my daughter for the last eight years so there hasn’t been a ton of opportunity but I certainly didn’t put myself out there to try to find a man. I know this sounds silly and naïve but the next time I have sex I want it to be with someone I love and trust.

He frowned. He hated that her first experience of sex had been so bad.I totally understand wanting to be with someone you trust.Want to tell me about what happened that first time?

OK but you can’t judge me on it. I was young and immature.

Bear smiled.I promise.

So when I was seventeen I was completely in love with my best friend, let’s call him Bob. Bob was super smart, into computers and programming and the kindest, most wonderful man I’ve ever met. He was destined for amazing things, I knew one day he would be jetting off to work in some big computer company on the other side of the world. Well one day we kissed and it was the perfect kiss. But the next day I heard he’d been offered an apprenticeship with Strawberry. The big computer software company. So when he asked me out on a date I turned him down because I didn’t want him to miss out on such an amazing opportunity. He would have been in London and California, it was such a big deal for him. To prove I wasn’t interested I went out on dates with a few other boys. I hoped he would take the apprenticeship but he never did. He stayed here and then, almost as if he was trying to get back at me for dating these other boys, he started going out on dates with other girls. It was all very silly and immature but we were only children at the time.

Bear stared at the screen in horror because suddenly it was very obvious that Twilight was actually Meadow. Christ he was so stupid. The fact that Twilight had a seven-, nearly eight-year-old daughter, her love of riddles, being at the festival yesterday and seeing the iguana. He’d made the connection then but talked himself out of it when he’d found Iris Starfish on Connected Hearts. Maybe she’d tried Iris Starfish first as her username and as that name was already taken she opted for Twilight Rose but lied about it because she knew he’d tease her.

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