Page 23 of A Second Chance in Seabury
David.
Bee Daddy himself.
Gone was the scruffy jumper and shaggy locks that made him look like a grumpy badger. This man was tall, brooding and… well… delicious!
The blush that had been threatening to overwhelm Hannah since she’d bumped into Sarah outside finally got its own way. Hannah fanned her face with her hand, then realised what she was doing and promptly wished the floor would open up and swallow her whole.
Maybe she could just pass it off as being too warm in the crowded dining room. Shewaswearing a wool dress afterall. Her rampant blush had absolutely nothing to do with the practically edible man who was now grinning at her.
‘Hi,’ he said, clearing his throat as he hurried around the table to pull a chair out for her. ‘You look… incredible.’
‘Oh,’ said Hannah. ‘Erm… thank you.’
David smiled and reached over to pour her a glass of water.
‘It’s warm in here,’ he said simply, popping the carafe back onto the table before heading back to his seat.
Hannah took a grateful sip and then looked up only to find both Jason and Sarah watching her with identical grins.
‘So… happy birthday!’ she squeaked, just to break the silence.
‘Ta!’ said Jason.
‘Thanks for coming.’
‘Are you kidding me?’ said Hannah, feeling herself relax slightly under his easy grin. ‘I’m thrilled. This is way better than cheese on toast in an empty house.’
‘Hey, I happen to like cheese on toast,’ said David.
‘Me too,’ said Sarah. ‘Especially with jam on top.’
Jason made a choking sound. ‘You’re a special kind of gross, you know that, right?’
Sarah grinned as she punched him hard on the arm. ‘Oi, don’t knock it till you’ve tried it.’
‘I have to say, I’m with birthday boy on this one,’ said Hannah, wrinkling her nose.
‘You don’t know what you’re missing,’ sighed Sarah, shaking her head in mock despair.
‘I’m up for giving it a go next time,’ said David. ‘Hey, do you think it might work with honey, too?’
‘Dad,’ groaned Jason, rolling his eyes, ‘according to you,everything in the worldworks with honey.’
‘True,’ said David. ‘Because it does.’
Jason sniggered and shook his head, making Hannah laugh. This was clearly a long-running joke.
‘You know he gave me a jar of honey for my birthday?’ he sighed, turning back to Hannah with a pained expression. He was clearly trying to sound long-suffering and failing miserably.
‘Hey, if you don’t want it, I’ll take it off your hands!’ she laughed. ‘I’m newly converted.’
‘Really?’ said David, looking thrilled.
Hannah smiled at him, suddenly feeling a little shy under the beaming blue gaze. She nodded. ‘I didn’t thank you properly earlier for the box you left for me… honey on toast this morning was a treat! If it wasn’t for you, I would have been stuck trying to salvage something from under some seriously fluffy blue jam.’
‘Now that kind of jamdoesn’twork for cheese on toast,’ chuckled Sarah. ‘You know… just for the record… in case you were thinking of trying it.’
‘Noted!’ said Hannah with a grin. ‘Oh, by the way, speaking of presents—these are for you.’ She handed the paper bag over to Jason.
