{"id":2963,"date":"2018-11-29T16:16:12","date_gmt":"2018-11-29T16:16:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/abby-green.com\/?post_type=portfolio&#038;p=2963"},"modified":"2018-11-29T16:18:47","modified_gmt":"2018-11-29T16:18:47","slug":"2963","status":"publish","type":"portfolio","link":"https:\/\/abby-green.com\/portfolio-item\/2963\/","title":{"rendered":"An Innocent, A Seduction, A Secret"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id='av_section_1'  class='avia-section av-av_section-d18d8c2c81d10022ebd21ffa95322c35 main_color avia-section-default avia-no-shadow  avia-builder-el-0  el_before_av_section  avia-builder-el-first  avia-bg-style-scroll container_wrap fullsize'  ><div class='container av-section-cont-open' ><main  role=\"main\" itemprop=\"mainContentOfPage\"  class='template-page content  av-content-full alpha units'><div class='post-entry post-entry-type-page post-entry-2963'><div class='entry-content-wrapper clearfix'>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-av_one_half-352b07ef7d3bc99b2e9f92e7a9e06bdb\">\n.flex_column.av-av_one_half-352b07ef7d3bc99b2e9f92e7a9e06bdb{\n-webkit-border-radius:0px 0px 0px 0px;\n-moz-border-radius:0px 0px 0px 0px;\nborder-radius:0px 0px 0px 0px;\npadding:0px 0px 0px 0px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<div class='flex_column av-av_one_half-352b07ef7d3bc99b2e9f92e7a9e06bdb av_one_half  avia-builder-el-1  el_before_av_one_fourth  avia-builder-el-first  first flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding '     ><p>\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-av_heading-bbd59172b1a86481acfdc67eaa6c42c0\">\n#top .av-special-heading.av-av_heading-bbd59172b1a86481acfdc67eaa6c42c0{\npadding-bottom:10px;\n}\nbody .av-special-heading.av-av_heading-bbd59172b1a86481acfdc67eaa6c42c0 .av-special-heading-tag .heading-char{\nfont-size:25px;\n}\n.av-special-heading.av-av_heading-bbd59172b1a86481acfdc67eaa6c42c0 .av-subheading{\nfont-size:15px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<div  class='av-special-heading av-av_heading-bbd59172b1a86481acfdc67eaa6c42c0 av-special-heading-h3 blockquote modern-quote  avia-builder-el-2  el_before_av_textblock  avia-builder-el-first '><h3 class='av-special-heading-tag'  itemprop=\"headline\"  >An Innocent, A Seduction, A Secret<\/h3><div class='av-subheading av-subheading_below'><p>The virgin\u2019s Christmas surrender\u2026<\/p>\n<\/div><div class=\"special-heading-border\"><div class=\"special-heading-inner-border\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><br \/>\n<section  class='av_textblock_section av-av_textblock-2bd894dbf2e4bf2c4acf98ce4fbf94aa'  itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/CreativeWork\" ><div class='avia_textblock'  itemprop=\"text\" ><p>And a life-changing consequence!<\/p>\n<p>When brooding Argentinean Seb Rivas spies elfin Edie Munroe\u2019s talent for lavish interior decoration, he makes an irresistible job offer\u2014to spend the festive season decorating his opulent home, no expense spared! Their desire flares hotly and, snowed in together, Edie becomes the sensual gift Seb wishes to unwrap. But in taking her innocence, neither realizes their overwhelming passion could have such shocking results\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Indulge in this intense pregnancy romance!<\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><br \/>\n<div  class='avia-button-wrap av-av_button-ff5b8f32828c51685a6e12f0e2a84988-wrap avia-button-left  avia-builder-el-4  el_after_av_textblock  el_before_av_hr '><a href='#excerpt'  class='avia-button av-av_button-ff5b8f32828c51685a6e12f0e2a84988 avia-icon_select-yes-left-icon avia-size-medium avia-position-left avia-color-dark'  ><span class='avia_button_icon avia_button_icon_left' aria-hidden='true' data-av_icon='\ue84f' data-av_iconfont='entypo-fontello'><\/span><span class='avia_iconbox_title' >Read an Excerpt<\/span><\/a><\/div><br \/>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-av_hr-f9c49c3d3336fc54a3f31ed109c785bd\">\n#top .hr.hr-invisible.av-av_hr-f9c49c3d3336fc54a3f31ed109c785bd{\nheight:30px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<div  class='hr av-av_hr-f9c49c3d3336fc54a3f31ed109c785bd hr-invisible  avia-builder-el-5  el_after_av_button  el_before_av_social_share '><span class='hr-inner '><span class=\"hr-inner-style\"><\/span><\/span><\/div><br \/>\n<div  class='av-social-sharing-box av-av_social_share-091364a88cbf1bf8768d3d05e1fe0801 av-social-sharing-box-default  avia-builder-el-6  el_after_av_hr  avia-builder-el-last  av-social-sharing-box-fullwidth'><div class=\"av-share-box\"><h5 class='av-share-link-description av-no-toc '>Share this Book<\/h5><ul class=\"av-share-box-list noLightbox\"><li class='av-share-link av-social-link-facebook' ><a target=\"_blank\" aria-label=\"Share on Facebook\" href='https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https:\/\/abby-green.com\/portfolio-item\/2963\/&#038;t=An%20Innocent%2C%20A%20Seduction%2C%20A%20Secret' aria-hidden='false' data-av_icon='\ue8f3' data-av_iconfont='entypo-fontello' title='' data-avia-related-tooltip='Share on Facebook' rel=\"noopener\"><span 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data-avia-related-tooltip='Share on Pinterest' rel=\"noopener\"><span class='avia_hidden_link_text'>Share on Pinterest<\/span><\/a><\/li><li class='av-share-link av-social-link-mail' ><a  aria-label=\"Share by Mail\" href='mailto:?subject=An%20Innocent%2C%20A%20Seduction%2C%20A%20Secret&#038;body=https:\/\/abby-green.com\/portfolio-item\/2963\/' aria-hidden='false' data-av_icon='\ue805' data-av_iconfont='entypo-fontello' title='' data-avia-related-tooltip='Share by Mail'><span class='avia_hidden_link_text'>Share by Mail<\/span><\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/div><\/p><\/div>\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-av_one_fourth-2a64de42b738552fe666ca889af77e28\">\n.flex_column.av-av_one_fourth-2a64de42b738552fe666ca889af77e28{\n-webkit-border-radius:0px 0px 0px 0px;\n-moz-border-radius:0px 0px 0px 0px;\nborder-radius:0px 0px 0px 0px;\npadding:0px 0px 0px 0px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<div class='flex_column av-av_one_fourth-2a64de42b738552fe666ca889af77e28 av_one_fourth  avia-builder-el-7  el_after_av_one_half  el_before_av_one_fourth  flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding '     ><p>\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-av_image-f16bf66baf0777c86b902cc3addbfb0a\">\n.avia-image-container.av-av_image-f16bf66baf0777c86b902cc3addbfb0a img.avia_image{\nbox-shadow:none;\n}\n.avia-image-container.av-av_image-f16bf66baf0777c86b902cc3addbfb0a .av-image-caption-overlay-center{\ncolor:#ffffff;\n}\n<\/style>\n<div  class='avia-image-container av-av_image-f16bf66baf0777c86b902cc3addbfb0a av-styling- avia-align-center  avia-builder-el-8  el_before_av_textblock  avia-builder-el-first '   itemprop=\"image\" itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/ImageObject\" ><div class=\"avia-image-container-inner\"><div class=\"avia-image-overlay-wrap\"><img decoding=\"async\" class='wp-image-2964 avia-img-lazy-loading-not-2964 avia_image ' src=\"https:\/\/abby-green.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/UK-cover-ISS-188x300.jpg\" alt='' title='UK cover I:S:S'  height=\"300\" width=\"188\"  itemprop=\"thumbnailUrl\" srcset=\"https:\/\/abby-green.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/UK-cover-ISS-188x300.jpg 188w, https:\/\/abby-green.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/UK-cover-ISS.jpg 313w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 188px) 100vw, 188px\" \/><\/div><\/div><\/div><br \/>\n<section  class='av_textblock_section av-av_textblock-2bd894dbf2e4bf2c4acf98ce4fbf94aa'  itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/CreativeWork\" ><div class='avia_textblock'  itemprop=\"text\" ><p><strong>Mills &amp; Boon<\/strong><br \/>\nDecember 2018<br \/>\n<strong>ISBN:<\/strong>\u00a0978-0263935066<\/p>\n<p>\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-av_font_icon-b666272b4b5faec8422dbac43d733bad\">\n.av_font_icon.av-av_font_icon-b666272b4b5faec8422dbac43d733bad .av-icon-char{\nfont-size:40px;\nline-height:40px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<span  class='av_font_icon av-av_font_icon-b666272b4b5faec8422dbac43d733bad avia_animate_when_visible av-icon-style- avia-icon-pos-left av-no-color avia-icon-animate'><a href='https:\/\/www.amazon.co.uk\/Innocent-Seduction-Secret-Night-Consequences\/dp\/026393506X\/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&amp;qid=1543507758&amp;sr=8-1' target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" class='av-icon-char' aria-hidden='true' data-av_icon='\ue924' data-av_iconfont='entypo-fontello'><\/a><\/span> BUY NOW<\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><\/p><\/div>\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-av_one_fourth-60e65def2443d4fedd70f2f69834ac0f\">\n.flex_column.av-av_one_fourth-60e65def2443d4fedd70f2f69834ac0f{\n-webkit-border-radius:0px 0px 0px 0px;\n-moz-border-radius:0px 0px 0px 0px;\nborder-radius:0px 0px 0px 0px;\npadding:0px 0px 0px 0px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<div class='flex_column av-av_one_fourth-60e65def2443d4fedd70f2f69834ac0f av_one_fourth  avia-builder-el-11  el_after_av_one_fourth  avia-builder-el-last  flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding '     ><p>\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-av_image-1bdb207989a253a6b6a3f7c47ca55799\">\n.avia-image-container.av-av_image-1bdb207989a253a6b6a3f7c47ca55799 img.avia_image{\nbox-shadow:none;\n}\n.avia-image-container.av-av_image-1bdb207989a253a6b6a3f7c47ca55799 .av-image-caption-overlay-center{\ncolor:#ffffff;\n}\n<\/style>\n<div  class='avia-image-container av-av_image-1bdb207989a253a6b6a3f7c47ca55799 av-styling- avia-align-center  avia-builder-el-12  el_before_av_textblock  avia-builder-el-first '   itemprop=\"image\" itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/ImageObject\" ><div class=\"avia-image-container-inner\"><div class=\"avia-image-overlay-wrap\"><img decoding=\"async\" class='wp-image-2965 avia-img-lazy-loading-not-2965 avia_image ' src=\"https:\/\/abby-green.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/9781335419927-190x300.jpg\" alt='' title='9781335419927'  height=\"300\" width=\"190\"  itemprop=\"thumbnailUrl\" srcset=\"https:\/\/abby-green.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/9781335419927-190x300.jpg 190w, https:\/\/abby-green.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/9781335419927-768x1215.jpg 768w, https:\/\/abby-green.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/9781335419927-651x1030.jpg 651w, https:\/\/abby-green.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/9781335419927-948x1500.jpg 948w, https:\/\/abby-green.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/9781335419927-446x705.jpg 446w, https:\/\/abby-green.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/9781335419927-450x712.jpg 450w, https:\/\/abby-green.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/9781335419927.jpg 1294w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 190px) 100vw, 190px\" \/><\/div><\/div><\/div><br \/>\n<section  class='av_textblock_section av-av_textblock-2bd894dbf2e4bf2c4acf98ce4fbf94aa'  itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/CreativeWork\" ><div class='avia_textblock'  itemprop=\"text\" ><p><strong>Harlequin Presents<\/strong><br \/>\nDecember 2018<br \/>\n<strong>ISBN:<\/strong> 0263258084<\/p>\n<p>\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-av_font_icon-d49866b49eb3cfa315bc857f495daf12\">\n.av_font_icon.av-av_font_icon-d49866b49eb3cfa315bc857f495daf12 .av-icon-char{\nfont-size:40px;\nline-height:40px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<span  class='av_font_icon av-av_font_icon-d49866b49eb3cfa315bc857f495daf12 avia_animate_when_visible av-icon-style- avia-icon-pos-left av-no-color avia-icon-animate'><a href='https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Innocent-Seduction-Secret-Night-Consequences\/dp\/1335419926\/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1543508104&amp;sr=8-3&amp;keywords=an+innocent+a+seduction+a+secret' target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" class='av-icon-char' aria-hidden='true' data-av_icon='\ue924' data-av_iconfont='entypo-fontello'><\/a><\/span> BUY NOW<\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/main><!-- close content main element --><\/div><\/div>\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-av_section-a39f1395b9c26d6fce19cea65cb3b34b\">\n.avia-section.av-av_section-a39f1395b9c26d6fce19cea65cb3b34b{\nbackground-color:#f6f6f6;\nbackground-image:unset;\n}\n<\/style>\n<div id='excerpt'  class='avia-section av-av_section-a39f1395b9c26d6fce19cea65cb3b34b main_color avia-section-large avia-no-shadow  avia-builder-el-15  el_after_av_section  avia-builder-el-last  avia-bg-style-scroll container_wrap fullsize'  ><div class='container av-section-cont-open' ><div class='template-page content  av-content-full alpha units'><div class='post-entry post-entry-type-page post-entry-2963'><div class='entry-content-wrapper clearfix'>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" 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el_before_av_one_fifth  excerpt flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding '     ><p>\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-av_hr-a68ad2dea2f1b44df97ff973cba5613c\">\n#top .hr.av-av_hr-a68ad2dea2f1b44df97ff973cba5613c{\nmargin-top:30px;\nmargin-bottom:30px;\n}\n.hr.av-av_hr-a68ad2dea2f1b44df97ff973cba5613c .hr-inner{\nwidth:50px;\nmax-width:45%;\n}\n<\/style>\n<div  class='hr av-av_hr-a68ad2dea2f1b44df97ff973cba5613c hr-custom  avia-builder-el-18  el_before_av_heading  avia-builder-el-first  hr-center hr-icon-yes'><span class='hr-inner inner-border-av-border-thin'><span class=\"hr-inner-style\"><\/span><\/span><span class='av-seperator-icon' aria-hidden='true' data-av_icon='\ue84e' data-av_iconfont='entypo-fontello'><\/span><span class='hr-inner inner-border-av-border-thin'><span class=\"hr-inner-style\"><\/span><\/span><\/div><br \/>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-av_heading-8f87c583ebc69c2b1bd7c7ab916a9e3b\">\n#top .av-special-heading.av-av_heading-8f87c583ebc69c2b1bd7c7ab916a9e3b{\npadding-bottom:10px;\nfont-size:42px;\n}\nbody .av-special-heading.av-av_heading-8f87c583ebc69c2b1bd7c7ab916a9e3b .av-special-heading-tag .heading-char{\nfont-size:25px;\n}\n#top #wrap_all .av-special-heading.av-av_heading-8f87c583ebc69c2b1bd7c7ab916a9e3b .av-special-heading-tag{\nfont-size:42px;\n}\n.av-special-heading.av-av_heading-8f87c583ebc69c2b1bd7c7ab916a9e3b .av-subheading{\nfont-size:22px;\n}\n\n@media only screen and (min-width: 480px) and (max-width: 767px){ \n#top #wrap_all .av-special-heading.av-av_heading-8f87c583ebc69c2b1bd7c7ab916a9e3b .av-special-heading-tag{\nfont-size:0.8em;\n}\n}\n\n@media only screen and (max-width: 479px){ \n#top #wrap_all .av-special-heading.av-av_heading-8f87c583ebc69c2b1bd7c7ab916a9e3b .av-special-heading-tag{\nfont-size:0.8em;\n}\n}\n<\/style>\n<div  class='av-special-heading av-av_heading-8f87c583ebc69c2b1bd7c7ab916a9e3b av-special-heading-h3 blockquote modern-quote  avia-builder-el-19  el_after_av_hr  el_before_av_textblock  av-inherit-size'><div class='av-subheading av-subheading_above'><p>Excerpt from<\/p>\n<\/div><h3 class='av-special-heading-tag'  itemprop=\"headline\"  >An Innocent, A Seduction, A Secret<\/h3><div class=\"special-heading-border\"><div class=\"special-heading-inner-border\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><br \/>\n<section  class='av_textblock_section av-av_textblock-2bd894dbf2e4bf2c4acf98ce4fbf94aa'  itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/CreativeWork\" ><div class='avia_textblock'  itemprop=\"text\" ><p>Edie Munroe was standing looking at the closed drapes like someone who\u2019d been hypnotised. Or hit over the head. She\u2019d never in a million years expected to see that guy again and yet&#8230;she just had.<\/p>\n<p>And it struck her today as forcibly as it had four years ago when she\u2019d first laid eyes on him in a crowded nightclub in Edinburgh.<\/p>\n<p><em>It couldn\u2019t be him<\/em>, she told herself now, feeling her skin raise into goose bumps. It couldn\u2019t be Sebastio Rivas. The fact that she even remembered his name was not welcome.<\/p>\n<p>What were the chances it <em>was<\/em>him? It had to be someone who looked liked him. After all, Sebastio Rivas was a mega \u2013 famous international rugby star. What on earth would he be doing walking down a random side street in London?<\/p>\n<p>But her accelerated heart \u2013 rate told her it <em>was<\/em>him. It was galling to be reminded that no other man in four years had had the same effect on her. And she\u2019d tried. She\u2019d gone on Tinder dates, blind dates and internet dates. But on each date \u2013 when they\u2019d tried to take things a step further \u2013 Edie had felt herself shutting down.<\/p>\n<p>Because she couldn\u2019t get out of her head how <em>he\u2019d<\/em>made her feel four years ago. Alive and energised. Buzzing. <em>Connected<\/em>. Hopeful.<\/p>\n<p>And, aroused. For the first time in her life she\u2019d understood what people talked about when they spoke of <em>instant attraction, <\/em>or, <em>you\u2019ll know when you feel it. <\/em>She had felt it, like a palpable energy. Electricity.<\/p>\n<p>It had been wholly new sense of desire, and she\u2019d known instinctively that only he could assuage the building sense of excitement in her core. A crazy assertion to have about a total stranger, but one so deep she could still feel it today.<\/p>\n<p>It was pathetic. Her entire exchange with Sebastio Rivas had lasted about five minutes. He\u2019d told her to <em>run along<\/em>. He\u2019d been out of bounds, out of her league, and he hadn\u2019t hesitated in letting her know.<\/p>\n<p>The fact that she\u2019d gravitated across a heaving dance \u2013 floor to orbit the sun of his smouldering sexuality \u2013 like every other woman in the room \u2013 was as freshly humiliating today as it had been then, especially after he\u2019d sent her on her way.<\/p>\n<p>She\u2019d been so sure she\u2019d seen something&#8230;sensed something in him. Their eyes had locked and a silent communication had throbbed between them. She\u2019d seen something in his demeanour, his eyes, a kind of brittleness. And it had resonated within her because she\u2019d felt the same.<\/p>\n<p>She\u2019d just come through a major ordeal \u2013 cancer, which she\u2019d contracted when she was seventeen, throwing her life into instant turmoil. It had become a fight for survival, an endless round of toxic treatments and sterile hospital rooms.<\/p>\n<p>For the previous eighteen months she hadn\u2019t known if she would live or die, and some of the time she\u2019d been feeling so sick, she\u2019d almost wished \u2013 Edie clamped down on that thought, remembering her parents\u2019 worried pinched faces.<\/p>\n<p>That very day she\u2019d been given the all \u2013 clear, and that night had been her first foray back into the world. She\u2019d felt as if a layer of skin had been removed, making everything feel too bright, too sharp. Too much.<\/p>\n<p>She remembered that she\u2019d been wearing a dress borrowed from a friend. Short, silver and slinky. Not her style at all. But then, that whole night had been about a celebration she\u2019d never expected to experience. A celebration of life.<\/p>\n<p>And, because her hair hadn\u2019t yet started to grow back, she\u2019d been wearing a wig. A shoulder \u2013 length bob. Bright red, and hot and scratchy. Yet, none of that had stopped her from approaching the most beautiful man in the room.<\/p>\n<p>She\u2019d never seen, or met a man who\u2019d come close to his sheer charisma and good \u2013 looks. Well over six foot, he\u2019d had the leanly muscled build of an elite athlete. The power in his body evident under his dark suit.<\/p>\n<p>A little desperately she tried to tell herself again that the man she\u2019d just seen outside couldn\u2019t be him. But she\u2019d never forget that face &#8211; sculpted from stone. All slashing lines and sharp bones. Hard jaw. Deep \u2013 set eyes under black brows. Thick dark hair flopping messily over his forehead. Curling around his collar.<\/p>\n<p>And a mouth made for sin. Full and sensual. Softening those hard lines and the stern demeanor he\u2019d exuded like a force &#8211; field.<\/p>\n<p>\u2018Edie&#8230;.earth to Edie&#8230;can I come down now?\u2019<\/p>\n<p>She whirled around, aghast at her reaction to someone who probably wasn\u2019t even the man she was thinking of. She was losing it. \u2018Of course, Jimmy.\u2019<\/p>\n<p>She gabbled, \u2018I think the man in the window \u2013 I mean, the man in the moon decoration works better than the star.\u2019 She hoped Jimmy wouldn\u2019t see her face flaming at her freudian slip.<\/p>\n<p>\u2018Not that anyone will see it,\u2019 grumbled the young man as he came down the ladder. \u2018We\u2019re all the way around the corner from the main windows.\u2019<\/p>\n<p>Edie said brightly, \u2018It means we can be more creative with our wee display.\u2019<\/p>\n<p>\u2018<em>Wee<\/em>being the operative word. I hate the way the big designers get to dress the main windows now, it\u2019s so&#8230;commercial.\u2019<\/p>\n<p>\u2018I know,\u2019 said Edie, hiding a smile at the art student\u2019s dismay and forcing her mind away from the past. She\u2019d never got to college herself and had worked her way up the ranks to be a creative display supervisor. \u2018That\u2019s the way it is now, and I\u2019m sure they\u2019ll be beautiful.\u2019<\/p>\n<p>\u2018Yes, but they won\u2019t be <em>magical.\u2019<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Privately, Edie agreed. She too loved the magic and fantasy surrounding Christmas. She loved everything about Christmas. She was trying to create a little magic in this window, in spite of the fact that not many would see it.<\/p>\n<p>But, times had changed and now the big fashion designers had more sway than the in \u2013 house creatives, especially at Christmas time.<\/p>\n<p>She pulled out another box full of decorations and said, \u2018Right, we\u2019ll have a quick tea break and then get started with this lot. The window has to be finished by this evening.\u2019<\/p>\n<p>Jimmy mock saluted her. \u2018Aye aye boss.\u2019 Edie smiled at his cheeky grin as he escaped for his break. She looked at her watch and sighed. She knew she could take a break too, but if they wanted this window to be finished&#8230;she decided to keep going. As soon as her mind was occupied with nothing more than unwrapping decorations though, it invariably wandered back to the man. And to <em>him<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>Edie looked up at the drapes suspiciously. She got up from the stool she\u2019d perched on and went over cautiously, peeking out through a gap.<\/p>\n<p>Of course the street was empty now. Strange to feel disappointed. And silly. Maybe she\u2019d conjured him up out of some subconscious fantasy she\u2019d never admitted that she\u2019d harboured?<\/p>\n<p>Edie pulled the curtains closed firmly and turned around, ready to put all random thoughts of disturbing men and memories out of her mind. She heard a sound and looked up with a smile on her face, expecting it to be Jimmy again. But it wasn\u2019t Jimmy. The smile promptly slid off her face.<\/p>\n<p>Her supervisor, Helen, was standing in the doorway to the window space and behind her was&#8230;<em>him<\/em>. Even taller and more intimidating than she remembered. 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