Christmas With Her Daredevil Doc

As he’d suggested, she filmed it on slow-mo. ‘Dani would’ve loved this,’ she said wistfully. So would Evan, though she didn’t say it.

Then, as they moved deeper into the fields, his fingers accidentally brushed against hers. Again, she felt that swoop of butterflies in her stomach; and when she caught his eye, she was pretty sure it was the same for him.

What were they going to do about it? Ignore it? Or see where it led them?

There wasn’t any future in it. Couldn’t be. After the end of this week they’d be in different countries, thousands of miles apart, and he’d said nothing about returning to England.

The sky had turned the deepest summery blue, and the scenery was amazing. There were little puffs of steam rising from underground pools, and a tiny pot that produced a bubbling spout a few centimetres tall. Sam seemed to be careful to keep a little distance between them when he showed her the site of the old Geysìr, now just a pool with the occasional bubble to remind you that the water was extremely hot, and the twin pools of Blesi—one perfectly clear so you could see into the yawning cavern beneath it, and one that was the most amazing milky azure blue.

‘The milky colour’s from silicates in the water,’ he said. ‘That’s the cool one—it’s only about forty degrees Celsius.’

‘Cool?’ she asked.

‘The other one’s hotter,’ he said.

‘The milky blue pool: is that what the Blue Lagoon’s like?’ she asked.

‘Pretty much. We can go there this evening, if you like—that’s provided we can get a ticket, because evenings are pretty popular,’ he added.

‘I’d like that.’ She smiled at him.

‘Give me a second.’ He made a quick phone call, and she noticed that he spoke in fluent Icelandic. ‘OK. We’re in luck—I’ve booked us in.’

‘Thank you.’

They had dinner at a little village outside the city—lamb stew and rye bread, followed by blueberries and thick Icelandic yoghurt—and then stopped off firstly at her hotel so she could pick up her swimming things and then at his seafront apartment so he could pick up his.

‘I can’t remember the last time I felt this relaxed,’ she said as they sat in the warm water of the lagoon, her face covered in a mask of white silica and an ice-cold smoothie in her hand.

‘That’s what this is meant to be about,’ he said with a smile.

‘This must be amazing in the winter—sitting in a hot pool under the stars.’

‘And with the rocks all covered in snow,’ he agreed. ‘It’s pretty.’

Their gazes met, and for a second she thought he was going to kiss her.

He didn’t, but she could feel the anticipation brewing between them as he drove them back to the city and parked outside his apartment building. Every time they’d accidentally touched that day, she’d been so aware of him. And she didn’t think she was alone in that reaction.

‘Shall we walk along the harbour again to catch the sunset?’ he asked.

‘That’d be nice.’

At her hotel, he turned to face her. ‘Goodnight, Hayley.’

‘Goodnight. Thank you for such a lovely day.’

‘My pleasure. Would you like to see the glacier, waterfalls and beaches tomorrow, if it looks as if it’ll be dry?’

Spending more time with him? Part of her thought it was a good idea; part of her didn’t. But she found herself agreeing.

‘You’ll need sturdy shoes,’ he said.

‘And a waterproof, just in case the weather changes?’

He smiled. ‘Yes. Wear layers. And hiking trousers are better than jeans, if you have them—we’re going to get wet by the waterfalls, plus they’re better protection than denim against the wind.’ And then the look in his dark eyes grew more intense. He lifted one hand and placed it gently against her cheek. In answer, she tipped her head back very slightly. And then he brushed his lips against hers—more asking than demanding. She slid her arms round his waist, and he kissed her again, his lips teasing hers until she opened her mouth and let him deepen the kiss.

Desire flooded through her, mixed with a dose of guilt. But this wasn’t being unfaithful to Evan. He wouldn’t have wanted her to spend her life alone and mourning him. He would’ve wanted her to keep seeing the joy in life and focus on the good stuff. Sam Price was the first man she’d wanted to kiss since she’d lost Evan. And this was meant to be the Year of Saying Yes. So she leaned into Sam, kissing him back.

When he finally broke the kiss, there was a dark slash of colour along his cheekbones and his mouth was reddened; she was pretty sure that she looked in the same state.

‘Goodnight. I’ll see you tomorrow,’ he said. ‘I’ll meet you here at nine—if that’s not too early?’

‘That’s perfect,’ she said.

And she couldn’t wait.

CHAPTER THREE

ON WEDNESDAY MORNING, Hayley walked out of her hotel at nine on the dot to see Sam walking towards her from his car.

‘Perfect timing,’ she said with a smile.

‘Absolutely,’ he agreed.

Hayley tingled right down to her toes. Crazy how this man made her feel like a teenager. It had been a long, long time since she’d felt butterflies in her stomach just at the sight of someone.

‘Before we go,’ she said carefully, ‘I think we ought to talk about last night.’

He nodded. ‘I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have kissed you.’

This was the crunch moment. ‘I’m not sorry,’ she said, and watched his eyes darken. ‘We’re both single.’

‘So are you saying...?’

That maybe, just maybe, a holiday romance would be good for both of them. No strings, no consequences, no promises. And no depth, so saying goodbye would be easy. ‘You’re getting over a bad break-up. I’m getting over my partner’s death. We’re both...a bit stuck where we are, I guess. Neither of us wants anything permanent right now.’

He seemed to be following her thought processes exactly. ‘But a holiday romance might help us both move on,’ he said.

She nodded. ‘With an end date. I’m only here for a couple more days.’ Neither of them would get hurt in such a short space of time.

‘Just so you know, I don’t do this with every woman I meet,’ he said. ‘You’re the first woman I’ve kissed since Lynda and I split up.’

‘You’re the first man I’ve even noticed since Evan died,’ she said softly. ‘And I think my years in emergency medicine have made me a reasonable judge of character. I’d already worked out that you’re not one of these men who have notches carved on their bedposts. You’re one of the good guys.’

He inclined his head. ‘Thank you. Though I wasn’t fishing for compliments.’

‘I didn’t think you were.’ She smiled. ‘So where are we going today?’

‘I think,’ he said, ‘given what you’ve just said, I’d like to start by kissing you hello.’

‘Sounds good to me.’

He took a step forward, rested his hands on her shoulders, and brushed his mouth lightly against hers. The butterflies in her stomach started doing a stampede; then he slid his hands down her arms, wrapped them round her waist, and kissed her more thoroughly.

Her knees were weak by the time he broke the kiss.

‘Good morning,’ he said.

She smiled. ‘It is now.’

He stole another kiss. ‘We’re going to start at Reynisfjara, to see the beach with black sand and the basalt columns,’ he said. ‘And then we’ll go to see a glacier and your waterfall.’

‘That sounds perfect,’ she said.

Once he’d parked at Reynisfjara and they were out of the car, he looked at her and held out his hand. She took it with a smile, and they walked hand in hand onto the beach. The sand was black and slightly pebbly, in sharp contrast to the turquoise blue of the Atlantic, and Hayley stood watching the waves crash onto the shore.

‘The sea’s pretty calm right now,’ Sam said, ‘but in the winter the Atlantic rollers can get absolutely huge.’

She could just imagine the massive waves thundering in.

‘And right at this point there’s nothing but ocean between you and the Antarctic.’

She blinked. Was he teasing her? ‘Seriously?’

‘Seriously.’ He led her over to the cave with the hexagonal basalt columns.

‘It reminds of me of Giant’s Causeway in Ireland,’ she said. ‘And it’s definitely like the church in Reykjavik.’

Tourists were standing on the shorter columns, posing for photographs. ‘When in Rome—or, rather, Reynisfjara,’ he quipped, and helped her climb onto the columns so he could take a photo with her camera. The touch of his hands, even through the material of her T-shirt, sent a thrill right through her.

Once she’d climbed down again, he pointed out the colony of puffins above; the tiny birds with their distinctive orange beaks moved incredibly fast, and Hayley had to admit defeat when she’d tried to take ten photographs of them and all had failed.

They walked hand in hand back to the car, then he drove them up a steep, winding track to the Dyrhólaey promontory, where they had a clear view of the rock with a ‘door’ in it that gave its name to the area. Sam stood with his arms wrapped round her waist. Up here where the wind was keen and the air was clear, she felt almost as if she were on top of the world.

‘So what are those rocks jutting up over there?’

‘Basalt stacks,’ he said. ‘The Reynisdrangar. Local legend says they were trolls who were trying to drag a ship from the sea onto land—but then the sun rose and the light turned them to stone.’

A land of legends, ice and fire.

A land that was going to start to heal her heart.

‘Bucket list time,’ he said. ‘We’re going to Solheimajökull—you can actually get up close to the glacier and touch it.’

When they parked, she could see a lake, and immediately behind it was the glacier.

‘But it’s dark grey,’ she said. ‘Aren’t glaciers white or blue?’

‘The grey’s from sediment,’ he said, ‘and the white bits are snow and fresh ice.’

She peered up at the glacier. ‘And are they people over there, walking on top of the glacier?’

He nodded. ‘That’s the kind of thing my brother Martin’s company offers—though it’s not safe to walk on a glacier without a guide who knows the area and can tell if there are sinkholes.’

‘And you’re qualified to do the guided walks?’

‘Yes. I was part of the mountain rescue team when I worked in Manchester—we’re not far from the Peak District or the Lakes. Actually, I was part of the team well before I qualified as a doctor, because I grew up in the Peak District. I’m also a qualified diver,’ he said.

Mountain rescue and diving. Both of which were really dangerous. Both of which meant putting your life on the line. A chill went down Hayley’s spine. It was just as well they’d agreed this would be only a holiday romance. She didn’t want to be in another situation where she fell in love with someone who put himself in danger on a regular basis. She really couldn’t bear to lose someone else the same way she’d lost Evan.

‘Do you want to walk on the glacier?’ he asked. ‘I brought some kit with me, just in case.’

Under the rules of her agreement with Danielle, Hayley knew she ought to say yes. Instead, still thinking of the danger of his work on the mountain rescue team, she asked, ‘Are you sure it’s safe?’

He smiled. ‘I know the area so, yes, it’s safe. I wasn’t sure of your shoe size, so I brought a few different pairs in case your hiking shoes weren’t sturdy enough.’ He glanced at her feet. ‘Actually, if we do it, I’d really prefer you to wear the boots I brought with me. Not that there’s anything wrong with your hiking boots,’ he hastened to add, ‘but ice walking needs a little bit extra.’

‘If you’re sure it’s safe,’ she said, ‘then OK.’ Walking on a glacier would be even better than touching one.

She put the shoes on and he fitted the crampons for her. ‘These are to make it safer for you to walk on the ice,’ he explained. He also gave her a helmet, ice axe and a walking pole. ‘This will help to stabilise you and help you get a grip when you need to,’ he said, ‘as well as help you test the ice to make sure it’s solid before you set foot on it.’

After a safety briefing, he showed her how to walk on the ice. ‘You need to stamp down to get a good grip,’ he said.

‘I’m glad now that I didn’t go for a run this morning before breakfast,’ she said.

‘As part of your training for the charity race, you mean?’ He smiled. ‘You’ll definitely get a good workout here. It won’t do much for your speed, but it’ll be good for stamina.’

They went along the path that led to the glacier, and then they were walking across the ice. Hayley could hear crunching sounds with every step. Part of her was terrified, part of her was thrilled and part of her was awed at the sheer beauty of the ice landscape. ‘The way the snow lies on the dark ice, all rippled—it’s a bit like the way a sandy beach looks when the tide goes out,’ she said. ‘I thought glaciers would be just white or blue, nothing like this. With all that dark veining going through it, in places it looks like marble.’

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