Collision Point – Amabel Dennis

‘Why not?’ I grabbed his arm, heart hammering so hard it hurt. Bruce gazed up at him, waiting for direction, ears pricked like a soldier awaiting orders. ‘What’s stopping me? My miserable job? My bedsit with the dodgy heating? What am I really giving up?’ ‘You don’t even know what you’d be walking into.’ ‘I know I’d be walking into it with you. That’s enough.’

I could see the battle playing out in his face, logic against instinct, duty against desire. ‘The retreat.’ He said, less certain now but continuing. ‘It’s for veterans. Combat trauma. Injuries. It won’t be easy.’ ‘I’m not looking for easy. I’m looking for you.’ The words raw and unplanned, but truer than anything I’d ever said. ‘I need to see if this is real.’ His laugh was nervous, almost disbelieving. ‘And if it is?’ ‘Then we find a coffee shop and we figure it out.’ ‘And if it isn’t?’

‘Then at least I’ll have had one mad adventure before I go back to ordinary reliable Poppy.’ The final boarding call thundered with static, echoing through the terminal. Drew clenched his jaw, and I could practically feel the weight of the decision crushing him. ‘The ferry’s leaving.’ ‘Then let’s get on it.’ ‘You don’t have a ticket.’ ‘I’ll buy one on board.’ ‘You don’t have clothes.’ ‘I’ll buy some.’

‘Poppy…’ ‘Drew.’ I stepped closer, close enough that Bruce shuffled aside to make space, his tail thumping in quiet approval. ‘This doesn’t need to make sense. Sometimes the most important choices don’t. Sometimes you just trust your heart.’ ‘And you think this is the right direction?’ ‘I think you are.’ I cupped his face, felt him lean into my hand like a man starved for touch. His skin felt warm against my palm, and for the first time I realised how much he needed this.

Needed someone who would not pull away, not pity him, but choose him. All of him. ‘I could spend a lifetime chasing something that feels this right and never find it.’ I whispered. ‘Why waste another minute?’ Something inside him broke open then, fierce and unstoppable. His gaze, still hidden behind dark glasses, fixed on me like I was a touchstone, a light in his darkness.

‘You’re really doing this.’ He whispered. ‘You’re really coming with me.’ ‘If you’ll have me.’ ‘Have you?’ His laugh was shaky, astonished. ‘You’re the most extraordinary thing that’s ever happened to me. Of course I’ll have you.’ Warmth flooded me, dizzy and unstoppable. I was really doing this. We were doing this. Sensible, stroppy, reliable, ambitious me. Bored, frustrated, wilful me, throwing aside everything sensible to follow this man to an island I’d never seen.

It should have terrified me. Instead, it felt like the first right choice I’d ever made. ‘Right then.’ I grinned up at him, reckless and free. ‘Let’s go catch a ferry.’

1. Crash Course – Poppy 2. Lost – Drew 3. Terminal – Poppy 4. On Board – Drew Epilogue – Poppy Highland Hearts & Hounds Nomadic Hearts & Hounds Blizzard Haven Riverbrook Close About the Author 1kitap1.com/en What to Expect The most beautiful accidents happen when you least expect them. At twenty-six, Poppy Layne’s life is perfectly ordinary. A terrible job, a tiny flat, and a boss who doesn’t value her for a second. Then she crashes into Drew Hunter in a coffee shop, and everything changes in a heartbeat.

Drew is forty, an ex-soldier with scars, stories, and a guide dog named Bruce. He’s on his way to a veterans’ retreat on a remote Scottish island, but the truth is… he’s not sure he’s ready. One unexpected cup of coffee with Poppy, fierce, funny, and utterly fearless, is enough to turn his whole world upside down. He’s complicated. She’s impulsive. They’ve known each other for barely two hours. But when Drew asks if she trusts him, Poppy already knows her answer. A short, standalone instalove romance introducing the world of Highland Hearts & Hounds.

No cliffhangers. Amabel Dennis Sensual stories with heart. Closed doors, no swearing, always a happy ending. Stories to Snuggle Down With. 1kitap1.com/en 1 Crash Course – Poppy The harbour coffee shop was absolutely heaving. Bodies pressed shoulder to shoulder in a tide of Monday desperation. The air smelled like roasted beans and burnt toast, with a lush sweet undertone of caramel syrup. Even the espresso machine hissed like an irritated dragon, or maybe that was the staff member struggling with yet another over- complicated order. I was running on three hours of sleep and pure caffeine-fuelled determination, juggling my laptop bag, mobile, and the stack of marketing proposals my boss had sworn must be revolutionary by noon.

All this at the end of a week where he’d sent me to the most remote place he could think of. I wasn’t sure if it was an effort to banish me, actually meet a prospect, or test me before promotion, so I smiled, sucked it up and got the job done. Good old reliable Poppy, she’ll do it. I could hear him now. ‘Double shot Americano, extra hot, oat milk on the side!’ I shouted toward the counter without breaking stride. I could already taste the bitterness, the heat, the promise of survival in liquid form.

And then I hit something immovable. No, not something. Someone.

This is a short excerpt from the opening of “” by Unknown, quoted for review and introduction purposes. All rights belong to the copyright holders.

Book Information

• Unique ID: 073eae269f2472c1
• File Extension: .pdf
• File Size: 1,224,146 bytes (1.167 MB)
• Title: –
• Author: Unknown
• Pages: 45
• Language: English (en)

Reading & Word Statistics

• Estimated Reading Time: 41.22 minutes
• Total Words: 8,243
• Total Characters: 46,952
• Average Words per Page: 183.18
• Average Characters per Page: 1043.38

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