A Will, a Wish...a Proposal. Jessica Gilmore

in his chest ease.

      ‘Hey, Ellie!’ he yelled. ‘Wait for me.’

      He took off after her, enjoying the burn in his calves as he sprinted along the resistant sand, enjoying the complete freedom of the here, the now.

      ‘This is magnificent,’ he panted as he skidded to a halt beside her. ‘What a beach. If I lived here I’d have two dogs, a boat, and I’d surf every day.’

      She flushed. ‘I do walk on the beach, even if I don’t immerse myself in the sea. And I have thought about maybe getting a guinea pig.’

      ‘A guinea pig? You can’t walk a guinea pig.’

      ‘Some people do. They have harnesses and everything.’ But she caught his eye as she said it and a smile broke out on her face: a full-on, wide-mouthed grin.

      It transformed her, lighting up the shadows of her face, bringing that elusive prettiness to the forefront. Max stood stock-still, stunned.

      ‘Harnesses...right. I see.’ He turned back as he said it, instinctively heading for the safety of the large white house just visible at the top of the cliffs.

      He wasn’t here to flirt, and Ellie wasn’t giving off any signals that she might enjoy the kind of no-strings fun he’d be interested in. It was far better not to notice how her face lit up, not to notice the sparkle in the large eyes or the intriguing dimple in her cheek. Far, far better not to notice just how perfectly shaped her mouth was: not too large, not too small, but pretty damn near just right.

      ‘Come on,’ he said, bouncing on his heels. ‘I’ll race you back to the road. Loser buys the winner a pint. Ready? Go!’