His Hired Girlfriend Read Online Free Page B

does
that.”
    “No, he didn’t. I...um...what’s
your name? Are you a friend of Peter?”
    “Yeah, he’s a friend,” she
replied and then hesitated for a moment. “It’s Alexandra, by the
way. Look I have to go back to work. To get out just go this way
and turn right and then down the stairs to the main reception.”
    Jay nodded in
understanding.
    “Sorry again about the tea. As
I said I’m not usually this clumsy. Bye now,” she rushed, and then
she was gone.
    Jayden’s grin stayed with him
all the way to the bottom of the stairs. Her eyes, he thought, such
a deep brown, like the colour of melted chocolate – and she seemed
very sweet and delicious too! There was something about those eyes
that had drawn him in and left him feeling slightly breathless.
    Peter was waiting for him by
the reception desk.
    “What took you so long?”
    “I couldn’t find the bathroom
after all,” Jay replied.
    As they
walked through the door of the hospital, Jay thought – so she’s not usually that clumsy, is
she?
     
     
    ***
     
     
    ALEX GASPED AND span around,
her eyes squinting in the sudden darkness. Had the light bulb blown
again? Damn! She’d have to get the torch and replace it. She shook
her hands out of the warm, soapy water, wiped them dry with a clean
towel and headed round the bench-top. As she groped her way into
the living area she heard a giggle, which sounded very much like
Emma, and there, floating in the darkness was a huge chocolate
cake, candlelight flickering across its surface. Now she could see
her Dad was holding it, and her Mom, with her arm in his. Her best
friend Ruby Williams came into view, removing any doubt over whose
idea this was. Nikita Buchannan and Isabella Robertson were there
too, and everyone was wearing big sloppy birthday smiles.
    “Oh my God!” she murmured.
    Emma giggled
again, as though she couldn’t contain herself, and rushed to stand
next to her. The strains of Happy
Birthday , sung in the traditional
arrangement of out of tune voices, filled the room. A sudden
eruption of light revealed Timothy with his hand on the switch.
Alex blinked away the after-image.
    Alex laughed. She hadn’t
expected this, not after a busy day at work. Usually Saturday was
rather quiet but not this one. It had been hectic and she was dead
tired. She hadn’t except anything more than a family dinner and
then a good night sleep. This was such a surprise. She blinked back
tears as she tightened her arms around her Mom.
    “Happy birthday sweetheart,”
Maly said, squeezing her hard. “Now make a wish.”
    Alex looked at the people
surrounding her. Emma was urging her to quickly blow the candles in
her teenage hyperactive way, just so she could have some cake. “You
guys didn’t have to do this,” emerged from her suddenly tight
throat.
    “Don’t be silly. It’s your
birthday. Of course we have to do this,” Ruby insisted, her braced
teeth flashing with candle highlights.
    “Please, just blow the candles
out. We want cake,” Emma pleaded.
    “Make a wish, sweetheart,”
Jacob said
    Alex looked at her dad and her
eyes flooded with tears. She knew she only had one wish.
    ‘ Dear
lord,’ she whispered to
herself, ‘I wish Dad would get his heart
transplant and that he’d get well.’ She
opened her eyes and moved closer to the flickering candles. She
took a deep breath and closed her eyes and an image of Mr. Hot-Choc appeared in
her mind. What the Hell? She shook her head to clear the image away,
confused.
    “Come on, Alex, blow?” Nikita
squealed.
    Everyone was holding their
breath. She nodded, bent her head and all the candles winked out,
to the sound of ever so slightly sarcastic cheering and
clapping.
    “So what ya wish for?” Tim
asked.
    Alex looked
up at her younger brother. He was gorgeous, with jet black hair,
dark brown eyes, a straight nose and Hollywood jaw-line. Lots of
hearts were going to get broken when he goes to university, she
thought, grinning. “Can’t tell,”