Time for Surprises

by Mette Barfelt

  ***

  "You've pulled off a coup with this house," Gabriel said after finishing his tour. "And you've decorated it nicely. Typical Norwegian with soft colors and practical, comfortable furniture."

  "I think so too." They sat on the sofa with bowls of chocolate mousse on the low coffee table.

  "Did you make this? There's something familiar about it."

  Miranda smiled. "It's from the Flying Fish. Why make dessert yourself when I can't compete with this?"

  "True." He poured wine into their glasses. "Cheers to better days."

  That was worth toasting, indeed. Things could hardly get worse than they had been the last month. "Cheers."

  They clinked their glasses and sipped the wine. Miranda looked into Gabriel's blue eyes and sensed how much she'd missed him the last week. She recognized she'd acted hastily. Instead of letting him support her through this difficult time, she'd pushed him away. But everything was easier to see in retrospect.

  "I'm sorry I've behaved strangely. I had a bout of bad conscience for spending time with you when Vidar lay in the ashes outside my office," she said.

  "I realized that. Being rational is hard in that kind of situation. But this was never your fault, Miranda. Vidar was having an affair with both Olivia and Jasmine, even before I got to know you."

  She frowned. "You're right. Our marriage was in trouble long before he cheated on me. I just didn't get it before it was too late. And then many things happened simultaneously. I worked a lot to get the hotel ready for the opening, we moved to a new house in a new town, and the children weren't motivated for school, nor the move. This is no excuse because I should've seen where we were heading and acted on it."

  "It's always easy to have hindsight," Gabriel said and put his arm around her shoulder. He pulled her close and let his head rest against hers. "Let's look forward instead. It's too late to change the past anyway."

  Miranda reflected on his words. How true. Why not enjoy the present? She didn't know what the future would bring, but right now there was no place she'd rather be than right here in Gabriel's strong arms. She looked up at his empathic face and noticed how her body tingled with anticipation. Her heart beat faster. He was the one she wanted. There was no doubt about how she felt. She was in love. She pressed her mouth against his soft, tempting lips in a kiss that lasted indefinitely, wishing it would never end. And she knew there would be many more to come.

  About the author

  Mette Barfelt is a Norwegian author. After 16 years working for travel agencies and airlines, she educated in marketing and started writing books. She has traveled extensively throughout the world and visited numerous countries. Her passion for travels and cruises resulted in the non-fiction cruise guide "Alt du bør vite om cruise," published by Aschehoug Publishing House in Norway. She is now writing contemporary romances – sweet small town love stories with a dash of suspense. The books in the series are stand-alone novels. She lives with her husband and two teenagers, just outside Oslo in Norway.

  Did you like Time for Surprises?

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  Acknowledgements

  I wish to thank the following people for their contribution to this book:

  My husband, Kjetil, for his great support and technical

  skills.

  Hilde Steinkopf for the translation from Norwegian.

  C.L. Cannon@Fiction-Atlas Author Services for editing.

  Helen Pryke for proofreading.

  Ashraf E. Shalaby for the amazing cover.

  And my fabulous Book Launch Team for their support!