Bella was walking Alfie over the hills a while later and she pulled her phone out of her pocket and gave Eden a call.

She answered on the first ring. ‘Well, tell me all about your hot date?’

Clearly the town grapevine had not reached Eden’s ears yet. But then she probably wasn’t at work yet. Lots of people popped into Eden’s pottery café in the mornings to grab a coffee and one of Eden’s homemade pastries. The pastries were apparently the best on the island so she always had a steady stream of customers buying them before their day at work and quite often bringing all the latest gossip with them.

‘It was very hot.’

Eden squealed.

‘Isaac’s house burnt down.’

‘No! Oh my god, that was his house? I saw the smoke and heard the fire brigade rushing to the scene, I didn’t realise it was Isaac’s house on fire. Is he OK?’

‘He lost his dog.’ Bella swallowed down the pain she felt at Isaac’s loss. The dog wasn’t even hers but she knew how much that would have destroyed him and she hated for him to go through that. ‘Isaac was pretty cut up about it, as you would expect. He lost everything, the house was completely destroyed, but I think more than anything it was losing his dog that destroyed him.’

‘Oh no, how horribly upsetting for him. I take it the date was well and truly over after that.’

Bella bit her lip. It was awful that they had ended up making love mainly because Isaac needed the comfort of it after the fire, but she couldn’t stop smiling about the incredible night they had spent together. It would have happened anyway, the chemistry that had been sparking between them since they’d met was a clear indication of that, but the fire had probably brought it forward by a few days.

‘Well he stayed at mine and we took a shower together and then we—’

Alfie barking up ahead distracted her, especially as there was a familiar yapping joining in with the barking.

‘Eden, I’ll call you back.’

‘What? You can’t leave it there. That’s the worst cliff-hanger ever.’

Bella laughed. ‘I have to go.’

She hung up as Eden squawked her protest and ran into the little copse of trees up ahead.

There was Rocket, jumping up and down all over Alfie, gleefully greeting him as if she hadn’t seen him for days. The dog was covered in mud but looked completely unharmed and unfazed by her brush with death. Bella’s heart soared at having found her. It would be so much easier for Isaac to cope with the loss of his house knowing that Rocket had made it out alive.

‘Rocket, here girl.’ Bella sank to her knees and Rocket leapt up to lick her face. She threw her arms round her, tears spilling over onto her cheeks. She was alive and she couldn’t wait to tell Isaac.

* * *

Bella ran into the office with Rocket bouncing on the end of Alfie’s lead as if the last twenty-four hours hadn’t been horrible and terrifying. She had given her a bath and checked her all over and she seemed fine, but now she was a few minutes late for work which didn’t look good on her third day at work. Though she had a sneaky suspicion the boss wouldn’t be firing her for it.

She had thought about just telling Isaac that Rocket was OK, but she knew that he would want to see the dog.

She rushed into the lift, ignoring the curious looks from people at her bringing a dog into the building. She pressed the button to take her to the top floor, suddenly having doubts that she was doing the right thing. Isaac had specifically said not to come to his office in case people started to get suspicious. But as the doors pinged open on his floor, Bella knew it was too late to back out now.

As she walked out, she noticed a blonde woman she hadn’t seen at the Umbrella Foundation before sitting where Claudia normally sat. She looked up at Bella as she exited the lift and Bella immediately recognised her. Melissa Bridge had been in her year at school but like everyone else in her class had moved away from Hope Island and not come back. Well, she was back now. Bella sighed. Unless Melissa had changed significantly over the years, she was going to make it difficult for her.

Melissa arched an eyebrow at her as she approached and it was clear she remembered Bella too.

‘Hello, Bella.’

Just in those two words, there was so much contempt.

‘Hello Melissa. I need to see Isaac,’ Bella said.

‘All meetings and appointments have been cancelled today. Claudia will be in touch later to reschedule.’

She tried her best smile. ‘I don’t have an appointment, I just need to see him. It’s important.’

‘Mr Scott has left specific instructions that he is not to be disturbed by anyone. I don’t think you’re important enough for me to break that rule.’

Bella swallowed down her impatience. ‘Look, if you can just call through to his office and tell him I’m here. I’m sure he would be able to accommodate me for a few minutes.’

‘I’m not allowed to do that. Claudia said no calls through to the office.’

Rocket gave a bark of frustration, pulling at her lead, and Melissa looked down at her. ‘I don’t think you’re allowed to bring dogs in here.’

‘I don’t think there is any rule about dogs,’ Bella said, contemplating storming past Melissa and just letting herself into the office.

‘Bella?’

Bella turned round to see Claudia, who had evidently just walked out of Isaac’s office. Clearly the whole ‘not to be disturbed by anyone’ rule didn’t apply to her.

‘Are you OK?’ Claudia asked.

‘I just really need to see Isaac.’

‘Sure, go on in.’

Bella was surprised at how easily Claudia had caved when Melissa was clinging onto the rules so tightly. She glanced over at Melissa who also looked surprised.

Not wanting to waste any more time, she hurried over to the door but Claudia stopped her with a hand on her arm. She spoke quietly so that Melissa couldn’t hear.

‘He’s exhausted; he said he didn’t get any sleep last night.’

Bella didn’t want to say that the main reason that neither of them had got any sleep was that they had made love three times and spent most of the night talking.

‘I’ve cancelled all his meetings for the rest of the week so he can sort out the issues with the house. He has a telephone call at half eleven that he has to take but after that I’ve booked him into a hotel and I think he’s going to go straight there after the call. I think it all hit him this morning when he realised how much stress is going to be involved in getting the house sorted. Thank goodness you were there for him last night, I hate to think of him dealing with this alone.’

That surprised Bella. Claudia knew about them? Isaac had specifically said not to tell anyone but he’d told his PA?

‘Go on in, I’m sure he’ll be glad to see you…’ Claudia noticed Rocket for the first time. ‘Is that… his dog?’

‘Yes, I found her, that’s why I’m here.’

‘Well I think that’s just what he needs this morning.’ Claudia gestured for her to go in and then walked back over to the desk.

‘I thought you said no one was allowed in to see Mr Scott?’ Melissa said, grumpily.

‘Bella’s a friend,’ Claudia explained.

Bella slipped inside the office, still confused that Claudia seemed to know all about them. As she shut the door she saw Isaac lying on the sofa with his eyes closed. She wasn’t sure if he was asleep but if he was Rocket soon took care of that as she let out a yelp of excitement at seeing Isaac again.

Isaac immediately sat up and Bella was gratified to see first his smile at seeing her and then that smile growing with relief as he saw Rocket.

‘Rocket!’ Isaac called her and Bella let go of the lead and Rocket ran over to the sofa and leapt up on Isaac’s lap, yelping and jumping all over Isaac with excitement. Isaac hugged her tight, burying his face in the top of Rocket’s head. ‘God, you stupid daft dog, you have no idea how happy I am to see you.’

Bella smiled at them, knowing instantly she’d done the right thing in bringing Rocket here, even if it did put their relationship at risk of being found out.

‘I’ve given her a bath and I’ve checked her over and she doesn’t seem hurt in any way but I can always take her to the vets tonight for you.’

Isaac looked up at her, and as Rocket leapt off to explore and sniff around the office, clearly done with the reunion, he got up and walked over to her.

‘I can’t believe you found her,’ he said, kissing her head fondly before gathering her into his arms.

‘I wish I could take the credit but it was Alfie that found her, not me.’

‘Then I’ll give Alfie a kiss later,’ Isaac said before kissing her sweetly on the lips. ‘Thank you for bringing her to me.’ He held her close again. ‘I’ve had a crap morning and it’s only nine o’clock. The call from Japan was cancelled and so I made a list of everything that I needed to do with regards to the house and, after three pages of notes, I honestly wanted to curl up in a ball and cry. I’ve lost everything. And then you walk in here with your big beautiful smile and I suddenly feel I’m the luckiest man alive.’

Bella smiled at the compliment, that warmth of affection for this man growing in her chest. ‘I wish I could do something to help you with all of this.’

‘You are, believe me you are. Claudia is going to take care of a lot of it for me. That’s why she’s borrowed Melissa from the admin team to help deal with any of my calls and emails for me, while Claudia is going to try to find me somewhere to live and sort out what happens next with the insurance.’ He sighed. ‘Come and lie with me for a little while.’

Bella laughed. ‘I have to go to work. I have a fair to organise and only just over a week to do it in.’

‘Just a little while. I promise you won’t get into trouble with your boss.’

‘I don’t know, I’ve heard he can be quite strict.’

‘I’ll handle him.’

Rocket was already curled up on the rug in front of the sofa, snoring loudly. Isaac tugged Bella back over to the sofa and lay down and then shuffled over to make room for her. She lay down next to him and he wrapped his arms around her and held her close. She snuggled against him with her head on his chest and her arm across his stomach.

His breathing became heavy and a few minutes later it was quite evident that he was fast asleep. She closed her eyes and snuggled closer.

The next thing Bella was aware of was Claudia standing over them. Crap. If there was any doubt at all in Claudia’s mind that they were together, that doubt had certainly been dispelled now.

Claudia smiled at Bella and gently shook Isaac awake. ‘Isaac, Mr Tyler is on the phone for you, I know you need to take this call.’

Isaac stretched and groaned. Bella tried to remove herself from his arms but he instinctively held her tighter against him, seemingly not at all bothered by Claudia seeing them. ‘What time is it?’

‘Half eleven exactly. You know Mr Tyler is never late.’

‘Crap. Half eleven? I need to go,’ Bella said. How had she fallen asleep for over two hours?

Isaac sat up and Bella did too. ‘Thanks Claudia, can you just stall him for thirty seconds? Tell him I’m just finishing up on another call or something.’

Claudia nodded with understanding and left them alone.

‘I have to go,’ Bella said, straightening her hair and standing up.

Isaac stood up too, cupped her face in his hands and kissed her sweetly. God this man. She could easily stay there all day and kiss him.

She pulled back slightly. ‘You’re a bad influence on me, Mr Scott.’

He grinned. ‘You’re the best influence on me.’

She smiled. ‘Take your call. I’ll see you later.’

‘You can count on it.’

She scurried out the office, ignoring the glare from Melissa. Bella was quite sure Melissa would have made her own mind up about what Bella had been doing in the office with Isaac for the last two hours. She waved at Claudia and hurried into the lift.

* * *

Bella was sitting in her office later putting together a press release for the spring fair. Everything was slowly coming together.

She hated that she’d been late this morning and although she was going to stop a few hours later tonight to make up for lost time, she felt guilty that she had left Roger and Elsie to get on with the job on their own while she had been upstairs asleep with Isaac. She had told them that she’d had a meeting with Isaac – knowing that several people had seen her entering the building earlier with Rocket, she could hardly lie and say that she was at the dentists. But lots of people had already heard about Isaac’s house and that he had cancelled all meetings. The fact that he had made time for her and a supposed two-hour meeting was clearly a bit suspicious. She was sure Melissa would have told everyone she could by now about the inordinate amount of time Bella had spent in Isaac’s office. Coupled with the gossip that had no doubt spread around the island from the fire brigade and the taxi driver about the two of them being together, the chances of them keeping it quiet for much longer were looking slim.

Isaac had messaged her earlier to say that he was leaving, shortly after she had left him in his office to take the phone call. A few minutes later, Bella had seen him and Claudia getting into a taxi and disappearing towards the main part of the town. Claudia seemed really nice but Bella wasn’t sure if she could trust her. Now she knew about them, how many people would she tell?

She picked up the phone and made a call through to a local radio station. She was just running through what was going to happen at the fair when Claudia walked in and closed the door behind her.

Claudia gestured for Bella to carry on talking on the phone as she placed a hotel key card for the Royal Oak hotel on her desk. Claudia grabbed a piece of paper and wrote on it a room number. Bella couldn’t help but blush. It suddenly felt a bit seedy.

She gestured for Claudia to hang on and she quickly wrapped up the phone call and hung up.

She picked up the key, not knowing what to say. ‘Is he OK?’

‘He’s fine. He just needs some rest. He said to come round whenever you want and to bring Alfie too as the hotel allows dogs.’

It was quite obvious Isaac intended for her to spend the night with him and that Claudia knew this too.

‘Claudia, this thing between me and Isaac…’ She trailed off. How could she even begin to categorise it? She couldn’t say it wasn’t serious because it was. It was something incredible but she could hardly tell Claudia that either. ‘We’re trying to keep it secret.’

‘I know, that was my idea. Though to be honest, I don’t think we’ll be able to keep it quiet for much longer. But Isaac wants to protect you. I’m sure everyone will have an opinion about the two of you once they find out and I imagine most of it will involve you sleeping with the boss to get the job or him giving you the job because you were dating.’

Bella gasped. ‘That’s not how it is at all.’

‘I know, I understand. I’ve known him for many years, too many to count and—’

‘Let me guess, you’ve seen many women come and go.’

‘No. I mean, sure there have been quite a few women that he has gone out on a few dates with and never seen again, but there’s never been anyone serious for him. I guess you can say he has trust issues. He made his money very quickly and everyone wanted a piece of him after that. It’s hard for him to find someone who genuinely wants to get to know him for him, not for how much money he has in his pocket. It’s not just the women who hang around him like bees around a honeypot. All the men want to be his best friend too. I think in part that was why he wanted to come back here; everyone knows who he is in London. No one cares who he is here. You took him in and befriended him when you thought he had nothing, that’s a huge novelty for him. I’ve honestly never seen him like this about a woman before. I think he’s falling in love with you. And judging by when I came into the office shortly after you’d arrived and found you both fast asleep, you curled around him with the biggest smile on your face, I’m guessing you’re falling in love with him too.’

‘I’m not in love with him,’ Bella said, surprised by how easily the denial slipped from her lips when just the thought of him made her smile so much. The feelings she had for Isaac were not like anything she had ever experienced before but she was scared to label it as love. Love came with so many expectations and ultimately so much disappointment. ‘I care about him. A lot. He makes me ridiculously happy. But it’s too early for love.’

Claudia smiled as if she thought differently. ‘He said the same thing, but as I told him, love doesn’t work to a schedule. Just enjoy it, Bella. It’s rare that something as special as this comes along for us. Don’t let fear of what might happen ruin it for you.’

Bella nodded and Claudia left her alone in the office. She looked at the key and smiled. She would just enjoy each moment as it came and she was definitely going to enjoy that evening.

* * *

Bella walked into the hotel that night with Alfie. She had stayed a little later at the office and then gone home and walked Alfie before getting changed and coming over to the hotel.

She wondered what the hotel staff thought of her staying in Isaac’s room for the night. Everything had happened so fast between them, and island gossip with its own embellishments and opinions travelled equally as fast, so she was sure half the island knew about them by now and, as Claudia had said, many of them would think the worst.

She walked into the lift and smiled at the porter she recognised as one of her uncle Finn’s friends, Abe.

‘Good evening, Miss Roussel,’ Abe said, pressing the button for the top floor without even asking where Bella was going. Evidently Isaac had made it clear to the hotel staff that he was expecting her. The doors closed and her cheeks flushed that one of her uncle’s friends knew she was spending a night of passion in the hotel. Would Abe tell her uncle, would Finn be disappointed? Abe turned to her. ‘And who is this handsome chap?’

Bella smiled. ‘This is Alfie.’

Alfie wagged his tail furiously as Abe bent down to stroke him. ‘I had the pleasure of meeting Rocket earlier today, adorable little thing. I think Rocket and Alfie would make a good partnership. Mr Scott was telling me about her and how she spooks easily and it took her a long while for her to learn to trust him. He thinks she had a rough few years and was treated badly but he thinks she knows now that he’s never going to let her down. It fills my heart to see that Rocket now has this chance at happiness. I think Alfie will be good for her. He has that calm, loyal quality I admire in a… dog.’

Bella stared at him and then the doors pinged open.

‘Have a good evening, Miss Roussel.’

‘Thank you,’ Bella said quietly as she walked out, knowing that Abe had certainly not been talking about Rocket.

Were a lot of people looking at her and Isaac and thinking, like Abe and Claudia, that it was love and that they were happy for Bella after her awful childhood? Is that what people thought, that Bella just needed a nice man to look after her? She didn’t need anyone to look after her. Relying on someone else for her own happiness was a mistake because then they were also responsible for her sadness too.

She let herself into Isaac’s room and Rocket came running to greet them, well specifically Alfie. She called out to Isaac but there was no answer. She looked around the room as the two dogs chased each other around.

The room was huge, with a large U-shaped grey velvet sofa sitting opposite a TV that took up most of the wall. The bedroom, which had the biggest bed she had ever seen, was to the right of the lounge, but it was the view that captured her attention, the moon glowing over the silver sea. Blueberry Bay was immediately in front of the hotel, one of her favourite places on the island because it was so secluded. Beyond that, on the edge of the headland was Mistletoe Cove surrounded by the hawthorn trees that were just starting to bloom. Later in the year the trees would be covered in the white berries of mistletoe that gave the cove its name.

She turned her attention back to the dogs and saw that Alfie had settled himself down on the large dog bed that Isaac had bought for Rocket and Rocket was leaping over him, but eventually his stillness calmed her down and she snuggled into his side. Alfie licked the top of her head a few times and then rested his head on top of hers and closed his eyes. Abe was right, Alfie was good for Rocket, and in her heart she knew that Isaac was good for her too.

Suddenly she didn’t care what people thought, whether they judged her for sleeping with the boss, whether they thought she had got the job by jumping into bed with him. She knew the truth and she knew they were doing nothing wrong. She didn’t care if people were looking at her thinking she had found love and were happy for her. It was no one’s business but hers and Isaac’s. He made her happy, it was as simple as that. And Claudia was right, there was no point in letting fear of the future ruin what they had now.

Thinking about the welcome she could give Isaac when he finally returned from wherever he was, she slipped out of her dress and underwear, dimmed the lights and arranged herself naked on the sofa in prime view of the door when he walked in.

Minutes ticked by and there was still no sign of him. She couldn’t even call him as he had lost his phone in the fire and she wasn’t sure if he had a replacement yet.

Eventually, just as she was starting to get cold, she heard the key in the lock and Rocket shot to the door to greet Isaac.

She quickly arranged herself in what she hoped was a sexy pose and the door opened.

‘That’s brilliant,’ Isaac laughed. Clearly he’d had a new phone delivered to him and he was talking to someone on it.

Isaac hit the lights, turning them on full, and as his eyes became accustomed to the brightness he saw her and the smile fell from his face. That wasn’t the look she was hoping for.

‘I know, that’s what I thought,’ came a familiar male voice, right behind Isaac.

Bella’s heart leapt as she saw Dougie Harrison step into the room and bend down to stroke Rocket.

She let out a little yelp, desperately looked around to try to find something to cover her nudity, realised there was nothing, and as Dougie started to straighten back up, she did a little ninja roll over the back of the sofa and hit the floor by the window hard.