Saving Miranda: A Love...Maybe Valentine eShort

скачать книгу бесплатно


‘He – er – works for the council,’ I said, trying to dredge up the details. ‘He’s – um – spearheading a brand new initiative to improve recycling in the region.’

‘So he’s in charge of the bins, then.’

I let that pass. Definite whiff of sour grapes there.

No, Rufus was a man with fire in his belly. A man with a cause. A man who cared about the important stuff.

And I was finding that oh-so-sexy.

‘What did you eat? Details please.’

‘A posh burger. You know, with delicatessen cheese and exotic leaves dressed with truffle oil.’

‘Lovely.’

‘But I’m turning vegetarian.’

‘You’re what?’

‘Something Rufus said. Apparently for every hamburger that originated from cows grazing on rainforest land, fifty square feet of forest have been destroyed. Or something like that. I can’t remember the exact details, but I remember being shocked.’

That’s silenced her, I thought. I’d give her time to absorb the enormity of this dire situation.

‘Miranda.’ She sounded strangely calm. ‘We don’t have rainforest in Barnsley. Not the last time I looked, anyway.’

Might have known. Total ignorance when it came to ecological issues.

‘Eliza. That’s hardly the point.’

‘So what else did you talk about?’

‘Oh,’ I said airily. ‘This and that.’

Her scepticism was clear. Probably best not to tell her about the experiment Rufus was carrying out. He was endeavouring to shave precious minutes off his morning shower (for optimum energy savings) and we talked at length about the relative merits of using individual bottles of shampoo, conditioner and shower gel, as opposed to combi-products that did the whole job in one but perhaps not quite as effectively.

His energy and enthusiasm were irresistible. I could have listened for hours.

‘And then?’

‘We went back to mine for coffee. His suggestion.’

‘And?’

I laughed. ‘Well, that’s what was really lovely. He wanted coffee.’

‘I know. You just said that. But what happened?’

‘Nothing happened. We drank our coffee, he popped up to the loft to look at my insulation and then he left.’

Which wasn’t strictly true.

At the door, he slipped his hands round my waist, pulled me to him and kissed me so thoroughly I had to hang onto the door frame for support when he moved away.

‘Thanks for a lovely night,’ he murmured.

One flash of a stomach-flipping smile and he was gone.

*

‘When we first met, you told me you were passionate about the environment.’

‘I was. I am!’

We’re lying in bed after the bath debacle, well and truly tangled up in the sheets. He leans over and picks something up from the floor.

‘So what, may I ask, is this?’

My face turns pink.

It’s my box of tumble-dryer sheets. I’ve been keeping them hidden from Rufus in my knicker drawer. I must have forgotten to put them back. Careless.

I do a mock pout, leaning up on my elbow to look at him. ‘It’s just I hate having washing draped all over the place. I mean, I know tumble dryers are evil beyond belief but sometimes I can’t help myself. Am I forgiven?’

He leaps out of bed. ‘Go on, then.’ Grinning back at me, he strides into the bathroom and turns on the shower. ‘Get in here, you eco-disaster!’

And even though I’ve just had a bath, I don’t need asking twice. We always shower together at my place.

For obvious responsible reasons. And others, too. (Rufus, brilliant teacher that he is, has shown me it’s possible to save energy in the shower and at the same time, expend energy in lots of interesting and imaginative ways.)

I head happily out of the bedroom, a spring in my step. It feels so natural being with Rufus. Of course, because of his commitments, we can only get together once, maybe twice a week. But I’d rather have quality than quantity any day.

And anyway, he’s going to make up for it next week. We’re both taking time off work and he’s even hinted he might sweep me off for a couple of nights in a posh hotel. It also happens to be Valentine’s Day. I’m so excited, I’ve gone off my food, and believe me, that’s pretty unheard of.

I’ve already been shopping with Eliza for a sexy new dress, and when I tried it on in the changing room, she took a photo of me in it and suggested I get it framed and give it to Rufus.