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Picnics in Hyde Park
Nikki Moore
‘Whoever said romance was dead has clearly never read a Nikki Moore book’ – Rachel’s Random ReadsThe last story in the fun & flirty #LoveLondon series from exciting new chick lit author Nikki Moore! The perfect novel for reading in the sunshine … and falling in love with London.Hot summer romance…or cold revenge?Super nanny, Zoe Harper is mad! It was bad enough discovering her ex-fiancé Greg cheating on her just weeks before their wedding. But now she’s returned home to London to find her younger sister Melody has been left jobless, homeless, broke and dumped.Zoe is determined to get revenge on the infamous Reilly brothers for her sister’s heartbreak. So when an unexpected opportunity gives Zoe a way in to uncaring—and dizzyingly gorgeous!—successful music producer Matt Reilly’s world, she jumps at the chance to make him pay.But living with Matt as nanny to his two adorable, but complicated children, Zoe soon begins to suspect that not everything is as it seems… Matt insists on pushing everyone away including his children, but why? And if his delicious summer kisses are anything to go by, he can’t be that bad surely?Can Zoe convince Matt to open up a little and help fix this family before she leaves…or worse, before Matt learns who she really is?
A division of HarperCollinsPublishers
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Copyright (#ud4dc24ac-9031-5016-a363-63b12dae5864)
HarperImpulse an imprint of
HarperCollinsPublishers
1 London Bridge Street
London SE1 9GF
www.harpercollins.co.uk (http://www.harpercollins.co.uk)
First published in Great Britain by HarperImpulse 2015
Copyright © Nikki Moore 2015
Cover images © Shutterstock.com
Cover layout design © HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd 2015
Nikki Moore asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
This novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is entirely coincidental.
All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins.
Digital eFirst: Automatically produced by Atomik ePublisher from Easypress.
Ebook Edition © July 2015 ISBN: 9780007583249
Version: 2017-10-10
Praise for Nikki Moore’s #LoveLondon Series (#ulink_b962b61c-4d04-57eb-a2be-2afbd5eeb57e)
’I know that Nikki Moore is an author that I can trust to deliver the feel good factor in whatever she writes…definitely one of my top author finds of the past year!’
Lisa Talks About
’I loved every single minute of this fun, flirty romance … the perfect read for your boring commute to work.’
Bookaholic Confessions
’Uplifting and at the same time thought provoking too. I guarantee you’ll be hitting that button on Amazon to order the fourth book in the #LoveLondon series as soon as you’ve finished this one.’
Dawn, Crooks on Books
’Game, Set and Match to a lovely romantic story full of sensuality, poignancy and humour … This short story flowed like a novel and the ending was believable. A lovely summer read.’
Jane Hunt Reviews
’A sweet and flirty short story, I really enjoyed it. I can’t wait to see what Nikki comes up with for the next book in the series.’
Sky’s Book Corner
Dedication (#ud4dc24ac-9031-5016-a363-63b12dae5864)
To my sister Natasha, who may be younger than me, but who is infinitely wiser some (but not all) of the time! Thanks for everything, love you Sis x
To my big little brother Ryan, we may not have a lot in common but when it matters, we’re there for each other. Lots of love, x
To Mark, my family and friends; thank you so much for the support during the last nine months of #LoveLondon madness! x
To Charlotte Ledger, for being so fantastic. Look what we did! x
Contents
Cover (#u686b0c59-a791-5c64-a4b9-ab7b7d84c822)
Title Page (#u108f13b3-e7be-5133-bfb6-ae960eeddab4)
Copyright
Praise for Nikki Moore’s #LoveLondon Series (#u4f538904-b447-5e29-967c-a3bcdbd67f60)
Dedication
#LoveLondon Series (#u8f269727-de48-5db2-95e6-22fde44c9fa9)
Chapter 1 (#ub4419fb6-aa6f-55b6-8b44-ea8ad9bcbf28)
Chapter 2 (#uf08fb250-a489-52d6-9cf4-dbfd375d2c2d)
Chapter 3 (#u06e5632b-93df-51a1-b8bb-df257840bfe3)
Chapter 4 (#u218a6551-3e6b-52cf-a795-100c2631439a)
Chapter 5 (#u1adcfdb1-2f2f-5b59-8b97-5f25e9ae98ac)
Chapter 6 (#u363b4533-6973-5ac2-800a-e06f872e3ffa)
Chapter 7 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 8 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 9 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 10 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 11 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 12 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 13 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 14 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 15 (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter 16 (#litres_trial_promo)
Bonus Material (#litres_trial_promo)
Skating at Somerset House (#litres_trial_promo)
Author Note (#litres_trial_promo)
Author Q&A with Nikki Moore (#litres_trial_promo)
Reader Q&A (#litres_trial_promo)
Also by Nikki Moore (#litres_trial_promo)
Nikki Moore (#litres_trial_promo)
About HarperImpulse
About the Publisher (#litres_trial_promo)
#LoveLondon Series (#ud4dc24ac-9031-5016-a363-63b12dae5864)
Skating at Somerset House
New Year at the Ritz
Valentine’s on Primrose Hill
Cocktails in Chelsea
Strawberries at Wimbledon
Picnics in Hyde Park
1 (#ulink_b962b61c-4d04-57eb-a2be-2afbd5eeb57e)
Matt Reilly is a complete, unbelievable bastard and I’m going to make him pay, Zoe Harper vowed as she pounded the gold lion-head knocker against the door of his exclusive Knightsbridge residence.
When there was no response, she switched to thumping the glossy black wood with the side of her fist.
Thud. Thud. Thud.
Answer. The. Door.
Utter fury was squeezing her chest so tight it felt like her ribs were suffocating her lungs and a horrible pressure was building behind her eyeballs, the sure sign of a tension headache.
Where the hell was he? She stepped back to gaze up at the impressive facade of the town house, which had to be at least four storeys tall including the basement area below her. The top two floors were exposed brickwork but the ground and lower floors were painted white, decorated with manicured window boxes. The property screamed refined wealth, as did the beautiful leafy communal garden area in the middle of the square. He must have paid extra for the property, which sat back from the road slightly. It was one of the only houses with off-road parking.
She turned to look at the gravel driveway. Someone had to be in, there were three cars parked up; a garish, canary-yellow convertible sports model, a sexy low-slung black supercar and a more modest silver Prius hybrid.
Thudding the door again, there was still no answer.
If she was some kick-ass action movie heroine she could bust the door down, flatten whichever of the selfish idiots was inside (although both at the same time would be preferable) and just be done with it. But at five foot seven, as well as pounds lighter than she’d been in years, she hardly looked or felt the part. Still, if there was anything guaranteed to bring out her fighting side it was protecting her younger sister Melody. She was her only proper family left apart from their Great Aunt Ruth, who’d always been distant and had all the affection of a watermelon.
What it came down to was that anyone who hurt Melody deserved justice. But she didn’t really believe in violence, and ruining her beautiful nails with their miniature stars and stripes design on every tip didn’t appeal either. The manicure was a present from her ex-boss Liberty, named after the statue of. It was something to remember New York by, a city she’d come to love. But better not to think about that, or what else she’d loved and lost.
Where the heck was Mr. High and Mighty Reilly, or for that matter, his younger brother Stephen? Surely they had enough staff to answer the bloody door for them. A girl could die of heatstroke out here. The midday sun was ferocious and prickling heat along the back of her neck. It was sure to be scarlet by dinner time.
Thud. Thud. Thud.
Her hand was never going to be the same again. Then she’d be suing the sods for personal injury as well as emotional trauma for Melody. Her sibling had been crying so hard at Jemima’s flat in multicultural, packed Holloway that Zoe hadn’t been able to get the full story on arrival from Heathrow. There’d just been a lot of mumbling and sobbing around swollen red eyes and handfuls of soggy tissues. Still, what she’d figured out had been enough to instantly trigger her big sister reflexes. The stale, stuffy black cab had made for a nightmare journey across London but the sunlight glinting off the windows had matched her heated, murderous thoughts perfectly. She’d avoided direct eye contact with the chatty driver, jaw clenched as she replayed the fragments of her sister’s story in her head.
Fell in love with Stephen…Matt ended it, fired me…kicked me out without notice… never see the kids again… looked after them for three years!
How dare he? It was bloody outrageous and unbelievably unfair. How could anyone be so uncaring that they’d do someone who trusted them out of a relationship, job, home and salary all on the same day? So here she was outside of his posh, rich-guy’s, I’m so fabulous home, fully intending to grab her sister’s belongings as well as telling Matt Reilly exactly what she thought of a guy who’d treat a naïve twenty-two year old like dirt. If she could grab his brother by the scruff of the neck at the same time and give him a good shake for helping break her sister’s heart, she’d do that too. He had a lot of explaining to do as to why he wasn’t answering Mel’s calls.
Bloody men. They were a faithless lot at the best of times, the reason she’d left the States after five long years. But her sister’s boss had reached new levels of bastardom, if that was even a word.
Part of her wished that when confronted, Matt might admit he’d made a terrible mistake, beg forgiveness, tell Melody that of course she was good enough for his brother, and ask her to come back to them. But the text that had just pinged on her mobile meant the idea was a non-starter.
Appreciate the support Sis, but
please don’t cause a scene and
DON’T try and get my job back.
I’m never going back there.
M x
Zoe didn’t really want her sister anywhere near them anyway. Still, an apology from Matt, an opportunity for Melody to say goodbye to the kids properly, pick up her belongings and be offered some kind of compensation for the notice pay she was surely entitled to would be something. Along with some explanation as to why Stephen had gone AWOL and seemed to be letting Matt make all the decisions. Perhaps he didn’t feel able to stand up to him? Or maybe he was intimidated by his older brother’s success.
