Free Never Too Late by Alyssia Leon Page B

women.”
    “As I said I would be.” Her words came out a tad too defensive.
    He oozed a sophisticated gorgeousness that made her want to reach out and touch him. Why, oh why hadn’t she taken more time with her appearance, like the women he knew?
    She stopped herself. 
    For goodness sake, so what if she looked boring? The only reason she was here with him was because he needed someone to show him around Appleby.
    Clasping her hands behind her back to keep them in check, she shot him her best professional smile. “Shall we get going?”
    “Lead the way.”
    They passed Rose Cottage on their way to the south orchard, Jake asking enough questions about the estate that their conversation stayed thankfully neutral.
    The trees in the orchard hung heavy with green apples, shiny purple cherries, and yellow-green pears. The sweet scent of ripe fruit filled the air and a few crushed cherries littered the grass around them.
    “Most of this looks ready.” He glanced up at the weighted branches above them.
    “The cherries are. Nate and a few men from Ayers farm will be harvesting them this weekend. They’ll pick the pears too because those don’t taste the best if left to ripen on the tree. The apples need another month.”
    Reaching up, he plucked two plump cherries and handed one to her. He popped one in his mouth. “That tastes good.”
    She bit the dark fruit, relishing the instant pop of sweet juice that flowed over her tongue.
    They reached the outer edge of the orchard and he glanced back at the forest of fruit-laden trees. “That’s a lot of fruit. Your grandfather sure didn’t skimp. What happens to it all?”
    “We sell in bulk to Ayers Farm, like all the other orchards in Appleby. Martin deals with Barrowdene’s accounts for that.”
    He frowned. “Francine mentioned him, but he’s not an accountant, is he?”
    They turned to walk down the open green field and she couldn’t decipher his shuttered expression. “No, but he’s always looked after Barrowdene for Francine, and done it well.”
    “You like working for him, Molly?”
    “He’s an excellent boss, a good friend really.” She glanced at him. “Why are you asking about Martin?”
    He smiled. “I’m just curious about anyone who has dealings with Barrowdene.”
    That made sense. Of course, he’d want to know more about the people here.
    Ahead of them, a little stream burbled noisily in a shallow valley, and with sudden concern she remembered the excited duo of earlier. “I’m really sorry about the girls this morning. I’ll make sure they don’t disturb you in your room again.”
    He burst out laughing. “Francine warned me the grapevine around here was scorching. The gilded version’s probably done the rounds by now, so I guess I’d better ready myself for a whole lot of damning looks today.”
    “No, I know them. They’re young and silly, but they won’t exaggerate.”
    “You’ve been suffering with the rumour mill too, haven’t you, Molly?” He studied her.
    “Wh–what do you mean?”
    “Just that you’re fresh out of a relationship, and the guy’s back here flaunting his new fiancée.”
    She gasped. “How do you…?” Then realization hit. “Nan! What else did she tell you?”
    His eyes narrowed. “Your one and only relationship and apparently, it should never have happened.”
    Mortification sent dull heat scorching to her cheeks. For some reason, Jake knowing about her failed relationship made her want to jump in the shallow stream and drown. 
    “Brian didn’t do this on purpose. You can’t help who you fall in love with.” She bit her lip at the lie. Brian may be with Abby, but was it really about love?
    He gave a derisive bark of laughter. “Love! Only a woman would cling to that old trope. Didn’t he love you once? What was it about this woman that had him loving her all of a sudden?”
    “Just because you don’t know what love is…” she snapped. “Brian didn’t do this to hurt me. I wasn’t what