Man of the Match: hot celebrity romance (FULL NOVEL)

6. Playing the game

[RECAP: Cara ended up spending the night with Matt, which was her first time.]

Cara awoke in the early hours, around dawn. She could see the sky growing lighter over the sea. Matt was fast asleep, in a deep, heavy slumber, and barely stirred when she carefully lifted his arm off her.

She wasn't sure quite what she should do, but she suspected it would be very awkward if he woke up and she was there. After all it was only supposed to be a casual thing. And he had to play a cricket match in a few hours' time.

Lying there, only half covered by the sheets, he looked like a sculpted bronze statue. Cara allowed herself one more gaze, trying to capture it in her mind so she would remember him always, slipped on her clothes and crept out.

Back in her room she showered, and then tried to go to sleep again for a couple of hours. But it was impossible: her mind was whirling.

She wanted to avoid him and the rest of the players at all costs, so she hid away in her room and tried to do some study until she was sure they must have breakfasted and been long gone to the cricket match. Then and only then did she finally put on a new outfit for the day and venture downstairs.

As she passed the lobby to the veranda, where she planned to order a strong coffee, the concierge hailed her. "Madam, there is some post for you."

Cara's first thought was that he meant post from overseas, and had a moment of consternation. Was there an emergency back home? But no, surely they would have telephoned if there had been. For one moment she wondered if it was from Declan, until the concierge handed her a plain white envelope with no address and no stamp.

She took it to the veranda with her and opened it.

It contained two tickets to the test match that day.

Only Matt could have sent it. It must mean he wanted her to come. His team mates wouldn't have put them there for a prank, would they? Surely none of them knew, she was confident no one had seen them leave the hotel together the previous evening nor return together.

As she sat there, her emotions conflicted as to what to do, the elderly English couple passed her table. "We're just off to watch the cricket," the man told her. He noticed the tickets that Cara was holding. "Are you coming along too? Why don't you share a ride with us?"

That settled it. Cara could hardly say she wasn't going without generating curiosity. She thanked them, and got up to go.

"Do you need to wait for a companion?" the woman asked. Cara was confused, then realised she was holding two tickets.

"No, it's just me. My friend couldn't come," she told them. It was thoughtful of Matt to have sent her two tickets, he must have thought she would have preferred not to go alone. Or maybe he was concerned that if she did go alone, it would arouse suspicion?

At any rate she now had two escorts and it would probably appear to any observers that she was holidaying with the British couple.

In the taxi to the cricket ground they exchanged names. The Hilliers were retired and lived in Surrey. They were both passionate cricket supporters and frequently timed their holidays abroad to coincide with England tours. Cara thought how nice it must be for them to have a shared interest that they had both enjoyed like this.

It reminded her of how little she had had in common with Declan. He liked golf of all things, which bored her to tears. Even if she had shown an interest it was Declan's view that golf wasn't really a game for women to play. At one time she had cherished what she thought of as his old fashioned values.