down the corners of her mouth and cocked her head to one side, as if she was trying to believe him, but couldn’t quite let herself off the hook.
‘Thank you for what you did. I’ll never forget it.’
Foster shrugged.
‘It’s my job.’
‘Just your job?’
He held her gaze, but said nothing. Eventually she smiled and the worry began to lift from her face.
‘Just doing your job,’ she said.
‘That’s such a cliché.’
Foster smiled.
‘There’s no pleasing some people.’
They ordered food, and for once Kirsten Keller demolished hers without looking up from her plate.
‘You sure I couldn’t tempt you to join my team?’ she said after dessert.
‘I could show you the world.’
Foster shook his head.
‘I’ve seen enough of it already, Kirsten.’
She smiled, unsurprised by his answer.
Their eyes locked for a moment, both of them imagining how it could be, if they were together.
‘Well,’ Keller said eventually, ‘if you ever change your mind …’
They both smiled, and Foster went back to watching the sky.
‘When do you fly?’ Foster asked.
‘Tomorrow.’
‘Straight home?’
She shook her head.
‘I’m taking a few days in Florence. Maria’s family are flying her home, and her funeral is next week. I want to be there. Basilia’s coming, too. I guess some things are more important than tennis.’
‘Will you replay the final?’ Foster asked.
She shook her head.
‘I’ll come back if they can organise it,’ she said. ‘But I don’t think they will.’
Foster told her she’d win the next tournament, and she told him he could bank on it, suddenly sassy and confident.
‘Do you feel safe now?’ Foster asked her.
‘I’d feel safer if you stayed tonight,’ she said, and her eyes sparkled like the late sunshine glinting on the Thames far below.
This ebook is copyright material and must not be copied, reproduced, transferred, distributed, leased, licensed or publicly performed or used in any way except as specifically permitted in writing by the publishers, as allowed under the terms and conditions under which it was purchased or as strictly permitted by applicable copyright law. Any unauthorized distribution or use of this text may be a direct infringement of the author’s and publisher’s rights and those responsible may be liable in law accordingly.
Epub ISBN: 9781786530141
Version 1.0
Published by BookShots 2016
1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2
Copyright © James Patterson 2016
Cover design © www.blacksheep-uk.com
Cover photograph © Shutterstock
The BookShots name and logo are a trademark of JBP Business, LLC.
James Patterson has asserted his right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988, to be identified as the author of this work.
This is a work of fiction. All characters and descriptions of events are the products of the author’s imagination and any resemblance to actual persons is entirely coincidental
First published in Great Britain in 2016 by BookShots
BookShots
The Penguin Random House Group Limited
20 Vauxhall Bridge Road, London, SW1V 2SA
www.penguin.co.uk
BookShots is part of the Penguin Random House group of companies whose addresses can be found at global.penguinrandomhouse.com
A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
ISBN 9781786530134
‘Thank you for what you did. I’ll never forget it.’
Foster shrugged.
‘It’s my job.’
‘Just your job?’
He held her gaze, but said nothing. Eventually she smiled and the worry began to lift from her face.
‘Just doing your job,’ she said.
‘That’s such a cliché.’
Foster smiled.
‘There’s no pleasing some people.’
They ordered food, and for once Kirsten Keller demolished hers without looking up from her plate.
‘You sure I couldn’t tempt you to join my team?’ she said after dessert.
‘I could show you the world.’
Foster shook his head.
‘I’ve seen enough of it already, Kirsten.’
She smiled, unsurprised by his answer.
Their eyes locked for a moment, both of them imagining how it could be, if they were together.
‘Well,’ Keller said eventually, ‘if you ever change your mind …’
They both smiled, and Foster went back to watching the sky.
‘When do you fly?’ Foster asked.
‘Tomorrow.’
‘Straight home?’
She shook her head.
‘I’m taking a few days in Florence. Maria’s family are flying her home, and her funeral is next week. I want to be there. Basilia’s coming, too. I guess some things are more important than tennis.’
‘Will you replay the final?’ Foster asked.
She shook her head.
‘I’ll come back if they can organise it,’ she said. ‘But I don’t think they will.’
Foster told her she’d win the next tournament, and she told him he could bank on it, suddenly sassy and confident.
‘Do you feel safe now?’ Foster asked her.
‘I’d feel safer if you stayed tonight,’ she said, and her eyes sparkled like the late sunshine glinting on the Thames far below.
This ebook is copyright material and must not be copied, reproduced, transferred, distributed, leased, licensed or publicly performed or used in any way except as specifically permitted in writing by the publishers, as allowed under the terms and conditions under which it was purchased or as strictly permitted by applicable copyright law. Any unauthorized distribution or use of this text may be a direct infringement of the author’s and publisher’s rights and those responsible may be liable in law accordingly.
Epub ISBN: 9781786530141
Version 1.0
Published by BookShots 2016
1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2
Copyright © James Patterson 2016
Cover design © www.blacksheep-uk.com
Cover photograph © Shutterstock
The BookShots name and logo are a trademark of JBP Business, LLC.
James Patterson has asserted his right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988, to be identified as the author of this work.
This is a work of fiction. All characters and descriptions of events are the products of the author’s imagination and any resemblance to actual persons is entirely coincidental
First published in Great Britain in 2016 by BookShots
BookShots
The Penguin Random House Group Limited
20 Vauxhall Bridge Road, London, SW1V 2SA
www.penguin.co.uk
BookShots is part of the Penguin Random House group of companies whose addresses can be found at global.penguinrandomhouse.com
A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
ISBN 9781786530134
Similar Books
In the Court of the Yellow King
Tim Curran, Cody Goodfellow, Gary McMahon, C.J. Henderson, William Meikle, T.E. Grau, Laurel Halbany, Christine Morgan, Edward Morris
