His Very Special Bride. Joanna Neil

left hand and Sarah’s fingers curled into a fist.

      She hadn’t been wearing a ring when the paramedics had found her all those months ago, but there had been a thin, pale line on her finger, which pointed to the fact that she must have worn one at one time. It was another unanswered question about her past, and one that she would rather not deal with here and now.

      ‘I have to find her.’ She waved her hands about her in an agitated gesture.

      ‘Of course you do.’ He reached out and placed the palms of his hands over her shoulders, gripping her firmly, so that she stared at him in shock. ‘But first of all you need to calm down, and deal with things one at a time. How long has she been missing?’

      ‘A few minutes.’ She tried to gather her breath, but her lungs felt as though they were constricted. ‘I was in the kitchen, and the phone rang, and then when I looked back she wasn’t there.’

      ‘All right, take a few deep breaths and get yourself together. We’ll both look for her. She can’t have gone far.’ His warm hands still circled her shoulders and she realised that he wasn’t going to let her go until she showed some sign that she was in control of herself.

      ‘Yes,’ she managed. ‘You’re probably right.’ She pulled in a deep breath. ‘I’m fine. You can let go of me now.’

      ‘Are you sure?’

      She nodded. ‘I’m sure.’

      ‘OK.’ He slowly released her. ‘Why don’t you go on searching for her on this side of the garden while I go and get a torch from the house?’

      Sarah hurried to do that, churned up inside because of the delay. Was Emily hiding from her, thinking that it was a game? Was that why she wasn’t answering?

      Ben was only gone for a minute or two, but although she had explored every part of that side of the garden while he’d been gone, she was still no nearer finding Emily.

      ‘We’ll do this area together,’ he murmured, indicating the far side of the garden, ‘and then, if we still haven’t found her, we’ll retrace our steps. I suppose she might have gone to hide behind the summerhouse.’

      Some five minutes later they still hadn’t found the little girl, and Sarah was beginning to feel shaky with anxiety. Ben must have sensed that because he put an arm around her, holding her in a way that was strangely comforting, considering that she barely knew him, and that for the most part they had been at loggerheads. Now, though, he was letting her know that he understood what she was going through, and that he was there for her.