Convenient Engagements: Fiance Wanted Fast! / The Blind-Date Proposal / A Whirlwind Engagement

‘Careful,’ she said in an undertone as her mother rushed up. ‘You’re about to be exposed to advanced interrogation techniques. The SAS send soldiers to Mum for practice on withholding information if they’re captured by enemy forces, and very few of them pass the test!’

Gib only sent her a glimmering smile before he turned to greet her mother. For a while they chatted easily, and Phoebe could see her mother’s smile broadening as she ticked her way through a mental check-list, obviously awarding Gib full points.

Now they had moved on to discuss the wedding. ‘It’s a beautiful setting,’ commented Gib, glancing around him at the battlemented walls with their mullioned windows, spectacular doors and worn old stone.

‘Ye-es.’ Her mother clearly wasn’t convinced. ‘Ben and Lisa were very keen on the idea of having the wedding at a castle, but personally I prefer a more traditional setting. I’m hoping Phoebe will choose to have a church wedding.’

‘Mu-um!’ Phoebe shot her an agonised look.

‘Oh, don’t worry, dear, I’m not hinting,’ said her mother airily.

Not much! Phoebe thought bitterly.

‘It’s just that there’s such a pretty church in the village, it seems a shame not to make the most of it.’

‘Well, maybe we’ll bear that in mind,’ said Gib, unable to resist the opportunity of putting an arm around Phoebe. ‘What do you think, darling?’

‘I think it’s too early to be talking about weddings,’ she said tightly, acutely aware of his arm around her and of her mother’s eyes bulging with interest at that carelessly dropped ‘darling’ and the even more casual way he had suggested that they were thinking about getting married.

‘It’s never too early to start making plans,’ her mother said eagerly. ‘Sometimes you have to book the church months in advance.’

‘Yes, well, we’re nowhere near that stage yet,’ said Phoebe firmly. She tried to move out of the circle of Gib’s arm but he held her against him without any apparent effort and, short of an undignified struggle, it looked as if she would have to stay where she was.

She could see her mother’s mind already flickering to dresses and flowers and coordinating table arrangements, and hastened to nip the very idea of marriage in the bud before her mother got out a megaphone and announced it to the entire county.

‘Now, hold on, Mum,’ she said firmly. ‘We haven’t decided anything definite yet. Have we?’ she added to Gib with a look that dared him to contradict her.

Gib met it blandly before turning back to her mother. ‘I’ve asked Phoebe to marry me every day since we met,’ he confided. ‘She won’t give me an answer one way or another, so I’m just going to have to keep on asking until she does.’

‘Well, it’s not like you to be coy, Phoebe!’ said her mother, clearly thrilled.

‘I’m not being coy,’ snapped Phoebe, shooting a dagger glance at Gib. What had happened to the second rule? Stick to the story and keep it simple: it wasn’t that hard to remember, was it? Still, in one way she was relieved at the rush of nervous irritation. It was much easier to be cross with Gib than to be burningly aware of him the way she had been since he kissed her. That kiss had seemed a good idea at the time, but Phoebe wasn’t so sure now.

‘I just think that marriage is an important step,’ she told her mother. ‘It’s not something to rush into.’

‘I’m the last person to suggest that it was,’ her mother said, bridling. ‘But if you know you’ve found the right person for you, there’s no reason to wait, is there? And you don’t want to wait too long, dear,’ she added with a pointed look.

Phoebe rolled her eyes. ‘Go ahead, Mum, why not say it? You’re thirty-two, time’s running out, beggars can’t be choosers?’

‘Don’t be so silly, Phoebe,’ her mother tutted. ‘Having a man like Gib want to marry you hardly makes you a beggar! I’m sure there would be thousands of girls who’d be more than happy to have him if you don’t want him.’

Gib laughed. ‘I don’t think so, but even if there were, it wouldn’t make any difference to me.’ His arm tightened around Phoebe and he smiled down into her indignant face. ‘I knew the moment I saw Phoebe that she was the only one for me, and I’m just going to keep on asking her until she gives in.’

Of course, her mother was delighted. ‘That’s right, don’t you listen to her, Gib dear,’ she said, patting his arm. ‘She’s always been so stubborn! She just doesn’t know what’s good for her sometimes.’

‘Mum, I think I see Penelope over there,’ said Phoebe through gritted teeth. ‘I want her to meet Gib. We’ll catch up with you later.’

She practically dragged Gib away. Yes, this was excellent. She really was cross with him now. ‘I don’t know who I want to kill first,’ she muttered furiously out of the side of her mouth like a gangster. ‘You or my mother!’

Gib was all outraged innocence. ‘Why, what have I done?’

‘You know perfectly well! All that stuff about getting married!’

‘I didn’t say that we were getting married. I said that I wanted to marry you.’

‘It’s the same thing! Now everyone will be on at me to announce our engagement!’

‘I was just being creative,’ Gib objected. ‘I made it obvious that I’m in love with you, and your mother will remember the fact that you were hesitating when you tell her you’ve dumped me. It’ll make you look much better in the end. I thought that was what you wanted.’

‘What I wanted was for you to do what I’m paying you to do!’ snapped Phoebe, only to press the heel of her hand against her forehead a moment later. ‘Sorry, sorry, I’m sorry,’ she sighed. ‘I’m just on edge. I shouldn’t have snapped at you. I know you’re doing me a favour by coming along today.’

It was Gib’s turn to feel guilty. ‘No, it’s my fault,’ he apologised. ‘I just thought it would be more convincing if I seemed to be thinking about marriage.’

‘Maybe you’re right.’ Phoebe helped herself to a glass of champagne from a passing waiter and took a gulp. She would need it to get through today! ‘We may as well go with the idea that we’re getting married now,’ she went on, resigned. ‘After all, if we can fool Mum, we can fool anyone, and she’s bound to tell everyone that we are engaged anyway. She’s probably been on to the vicar already, checking out which Saturdays are free!’

Spotting Ben’s mother bearing down on them, she gave Gib a nudge. ‘Careful now, this is Penelope.’

‘Hello, darling.’ Penelope enveloped her in a warm embrace before turning with undisguised interest. ‘So this is Gib? We’re so glad you could come,’ she told him, giving him a hug for good measure. ‘We were all thrilled when Sheila told us that Phoebe had met a gorgeous man! She seemed to think it sounded quite serious?’

She looked hopefully between them, and Phoebe bowed to the inevitable.

‘Well, we’re thinking about following Ben and Lisa’s example,’ she said. Snuggling against Gib in a suitably besotted pose, she felt his arm close around her with disturbing speed.

Penelope clapped her hands together. ‘Oh, that’s marvellous news! Your mother must be thrilled! She’s been so worried about you.’

‘It’s just maybe at the moment,’ Phoebe stressed. ‘We haven’t made any definite plans yet,’ she hurried on before Gib could jump in and invent a date. She wouldn’t put it past him. Left to his own devices, he would no doubt be dressing her up in a meringue and saddling her with a string of little bridesmaids in matching taffeta dresses!

Distracted by someone waving at her behind Phoebe’s shoulder, Penelope clicked her tongue in frustration. ‘Look, I must go. It’s hopeless trying to talk to anyone at this stage, but we’ll have a proper chat later tonight. It’s just family and close friends staying, and we’re all dying for the chance to get to know you properly,’ she added, beaming at Gib.

‘Oh, Gib won’t be here,’ Phoebe put in quickly, straightening out of his hold. She had had enough of being winsome. ‘He’s got to get back to London tonight. In fact, we were just saying he should get the receptionist to book him a taxi, weren’t we, Gib?’

‘We couldn’t talk about anything else,’ he agreed.

‘Oh, but why?’ cried Penelope, looking from one to the other in disappointment and missing the irony in Gib’s tone.

Phoebe nudged Gib. ‘An important business meeting, I’m afraid,’ he said obediently.

‘Not on a Sunday, surely?’

‘It’s first thing on Monday. In Switzerland,’ Phoebe added with an edge of desperation. ‘So he’ll have to fly there tomorrow.’

‘Still, it’s only a couple of hours to London from here, so even if the flight’s at lunchtime, you’d have plenty of time to catch the plane,’ Penelope pointed out.

‘That’s true,’ said Gib slowly.

Phoebe stared meaningfully at him. ‘What about all the preparation you’ve got to do?’

‘I’ve done most of that,’ he told her with an easy smile. ‘I just need to read through a report, and I could do that on the flight.’