Chapter Twenty - I Want To Give Us Time

Hayley glanced at the clock and a tremor of excitement shot through her. She would soon be free to go to Ashton’s cottage and resume where they had left off yesterday. Would he kiss her again? She couldn’t wait to return the tiffin case filled with delicious muffins she had baked early in the morning, surprising Elsa immensely. It seemed pleasing Ashton was the only thing on her mind these days. His kisses, his nearness, affected her so much that Hayley completely forgot to work on her assignment at college. It was the day of submission, and she had to sit in the library all morning to complete and submit it.

At work too, her mind was more on Ashton than on completing her work. Her dad checked the number of mistakes she made and shook his head with disappointment.

“Hayley, what is the matter with you? Are you tired? Do you want to go home?” asked her dad, closing his laptop to leave for a conference. Startled out of her dreamland, Hayley looked at her dad blankly.

“Umm, did you say