and they hated her on sight. Now she had a point of contact and a new friend she could turn to.
Mary broke into her thoughts. “Do you want to try the movie that’s about to start?” It’s a comedy apparently. It’ll help pass the next couple of hours, at least.”
“Sounds like a good plan to me. Then we’ll only have about three more hours to go before Heathrow.”
The two women settled back into their seats to watch the movie. Gina tried hard to focus on the screen in front of her, but after a while, she tuned out, her mind wandering back to the task ahead of her.
The letter had been signed Guy Anderson, one of the partners in the law firm of Anderson and Webster, who, as far as she could tell, were local to the area. They had corresponded by e-mail for the next two weeks, and Mr. Anderson had offered to pick her up from the airport himself. Gina had politely declined, thinking it would be better to act independently from the start.
The thought of being stuck in a car with a stranger, for God knows how long, in a new country, did not appeal to her. After all, he could be a sleaze, a total geek, or a pushy, arrogant prick. No, it was best to be in charge and make her own decisions from the start.
Mr. Anderson had e-mailed her a picture of the house she had inherited, and Gina had been enchanted. It was just how she had imagined an English country cottage would be, although he had written that the building did need some electrical work and decoration.
Mary broke into laughter beside Gina, and her thoughts were dragged back from Guy Anderson and her house to the movie.
As the plane finally started its descent, Gina could feel her heart thumping with nerves and anticipation. This was it; for the first time in her twenty-four years, she was taking the bit between her teeth and having a real adventure , as Mary had called it.
They descended through the clouds, and she finally saw London spread out before her. The plane shifted slightly, getting prepared for landing, and Mary grabbed her hand again. Gina grinned and held on tightly until the plane touched down and slowed to a sensible speed.
The two women stuck together until they reached customs and immigration and then said their goodbyes with a hug. Mary wished her luck and reminded her to call, even if it was just to let her know how things were going.
Gina suddenly felt very alone again as she lined up with the other travelers to go through immigration. After about forty minutes or so, she had dealt with the humorless, miserable woman who was so obviously uninterested in why she was here and grabbed her one large suitcase, which, thankfully, didn’t take too long to appear on the huge conveyor belt in baggage claim.
Walking into the arrivals area, she smiled to herself, realizing that even though she was almost four thousand miles away, on a different continent, the airport was basically the same as any in the US. She’d half expected to see old-fashioned Englishmen in round black bowler hats, carrying umbrellas. In fact, she could feel the warmth of the late afternoon sun, shining through the glass exit doors. Excitement began to pulse through her veins—she was really here, in the United Kingdom, land of kings and queens, great castles and thousands of years of history.
After spotting a sign that showed the way to the London underground, Gina began to make her way through the busy area. Suddenly, a bright blue placard with large letters caught her attention, and her eyes widened in astonishment when she realized the name on the card was hers.
What the hell? It had to be a coincidence. She had definitely said that she would find her own way to Newmarket and then contact Mr. Anderson from there.
The face behind the placard was partially hidden, but Gina caught sight of a pair of dark boots, long muscular legs encased in blue jeans, and a crisp white shirt. Wow, the words sleaze, geek and prick certainly didn’t seem appropriate here. Those words, of