Man of the Match: hot celebrity romance (FULL NOVEL)

28. Making plans

[RECAP: Student Cara has been rescued from the clutches of her deranged ex-fiancé Declan. Now she can finally be with the man she loves, the father of her child, England cricket captain Matt Curran.]

Everyone seemed to be treating her with cotton wool the next day which Cara appreciated but she longed for some normality.

Matt refused to leave her and even wanted to ditch his next county cricket match to stay with her. She couldn't go to his place because finals were just a couple of weeks away.

"I'm not leaving you while that maniac is at large," he told her.

Fiona and Ann had promised to stick to Cara like glue and never let her out of their sight. Will was also reluctant to leave but Cara managed to persuade him she would be fine.

There were a couple more days before Matt had to get back so he suggested they go away for a short break. He liked Cara's friends and felt grateful to them for helping with the rescue, but he wanted to be alone with her. "Just take tomorrow off."

"It's the Queen's birthday in Australia, they get a public holiday," Fiona said. "She's our queen, we should do so as well."

Cara wasn't sure if this excuse would hold water with her tutors, but they were mainly doing revision now anyway and she could study for that anywhere.

"Where shall we go?"

"I'll book us into a quiet hotel. You can study there all you want to." Matt had no intention of letting Cara do any revision once he got her alone.

Before they left the police rang. It was good news: they had apprehended Declan. They needed Cara to go down again for a few formalities.

"I'll drive you down," Will offered. "It's probably best if you stay here," he said to Matt. By some miracle Matt hadn't been recognised at the police station on the previous night. The officers there had either not been cricket fans or had been too preoccupied with other things to notice.

Matt's involvement in something like this would be all over the newspapers immediately and they all wanted to spare him and Cara from that.

Cara was tense with nerves at the thought of having to face Declan again but Will assured her she wouldn't even see him. "He'll be in some kind of cell. He'll probably be held overnight as the courts won't be open until tomorrow. Given the severity of what he's done they're hardly going to release him without bail. But you'll be safely away with Matt so don't worry."

"What about Fiona and Ann?" Cara was worried for her friends' safety.

"I should think he'd have more to fear from them than the other way round. You saw how furious Fiona was. Matt seems a good bloke anyway, you'll be ok with him."

From Will this was high praise. He had always been protective of his younger sister and had loathed Declan.

"You like him, then?" Cara asked.

"If he treats you well, then yes."

* * *

Will had offered to drive them to the hotel as Matt didn't have his car there but Matt ordered a taxi.

"It's miles," Cara protested.

"Then I'll have miles alone with you in a cab," Matt said.

She had been happily surprised with the ease at which they fell back into being together. The length of time they had spent apart, the overwhelmingly difficult things that had happened to both of them, all just melted away.