‘TDH doctor, serious and deep—with principles—seeks bright, sparkly female to make his dimples come out. Looking for foodie film buff who enjoys seaside strolls for friendship leading to potential romance.’

      He groaned again. ‘I hate that bit about the dimples. It sounds really pathetic.’

      ‘Tough. It’s staying. Your dimples are cute.’ She flicked back to her list. ‘You know, Ellis, this list could be describing you.’

      His heart skipped a beat.

      Was this the chance he’d been looking for? Was she telling him in her quiet, understated way that she’d consider dating him?

      ‘And my list,’ he said softly, ‘could be describing you.’

      They looked at each other, and it felt as if the air was humming.

      ‘Maybe,’ he said, ‘neither of us needs to put an ad on the dating site.’

      She didn’t pull away or look horrified at the idea.

      So he leaned forward and gave in to what he’d wanted to do for a year or more. He touched his mouth very lightly to hers.

       Dear Reader,

      I’ve always liked friends-to-lovers stories, but this one has a slight twist in that the hero is also the best friend of the heroine’s late husband.

      And when friendship turns to love when do you dare to take the risk of wrecking the friendship?

      A Promise…to a Proposal? is about how Ruby and Ellis take that particular journey—from Ellis promising his best friend that he’ll look after his widow to both of them falling in love.

      The story’s set partly in my bit of the world (or a fictionalised bit of the East Anglian coast), partly in London, and partly in a very beautiful city that I had the privilege to explore earlier this year—Prague. And I’m afraid I stole the posh dinner my family and I had—the best meal we’ve ever eaten!

      I hope you enjoy Ellis and Ruby’s story.

      I’m always delighted to hear from readers, so do come and visit me at katehardy.com

      With love

       Kate Hardy

      KATE HARDY lives in Norwich, in the east of England, with her husband, two young children, one bouncy spaniel and too many books to count! When she’s not busy writing romance or researching local history she helps out at her children’s schools. She also loves cooking—spot the recipes sneaked into her books! (They’re also on her website, along with extracts and the stories behind her books.)

      Writing for Mills & Boon^® has been a dream come true for Kate—something she wanted to do ever since she was twelve. She’s been writing Medical Romance™ for over ten years now. She says it’s the best of both worlds, because she gets to learn lots of new things when she’s researching the background to a book: add a touch of passion, drama and danger, a new gorgeous hero every time, and it’s the perfect job!

      Kate’s always delighted to hear from readers, so do drop in to her website at katehardy.com

      A Promise…to a Proposal?

      Kate Hardy

       www.millsandboon.co.uk

      To Gerard, Chris and Chloe—

      remembering the best meal we’ve ever eaten!

      Table of Contents

       Cover

      Praise for Kate Hardy

       Excerpt

      Dear Reader

       About the Author

       Title Page

       Dedication

      CHAPTER ONE

CHAPTER TWO

CHAPTER THREE

CHAPTER FOUR

       CHAPTER FIVE

       CHAPTER SIX

       CHAPTER SEVEN

       CHAPTER EIGHT

       CHAPTER NINE

       CHAPTER TEN

       CHAPTER ELEVEN

       CHAPTER TWELVE

       CHAPTER THIRTEEN

       EPILOGUE

       Copyright

       CHAPTER ONE

      ‘HERE?’ RUBY ASKED.

      ‘It’s a sandy beach, we’re below the high tide line, the tide’s coming in right now and the wind’s in the right direction—so I’d say it’s just about perfect,’ Ellis said.

      Well, it would’ve been perfect if it hadn’t been drizzling with rain. But today was what it was, and the weather didn’t matter. Just as it hadn’t mattered a year ago. The day that had blown a hole in all their lives.

      She smiled. ‘Tom always did say you were the practical one.’

      And the one with itchy feet who could never stay in one place for long.

      Except for the last eighteen months, which Ellis had spent in London solely because of Tom, his best friend since their first day at infant school. They’d gone to university together, and trained together in the same London hospital. When Tom had been diagnosed with leukaemia, that had been the one thing to bring Ellis back to England. He’d wanted to be there for his best friend and support him through to the end. Ellis had promised Tom in those last

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