£100 prize…

What you can find on your doorstep may just surprise you…

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‘The problem with this working from home lark is that you never get out and meet people,’ her mum, Lynn, said. Maisie had to admit she was right – as a freelance copywriter, apart from the occasional business networking event to meet potential clients, her days were mostly spent in her home office.

‘But I have plenty of friends,’ she said.

‘That’s not the type of people I mean!’ her mum laughed. ‘Though while I think about it, do you mind if I have a parcel delivered to your address instead of mine? The courier always seems to come while I’m out.’

A few days later, Maisie was sipping her tea and reading over her latest commission when the doorbell rang.

‘Parcel for Lynn Brown,’ smiled the courier driver. Maisie couldn’t help noticing as she signed for the package that he was tall and handsome, with deep brown eyes and wide smile lines.

‘Thank you so much, darling,’ her mum said when Maisie handed it over that evening. ‘Do you mind a few more arriving? Your sister is starting to order decorations and things for the wedding.’ Maisie’s sister Leah had lived in Australia for years, but she and her fiancé Grant were getting married at home in the summer.

‘How can I refuse?’ Maisie said.

Two weeks later, Maisie was regretting her casual agreement. There seemed to be a parcel every day, sometimes more than one! And they often seemed to arrive at the worst time, just when she was getting into the flow of writing a difficult paragraph. The only bright spot was the daily interaction with the courier driver.

‘Are you the one getting married?’ he asked on a particularly miserable wet day, as he stood with the parcel in one hand and an umbrella in the other. Maisie could see why he was making small talk, no doubt reluctant to head back to the cold van. ‘No, it’s my sister. She lives overseas, so everything’s being delivered here.’

‘Ah, just the convenient person to open the door, then.’ ‘I guess so…’

Soon, every delivery came with a conversation. Maisie found she enjoyed them more and more each day.

‘Lovely weather for ducks,’ the handsome man said.

‘I’ll stay inside with my cup of tea and my writing.’

‘You’re a writer, then?’

‘A freelance copywriter. Product packaging and print adverts mainly. And what does a courier do with himself when he’s not stuck behind the wheel?’

‘Plays football and gets set up on bad dates by my teammates. It turns out driving a van for a living, even if you own the business, isn’t what most women see as

a good long-term prospect! Sorry, I guess I’m still feeling bitter about last night’s disaster.’

‘A small business owner sounds like a sure bet to me.’

The next day, Maisie opened the door with a smile, looking forward to seeing his answering grin. ‘Oh, hi Mum…’

‘You sound disappointed to see me! Expecting someone else? I just came to pick up that latest batch of parcels.’

‘No, not expecting anyone, just the courier. When you said a few more parcels, I didn’t know you meant this many!’

‘It’s no trouble though, is it darling? Besides, judging from the smile on your face, you’ve got Tom, the best-looking courier in town. My friend Fliss says she puts on an extra bit of lipstick whenever she orders something online.’

Maisie felt a little mad at herself. Here she was, thinking of him as her courier driver, and she didn’t even know his name – not to mention it sounded like everyone else had noticed him, too. The next time the doorbell rang, she answered it with a little less spring in her step. Her mum was right, she needed to get out more.

Tom stood on the doorstep, a parcel and a large bunch of flowers in hand. ‘Not a bad delivery today,’ he said. ‘Someone must like you.’

‘Probably Mum saying thank you for accepting all these parcels!’ replied Maisie. She cut the conversation short, not feeling in a chatty mood. ‘See you again soon.’

Shutting the door, she fished the accompanying card out of the beautiful bouquet. It had messy handwriting, definitely not her mum’s neat print.

‘Was hoping you might want to carry on our conversations away from your doorstep – would be nice to have a date with someone I already know a little bit! Tom – your friendly local courier driver.’

Maisie smiled as the doorbell rang again. Apparently, she didn’t need to get out more to meet someone, after all.