Was that what Mel wanted? The prince? She didn’t strike him as a damsel in distress or the sort of girl who would want to be locked in a castle waiting to be saved. Hadn’t she always wanted to go and do and explore?
He pulled out the champagne glasses. “Yummy! Tuck, you’ve thought of everything.”
He sure had tried. He popped the cork, and she held a glass to catch the bubbles as they flowed. Around them, other couples and small groups were doing the same.
“This is nice,” she said and clicked her glass to his. “To a magical evening!”
“Indeed.” She was sitting on the picnic blanket next to him, shoes kicked off and legs tucked under, leaning on one arm. And she looked spectacular. What he wanted to do was lean over and kiss her lips, which were pink and shiny and ever so inviting.
“So what’s in the basket, Tuck?”
“Hungry?”
She gave him a nod. He liked that about her. She wasn’t one of those girls who didn’t seem to eat at all. It was very boring going out to dinner with someone who only ordered kale. “Yeah and these early starts mess with your metabolism a bit. You’d think after seven years I would be used to it, but somehow my body just isn’t.”
“Wow, seven years.”
“I know. I don’t know how long I thought I’d last, maybe five.”
He started taking the little containers of food out and arranging them on a platter. That was interesting. She was not wedded to life as an air hostess. “Is there a plan for after?”
“Well, I was thinking travel agent, but now so many people book online that it seems to be a bit of a dying industry, so . . . I’m not sure. It’s probably why I’m still doing it. Don’t get me wrong, I really like my job, but I don’t want to be one of those women still doing it at sixty.”
“Well, there is plenty of room between now and sixty, Mel.”
“True.” She smiled at him. “This all looks so delicious. Thanks for doing all this, it really means a lot to me.” She gave his hand a squeeze and blood rushed to his extremities. All of them.
“It’s nothing,” he said, busying himself with the lids.
She grabbed his hand. “Tuck, it’s not nothing, it’s something. I was kind of weirded out when I saw you again. I don’t know why, I was in an odd space anyway, I guess. I just want to say thanks for reaching out to me. Having you back in my life is one of the best things that has happened to me in ages.”
“Thanks, Mel. It’s been good for me too. It’s gotten me out of my rut.”
“You don’t look like a guy who has been in a rut?” She was still holding his hand.
“Maybe rut is the wrong word. I guess I was just doing the same stuff over and over, nothing new, no new people. It’s nice to shake things up a bit.”
“Tuck, can you answer something for me?” She took a small olive and popped it in her mouth, forming a perfect O. It was sexy and distracting and hard to concentrate on whatever that question was, so he just nodded.
“How come you are single? Really, this all seems pretty darn perfect to me. Hard to resist.”
Was she trying to resist him? He knew one thing, he was having a very hard time resisting her.
She didn’t understand it. Tucker looked and acted like the perfect date. Seriously, the night at his house and now this. The guy was a catch. And Miles was right, he was also a hottie.
“I think we already had this conversation, Mel.”
“Yeah, but I don’t get it.”
“Maybe I’m too picky. Or maybe I’m a pain in the butt and you just can’t see that yet.”
“Yeah, I don’t think that’s it, Tuck.” This food was amazing. “You sure throw a good picnic.”
He chuckled. “Well, thanks.”
It was a nice crowd, and the people watching was interesting. There was a couple nearby who was clearly in some sort of a fight. Both sitting on low-backed chairs, staring forward with pursed lips. How many times had she seen faces like that on planes? It was one of the things that terrified her about relationships. She could handle a good fight, but a marriage that was a war of silence not so much. Her own parents were a pair of hotheads, but they yelled about so much it didn’t sound like fighting to her.
She became aware that Tuck was watching her, his eyes almost boring into her. She had an involuntary shiver. Damn it. She wasn’t allowed to be attracted to Tucker. But she was. Of course, he was a plainly good-looking guy, but there was something very attractive about a guy who put some effort in. It was new to her. Was she attracted to the idea of a doting boyfriend or was it Tucker? She wished she was more decisive.
“I never want to be like that,” she said, indicating with her head to the silent couple.
“What, married?”
“Not married, having a fight but not talking.”
“You’d rather they were screaming at each other?” he teased.
“No. I’d rather they didn’t sit there in frosty silence.”
“I’ve met your family, Mel. Do your people do silence?”
“No, but yours do,” she said.
“Not really. First of all, my parents don’t really fight.”
“Seriously, Tuck, they have to. That’s not normal.”
“I don’t know about that. It is for them. They disagree, but they don’t get all nuts about it, and they do communicate. They’re weirdly symbiotic.”
“So your parents live together, work together on a business in the same room, and they don’t fight?”
He shrugged. “I know it sounds weird, but it’s true. I never really fought with them either. I mean, when I said I wanted to be an architect, they didn’t get it, but they were supportive, and when I said I was moving back to Australia, it was the same.”
“Yeah, my parents aren’t like that.”
“Maybe it’s an only child thing.”
“So if I started yelling at you . . . ?”
“I’d wonder why you were yelling for no reason at the movies,” he said, giving her his megawatt smile.
“No, but if I had a reason . . .”
“Okay, what reason? And I presume we’re dating in the scenario.”
“Yep.” She took a swig of champagne. “So you’re checking out another girl.”
“I wouldn’t do that. Think of something else.”
The thing was she believed him. “You were late meeting me.”
“I’m rarely late, but I would text you and explain.”
“Okay. You lost the tickets.”
“I have a copy on my phone,” he suggested.
“You’re being a pain in my butt?” she asked. “It’s just an example.”
“Are you going to yell at me because you can’t work out why to yell at me, Mel?” he asked.
“I might,” she said because it was a little bit annoying. And honestly, she had lost her temper over far less.
“Well, then I would probably apologize for whatever it is I did and pull you into a hug and hope that helped. And if it didn’t, I’d give you a very long, romantic kiss because I guess we’d already be putting on a show with the yelling, so why not? Plus, if I was going out with you, I would be kissing you every chance I got, so this would just be another excellent opportunity to feel your beautiful mouth against mine.”
She looked at him. Did he really just say that? About the kissing and her beautiful mouth. “And you think that would work?”
“Would it?”
She shrugged defeated. “Yeah, I think it probably would.”
“Great, so then we could just get back to enjoying the picnic and the movie and each other’s company. Crisis averted.”
Yeah. Crisis averted. Except it wasn’t because there was no doubt in her mind that she was now 100 percent in trouble here.
Maybe he’d said too much, but if Mel was going to push, then he would push back. What sort of jerks had she been going out with? How could a nice night at the movies be something anyone needed to get in a snit over?
It wasn’t that hard, was it? Was
she overcomplicating things, or did he maybe oversimplify? Women, they were a glorious mystery. This one certainly was.
Maybe that crazy family of hers that he loved so much were so busy yelling and rumbling that no one had taken the time to talk and calmly explain that she was the world’s most beautiful woman and should be treated as such. Yeah, who was he kidding, her brothers weren’t going to tell her that, and she wasn’t going to take their advice anyway. That’s how it had always been. She was tougher than them, more independent, and more feisty. She’d had to be to hold her own. She was a do it now and apologize later girl.
She lay on her stomach and faced him, her legs crossed over behind her. Her hair fell over one shoulder, and he had a spectacular view of her beautiful cleavage.
“What would you be doing if you were at home, Tuck?”
“Either after-work drinks with my co-workers or I think the astrology club had a gathering at a pub tonight.”
“Many women in the astrology club?”
“Surprisingly, there are.” Her brow furrowed. She didn’t like that. “More blokes but a few women. Mainly still studying at the university. We go camping a bit. It’s a nice group.”
She sipped her wine and considered that. “I really don’t camp.”
“I’m really not surprised.”
“Oh.”
“I’m sure you could camp, I just would have guessed you were not a natural camper.”
“Because?”
“Makeup, high heels, hair straighteners, toilets, girls’ stuff.”
“I don’t think toilets are strictly girls’ stuff.”
“Campers do. Well, lots do.”
“What about glamping?”
“I don’t think real campers count that,” he said after some consideration.
“Probably not. I could glamp as a compromise, I suppose. You know, if I got to see somewhere amazing that way, then I could.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.” For what, he had no idea.
Lucky for him, the movie was about to start. That would mean less talk about other women and trips they would never take. She readjusted herself again.
“You want to lean against me,” he offered. “I’ll be your backrest.”
“Okay,” she said.
It was a rookie mistake. What was he thinking? She slid back so she was sitting between his legs and leaning against his chest. He could smell mango, and her soft hair tickled his chin. It was like the most exquisite form of torture he had ever felt. This would possibly be the longest movie of his life.
“This is nice,” she whispered after about twenty minutes.
“Yeah, it is,” he agreed. Too nice maybe.
Mel couldn’t remember ever enjoying a movie as much as this one. It didn’t hurt that she was using Tucker’s warm, firm body as a chair—nope, that didn’t hurt one little bit. In fact, maybe that was a big part of the magic. Grace Kelly, Cary Grant, champagne, and Tucker under the stars.
When the credits rolled, she reluctantly moved her body away from his and straightaway wished she hadn’t. He, on the other hand, leapt straight to his feet and gave his thighs a vigorous rub.
“Excuse me, was I crushing you or something?”
“No, I got a leg cramp a while ago, but I didn’t want to interrupt the reverie.”
She shook her head. “You should have said.”
“I was happy.”
“Even with a cramp?”
“Yeah, even with a cramp, Mel.”
People around them were packing up and heading out of the park, so she started to follow suit. She really didn’t want this evening to end. It was, well, memorable.
“I didn’t ask when you were heading home, Tuck?”
“Yeah, I haven’t booked yet. There’s always seats for one. And I didn’t have any real plans this weekend, so I thought I’d wing it.”
“Really? I didn’t know you were so spontaneous,” she said, folding the picnic blanket.
“Well, I guess there are lots of things we don’t know about each other, Mel, aren’t there?” he said sweetly.
“I guess there are. Like I don’t know if you want to go and grab a drink now or not?”
“Sure, that sounds nice. Do you want to do it near my hotel?”
They walked out of the park down to Oxford Street and grabbed a cab back to his hotel, which was a boutique one in The Rocks area of Sydney. It was where the original settlers lived, and lots of the area was carved out of stone by the convicts.
“I’ll just dump this, and we’ll go find a pub,” he said of the picnic basket. He didn’t ask her up to his room. She was both touched and, if she was honest, mildly disappointed.
Tucker was only about five minutes and he was back. “You’re the local, which pub?”
“I know just the place.” They walked up under the Argyle Pass to Sydney’s oldest pub. Her brothers had loved the unique beers brewed on-site, and she had a feeling Tucker would too. It was busy, as always on a Friday night, but somehow, almost like the waters parting, Tucker managed to snag a table for two.
“I have a gift for that,” he said in her ear as he pulled out her seat.
“Good gift.”
“Yeah, it’s not quite a superpower, but I’ll take it. I never seem to wait for a table anywhere.”
“I’m impressed.” She grinned at him. “What other secrets do you have?”
“I’ll never tell. Beer? Wine?”
He went to the bar to place their order. The bar was buzzing. A couple of guys came over to hit on her, well, maybe they were just friendly.
“My friend is at the bar,” she said. They didn’t leave. She thought they thought he was a female friend.
When Tucker came toward her, he didn’t look impressed. “Here you go, honey.”
Honey? He didn’t call her . . . of course, he wanted those guys gone and now.
“Thanks.” They kind of moved away, taking the hint.
“I think you have other superpowers, Tuck,” she said, clinking glasses with him.
Okay, Tucker got it. Mel was hot, so guys hit on her, but when he was right there? Okay, he hadn’t been right there, he’d been at the bar but still. And had she beat them off? Not really. She smiled and nodded and chatted. And honestly, they were a couple of posers. Dark hair, tight shirts, muscles. Was that what she was into?
“New friends?” he asked.
She just shrugged. “Thanks for the drink.”
“You’re welcome.” He took a sip of his beer. “So are those guys your type? Was your last boyfriend that kind of guy?”
“That kind of guy?”
“You know what I mean.”
“Yeah, he was.”
“Explains a lot,” Tucker said.
“Now, what does that mean?”
“Nothing.”
She placed her hand on his forearm. “Tucker, that does not mean nothing.”
“I think those guys spent more time looking in the mirror today than you did.”
She laughed. “Try hards.”
“Seriously, do you even have to ask?”
“There’s nothing wrong with a guy taking care of himself. It’s not nineteen seventy. It’s not like when my dad derided blow-dryers and aftershave.”
“No, but unless those guys are models or social media influencers, they’re spending way too much time doing their hair.”
She looked across the bar to where the guys were standing. “I’m not saying you’re wrong.”
“Well, that’s something. Maybe if they spend less time at the gym and more time, you know, thinking rather than looking in the mirror . . .”
“Tucker, you don’t even know those guys.”
She was right. He sounded like a tool. He knew he wasn’t wrong about the guys, and maybe if she spent more time with guys who used their brains, she might have been on a few better dates.
“Fair enough. You’re right, I don’t.”
He sat silently sipping his beer. Around them, the bar was buzz
ing. He liked the pub. It had character. And he appreciated that she had chosen it.
“This is a nice place.”
“Henry liked it, so I figured you would. Although, you guys are kind of different.”
He smiled. “Kind of.”
“He used to come visit when I first moved to Sydney, to check that I was doing okay. That was very sweet. I was pretty lonely at first, I didn’t know anyone in Sydney . . .”
“It’s hard moving to a new city.” He’d been in Brisbane five years, and he didn’t really know if he belonged yet. It was home, but something was missing. He had some friends and nice colleagues, but yeah, something was missing. He was lonely.
“Yeah, I was lucky because one of my closest friends from college moved down here a couple of years ago. Made a real difference to me.”
“Yeah, I don’t think my closest friends from the US will be moving to Brisbane anytime soon.”
“Why did you come back, Tuck? Really?”
“I didn’t really belong anywhere anymore. So I was going to be having a fresh start somewhere. I like Australia and the climate is good, so it made sense.”
“Do you think you made the right choice?”
Tucker looked into her eyes. Her question was so earnest. And she was so sweet and concerned. “Most days I do.”
They finished their drinks and headed back to his hotel. It was a hot summer’s night. People were sitting at outside cafes and spilling out of pubs. As they walked toward the hotel, she could see the lights of the harbor sparkling and caught glimpses of the Sydney Opera House. She loved Sydney.
“It’s going to be another scorcher tomorrow,” she said.
“Do you have a yoga class?”
“Yeah, at eight.”
“And then?”
“Nothing till the afternoon.”
“Why don’t you come here? We’ll hang by the pool. I’ll protect you from any sleazy salesmen if there are any.”
She should probably say no. She had no idea what was going on between them, and it was confusing. Her body wanted Tucker. Yet, she’d sworn off men. And he didn’t want casual, so what were they doing?
“Okay. That sounds nice.”
They were outside the hotel. He waved down a taxi for her.
Be Mine: Valentine Novellas to Warm The Heart Page 5
