“What do you want to do, Just Amy?” He brushed a strand of hair off her forehead and cupped her cheek.
Dan was right to be wary after what had happened to him. Complete trust would take time to grow and she could be patient. But she wanted to know what his kiss would be like now that he wasn’t—they weren’t—
“Kiss me, Dan. Show me exactly how you feel about me.” She leaned towards him and brushed her lips over his.
With a groan, his mouth came down on hers.
##
Dan’s arm prickled with pins and needles but he refused to move. Faint dawn light through the surgery window revealed the curve of Amy’s cheek as she nestled against his chest, and her warm breath stirred the hairs on his chest.
They’d slept fitfully as the storm raged and fallen asleep around two o’clock when the wind had finally died down.
Amy stirred in his arms and her mouth brushed his bare skin. She tipped her head up and opened sleepy eyes. “Morning.”
“Good morning. Sleep well?”
She sat up and rolled her head from side to side. “I had a wonderful dream.”
He raised his eyebrows and flexed his fist as he pumped feeling back into his hand.
“Or maybe it wasn’t.” Blonde hair fell over her shoulders and caught in his morning stubble.
He stroked a hand over her hair. “Tell me about it and I’ll tell you if it matches mine.”
For answer, she leaned in and kissed him, a quick peck that left him unsatisfied and worried that maybe he had dreamed last night’s kisses.
“I need a toothbrush and breakfast.” With a shy smile, she jumped to her feet and crossed to the window. “Looks like the storm has passed. Come on, I want to check the plane.”
“What about breakfast?”
“Bill or someone will feed us.” She opened the clinic door and stepped out as the first rays of sun crested the horizon.
“Looks like a beautiful, clear day ahead. You realise tonight is the fundraiser?” He draped an arm over her shoulders and kissed her ear.
She turned her startled gaze on him. “Oh, help. Terri will be having kittens that we missed the dress rehearsal last night.”
“At least we weren’t AWOL. Base knows we came back here.”
Elise appeared from the nearest house, with Tommy hanging onto her dress. She waved when she saw them. “Hoy, you two, come on over for a cuppa. We’re firing up the stove. How do you like your eggs?”
Chapter Fifteen
As Dan pulled into Amy’s driveway, she was standing in the doorway keeping an eye out for him. He rounded the back of his car and stopped dead. Backlit by her veranda light, she was wearing high heels and a strapless red dress that hugged her curves in a way that sent his temperature soaring. He stood there, vaguely aware his mouth hung open while his hands itched to shape her contours.
“Will I do?” A note of uncertainty lay beneath her question.
Pulling his brain into gear, he covered the metres that lay between them and took her hand. “You’re stunning in that dress. I’ll be fighting off every male in the place to get a dance with you.”
“Hi Dan.” Jessie popped her head around the screen door and stepped out. She took Amy’s other hand and held it high and twirled her daughter under her arm. “We went shopping this afternoon, after I had a look through Amy’s wardrobe. Trousers and shorts, almost nothing suitable for a special night out. My little girl is beautiful, isn’t she?”
“I’ve got the prettiest girl as my date. Coming, Amy?”
“We’ll follow in an hour or so. Got your tickets?” Jessie pulled the screen door open and waved them off.
“Got everything, Mum. See you there.”
Dan held the door while Amy sat and swung her legs into the car. As he got in his side and closed the door, her perfume wafted across, light and subtle and so very Amy. “What’s that perfume?”
“Daisy. It was a present from my parents last Christmas.”
“Suits you.”
“You look pretty swish yourself.”
He pulled up at a red light and turned to her. “Amy, before we get there, I want to be sure we’ve cleared the air.”
“You’re not gay, yes, I know.”
“Right. But we are going out, for real now. You are my girlfriend?”
Amy looked away through her side window and gripped her hands in her lap.
Dan’s stomach took a dive. After last night, he’d hoped they had got past Amy’s doubts. But she’d been quiet on the return flight, and when they got back to base, she’d rushed away, telling him she had to get home. “What’s wrong?”
“I’m not sure about going public as a couple.”
“Like we’ve been doing for the past few weeks, you mean?”
“That was different. That was pretend.”
“It wasn’t pretence for me.”
She glanced up. Fear and yearning vied for top spot in her eyes before a tiny smile appeared. “Me, too. Sometimes. Look, maybe I’m a little gun-shy.”
“Since Derek? I figured that, but you were happy for people to think we were a couple when you thought I was gay. What’s changed?”
“It’s real.”
“It was before, even when the reasons were different.”
He took her hand and raised it to his lips. “It will be fun if you don’t over-think it. Just relax and you may find you enjoy being with me. Will you give us a go?”
Dan held his breath, waiting for her answer. The light changed to green and the car behind beeped impatiently. “Will you?”
“I’ll try. That’s the best I can promise, Dan.”
“That’s all I ask.”
They drove the rest of the way in silence.
As they walked through the backstage area, friends welcomed them both but their gazes kept returning to Amy. Most of the men looked as though they were seeing her for the first time and Dan couldn’t help the spark of male pride as he tucked her arm through his.
“The blokes have never looked at me like this before.”
“Told you, you look stunning.”
Terri raced over, bright plastic leis draped over one arm, and grabbed their hands. “You don’t know how thankful I am to see both of you. Amy, my God, you’re gorgeous.”
“Thanks.” Amy’s smile grew wider and she smoothed her hands over her hips.
“We wouldn’t let a little thing like a supercell storm get in the way of this shindig. Besides, I set up my sound system this afternoon.”
Terri’s sigh of relief reminded him what a huge effort the organisation had been. She draped a plastic lei over their shoulders. “I’ve got these for you to wear. All the cast and crew have the same colour so the wait staff knows to keep refreshments coming to you guys.”
“I’ll go and do a final sound check before the doors open to the public. Amy, come with me?” Dan twined his fingers with hers and headed for the side stage steps.
“Hey, Terri, can you come check Mike’s costume. I don’t know what he’s done but—”
“Coming. See you two later.” She rushed off with a vague wave in their direction.
“Okay, sound system check.”
Dan’s set up was cordoned off behind low partitions covered in black material. He reached under the table and pulled out a secure box of lapel microphones, each labelled with a number. Checking the code, he handed the tiny mike to Amy. “Put this on, then go on stage and talk to me. I want to check overall levels before I call the first group of performers.”
“Where should I clip it?”
“On your dress near your mouth.” He switched the power on and checked the pre-sets. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw her moving the mike from one side of her chest to the other. “What’s the matter? Isn’t the clip working?”
“Um, nowhere is near my mouth.”
“Here, let me do it.” He took the mike and raised his hand to attach the clip to her dress. But as he looked down, his mouth dried. Even in four-inch heels, Amy was petite and his
gaze zeroed in straight down her cleavage. Each time she inhaled his hand brushed her breast. If his life depended on it, he couldn’t move.
“See what I mean? I have nowhere to attach it.”
“No—er—um—”
“Dan?”
He sat quickly and turned away. “Just—er—carry it in your hand and hold it collar-height.”
“Okay.”
As her heels clicked across the wooden floor to the stage, Dan gulped in a deep breath and adjusted his trousers. Amy was skittish enough without having to deal with the ribald jokes and innuendo that would come their way if he were seen in this state.
He cleared his throat and depressed the PA button. “Mr Music to Tweety Bird, what’s the forecast for tonight?”
Standing centre stage, Amy was bathed in the bright spotlight. Her dress glowed jewel-red and diamantes sparkled on her strappy shoes. She’d never looked lovelier.
She raised the mike near her mouth. “Tweety Bird to Mr Music, looks like we’re in for stormy weather. Do you want me to keep talking?”
“Yeah, I need to adjust a couple of levels. Recite something.”
Mike sidled up beside her, slipped an arm around her waist, and grabbed the hand holding the mike. “Tweety Bird, I’m in love. Run away with me to Blue Hawaii and we’ll swim and surf all day.”
“You’re a dag, Mike.”
Laughter filtered through from the wings. Mike grinned and swept Amy into an impromptu dance around the stage. Her giggles were captured by the radio mike and, silly as it was, a shaft of jealousy raced through Dan. If only Amy was happy to be with him, openly and wholeheartedly. Shadows from her last experience still haunted her. ‘Gun-shy’ she’d labelled it. Ironic that it had taken a gun to make him see what he really wanted.
He leaned forward and depressed the PA button. “Got it, thanks, Mike. Amy, ask group one to come onstage for a mike test.”
“Hey, doc, you’re doing a Mike-mike test. Get it?”
Amy shook her head and left Mike holding the clip on device.
###
“Hey, Ames, your skit was great.” Jeff gave her a pat on the back as the dessert plates were cleared from their table. His eyes looked brighter but there were still dark shadows beneath them. If the tossing and turning coming from his bedroom every night was any indication, his leg was more painful than he was letting on.
“Thanks, big bro. Shame you can’t take a turn around the dance floor with me.”
“Yeah, crutches kind of cramp my style. Maybe Dan will dance with you when he puts the auto play on.”
Jessie leaned over and patted her arm. “Why don’t you go and encourage him to join us now the show part of the evening is over, dear? I saw him heading out that side door a few minutes ago.”
Amy had noticed Tess dragging Dan through one of the exits. Suspicious of feral females, Amy had decided to give him five minutes before she went backstage too. Only to rescue him, of course. She refused to allow that she was jealous of Tess’s grasp on his arm because that would mean acknowledging how important Dan had become to her. Letting him get close would make her vulnerable again. She didn’t want to give another male that power over her heart.
“I’ll be back shortly.” With an apologetic smile, she pushed her chair away from the table and smoothed down her dress.
Skirting tables, she slipped through a side exit from the hall and made her way to the wings. Most of the cast would be eating their dinners out front and there were still the final major items to auction off before the dancing began.
Behind the upstage curtain, two voices rose and fell in tones of question and answer. Male and female.
Dan.
His voice sounded like when he was with a patient in one of his clinics. Amy had heard him often enough to recognise the sound of his examining voice. Much to his amusement she’d mimicked him as they flew home. Maybe one of the cast had injured themselves. Tess had looked anxious as she pulled Dan out of the hall. Indecision and an unwillingness to intrude held Amy back.
So why didn’t she turn around and go back to her table instead of tip-toeing closer? Unsteady on her high heels in the dim light, she put a hand out as she rounded the props table. One of the cast had left their mike on the table and she picked it up to return to Dan.
“You’ve got such a gentle touch, Dan.” That voice. Softer than her usual strident tones when talking to Amy, Sharyn was in full seduction mode.
Amy’s stomach clenched. Maybe it wasn’t seduction Sharyn had in mind but a real relationship that Dan’s pretend romance with Amy had stifled. What if Sharyn really cared for Dan? It would explain her recent odd behaviour.
Of course, if Amy cared for Dan like that, she’d do everything in her power to win him too. But she didn’t care like that—she couldn’t.
“I can’t see anything wrong with your ankle. Perhaps you’ve pulled a muscle. Elevate it on a chair until you go home.”
“I didn’t want Tess to bother you but she insisted on fetching you. I was in such agony when I came offstage.”
“No problem. It’s better to check these things.”
“So true.” As the cat-that-got-the-cream voice purred on, Amy held her breath.
Sharyn hadn’t shown any signs of being hurt in the last act, and Amy was sure the woman would have made a fuss if it meant being the centre of attention. Yet no one was around to see this performance.
“Can you help me, Dan? I need a pair of strong arms to hold me.”
Amy’s internal radar pinged long and loud. Forcing a calm she was far from feeling, she rounded the black curtain and stopped. Head lowered, Dan’s back faced her. Sharyn’s arms draped around his neck and she pressed against his body.
Seeing the woman in Dan’s arms shouldn’t have mattered. It wouldn’t matter if Amy didn’t care for him. But her heart knew otherwise. At the sight of Sharyn in his arms, it cracked wide open.
Chapter Sixteen
Sharyn’s arms pulled Dan’s head down as she plastered herself to his front like a leech. He closed his eyes and raised his hands to free her grip from his neck. Behind him, a strangled cry was quickly cut off.
He grasped Sharyn’s wrists and freed himself, and turned. Pale-faced, Amy clung to the curtain.
“Oh dear, Dan, I think Tweety Bird has caught us out.” Sharyn’s fingers dug into his forearm like claws.
“Amy, it’s not what it looks like.” He stepped towards her.
Without a word, she turned and ran.
Bile rose in his throat as the nightmare closed in around him. Sharyn’s grip on his arm tightened as the stage door slammed. Stupid to have thought he could escape the ghosts of Gosford. Stupid to think there would be no repetitions. Amy had seen them at precisely the wrong moment and confirmed her worst fears. Derek had done a number on her and shaken her self-confidence and now—he’d done the same.
Gut instinct had warned him not to be alone with Sharyn and yet he’d let Mike take Tess away.
“Take your hands off me, Sharyn.” Somehow he kept his voice neutral while his heart was yelling denial of his loss.
“Dan, don’t be like that. I just made it easier for you to recognise we’re made for each other. You and Amy didn’t even behave like a real couple.”
Amy opened the door into the hall and squeezed past people turning towards the empty stage.
Barely holding herself together, she kept moving. Only the pressing need for either money or her car keys so she could escape had drawn her inside.
“And how do ‘real couples’ behave?” Dan’s voice came over the PA system. A thread of anger underpinned his coolly polite tone.
“Touching, kissing. You never kissed—” Sharyn’s voice was more sulky than sultry with the amplification.
Amy froze in the middle of an audience who listened with rapt attention to the disembodied voices. She craned to see past bodies blocking her view of the stage. Heat raced up her cheeks, the only part of her still warm.
But how was Dan a
nd Sharyn’s conversation suddenly being transmitted into the hall? And her private business? Had he accidentally left a mike switched on? Aware of eyes tracking her movements, she pushed her way through the crowd to Dan’s control space.
How embarrassing. How bloody typical of her luck. She’d kissed him properly all right. In the clinic last night, they’d steamed up the windows.
“Yes, we did.” Dan’s response echoed her thoughts.
“Not you, her. She never kissed you properly. You’d have been tired of her in a month.”
“Your last poisonous pronouncement gave us two weeks.”
Mike stood at Dan’s sound system desk with a satisfied smirk on his face. Beside him, Tess stood within the circle of his arm, looking up at him as though he was the embodiment of her dreams.
“Turn off the mikes. Please, don’t make it worse.”
“No can do, Tweety Bird. Don’t want to upset the doc by messing with his settings.” Mike’s helpless shrug was belied by the mischievous gleam in his eyes.
“But—”
“I’m sure you misunderstood me.” Sharyn’s voice continued, oblivious of the fact everyone in the hall could hear her.
“No. You misread the situation. Amy is the only woman for me. And I hope one day to convince her that I love her.”
“I love her.” Dan’s voice broke through her trance. She gripped the edge of the desk and turned slowly towards the stage. Did he know Sharyn’s radio mike was on?
The PA crackled to life with Mike’s voice. “Paging Doctor Dan. Doctor Dan, you’re needed in the main hall. Please come immediately.”
Dan appeared onstage from the wings. What did he have left to lose? His heart felt as heavy as a stone in his chest. He raised a hand to shade his eyes and peered out over the crowd. “I can’t see a thing from here. Who needs me?”
Above his head, the PA voice guided him. “Here, Doc. At your control centre.”
Dan hurried down the stage steps. Smiles, grins, nudges, he noticed them without paying much attention to the rest of the world’s happy state. His own heart might be breaking but someone needed his attention and he had to get his thoughts back into a professional state in order to deal with it.
Just One Kiss (Hearts of the Outback Book 1) Page 11
