Michael winks at Autumn, stifling a smirk and walks off to his own office.
“Sure, Scott. I’ll just put my bag down.”
“Never mind. You’ll be needing it.”
Autumn’s eyes widen. “Oh, ok.” She follows Scott down the hall, purposefully not peering into Michael’s office, yet feeling his devious stare on hers as they stride past.
Jet is at his desk, on the phone when she arrives. Scott gestures for her to take a seat and then turns back out of the office, closing the door behind him. Autumn eases into the chair opposite Jet, smiling as he greets her with a grin.
“How are you?” Jet asks when he places the phone back onto the receiver.
“Good. I was starting to wonder if you were in today. Have you been busy?”
He nods. “That’s a lesson for taking the day off yesterday. But you know,” he leans across his desk, grinning, “you can come to my office any time you want.”
“I thought we had some kind of silent agreement that I had to wait for your messenger boy to collect me.”
Jet laughs. “I actually made you a personal visit today. But your office was empty. Scott was doing the second run.”
“I was having lunch with Michael.”
He nods. “I know. You and him are good friends?”
“Yes.” She smiles. “He’s also gay, in case you’re wondering.”
“I know. I checked it out.”
Autumn shakes her head. “What is it you need me for?”
He shrugs. “I was hoping we could grab lunch together. You know, the long, late afternoon lunches that end a few hours shy of midnight.”
Autumn glances at her watch. “It’s two o’clock. Office policy is that an hour lunch is to be taken between one and two.”
“I should know that, shouldn’t I? See that’s the problem I have, not having someone who can dictate lunch times to me, I tend to work off my own schedule.”
“We can have lunch tomorrow?” she suggests.
Jet frowns. There is genuine sorrow in his expression. “I have to fly out tomorrow to Sydney and won’t be back until Monday night. I really wanted to spend some time together before I go.”
She shrugs a single shoulder. “I only had a small steak with salad, I’m sure I can squeeze in dessert and at least two coffees.”
“I thought you’d never ask,” he says, standing. “Let’s go.”
“Let me check my appointments, I think I have a client at four, so we will need to be back before then.”
He shakes his head and takes her by the arm, leading her towards the office door. “Don’t worry about it. Scott’s rescheduled. Your four o’clock is now ten o’clock tomorrow.”
“How presumptuous of you.”
He takes her by the waist and pulls her towards him, chest on chest, and covers Autumn’s lips with his own. “I simply wasn’t going to take no for an answer.”
Voicing her answer: reclusive to Jet’s usual question, they end up at his hotel suite, the balcony table beautifully prepared ahead of time by the ever attentive staff. The city is blanketed by endless blue sky, barely a cloud, allowing for the most perfect view of the compact high-rises, parks and the winding river from their vantage. Behind the soft tunes that pervade the air around them, the faint drone of life and traffic and the busy workaday-world drifts up to the heights of the suite, but it is miles away in their minds. For on the balcony, only the two of them exist as they offer their stories to one another for hours, drinking coffee and port and eating spoonfuls of delicious desserts.
They witness the shades of the sky transform from blue to hues of pinks and orange as the sun sets, to a glowing inky-black as the moon shines its full light. With minds muzzy from alcohol, they decide to head out for dinner. Arm in arm, they stroll through the city to a rustic side-street restaurant offering whole grilled prawns and fresh oysters, scallops and boutique beer. An Irish band with acoustic guitars and rough brogues play songs of love and loss accelerating into a jovial knee-slapping canter as the night progresses and the beer muddles both of their minds, the combination elevating their moods. At eleven o’clock they roll out onto the street, arms loosely swathed around each other’s waists.
Autumn eyes a taxi as it passes, wondering if she should flag it down. Jet catches her glance. “Stay with me tonight. We don’t have to—I just want to be near you.”
If her mind wasn’t so fuzzy from the beer, from the wonderful evening, from the music and laughter and atmosphere of the restaurant, she would say no, but gazing up at Jet, seeing his buttery brown eyes, his broad, tall frame, the light spatter of freckles across his nose, she finds herself nodding instead. He entices her physically, especially now when her inhibitions are relaxed, but more than anything, she simply wants to be near him, to lie beside him in his bed and wrap her arm around his waist; hear the regular rise and fall of his chest as he sleeps. Autumn’s feelings are magnified, her wants intensified, because she knows it will be four days and four nights where he is in Sydney and she is here in Brisbane wishing she was with him.
They walk through the foyer of the hotel, hushed and dim and ride the elevator to his suite. “I once again have no clothes,” she says, looking down at the work apparel she has worn all day long.
“I’ll drop you home tomorrow en route to the airport. For tonight, you can wear one of my shirts if you’re modest or” he offers a cheeky grin, “nothing at all, if you are feeling generous.”
Autumn smiles. “I think I’ll opt for a t-shirt.”
“As for underwear, I can organise with reception to send something up.”
She quickly shakes her head. “No. That’s embarrassing. I’m sure you have a shirt long enough to cover the necessary bits and pieces.”
“I’m kinda wishing I wore extra-small now.”
Autumn shakes her head.
“You can go first for the shower. We better hit the sack, my flight’s early.”
“How early?” she asks, shoulders sagging.
“Nine. Not so early that we can’t get some good hours in and sleep off some of this beer.”
Autumn takes her time showering and dresses into a bathrobe. It feels wonderful to have her body and teeth clean after such a long day. Towel wrapped around her hair, she tramples out to the bedroom where Jet is waiting on the bed, dressed only in his long black pants; tie, shirt and shoes already off. Spending the entire afternoon in the sun yesterday seems to have darkened his already generous tan, defining his tight torso even more so. Suddenly she is aware of her nakedness under the robe and how incredible Jet is. She controls her eyes, at least conspicuously, from admiring his broad shoulders and well-defined chest.
Jet holds a white printed t-shirt in the air for her, his biceps contracting, the stringiness of his shoulders more than evident. Autumn snatches it from him, “Thanks,” and whisks back into the bathroom to change, grateful when she finds that it hangs down to her mid-thigh.
Russet, wet hair hanging loosely over her shoulders, the thin, white t-shirt moulding to the curves of her body, fitting snugly around her breasts, she returns to the bedroom. She does not miss Jet’s lingering glance along the length of her body as she steps towards him. Instead of feeling self-conscious, she feels sexy. It is something in his look, his jaw slack, lips moist, eyes penetrating, which screams desire and want and lust: gratifying and complimentary both that she can have this effect wearing only a white, cotton t-shirt.
He stands. “I’ll be out soon.”
While Jet showers she finds a bottle of water in the fridge and skols down almost a quarter of it in a single gulp then sits on the bed and waits for him to finish. He doesn’t take long, appearing at the side of the bed, decked only in a pair on boxer shorts.
“Am I in the spare bed?” he asks.
She glances across the room all the way to where the second bedroom lies behind the closed sliding doors and shakes her head.
The slightest of smiles touches his lips. “I was hoping that was your answer.”<
br />
He pulls the covers back and crawls into the bed, lying back against the soft pillows. Autumn joins him, pulling the sheet over her body.
“You’re a bad influence keeping me up so late on a work night,” she says.
He grins. “And here I was thinking you’re a willing participant.”
Autumn nods. “Definitely willing.”
Jet trails his fingers across Autumn’s cheek, strokes some loose strands of long hair behind her ear. “I have a proposition for you,” he says.
“Yes?”
“Fly to Sydney on Friday night and stay with me at my apartment for the weekend?”
Autumn’s eyes widen.
“I don’t have any meetings on the weekend; we can spend the entire time together,” he says.
“And fly back Sunday night?”
“If you like. I’ll be back Monday afternoon though.”
She thinks about her brother’s request for Saturday morning with the real estate girl and how Tae will react if she was to say yes. She also thinks about her finances, knowing at the moment she isn’t in the position to buy flights on a whim to Sydney. But mostly, she considers what he would be doing otherwise that she will distract him from—his charities, fundraising, educational programs.
“Why the reluctance?” he asks.
“I promised my brother I’d do something for him this weekend, but I can reschedule that for tomorrow afternoon.”
She is silent.
“The company will cover costs, if that’s another issue. I’m privy to how little you’re paid.”
Autumn tries to smile, but she is embarrassed he sensed that particular concern. Again she is silent.
“What else?” he asks, brow furrowing.
“Being with you, always seems to come with a sense of guilt. I don’t want to pull you away from any duties you would otherwise be doing.”
He raises his eyebrows. “Autumn, we’ve been through this before, in India, remember? When you left me without any way to even contact you, not even a last name I could trace, out of a sense of duty to me and to the children I was caring for. You’re not and I’m not sacrificing a chance at happiness again. Surely, I’m entitled to some romantic fulfilment.”
“As long as I don’t distract you from what is most important.”
“You are who is most important. But believe me, not even you can stop me from pursuing my other efforts. I have the ability to have you all in my life.”
Autumn considers that for a moment and then eventually says, “Fine. I would love to spend the weekend with you in Sydney.”
He grins cheekily. “Great. Scott won’t have to cancel the booking.”
Autumn laughs. “One day I’ll disappoint you.”
He shakes his head and presses his lips to hers, just once. “You can never disappoint me,” he says, eyes only inches from hers.
As she peers into his beautiful face, she never does want to disappoint him, but she knows that is wishful thinking.
Chapter 15
Tae walks into the kitchen in her pyjamas, eyes bloodshot and hair in disarray. She notices Autumn humming at the bench, fixing a coffee. “Another sleepover at the boss’s?”
Autumn spins to face her, grinning. “Yep.”
“How did it go?” Like she even has to ask.
“Wonderful.”
Tae raises an eyebrow, narrows her eyes. “Did you sleep with him?”
Biting her bottom lip, Autumn turns back to the jug, pours a flow of boiling water into a mug. “No.”
“No?” Tae stands shoulder to shoulder with Autumn, grabbing a mug from the cupboard above their heads. “I must say, Autumn, you’re showing incredible restraint.”
“I’m merely doing what you suggested, feeling the waters instead of diving in head first.”
“When have you ever listened to what I say? I’ve been thinking about it. Life’s too short. I know you really like this guy, Christ, I had to listen to you whine on about him for almost two years after your India trip. So what if he’s your boss, I say, go get him, tiger!”
Autumn laughs. “What’s with the sudden change of mind? Where’s the whole, ‘Ooh, you’re gonna ruin your career’, ‘don’t jump in too quickly’, business gone?”
Tae smiles. “I’ve gained advice from beyond the grave.”
“Who was it this time—Jane Austen, Virginia Wolf?”
“Charlotte Bronte.”
Autumn grins. “Let me guess—Jane Eyre?”
Tae nods. “You’ll relate to this, I promise. It will help you reconcile the perceived inequalities between you two.”
“Oh, will it just?”
“Yes.” Tae finds her handbag on the bench behind them and pulls out a yellowed, dog-eared copy of Jane Eyre. She leafs through the pages for a while.
“Here it is,” she says. “This is where Jane is talking to Rochester, so listen closely.”
Autumn nods.
“‘I am not talking to you now through the medium of custom, conventionalities, nor even of mortal flesh;—it is my spirit that addresses your spirit; just as if both had passed through the grave, and we stood at God’s feet, equal,—as we are!’
‘As we are!’ repeated Mr Rochester.”
Tae stops and peers at Autumn from over the cherished pages of her book. Autumn doesn’t notice, as she herself is staring at the floor, silent, caught between enlightening thought and shame. Jet had breathed these exact sentiments to her and she chose to see flesh over spirit, exactly what she had stupidly blamed him of doing.
“As we are,” she whispers, not to Tae, more to the Jet she sees painted in her mind.
“Exactly,” says Tae. “If Jet’s the guy for you, then why hold back.”
Autumn smiles. “Thank you. I like your thinking. So much less mum-like. Now I don’t feel nervous about telling you what I’m doing this weekend.” She apprises Tae of her plans to spend tomorrow night through to Sunday with Jet in Sydney.
“That certainly sounds like your moving forward at a firing pace, not at all like testing the waters.”
Autumn shrugs. “Yeah. I guess it does.” She brings her coffee to her lips, takes a sip. “But you know what? I think I’m ok with that. I’ve had my doubts, mainly because he’s …”
“So rich.”
“Yeah and because …”
“He’s your boss.”
Autumn smiles. “Yes, all those things. But the more time I spend with him, the more I see that none of that matters to him.”
“Just like Rochester.”
A bellowing laugh escapes from Autumn’s lips. “Yes, something like that.”
They hear footsteps moving towards the kitchen and a smile spreads over Tae’s lips. “And here is my own handsome devil,” she says as Jace, dressed solely in a pair of shorts, joins them in the kitchen.
“Good morning,” Autumn says, begrudgingly.
“Morning, Autumn. Haven’t seen you much this week.”
“I’ve been busy,” she says, avoiding his eyes along with the slight smirk she thought she saw when he said ‘seen you much’.
“Yeah. I’ve been filled in on the details. The boss’s been keeping you busy.”
She shrugs, grabs her toast from the bench along with her mug of coffee. “You could say that,” she says as she steps past him to the dining room to eat her breakfast.
Autumn has known Jace for five years, ever since he and her brother started their landscaping business together. He is her brother’s age; went to school with him. Jace and Tae hooked up at her Jordy’s twenty-first birthday two years ago and have been inseparable ever since. He has been a good boyfriend and is a decent bloke, otherwise she would never have let her best friend have a relationship with him, or her brother go into partnership with him. But what she saw on Sunday night as their hands touched for the briefest of moments, despite being out of the ordinary, is weighing on her in ways she is finding difficult to ignore.
Autumn shakes her head. Men masturbate all the time,
using which ever fantasy is floating in their thoughts. If she didn’t have her gift, she would never be the wiser, like other ‘normal’ women who are left in the dark when it comes to men’s minds. It’s only that this is personal—the fantasy being her, in an incredibly vulnerable position, naked. It feels like an intrusion on her privacy as much as it feels like she has been betrayed and, simultaneously, is betraying her best friend. Autumn picks up a slice of her toast with Vegemite. Her teeth grind as she chews down a bite, “Bloody curse,” she mumbles between mouthfuls.
“What’s the matter with you?” asks Tae, eyeing Autumn uncertainly from the kitchen door.
She snaps her head up to look at her. “Oh, um, nothing. I was thinking about what I have to get through at work today.”
Tae steps towards Autumn, places her hand on her shoulder. “I’m sure you’re doing a great job while Tanya is away. Don’t be so hard on yourself.” She smiles a reassuring smile. “I’m going to take a shower and get ready. I’ll see you after work. I can drop you at the airport if you like?”
Autumn nods. “Thanks, but I’ve organised for Jordy to take me. He wants me to,” she does air quotes with her fingers, “see a girl he is interested in before I leave, to check if she’s hot for him or not.”
Tae shakes her head and frowns. “You know you shouldn’t let him take advantage of your,” she looks around behind her and lowers her voice to a whisper, “gift like this.”
Autumn shrugs. “It’s ok. I don’t mind, really.”
“Well, you have yourself some fun in Sydney and I’ll see you when you get home. I want all the details.”
When Tae is out of sight and earshot, Jace appears, pulls out a seat opposite Autumn and sits. He sips his coffee noisily. “Have I done something wrong?” he asks.
Autumn raises her eyes to look at his face. He is worried; she can discern it in his eyes, the creases on his forehead.
“I saw you watching me, Jace.”
His face turns red in an instant; he lowers his eyes, his face the expression of a school boy caught looking up a class member’s skirt. “When?”
Autumn releases a long sigh. “You know what I’m talking about.”
Jace doesn’t answer; glares at the table.
The Paler Shade Of Autumn Page 14
