It felt so normal in so many ways – like Adam was an old friend who came round for dinner regularly – but simmering underneath the normalness was a heavy undertone of awareness between their every interaction. Whenever Heidi said something funny, Stella found her eyes meeting Adam’s and the smile they exchanged held more than simple amusement. When he’d passed the butter, their hands had accidentally brushed in the process and she’d almost cried out at the desire that zapped her at the interaction.
She didn’t know how she was going to get through the night if he kept looking at her the way he was looking at her across the table but she didn’t want him to stop. He’d almost finished his meal and even Heidi had given it a red-hot go, but Stella had been picking at her dinner like a fussy child. Truth was, she didn’t want this splendid evening to end. It had been too long since she’d enjoyed dinner conversation so much.
‘That was delicious,’ Adam said when he’d devoured his last morsel of pasta. He grinned at her. ‘I’ll never be able go back to microwave dinners after that.’
She cringed. ‘Oh God, you don’t really eat those horrible things, do you?’
‘Occasionally. I do try to cook myself something more substantial but there’s not much joy in cooking for one.’
‘Don’t I know it.’ Stella looked to Heidi. ‘I usually end up eating something like beans on toast because I can’t be bothered cooking two dinners.’
‘Baked beans good for heart, more you eat more you fart.’ Heidi burst out into giggles at her delivery of this important information and Adam joined her.
‘Know any other good fart jokes, Heidi?’
‘Please, don’t encourage her.’ Stella tried to sound stern but she couldn’t help smiling as Adam leaned towards Heidi conspiratorially. ‘Well, don’t let me interrupt your fun. I’m going to clear up the dishes.’
She stood and started gathering their plates.
‘Heidi,’ Adam said, ‘I’ve got a cracker of a fart joke for you, but I’m going to help your mum clean up first, okay?’
‘Oh, you don’t have to.’ Stella almost dropped the plates she was holding at the thought of standing shoulder-to-shoulder at the sink with Adam. She’d never thought of something as mundane as washing dishes as arousing before but she knew without a doubt that doing so with Adam would take it to a whole new level. She fought visions of him standing behind her, his body pressed against hers, his rock-hard arms coming around her and plunging into the water as he pressed mouthwatering kisses against her neck.
‘Nonsense.’ Adam, seemingly oblivious to her fantasy, stood and began clearing the table.
‘Watch movie, Mummy?’
‘Sure, whatever.’ It was heading towards Heidi’s bedtime and she’d no doubt fall asleep in front of the TV but Stella didn’t have the energy to argue right now.
‘Up. Up. Up,’ Heidi chanted. ‘Up. Up. Up.’
‘Up?’ Adam looked to Stella.
‘It’s her favourite movie.’ Although the first time they’d watched it together Heidi had bawled her eyes out – her empathetic heart going out to the poor old couple with no children – she’d grown to love it.
‘I see.’
‘Watch Up, Adam.’ Heidi offered him her best puppy dog eyes, then added, ‘Puh-leese.’
He laughed. ‘How can I say no?’
‘It takes a lot of practice,’ Stella said, realising any chances of Adam leaving straight after dinner had just flown out the window. ‘Come on, sweetie, I’ll get the DVD on for you and Adam and I will be there as soon as we’ve finished in here.’
Happy with this arrangement, Heidi all but bounced through to the lounge room and climbed onto the couch. Her current film du jour, Up had already been watched once today and therefore all Stella needed to do was turn on the television and press play.
‘There you go, sweetheart, enjoy.’ She leaned down and planted a kiss on Heidi’s forehead, then headed back into the kitchen where she hoped her brain would win out over her desire.
*
Adam pushed up the sleeves on his shirt and plunged his hands into the soapy water. Staying to help with the washing up was one thing, a simple courtesy he believed, but staying to watch a kid’s movie? Was he insane? It’s not the movie, said a sensible voice inside his head and he knew that to be the truth.
The moment he’d walked into the cottage earlier that evening and seen Stella standing in front of him wearing that stunning yellow dress, he’d known sticking to his resolve of staying only till Heidi was in bed would be near impossible. Had he ever experienced such a visceral reaction before? It wasn’t even that fancy a dress and it respectfully covered Stella’s delicious legs but he had a good imagination. And what he imagined drilled a big hole of yearning deep within him. The last few days he’d been kidding himself she was just a worker, just a mate.
Just because he felt at ease in her company and laughed more with her than he could recall doing with anyone else, didn’t mean she didn’t also make him feel other things. Red-blooded male things. Things like lust and desire, things he hadn’t felt in far too long because no woman had been able to get under his skin like she had.
‘Damn.’ He almost broke a plate as he slammed it into the water with a little too much force.
‘You okay?’ Of course Stella chose that moment to return to the kitchen.
Schooling his facial features into a carefree grin, he turned his head to look at her. ‘Yeah, fine.’
She frowned.
‘I just remembered we still have Mum’s dessert to eat.’ It was the first thing that came into his head and he regretted it the moment it escaped.
‘I thought you’d forgotten it on purpose.’ She crossed the room to join him at the sink, picked up a tea towel and began drying. ‘It can’t be that bad.’
‘Yes, it can.’ He tried to focus on just how bad it would be rather than on the feeling of rightness he felt standing alongside Stella doing something as domestic as this.
‘I don’t believe you. We’ll have some while watching the movie.’
‘You’ll regret it.’
‘We’ll see.’ She turned to put some plates in a cupboard and Adam took a moment to perve on her arse, telling himself there was no harm in looking.
‘What will you and Heidi do now you’re done helping me?’ he asked.
She shrugged as she continued drying. ‘Bits and bobs. We saw most of the touristy things in the first week we were here and to be honest, we’re really enjoying just hanging out together here. Heidi has fallen in love with that stray cat and she doesn’t like leaving her for too long.’
‘I saw Whiskers had made herself comfortable in the lounge room.’
Stella looked down at the floor. ‘Ah, yeah, sorry about that. I know you didn’t want animals inside but Heidi’s always wanted a pet and I find it really hard to say no to her.’
‘It’s no problem and I completely understand the saying “no” thing. She’s kind of magic.’
‘Thank you,’ she said, pausing in the act of drying and looking seriously at him. ‘Some people might think I spoil her but I honestly don’t think that’s possible with Heidi. From the moment she was born, she’s grabbed hold of life with all she’s got. She’s so loving and caring towards people and animals and I don’t think there’s a mean bone in her body. She continually reminds me to try to see the good in people.’
At Stella’s heartfelt words, Adam felt a lump rising in his throat. ‘You know, I have tried the last decade to do something to help my mum come out of her debilitating grief – I’ve read books on the subject, talked to experts, even renovated this whole damn cottage to give her something else to focus on and nothing worked until Heidi came along. I can’t begin to explain what your little girl had done simply by being herself.’
‘You really think she’s helping?’
He nodded. ‘This afternoon, after you left, Mum said she’s decided to get help again. She had counselling for years after Lily-Blue disappeared but it was
only because that’s what the doctor ordered. Her heart was never in it. Until now she’s never told me that she doesn’t want to be like this.’
‘I’m glad. I hope she can recover.’
‘Me too.’ He tried to focus on thoughts of his mum and not the way Stella’s eyes glistened with emotion as she spoke. Thank God he had the washing up to occupy his hands or Lord knew what he’d do with them. He wanted to give her the comfort he thought she deserved, but he didn’t trust himself to do anything of the sort, so instead he dug mindlessly in the now murky water for the next piece to wash. There wasn’t one.
‘I think we’re done here.’ She folded the tea towel she’d been using and hung it neatly over the stove. ‘Dessert time.’
He groaned. ‘We’ll need more wine to wash it down.’
She nodded to their glasses still sitting on the table. ‘Fill them up then.’
Adam did as he was told and Stella dished the pudding into bowls. ‘Only a minuscule serving for me, thanks.’
Ignoring him, she piled one bowl high and handed it to him with a smug smile. ‘That small enough?’
He narrowed his eyes and shook his head. ‘Evil woman, you’ll pay for that.’
She wriggled her eyebrows. ‘Is that a threat?’
‘Do you want it to be?’ The room felt as if it were closing in around them. No matter how much he knew he shouldn’t flirt with her, he couldn’t help himself. The same imp that told him it wasn’t dangerous to sit down and watch the movie, to stay longer than he’d planned, also told him such flirtation was innocuous.
‘We should go sit with Heidi,’ she said, breaking his gaze.
‘Yes. Good idea.’ Thank God for their little chaperone. Although without Heidi, Adam would have no reason not to pursue something with Stella. He pushed that thought out of his head, picked up the wine glasses and his bowl of torture and followed.
‘Sit. Sit.’ Heidi sat cross-legged in the middle of the couch patting the spaces on either side of her. Her eyes widened as Stella handed her a bowl of chocolate pudding and they all settled in to watch the movie.
Heidi took the first mouthful and Adam watched for her reaction. He frowned when her face lit up and she eagerly dug her spoon in for more.
Stella met his gaze and raised her eyebrow. ‘Can’t be too terrible if she likes it.’ Then she lifted her spoon to her mouth, slipped it between her lips and immediately gagged.
Adam couldn’t help but snort his laughter. He slapped his bowl down on the coffee table in front of them and smiled smugly before taking a sip of his wine.
‘Okay, it’s awful,’ Stella mouthed over the top of Heidi. ‘I promise never to question your judgment again.’ She discarded her bowl and practically downed half her wine in one gulp.
‘I told you so,’ he said, smugly.
Having not seen the first fifteen minutes of the movie, Adam felt a little lost but Heidi kept a running commentary for about half an hour before she lost the battle against sleep. Her little head rested against his leg, her golden hair spread out and contrasting against the darkness of his denim.
He and Stella forgot the movie once Heidi was no longer keeping them focused. Instead they talked freely, never experiencing a moment of awkward silence.
‘I can’t believe that Ruby went through all of that,’ she marvelled, after he’d finished telling her about the dramas that had not too long ago taken place at the cottage. ‘At least she and Drew got together because of it.’
‘Yep, people think small towns are sleepy little places, but we’ve had more than our fair share of excitement in Bunyip Bay this year.’
‘I’m happy that it all turned out okay for Ruby in the end. She seems a lovely person. Heidi would love to see her horses.’
Adam glanced down at the peacefully sleeping little girl. ‘I’m sure Ruby would love that too.’
‘Hey, is it true you were one of Cleo’s Bachelors of the Year?’ she asked, clearly amused by the notion.
‘Is that so hard to believe?’
‘There’s no easy way to answer that. If I say yes, you’ll be insulted and if I say no, I might give you a big head. Tell me about it.’
He leaned back into the couch. ‘It was surreal. Monty put my name forward as a joke or something and I didn’t really know what it would involve. I never expected to make the finalists but I must admit, at twenty-five, it wasn’t all that terrible being objectified.’
She laughed. ‘I so need to see photos.’
‘No. You don’t. I was the only country boy and they played that up big time. They made me look like a cowboy from some cheesy western.’
‘You’re not making this any less appealing.’
He cleared his throat. ‘Time to change the subject. How’s your bunyip hunting going?’
Stella rolled her eyes but thankfully didn’t press the Cleo issue. She told him about their so far unfruitful efforts to find a bunyip and the fun they’d had along the way. In turn he spoke of the spooky stories he used to make up with his friends late at night around bonfires. Conversation drifted from bunyips to friendships, from friendships to jobs they’d had, places they been, things they’d always dreamed of doing in life.
They talked about everything under the sun until the credits rolled up on the screen and Adam realised he couldn’t tell anyone anything more about the movie Up than that it involved an annoying little kid, a fat old guy and a bunch of balloons. He didn’t care. This had been the best evening he’d had in years. And he didn’t want it to end.
Sighing, Stella picked up the remote and turned off the television. ‘I should get Heidi to bed.’
‘Here, let me help.’ Adam didn’t think twice about scooping up the little girl and Stella didn’t object. He followed her out of the room and down the hallway. Heidi’s head flopped against his chest but she didn’t stir and he felt something shift inside of him. Was there anything more precious in the world?
Stella went straight to the bed, peeled back the sheets and fluffed up the pillow, before stepping aside so he could lie Heidi down. She immediately rolled over and curled into a ball. He watched as Stella pulled the covers over, stroked her hair, kissed her forehead and whispered, ‘Goodnight. I love you.’
She switched on the lamp next to the bed. ‘She doesn’t like the dark.’
‘Understandable,’ he said as he retreated out of the room to wait. His heart pounded as he stood in the dimly lit hallway and listened to the wind whistling outside. With Heidi in bed, he should leave, but it was the last thing he wanted to do.
Stella came out and stood beside him. ‘Thank you. For tonight. You were so sweet with Heidi. And I had fun.’
‘Me too.’ His voice came out low, his body so damn aware of how close she was. How easy it would be to overstep the line they’d drawn. ‘And I really want to kiss you right now.’ The words were out before he could control them and his heart ceased its wild thumping as he waited for her reply.
She licked her lips and looked right up into his eyes. ‘I want that too.’
Commonsense made an untimely appearance. ‘It’s probably not a good idea, is it?’
‘No, probably not.’ But, as she shook her head, her eyes fluttered shut and she leaned in, closing the gap between them.
Commonsense could take a hike. If there was a man who could resist those red-hot lips, it wasn’t him.
Chapter Thirteen
When Adam’s mouth landed on hers, all sensible thoughts left Stella’s head. Nothing else mattered but the way his lips moved against hers as he ran his hands up into her hair and tugged her towards him. She didn’t have time to worry about her technique because his kisses were all consuming. Until this moment she hadn’t thought gentle and ravaging were possible at the same time but that was exactly Adam’s way.
His hands fell from her hair, sliding down to her bottom and cupping her against him. She felt his firm, deliciously hard length press into her and when he kissed the side of her neck, it was ten times more pleasurable t
han she’d imagined. Someone moaned, she feared it was her but couldn’t cobble together one iota of embarrassment. She wanted him, stat, and didn’t care if he knew it.
‘Adam.’ She palmed her hands against his chest and he looked up from where he’d been kissing the skin just above the neckline of her dress. Her nipples ached at how close his lips had been but she had to get this out. ‘It’s not going to be awkward if we do this, is it?’
He cupped her face in his big, calloused palms. ‘We’re getting pretty damn hot at awkward, don’t ya think?’
She licked her lips, thinking back to the time she’d flashed her breast at him. The breasts in question felt tight and heavy and she knew if she let this opportunity pass they would never forgive her. Who cared if awkward descended tomorrow morning? They’d have to certify her if she passed up this chance to get hot and heavy between the sheets with this god. Because that’s what he was. A golden-headed Adonis who looked irresistible in his clothes but would rock her world without them.
Commonsense told her that this would be nothing more than a night of incomparable passion, maybe a holiday fling if she got lucky, but that didn’t matter much right now.
‘Okay,’ she breathed, wanting his mouth back against her skin. Wanting to feel that tantalising pressure against her feminine core. ‘Awkward here we come.’
In reply, he pressed her up against the wall and kissed her again. Hard. She opened her mouth to him, welcomed his tongue to tease hers as her bones went limp with desire. Realising she was only having half the fun she could be because she hadn’t yet given her hands permission to explore, she wrapped her arms around him and slipped her fingers under his shirt, crawling them up his sculpted back. His skin was hot, smooth, beautiful and she couldn’t get close enough. Sneaking around the front she relished the feeling as his chest muscles tensed and bunched beneath her touch.
Her hands trekked lower and she was all too aware of what she’d find right under the buckle of his jeans. Her mind filled with the thought of what it would feel like to drop down onto her knees, tear open his fly and take him into her mouth. Burning hot, raw desire pooled and throbbed between her legs and she felt a liberating power at the knowledge she affected him.
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