by Miranda Lee
'Maybe he's a photographer,' Leah suggested. Photographing Cable Beach sunsets was big business. 'You know how they don't like to share any vantage point.'
'Yeah. I didn't think of that.'
Once on The Zephyr, Leah went through the motions of making snacks for one, yawning here and there. Last night's largely sleepless hours were catching up with her.
'Our man's arrived on the beach,' Alan called out, just as she was covering the one small serving plate with plastic wrap. 'I'm off to pick him up.'
Leah went out on deck a couple of minutes later, listlessly waiting for Alan to return. She closed her eyes and let the rocking of the water soothe her sudden exhaustion, not opening them till she heard the motor approaching.
The sight of Gerard sitting in the back of the boat stunned her at first. It certainly propelled her out of any lethargy. She stared at him and he stared right back, his blue eyes watchful on her shocked face.
Alan jumped onto the deck, rope in hand, smirking as he bent down and whispered in her ear. 'It seems dear old Gareth isn't going back to Brisbane just yet. Neither did he want to share.'
'That's not Gareth,' Leah informed him resignedly. 'That's my husband. Gerard.'
'What? Oh, Good God, I'm not going through that rubbish again. That...is...Gareth,' he said slowly, pointing to her husband and rolling his eyes at her as though she were a moron. 'For pity's sake, show her the scar again, man. Geez, Leah!'
Smiling ruefully, Gerard stood up and showed her the scar.
'See?' Alan scorned. 'It's Gareth, not your nasty old ex. Now, can we just get on with this cruise without any more melodrama? Lord, the girl is paranoid!'
Leah had to smile. It really was funny.
'Shall we tell him the truth?' Gerard whispered as he came aboard.
'I don't think so, do you?'
'No. Because if we did, he might wonder why your nasty old ex is kissing you, and why you're not scratching and spitting.'
Leah didn't have time to protest before his mouth covered hers. She didn't scratch or spit, but she did stiffen for a split second. But then she relaxed, and melted into the man she loved. It was what she wanted, after all.
'You didn't waste much time,' she murmured when he finally let her come up for air.
'Time and tide waits for no man,'' he quoted. 'I love you, Leah. I wanted to start proving it as soon as possible.'
'And you think kissing is the best way?'
'It's a damned good start.'
He was right, she thought blissfully. It was.
So she kissed him back.
EPILOGUE
LEAH circled the large living room, carrying a tray full of hors d'oeuvres, smiling and chatting to her many guests. Over two hundred, they spilled out onto the terrace and around the pool. It seemed nearly everyone in Hidden Bay was there to celebrate their house-warming party, including Leah's brothers and their fiancées. Leah's marriage and baby had finally inspired those two seemingly confirmed bachelors to tie the knot.
The house had taken a year to build, but was worth it, Leah thought as she glanced around. Light and bright and breezy, with tiled floors and comfy cane furniture, it was the perfect getaway from their busy Brisbane lifestyle—a place where they could relax as a family, and with friends. They already planned to spend every second weekend there, not to mention Christmas, Easter and all school holidays.
Not that school holidays would come into their lives for a while. Lewis was only five months old as yet, and Leah's second pregnancy was merely a date ticked on the calendar.
But time flew when you were happy, Leah knew. It was nearly two years since Gerard had set to winning her back. Two wonderful but unbelievably quick years during which she and Gerard had cemented a relationship—and a trust—which Leah felt confident would last for ever. They were best friends as well as lovers. Not only was their flesh as one, but so were their minds and hearts.
A man's hands suddenly came to rest on her waist from behind, pulling her over into a comer. Leah didn't have to turn round to know who they belonged to. Aside from anything else, she instantly recognised that tangy pine smell which she'd come to love even more than the other one.
'You just love serving food, don't you?' Gerard whispered in her ear, and she laughed.
'Alan's arrived,' he added.
'Oh, how marvellous!' she exclaimed, whirling round. 'I was hoping he'd make it.'
The three of them had become firm friends during the six weeks Gerard had spent in Broome, winning and wooing Leah all over again. Alan had laughed himself silly when they'd eventually got round to telling him the truth about Gareth. He'd thought they were both mad! Which they were. About each other.
'Did he say he had any trouble sailing that old tub all the way here by himself?'
'Said it was a breeze. Apparently he dropped anchor earlier in the day, but took a bit of time cleaning himself up for our party. Said he didn't want to embarrass us by turning up half-naked and with a five-day growth on his chin. And guess what else?'
'What?'
'He took one look at Enid and made a bee-line straight for her.'
Shock flung Leah's eyes wide. 'No!'
'Oh, yes! See for yourself. Look out there on the terrace.'
Leah looked and Gerard was so right. A surprisingly overdressed Alan was chatting away earnestly with Enid and she was looking into his soulful brown eyes as though he was a visitation from heaven.
'I shouldn't be surprised, I suppose,' Leah said ruefully. 'Enid's looking darned good these days. She's lost so much weight and she looks great as a blonde. Much better than that mousy brown. But still, she is nearly fifty! And I don't think she's been with a man since she left her husband about fifteen years ago.'
'Then it's about time, don't you think?'
Leah thought about it. 'Yes. Yes, I do!'
'Then I suggest you put down that tray of food and we'll take them both some champagne.'
'Good idea.'
It took several hours and several glasses of champagne before a besotted and somewhat sozzled Enid let Alan sweep her out of the house and off to a night of decadence aboard The Zephyr. Leah watched her go with some trepidation but Gerard chuckled and told her not to be so silly.
'Are you absolutely sure we did the right thing?' Leah reiterated after the guests had left and the house was quiet. She'd checked on Lewis, who was blissfully sleeping. A big and contented baby, he'd been sleeping through the night for a few weeks. 'Alan's not into love, you know, just lovemaking.'
'A good dose of lovemaking is exactly what that lady needs,' Gerard pronounced firmly. 'And speaking of a good dose of lovemaking...'
His blue eyes narrowed and darkened as his fingers slipped the straps of her nightie from her shoulders. It pooled on the floor at her feet, leaving her naked and instantly breathless. Her heartbeat quickened when he trailed the backs of his fingers across her breasts, their darkened areolae and distended nipples extra sensitive since breastfeeding Lewis.
'Did I or did I not notice that today's date had a tick against it?' Gerard murmured, bending to take one of those nipples, and then the whole areola, into his mouth.
'Yes,' she croaked, cradling his head against her breast and urging him to suckle harder. The sensations were incredible. Erotic and primitive. She abandoned herself to them, and to him.
He straightened to cup her face and kiss her hungrily. 'Tell me you love me,' he insisted between frantic feverish kisses.
She told him, as she told him every time they made love these days. He seemed to need to hear her say the words almost as much as he needed her body's responses. And she gave him all he needed, as she always did, gave it with all her heart and soul. For she loved him with all her heart and soul. Always had, and always would.
Tropical cyclone Michelle gathered and raged off the coast that night, but it could not quite compare to the storm which raged in the master cabin on The Zephyr, or the tornado of passion whipped up in the master bedroom of the Woodwards' new
weekender. A cyclone was, after all, a destructive force. Those other two storms were far more creative, leaving behind new life in one woman and new confidence in another.
Nine months later a daughter was born to Leah and Gerard. They called her Michelle and asked Enid and Steve to be her godparents.
The two new partners of Sunshine Enterprises were happy to oblige, stunning everyone at the christening by announcing their engagement. They were married six weeks later and, despite a ten-year age gap, remained madly in love and blissfully happy.
