“Yes. As if I was encroaching on her territory.”
“I’m not territory.”
“I think you are, to her, anyway.”
“I can assure you it’s over. Our relationship was…” He hesitated. “Of a certain kind.” He didn’t want to bring up the subject of sex with Amber. Somehow it seemed too dirty to discuss with her the foundation upon which his relationship with Katherine was based.
“You mean it was about sex.”
“Sex,” he repeated, surprised again.
“Yes. You know when two people make love.”
He leaned in to Amber, not wanting anyone to overhear his part in the conversation at least. From the faces that had suddenly turned in their direction, he suspected that other diners were hearing Amber’s crystal clear voice, which never wavered, never changed according to its audience. “There was little ‘making love’ about it.”
“Just sex then.”
He glanced around at the amused glance of a nearby couple. “Amber!” He ran his finger around his collar which was feeling increasingly tight. “Could you keep your voice down?”
“Why? Sex is nothing to be ashamed of.”
He opened his mouth but could find nothing to say. She continued to surprise him.
“I didn’t say I was ashamed of anything, it’s just that I prefer to keep some things private. Anyway,” he said, desperately trying to think of something to change the subject, “let’s talk about something else.”
Amber glanced over to where Katherine was sitting, the picture of sexy sophistication. He wondered what he’d ever seen in Katherine. His eyes slipped to her figure and he suddenly remembered. But it hadn’t been enough.
Amber sighed and tugged at her dress, the seams of which appeared strangely puckered. He made a mental note to introduce her to a Christchurch designer where the clothes would be made to fit her petite figure.
“What would you like to talk about?” she asked.
“You.” He replied without thinking because it was the absolute truth. “You,” he repeated with emphasis. “Tell me about your family.”
His honesty was rewarded by a sweet smile which lit her face up once more. “Ah, love ’em, love ’em, love ’em.”
He frowned. “What, all of them?”
“Yes! My dad, all four brothers, two sisters, and nieces and nephew. Of course they’re all different, all weird in some ways, but wonderful ways. Weird or strange, I love them all.”
He raised his eyebrows and then lowered them in consternation. “That’s a lot of love.”
She looked puzzled. “Love isn’t finite; it’s not a limited thing. There’s plenty to go around.”
He surprised himself by instinctively hoping that some might be coming his way. “So tell me about them.”
“I’ll do better than that. Why don’t you come around at the weekend when everyone will be there and I can introduce you?”
Alarm bells rang. He really could do without an audience to his seduction of the enemy. But then Katherine laughed a laugh designed to reach them, and Amber glanced towards her, frowning slightly as if suddenly unsure. Instinctively he wanted to wipe away that unsureness.
“I’ll check my schedule and see if I’m free.” He knew he was, but wanted to buy time. “So tell me all there is to know about them, so I can be prepared.”
She laughed. “No preparation required. It’s not a meeting, you know. There’s no agenda, no action points.”
He heard laughter but this time he realized it was coming from him. It felt good. “So you maythink; you might just find minutes circulated after the event.”
“Jeez, I hope not. I wouldn’t know what to do with them.”
“Ignoring them is best. Now, I need to know, will all the men in your family be like Gabe and scowl at me? Will they look at me as if they want to castrate me?”
