“I love you too, June Bug. Have lots of orgasms!”
Juniper chuckled. “I will!”
The three-minute drive up to the lighthouse had never felt so long to Juniper but she was finally knocking on the door to the little house next to the lighthouse, her heart thudding in anticipation. Then the door was swinging wide, and William was there, backlit by the wash of light from a single lamp in the lounge room.
“Hey.”
“Hey, yourself.” The pleasure in his eyes at the sight of her warmed her blood.
“Have you eaten?”
“I was just about to make a spaghetti jaffle.”
“Thank the stars, I arrived just in the nick of time.” She stepped inside, pressing a kiss to his lips but evading his arms and sliding past him. She slipped her sandals off and dumped her overnight bag next to them, by the wall. She took the shopping bags into the kitchen, heaving them onto the bench just as William switched the light on. She started unpacking the bags, removing a saucepan, wooden spoon, pasta, homemade basil pesto, pine nuts, and parmesan cheese. “You can set the table,” she said, handing him two ceramic candlestick holders and the accompanying candles. As he took them from her, he leaned in to try and kiss her, but she just smiled and pushed at him. “The table. And I’d love a glass of wine.” She filled the saucepan with water and placed it on the stovetop, and then turned the dial up to high. “Good business trip?”
He was still wearing suit pants and his business shirt, unbuttoned at the collar and the tie discarded. His hair looked disheveled, like he’d been running his fingers through it. He shrugged as he handed her a glass of chilled white wine. He’d traveled down to Melbourne to scout out a location in the Dandenong Ranges for a corporate retreat. He’d been gone three days and God, she’d missed him. But he didn’t look happy, his shrug indicating something was up. “Mum and Dad are happy. The building is perfect for a retreat, the price is right, it needs some work so we can add value.” He shrugged again.
“What is it?”
“Nothing.”
She tilted her head to one side, looking at him for a long moment but he had that shuttered expression on his face that he sometimes got, so she didn’t push it. Turning away, she put her wine glass down and opened the packet of fresh pasta, tipping it into the boiling water. He came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. He then pressed a kiss to the side of her neck. “I’m sorry.”
She turned into his arms, brushing her lips lightly across his. “You don’t have anything to apologize for.” In a weary gesture, he dropped his forehead to hers so she just stood there. She wrapped her arms around his waist, offering what comfort she could for whatever was bothering him. After a little while, he leaned back and looked down at her, the slow heating in his eyes unmistakable. He moved to lower his head, but she stopped him, pressing her fingertips to his lips. “Set the table.”
“Such a slave driver,” he said with a long-suffering sigh as he pulled away, making her chuckle.
By the time the pasta was cooked, Juniper was mixing in the pesto and parmesan, William had the table set and the candles lit.
“Lovely,” she said, bringing the bowl of pasta and her glass of wine over. “Now, it’s no spaghetti toastie, but I think you’ll like it,” she said as they sat down.
“I’ll do my best,” he replied, giving her a mischievous grin. “So, what have you been up to while I’ve been away?” He asked, topping up her wine glass.
“Oh, I took Billy, Nana and Jasper to the butterfly enclosure. That big blue butterfly sure does love the Bells, she couldn’t get enough of Billy. She followed him around, landed on his head and wouldn’t’ get off. He loved it at first but by the time we got to the exit, he was sick of it. You should have seen his expression when she landed on his nose. Cross eyed and cross at the same time. I’ll have to show you the photos.”
He laughed appreciatively and she thought she was going some way to alleviating his mood. “This is amazing,” he said, twirling more pasta around his fork.
“Better than a toastie?”
He held up his finger and thumb, a small distance apart. “By about this much.”
“Cheeky.”
When their bowls were empty, Juniper leaned forward in her chair, resting her chin on her hand and wrapping her fingers around the stem of her wine glass. William leaned back in his chair, one hand in his pocket, the other holding his glass. She took a sip of wine, pleased with the way his eyes watched her every move.
“You’ve come here with a plan, tonight.”
“I have.”
He quirked an inquiring brow.
“The way I see it, the night’s going to go one of two ways.”
“Hmm?”
“Option one, you’re going to take me to bed, where we make slow, passionate love all night long.” Her skin warmed as the heat swirled in his eyes.
“I see. And option two?”
