Lily’s plastic hammer clatters to the ground. “Afairy house?” And then she’s off, toy toolbox abandoned at my feet.
I get on with the work in peace and am just tightening the last screw when I hear Ainsley’s back door open, followed by the soft pad of bare feet on patio stones.
I turn, and the sight of her knocks the breath out of me, as it always does. She’s in a floaty green dress that matches her eyes, and the breeze keeps lifting bits of her hair, making them dance around her cheeks. She’s backlit by afternoon sun, and all I can do is stare.
She catches me at it and rolls her eyes, but a smile tugs at her lips.
“You’ve got sawdust everywhere,” she says, stepping close and brushing at my shoulders.
“Occupational hazard.”
She peers past me at the gate, then runs her fingers along the smooth edge of the top slat. “It’s beautiful. You do good work, Mr Walker.”
“Aye, well. It’ll make it easier for the girls to go back and forth.” I give her a wink. “And it’ll make it easier for me too.”
Ainsley arches one perfect brow. “Oh?” she says in a low voice. “You don’t normally have any difficulty finding your way to my bed.”
God, I love this woman.
“Ainsley Reid.” I press a hand to my chest in mock horror. “There are children present.”
But then I reach for her, my fingers curling around her waist, pulling her flush against me. She comes willingly—no resistance, no walls, just Ainsley, soft and warm andmine. When I kiss her,she tastes like the tea she’s been drinking and something sweeter underneath.
“Stwuan and Mummy arekissing!” Lily’s shriek carries across the garden like a foghorn.
I don’t pull away. Not yet.
“Aye.” Isla’s voice is flat, unimpressed. “They do itall the timenow.”
“That’s because they love each other,” Lily says, with the absolute certainty only a four-year-old can muster. “Just like I love Mr Flops.”
I chuckle into the kiss, and Ainsley’s shoulders shake as she tries to hold back a giggle.
When I finally pull back, I find both girls watching us—Lily with delighted fascination, Isla with theatrical long-suffering patience.
I clear my throat. “Right.” I try the gate. It opens and closes easily. “There you go, girls. What do you think?”
They test it out, Lily going first. She gives a nod of approval.
“It’s perfect, Stwuan! But you need a password to go through.”
“A password?” I say.
“It’s fairy sparkles,” Lily whispers. “But don’t tell anyone. Only us four know.”
“Okay, Lily,” Isla says. “Fairy sparkles!”
Lily beams and unlatches the gate for her.
Ainsley and I watch the girls play, the gate swinging gently on its hinges between our two gardens.
“I suppose this means you’re stuck with us now,” Ainsley says after a bit.
I loop an arm around her and pull her closer to me. “Aye. Suits me just fine.”
