‘Yeah, I’ll give my old man one thing, he knows business and farming.’
Kenzie followed his gaze out the window, to a grove of trees. ‘Do you miss it?’
‘I miss this place. And I miss working it. But I can’t work with the old man again. We tried, after Arran died. I tried to step up. He wouldn’t let me.’
‘Why not?’
‘He didn’t think I could do it. Wanted me to prove myself,’ he said, his gaze seemingly fixed on something that she couldn’t see, something far in the past. ‘I’d been trying to prove myself my whole life, but nothing was ever good enough. So I left.’
Twenty
Ewan turned away from the window that overlooked the trees to the right of the homestead. The family cemetery lay behind them.
His gaze came to rest on the woman standing near him, and he shook off his melancholy mood. Even though she seemed to draw out his deepest secrets, at the same time, whenever he was around her, he felt better.
An image of her naked in the shower the night before replayed briefly through his mind, and he felt a stirring of awareness once more, which he swiftly quashed. He’d only just broken up a serious relationship. He shouldn’t even be thinking about another woman, and yet … although he was sad that things had ended the way they had, he wasn’t exactly heartbroken over him and Sasha.
At some point, he’d settled. Sasha and her father had allowed him to be part of something, to take responsibility,something his own father had never given him a chance to do. Sasha had pushed him out of his comfort zone more times than he could count, and part of him thrived on her encouragement and unwavering belief. Sasha had believed in him far more than he’d ever believed in himself. Maybe he’d needed her to walk into his life—God knew he’d needed something to shake him up after he’d walked away from this place. His confidence had taken a beating and he’d needed some space to come to terms with everything that had happened.
‘Are you okay?’ Kenzie asked him now, her big blue eyes full of gentle concern.
Something shifted in his chest.
‘Yeah,’ he said, managing a smile that turned into a slight grimace. ‘None of it’s my problem anymore. I was only coming back to visit, and having the family meet Poppy, I thought, would be a fantastic opportunity, though I hoped my father would at least try to be civil in front of a guest. Apparently, I was wrong.’
‘He doesn’t seem the type of man to waste time on pleasantries.’
‘I thought maybe he’d have mellowed a bit by now. I should have known better.’
‘I’m sorry,’ Kenzie said.
‘For what?’ he asked, looking down at her curiously.
‘For the way he treats you,’ Kenzie replied. ‘He obviously hasn’t seen who you’ve become, how successful you are in your field.’
‘He was partly right. I did work for a wage. Just another employee in the Delsantos’ business.’
‘You were more than that. I don’t know Leo Delsanto very well, but I know his type. He wouldn’t have put up with you if he didn’t think you were a valuable asset, even if youweregoing to be his son-in-law.’
Her heartfelt words made him smile. ‘Thanks for that, but it’s okay. I’m used to my old man. He doesn’t believe in handing out compliments. “Makes people feel like they’re more important than they really are,”’ he said, in a fair imitation of his father’s broguish accent.
‘That’s not nice,’ she said, seemingly offended on his behalf. It was utterly adorable.
They looked at each other and he went still as a strange familiarity settled within him. He could feel the warmth of her body even though they weren’t touching, could smell the slight hint of coconut and something else that had been driving him mad for the last two days. He couldn’t figure out if it was her shampoo or a perfume. Whatever it was, he liked it and as he moved his body the tiniest fraction towards her, he saw a flare of desire in her eyes as she stared up at him.
The first touch of her lips beneath his were liquid sunshine—warm and intoxicating—and the longer the kiss lasted, the more heat seemed to radiate between them. What started out as a curious, hesitant exploration quickly turned into a raging inferno, almost as though their bodies had been impatiently waiting for this very moment of reunion after five years apart.
A memory of a night long ago washed through him. Naked bodies, salt air, cool sheets and smooth skin. His body reacted and his hands lifted, threading into her hair.
A buzzing sounded in his head, and he didn’t register what it was, until Kenzie pulled back and murmured, ‘It’s your phone.’
‘Ignore it,’ he said, firmly pulling her back against him.
When it rang out then immediately started again, he let out a long, low expletive and released her.
He pulled out his phone, groaning inwardly when he saw the name against the missed calls.Sasha.
When he glanced up, he realised Kenzie had also seen the name and he swore again. ‘I’m switching the phone off,’ he said darkly.
