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‘Noah! Stop!’
What? He turned. Ava lay on her back, legs askew over a discarded section of pantry. ‘Ava! Are you okay? Sorry!’
‘I’m fine.’ Even though her words were strained. ‘You’ve got to stop.’
Noah frowned. Was he missing something? Stop what and why? He knelt low, his tool belt in the way and placed his hand on her leg. ‘Ouch. Let me help.’ Lifting her until she was upright, he placed his hands at her waist to steady her wobble.
Noah closed his eyes; repressed the urge to squeeze her in tight to him, and rest there a moment. Her touch was warm and welcome and it made not only his skin sizzle but every other part of him too.
She lifted her head and their eyes connected; and he swore a zap of something hit him square in the chest. Man, in this moment, he wanted her and wanted her bad. Her touch drove him crazy, starved as he was of female affection. Her eyes seared, scorching him. His hands gripped Ava tighter, unconsciously not wanting to let her go.
But then she grimaced and his bubble of lust burst.
‘Are you hurt?’ His eyes roamed her body checking for abrasions. ‘You have a cut on your shin.’ His hand rested there, stopping the trickle of blood running down her leg. ‘Let’s patch you up.’
Placing her into the deck chair as if she’d sustained serious injury, he retrieved the first aid kit he kept on site. There’d been one too many incidents with reckless builders in his time so he always had the basics handy.
‘This might sting a little.’ Noah dabbed at the open cut to wipe away the blood and washed it out with water. He raised her leg onto his and held it in his hand. Her skin was warm and smooth but dusty from the debris of the house. He glanced up; her eyes were wide and her lips parted. Best to focus on the wound. Once clean, he patted it dry and placed a heavy-duty gauze over it. It was too much for a simple cut.
‘All done.’ His voice was deep and husky as if his words struggled to form. She was too close, clouding his vision, making his movements clunky.
She went to rise and he helped her, his hand back on her hip. They stood close; Ava’s eyes darted to her waist and back to his face, regarding him. Time paused, noises around them receded and neither spoke. With one finger he traced the curve of her lips, moving along her jaw and across her cheeks, tracing her luminescent skin. Her breath came out sharp and short, her eyes flickered with his touch but shot open as he reached the creamy expanse of her neck. Her chest rose and fell. His fingers trembled and he pulled them away as a hot, intense flare catapulted through his body and filled him with longing. He returned his hands to his sides, holding them rigid before dropping his gaze.
Ava’s fingers curled into his and their eyes met.
‘Thank you.’ Her voice was soft. ‘That’ll teach me for not cleaning up.’ Her smile was tight. ‘But I need you to slow down. Yesterday I found things in the cupboards so now we need to remove everything carefully to make sure there isn’t anything else hidden in there.’
Noah was rooted to the spot, conscious of her fingers entwined with his; it was intimate and did nothing to quell the fire in his body. He cleared his throat. ‘What sort of stuff?’
Her eyes remained connected to his. ‘Um, old French postcards and some coins. Relics from the war and I need to preserve them. And there might be more.’
Old things in the cupboards? His frown must have given him away. Lifting their joined hands, she said, ‘Come, I’ll show you.’
The way he was feeling, he’d go anywhere Ava wanted.
The coins were laid out next to the rocks. Funny, he hadn’t noticed them before.
‘See.’ She held up one gold coin. His hands felt empty after she let go. He took the coin and read words written in another language. Ava handed him another, and then another, her smile growing wider and wider. His shoulders relaxed a little and his desire abated.
‘I’m learning you get very excited about old stuff. Honestly, if I’d been working on this kitchen, this stuff would have gone to the tip. I have no idea that it’s valuable.’
‘It’s not the monetary value that’s important, it’s the history. Some finds allow us to retell history or patch together parts that we know little about. And as it turns out, this town that likes to flaunt it heritage, knows very little about the soldiers they housed.’
‘Is that right?’
‘Are you making fun of me?’ Her lips twitched as she spoke.
‘Not at all. You make it sound very interesting, unlike the history that I was taught at school. Boring with a capital B.’
‘I know. Schools lose the interest of kids early on. But it is fascinating!’
‘I’ll take your word for it.’ Noah paused, savouring this moment between them. ‘So, what next? How do we tackle this?’ A slight crease returned to his forehead as he considered the delay. ‘We need to get your old kitchen out so you aren’t inconvenienced for too long and we can install the new one.’
‘Yeah, I’m sorry if this holds you up. But I must check everything before we dump it. Probably best I do that before you rip anything out? Or if that’s not possible, when it’s out? What do you think?’
‘Sure.’ His stomach cramped at the potential delay but he didn’t give anything away. ‘Only the back wall remains, the cupboards above and around the cooktop.’
‘And the floor.’
