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‘Exactamundo.’ He gestured towards the doorway. ‘I’ll just go and grab you a towel, and rustle you up some clothes that might fit you, so you can have a rinse off, and I might do the same before we kick back on the verandah with some afternoon tea.’
‘Plan, Stan,’ she said, chuckling at the memory of them saying that to each other all the time when they were younger.
Minutes later, he reappeared with a white T-shirt, and a pair of sweatpants. ‘You might have to roll the bottoms up.’
‘Ahh, do you have anything that isn’t see-through,’ Samantha asked while stifling a grin.
Connor grimaced. ‘Oh, crap, sorry, I didn’t think of that.’ A slow sexy smile slid across his mouth. ‘Back in two shakes of a lamb’s tail.’
And he was. This time round, he held out a black T-shirt. ‘Better?’
She gratefully took it from him. ‘Much, thank you.’
‘Right, well, the bathroom is down the hallway, to the …’
‘I remember where it is,’ she said, cutting him off.
‘Of course.’ He thumbed over his shoulder. ‘I’m going to use the outside shower, so I’ll meet you back here.’
‘Plan Stan,’ she repeated, suddenly realising that being back here, revisiting a piece of the past where she’d always felt happy and carefree, was bringing back that happy-go-lucky girl she used to be, the one she’d all but forgotten about, until now.
‘That’s twice you’ve said that now.’ As if reading her mind, Connor didn’t budge, just stood there, his gaze locked onto hers, and his lips quirking in an all-knowing way. ‘I like seeing you so comfortable here.’
Her pulse in her throat fluttered, and then her heart took off in a wild canter. ‘Of course I’m comfortable here, this place is like another home to me.’
His smile turned soft and sexy. ‘I like hearing you say that.’
Feeling that same old magnetic pull towards him, the one that had made her throw caution to the wind once before, she quickly took a step back. ‘Okey dokey, I’m off to de-stink.’ And off she trotted, hurriedly, towards the bathroom, before she could do what was on her mind, and take steps towards him so she could fall into those burly arms that had once held her so lovingly, so protectively.
They couldn’t go there again.
Not now.
Not ever.
Almost two and a half hours later, after chatting about the upcoming wedding and the important roles they had to fulfil on the day and leading up to it, along with a casual chat about the day-to-day of their lives, they were making the most of kicking back on the outdoor settee with a little gap between them, their cuppas well and truly finished and their plates empty. Samantha had told Connor three times already just how delicious his cake was, and if she weren’t so full after two slices, she would have devoured more. Boy oh boy, she was going to have some extra kilos to lose when she went back to London. Back to her life. Her very lonely, very messy, life.
The reminder that she wasn’t here to stay jolted her.
The very thought of leaving Gum Tree Gully and returning to a place that now felt a million light years away left her soul aching and her heart heavy. She tried to ignore the weighty sensation as she focused on the ever-changing view and the wonderful company she was in. They had watched the blue sky being swallowed up by impending grey clouds, and the approaching sunset they’d been hoping to witness was now shrouded in darkness. As if Mother Nature was announcing her imminent show, a bright flash of lightning shot across the heavens, and then a booming crack of thunder sounded. Seconds later, crashing raindrops pummelled the tin roof and soon cascaded off the awnings of the verandah in a steady stream. For Samantha, the rhythmic rumble of the tap-tapping was the quintessential sound of the Australian bush.
Connor breathed in deeply. ‘The fresh scent of rain is one of the most wonderful smells in the world, don’t you reckon?’
‘It is lovely, yes, but after living in a place where it rains almost every day of the year, I don’t know about it being one of the best smells in the world.’ Thoughts of warm baked bread, sun-baked earth and freshly ground coffee filled her mind.
‘Try this, then.’ He tossed her a sideways glance. ‘Close your eyes, and really breathe it in, let Mother Nature’s breath sit in your soul for a little bit, then exhale.’
Although she felt a little stupid, she did what he asked, and after a few inhalations and gentle sighs, found herself smiling as she joined him in sensory bliss. ‘You’re right, it is pretty amazing.’ Flicking her eyes open, she turned to him, and the adoring expression on his face made something pitch inside of her, sending her heart racing.
He enthusiastically shifted in his seat, so he was facing her. ‘Sometimes, we just have to stop and sit in the moment, and let it really sink into us, to appreciate it fully.’
‘That’s very deep, Gunn.’
‘If you say so.’ Smiling, he shrugged. ‘Do you get much time to just stop and take a breath, back in London?’
‘Hmm, well, with a city as electric as London is, and my office near Piccadilly Circle, not as often as I’d like to.’
‘I thought as much.’ He rested back. ‘Seeing as you grew up in the country, doesn’t that make you miss living here?’
