AllFreeNovel
Share Us
‘Helloooo.’ Jess’s voice carried from the front door.
‘Coming,’ he called back. ‘Hey.’ Loose auburn hair blew around her face, giving her a just-out-of-bed-after-being-ravished-all-night-long look. If only that were the case. ‘You’re right on time.’ He pushed the flyscreen door open and she passed him a bottle of red wine. ‘Thanks, but you didn’t have to bring anything.’
‘In Italy, it’s a sin to arrive to someone’s place for dinner without a gift, so …’ She half shrugged, stepped in beside him and sniffed. ‘Wow, something smells delicious.’
‘Thanks.’ She was blushing ever so slightly, and he liked to think it was because of him. ‘I whipped us up an Aussie classic.’
‘Mmm, I can smell that.’ Her smile became warmer. ‘Lamb is my absolute favourite.’
Gazing at her glossy lips, he wondered if her lip-gloss was flavoured. ‘Me too.’ Needing a distraction from her kissable mouth, he turned and took steps down the hallway with her padding beside him. ‘Would you like to make use of the cool night and eat out on the back verandah?’
‘That would be lovely.’ Pausing at the oven, she peeked in. ‘Oh my gosh, Morgan, I can’t wait to tuck into this gorgeous food.’
‘Good, it’ll be ready in two shakes of a lamb’s tail.’ He grinned as he busied himself opening the wine bottle. ‘See what I did there?’
‘Uh-huh, so cheesy but also so funny.’ She chuckled, shaking her head a little. ‘Can I do anything to help?’
‘You can grab two red wine glasses out of the cupboard over there, if you like.’ He gestured in the general direction with a tip of his head.
‘On it.’ She sashayed over, reached up, grabbed two long-stemmed glasses, and returned. ‘Here you go.’
‘Thanks.’ He poured two glasses, passed her one, then held his up for a toast. ‘To happy days ahead.’
‘Yes, to that.’ She clinked her glass to his.
Taking a sip, he groaned in pleasure as the rich, velvety wine filled his mouth. He swallowed and closed his eyes, enjoying the warmth that spread through his body. When he opened them again, he saw her watching him with a coy smile on her glossy lips.
‘What?’ he asked, feeling a blush sneaking onto his cheeks.
‘Nothing,’ she said before taking another sip of wine. ‘It’s just, it looks like you’re having a very intimate moment with that glass of wine.’
‘Ha, not likely.’ He chuckled and shook his head. ‘It’s just a very nice glass of red.’
‘I can tell,’ she replied, smiling over the top of her glass. ‘I’m glad you like it so much.’
I like you even more …
‘Right, time to get this food plated up, so we can eat, hey,’ he said hurriedly – anything to get away from those come-hither eyes of hers.
Minutes later, with plates and wine glasses in hand, they headed outside to the back deck with a jaw-dropping view of the surrounding bushland. Sitting at the table, they ate and chatted in comfortable companionship.
With her plate basically licked clean, Jess groaned and rested back. ‘Now that, Morgan Savage, was one of the most delicious meals I’ve eaten in a long time.’
‘You’re just saying that.’ He playfully waved her compliment off. ‘I’m sure the food in Florence is top notch.’
‘True, it is, but I miss wholesome Aussie food like you wouldn’t believe.’ She offered him a grateful kind of smile. ‘And you cook it magnificently.’
‘Well, thank you.’ She’d so effortlessly caught his attention and wasn’t letting go. He raised his second glass of wine to hers. ‘And thank you for this amazing wine.’
‘My pleasure, it’s the very least I could do.’ She leant in to gather the empty plates. ‘As is the clearing up.’
‘No, please, leave it. I’ll do it later.’ Standing, he flicked the overhead light off, allowing light from the twinkling stars to reach in further. ‘For now, let’s move to the comfier chairs and enjoy this incredible view, hey.’
‘Sounds good to me.’ She rose and followed him over to the swing chair, positioned nearer the railings, and sat. After a few moments, she sighed softly then said, ‘I swear the stars burn so much brighter here than anywhere else in the world.’
‘I have to agree, but then again, I’m biased.’
‘Of course, you would be, and I can’t blame you.’ She cleared her throat. ‘This place, the way you’ve put such love into it, is like paradise.’
