Page 111 of Lime Tree Hill
“Whatever you do, don’t give up. She loves you, man. She’ll come back.” Tim motioned to the waves. “You coming in?”
“Not today. My wife deserves her time in the sun without me cramping her style. I might go to the falls and lose myself under the veil.” He slapped Tim on the back then gazed out over the water again. “You’ve done a good job. Look at her go.”
Tim shot Mitch a sideways glance and grinned. “You did the groundwork; I just added some encouragement. She’s been at the beach every day this week, spent more time in the water than out, but she keeps getting back on that board. Right. I’m going back in.”
“Enjoy.”
As Mitch watched Tim walk away, he murmured, “And that determination, my friend, is why I’m so in love with her.”
Back in his truck, Mitch was just about to reverse when he noticed Tayla running up the sand toward him. He pushed the gear lever into park and cut the engine, his arm out the window. “Hi. I saw you take the wave. Well done.”
She hesitated, shuffling her feet in the sand. “Thanks. It feels great.”
“Tim tells me you’ve been living at the beach for the past few days.”
“Yeah, pretty much.” She glanced away briefly, shielding her eyes with her hand. “I was just wondering… It’s Norman’s anniversary tomorrow. Are you going to the cemetery?”
“Yeah, I thought I might. I have to carry on to Luka’s parents’ place after, but I’ll be there around four thirty if you want to meet up.”
“Okay. Sounds good. I’ll see you then.” Her smile gave him hope. He wanted to kiss her with every ounce of passion he could muster, but she didn’t offer him the opportunity.
Mitch put his foot on the brake and started the truck, his gaze focused wholly on Tayla. The saltwater in her hair, that ridiculously sexy rash guard, those long lashes casting feathery shadows across her cheekbones, and her legs—muscular and tanned. She stepped back.
“You look good out there. I’m proud of you.” Before she could reply, he reversed and drove away, the woman he loved a fading image in his rearview mirror.
It was right on four thirty when Mitch pulled into a park outside the gates of the cemetery the following day. Summer had turned humid, the sky dulled with an oppressive haze. He sat for a moment, his thoughts finding order as he watched Tayla crouch beside his grandfather’s grave.
The days without her had been tough. Empty. As he’d walked the Milford Track, consumed by the majestic beauty of nature, it had never occurred to him that when he returned home, excited to see her and desperate to reconnect, she wouldn’t be exactly where he’d left her.
He climbed out of his truck and walked toward her, his grandfather’s last letter slotted in the back pocket of his jeans. She turned as he approached. “I thought you’d be waiting in your car,” he said.
She stood to greet him, her smile soft as she leaned forward and kissed him on the cheek. “Yes. I’ve faced a few fears lately. Coming to the cemetery alone being one of them. I feel his spirit here. Maybe that doesn’t make logical sense, but there you go. Besides, I needed to talk to him about the money. I still don’t understand why he chose me.”
Mitch stepped away to place bunches of lemon blossom and lavender on each grave: first his father’s, then his grandmother’s,and finally, Norman’s. “Why is it so hard for you to accept that he loved you?”
She crouched down again and bruised a sprig of lavender between her fingers before inhaling the scent. “I don’t really know the answer to that one.”
“He talked about you sometimes. Usually after a glass or two of tawny port. He’d get quite a glow on and, believe it or not, could be amusing once he relaxed.” He motioned to a park bench under a nearby dogwood tree. “Shall we?”
As Tayla sat, she lifted the hair off her nape and secured it with a band from her wrist. He loved her neck, the creamy skin flawless and soft. She liked to be kissed there, the effect always immediate.
“Whatever you decide about us,” he said, “I want you to have the money. It’s yours, not mine. Even when we married, it wasn’t about the money. With Cherry Grove landlocked by Lime Tree, it made sense for me to buy it when your folks decided to sell. Also, I wanted to protect the river.”
She nodded as she twisted her wedding ring, deep in thought. The fact that she still wore it gave him hope.
“Norman had few acquaintances, and even fewer friends,” he continued “One of the only people who shared his grief, he shunned.”
“You mean your mother?”
“Yes. Mum. She tried to reach out, but he wouldn’t accept it. It made for a fractured family dynamic, something I found hard to understand until I matured. But Norman had a lot of time for you.He said you never expected him to be anyone other than himself. That unconditional acceptance of who he was set you apart from the rest.”
“There were days when I longed to join him in his solitude.” Tayla smiled. “To lounge around in my dressing gown, eat shortbread, and simply be. He loved my shortbread.”
“Yeah. I did too. He’d count how many were left in the jar. I remember when I arrived home drunk from a party once and inhaled six pieces in one sitting.” Mitch chuckled at the recollection. “He was furious and didn’t talk to me for a few days.”
“I can imagine.”
They sat in comfortable silence for a moment.
