Page 75 of Lime Tree Hill
Ruby:What’s wrong with the guy? You need to catch that train.
Tayla:We’re standing on the platform. At my insistence.
Ruby:I feel guilty now.
Tayla:Why?
Ruby:Noah and I…we’ve done it 3 x in the past 24 hours. Blush. Blush.
Tayla:TMI!Take your finger off the keypad. Now!!!
Ruby:Just saying!
Coffee break over, Tayla slipped her phone into the pocket of her uniform and chuckled. Some days she had no idea what she’d do without Ruby. And after that shower, and those hands, and that last kiss on her nape, Tayla had definitely needed a good dose of Ruby’s humor.
“What are you grinning about?” one of the nurses asked as he strolled into the clinic.
“Nothing much. Just an amusing text from my sister about husbands.”
“Speaking of, how’s Mitch?”
It seemed every other person she worked with knew she was married to Mitch, even though she’d never discussed him at work and hadn’t taken his name. “He’s well. Busy as usual.”
“I nursed him after he tore his ACL. He’s a nice guy.”
Fighting to keep her face straight, Tayla tried to rid her mind of the shower scene and just howniceMitch could really be. “Yeah, I think so too.”
33
STAR RUBY
Mitch camein from the orchard to find Tayla settled on the balcony in one of Norman’s old wicker chairs, a throw and wheat bag warming her stomach, and her copy ofJamaica Innon the table. He bent down to kiss her. “Hey, are you okay?”
“Just a little time-of-the-month discomfort.”
His hand stroked her hair. After Ned’s interruption, the day had dragged as snippets of Tayla naked in the shower frequently flashed through his mind. “Do you need me to buy you tampons?”
Her lips twitched. “Um, no, but would you?”
“Course I would.” He sat in the chair beside hers. “That’s what husbands do, isn’t it? Oh, and before I forget, the guys are coming at the end of the week to remove the cherry trees at your parents’ place. I hope it won’t upset everyone too much.”
“Not at all. What have you decided to plant?”
“Star Ruby grapefruit. It’s a Californian variety.”
“Yum. I love grapefruit.” Tayla shifted in her chair, pulling the throw tighter around her. “I’m glad you’re turning it into a profitable unit. Dad will be pleased.”
“We’ll leave those two trees by the henhouse for us.” Mitchcaught her smile. It was a little flirty, intimate. He kept seeing her like this—in varying shades of light—and when he thought about it, the adult Tayla wasn’t so different from the teenager who’d stolen his grandfather’s heart. Warm, kind, considerate to a fault. “Dinner smells good.”
She went to stand. “It’s all ready.”
“You stay there. I’ll dish up. Shall we eat out here?”
“Sounds good. And I picked up a bottle of wine on my way home. It’s in the fridge, and so is the salad.”
“Great.”
When Mitch returned with the chicken and spinach pie, Tayla was staring out over the orchard toward the river. Putting their plates on the table, he wondered what she thought about in these times of quiet reflection.
