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After a while she releases my hand and slides her arms around my waist. In response, I lower my arms around her. We’re barely moving now, but she’s warm against me, and the human touch thaws me completely.
“I’m so sorry,” she says, stroking my back.
I just give a shivery sigh.
She retreats a little to look at me. “Tell me a good memory you have of Maddie,” she says with a smile.
I study her, surprised, then look out at the garden, thinking. Eventually, my lips curve up. “When we were twenty-one, we had a party at Mum’s place for all our friends. Maddie and I did a very bad, drunken performance of Don’t Go Breaking My Heart.”
Aroha laughs. “I wish I’d seen that.”
“I’m glad you didn’t. It was awful. She couldn’t sing for giggling.” I smile at her.
She smiles back. Her light-brown hair lifts in the small breeze. I like the way she looks at me, starstruck, as if I’m someone famous.
Unbidden, my gaze drops to her mouth, which looks soft and oh so kissable, and her lips part. It would be so easy to kiss her. I know I could lose myself in her. Let her carry me away on a wave of pleasure, where I wouldn’t be able to think about anything except her curves, her smooth skin, the sweet taste of her that I can still remember.
I lift my gaze back to hers, knowing I mustn’t, fighting with myself. Her eyes are calm, neither inviting nor refusing, as if she doesn’t want to be blamed for it, and she’s leaving the decision to me. I know she wouldn’t say no, though. If I kiss her now, we’ll end up in bed.
Ah… I want that so much…
A knock at the front door brings me to my senses, and we draw apart.
“Who’s that?” Aroha asks, startled.
“No idea. Has to be someone who has the code to the gate.”
We go back into the house, and she walks over to Leia, while I go to the front door and open it. To my surprise, all the guys are standing there: Alex, Henry, and Tyson.
Alex holds up a bottle of thirty-year-old Macallan that must have cost him close to ten grand. “We thought you might want some company,” he says. “If you don’t, that’s fine, we’ll go.”
“But we’ll take the whisky with us,” Henry points out.
I chuckle and move back. “Come in.”
Alex gives me a bearhug. “You’re sure?”
I nod, pleased to see them, and touched that they’ve come around.
Henry hugs me, then Tyson, and I close the door behind them.
“Hello,” Alex is saying to Aroha.
“Hey, guys.” She puts her finger to her lips, and they all quieten. She smiles at them all, then at me. “I’ll take Leia through to my room.”
“You don’t have to do that,” I protest.
Henry says, “Aw, join us!” and Alex points out, “You’ve got the monitor.”
But she just shakes her head. “I’m tired. No worries at all. Enjoy the whisky.” She picks Leia up, gives me a last smile, then disappears down the corridor, closing the door behind her.
The guys look at me, and Henry lifts an eyebrow. “Sorry, did we interrupt something?”
“No,” I say wryly. “Not at all. She’s just acting as Leia’s nanny.” Trying not to think about her soft body pressed against mine, I turn away and go into the kitchen. “Whisky glasses all around.” I get four out of the cupboard, and Henry extracts some ice from the freezer. Alex opens the whisky, and he pours a generous glug into each glass.
“Who’s driving?” I ask.
“We Ubered,” Tyson says, taking one of the glasses. “We’re here to commiserate.” He lifts his glass. “To Maddie.”
