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This time he spoke a little more quietly. ‘If I introduced anyone to my family they’d have to be wearing a suit of armour.’
She reached over and squeezed his hand. She had such a great relationship with her mum and dad that she couldn’t really imagine how it was for him. They’d been having such a wonderful time she didn’t want to darken his mood, so she pulled her hand back and lifted her eyebrows. ‘My mum’s getting desperate for grandkids. I think the next guy I bring back home she’ll lasso for me and drag him down to the church!’
Reuben threw back his head and laughed. ‘I’d better watch out, then.’
She nodded. ‘You’d better. What’s your maximum number of dates, then?’
‘Honestly? I think it was six.’ He shrugged his shoulders. ‘And I spent two weeks with you in London, then our time on board, of course.’ There was a little sparkle in his dark eyes again. ‘You’ve already beaten the record.’ The more he spoke the thicker his accent got. It was doing crazy things to her pulse.
‘Even though we’ve barely kissed?’
He gave a tiny nod of his head. ‘You think I didn’t want to?’
Her gaze meshed with his. ‘Oh, I could feel you wanted to.’
He leaned back in his chair and threw up his hands again. ‘That’s just it. You know I want to. But I like you. I don’t want to hurt you. I have no idea where this could go.’
She stirred her drink again. ‘And you don’t want to find out?’
He folded his arms across his chest. ‘You know I do. But you see the kind of job I have, Lara. I’m hardly in the country for any time at all. I spend most of my life in mid-air. How can something work when one of us is never here?’ He picked up his beer again and leaned his elbows on the table. ‘Anyway, you might have forgotten but you’ve got a bit of a reputation.’
She jerked back. ‘I have?’
He was teasing again. She could tell. Every time he did it, a little glint appeared in his eyes again.
He looked up through heavy lids. This man could be so sexy. ‘You have. You’ve got a bit of a reputation for picking losers. I’m worried I’ll get labelled.’
She picked up her drink mat and flung it at him. ‘I can think of a whole host of other words.’
He laughed. ‘Seriously, though, what are you going to do when we get back home?’
She shrugged. ‘What else would I do? I’m going to look after Tristan. Caleb and Addison will be back by then and I love my job, he’s a great kid.’
A few lines appeared on his forehead. ‘Did you always want to be a nanny?’
She shook her head. ‘No, I told you. I kind of fell into it.’ She counted off on her fingers. ‘So far, I’ve been a nanny, a strawberry picker, worked in a bar, waitressed, spent three dismal months in a call centre, lost someone’s messages as a PA and...’ she paused and raised her eyebrows ‘...I even spent two months volunteering at a zoo.’
‘What?’
She giggled. ‘Believe me, the penguins stink!’
He looked serious again. ‘So, what was your dream job when you were a kid?’
She sat back for a moment. ‘Wow. I think the last person to ask me that my gran.’
‘And what did you say?’
A wave of disappointment swept over her. It was odd. It had been a long time since she’d felt like this—as if she hadn’t really fulfilled her potential. But the worst part about it was the way she couldn’t stop hostile thoughts towards Reuben because he’d asked the question.
She took a few seconds before she finally answered. ‘I used to have lots of romantic ideas about working at NASA—even though I couldn’t pass physics. Or owning a florist shop or being a TV presenter.’
He gave a little nod. ‘Interesting choices.’
‘It gets better. I even wanted to be the female version of Indiana Jones and study archaeology.’
He held out his hands. ‘Every day’s just a surprise with you, isn’t it?’
She gave a rueful smile. ‘What I really wanted to do was study English at university. I wanted to study English then maybe go on to be a journalist. I got the grades, got the place and then... Gran died. It was as if all my energy and focus disappeared. I couldn’t get my head in the right place to study. I decided to take some time off and the rest—as they say—is history.’
‘And you’d never consider going back?’
She shook her head. ‘I’m twenty-six, Reuben. I’d be the oldest student in the class. They’d call me Grandma.’
He finished his beer and stood up, holding out his hand towards her. ‘Then they’d have me to deal with. Come on, let’s go and get changed for dinner. We need to plan for Pisa tomorrow.’
She took the last sip of her cocktail and slipped her hand into his. It felt as if it belonged there.
She’d dreamed about coming on this cruise for so long—but her dream had never quite looked like this. Reuben was having a whole host of effects on her she hadn’t banked on. And it was clear that the chemistry was still simmering beneath the surface.
Now he had her brain spinning in a whole host of other ways. She wasn’t just distracted by the handsome man in front of her—she was also distracted about the things she’d pushed to the back of her brain. Was applying to university again really an option for her? She hadn’t even considered it until now. And was this really a time to start thinking about another relationship? She’d just got out of one and was getting her life back on track, having the space and control to make decisions for herself. Did she want anything more? The sun warmed her shoulders as they crossed the deck towards the bar again.
Reuben Tyler was full of surprises. What would come next?
CHAPTER TEN
THE PHONE BUZZED in his pocket again. His footballer client was getting beyond obnoxious. Lara had no idea that he’d actually had three different conversations with the guy since he’d got here—every time telling him to smarten up his act. None of those words seemed to be having an effect.
It was just as well he was in the middle of the Med right now because if he was in the same room as his client he might actually bounce Mr Arrogant into next week.
Any day now the club would cancel his contract because of his antics and Reuben was secretly counting down the days.
Lara was chatting to the two elderly, mischievous women—Doris and Daisy—again. They seemed to be spending most of their time teasing her. All three were currently trying on a whole array of wide-brimmed hats from a street vendor. The Italian sun was positively scorching today.
He walked over swiftly and thrust some bills at the street vendor, paying for all three hats. ‘It’s on me, ladies,’ he said swiftly. ‘I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything so ridiculous in my life.’
All three faces turned towards him, laughing. The hats were ridiculous. Lara’s was pink with a huge yellow flower, Doris and Daisy’s bright green and bright blue respectively, both adorned with bright orange flowers.
Doris wagged her finger at him. ‘Thank you kindly. But don’t come moaning to me when you’ve got sunstroke or blisters on the back of your neck.’
They wandered off as Lara put her bag over her shoulder. She was wearing the pale pink dress they’d bought in London and looked as pretty as a picture. The bright pink hat actually suited her. It was quirky. Just like Lara.
His heart stopped. That was it. That tiny little thought had just caused a ricochet around his body.
This was it. This must be exactly how Caleb felt about Addison.
And it had taken until today, watching her laughing in the sunlight, for him to realise exactly how he felt.
He didn’t want to wake up next week without Lara in his life. He didn’t want to have to skulk around to Caleb’s house in order to see her again.
