West smirks, and I flip him the middle finger before striding towards the hangar, wishing I hadn’t linked ‘Vera’ and ‘screwing’ in the same thought.
4
VERA
Ithought that my neighbour, Mrs Carr, witnessing me mowing over Brett’s prized leather jacket a billion times was the most embarrassing thing I’ve ever done, yet I’ve topped that by barfing over Luscious Linc.
I may not have vomited directly on him, but close enough.
If the pilot is handsome, his brother is gorgeous. Or maybe I haven’t had sex in eighteen months and that—or the oppressive island humidity—is making me delirious.
I have no idea how old Linc is, but he’s young. Early twenties? Which makes me, a bitter and twisted forty, a pervert.
No harm in looking though, and if I have to work in this suffocating heat, at least I can appreciate the scenery. I’m tall, five-eleven, but he’s taller, at least six-two. Broad shoulders, tanned (he lives on an island, duh), laconic smile, and those eyes… maybe the rainforest surrounding the landing strip accentuates the green, but I’ve never seen such a vibrant colour.
I run the bottle of water over my forehead, my flush having little to do with the island’s heat.
“Feeling better?” Linc strolls into the hangar, and I hate that my heart skips a beat.
“Yeah.” I point at the plane. “Sorry about that. Not my finest moment.”
“Nothing I haven’t done after a slab or two.”
Of course he’d consume copious amounts of beer. Isn’t that whatyoungpeople do?
“Let me take your bag.” He reaches for my overnight duffel, and I quickly hoist it onto my shoulder.
“Thanks. I’ve got it.”
The corners of his eyes crinkle as he smiles. “So you haven’t squirrelled away a chainsaw and jackhammer in there?”
Damn, I add a sense of humour to his growing list of attractive qualities.
“The agency said you had all the tools I’d need here on the island.”
“Yeah, we do.” His smile fades, replaced by a glint of worry in those striking eyes. “I hope you’re a fast worker, because the repairs need to be completed ASAP.”
Defensive about my work, the only thing that grounds me these days, I snap, “I’m good at what I do.”
His eyes widen at my abrupt tone, and he holds up his hands as if to placate me. “Hey. Just asking.”
I don’t apologise for snapping at him. I’m not here to make friends. I have a job to complete, and with a little luck I’ll finish early and be back in my one-bedroom apartment overlooking Storey Bridge by New Year’s Eve so I can watch the fireworks while sipping a Chardonnay. I’m a wild one. Not.
“If you can show me where I’m staying so I can dump my bag, then give me a tour of what needs to be done, I can get started.”
“No worries.”
But as we leave the hangar and fall into step, our hands accidentally brush and a spark of static electricity zaps me. I attribute it to the humidity, but deep down I know better.
My long-dormant libido has awoken and has its sights set on Linc.
5
LINCOLN
“She’s cute.” Kai, my older brother by two years, nudges me and leans against the railing surrounding the verandah of our family home. It’s part homestead, part beach shack, with extra rooms tacked on once we hit our teens and the four Spade brothers demanded individual rooms.
Our house wouldn’t win any architectural design awards, but it has always been home to me.
