“Salad isn’t cooking,” she laughed.
“No, but the chargrilled chicken that goes in it is.”
“Ha, anyone can light a grill and throw some chicken on.”
“Have you eaten anything Emily’s cooked?”
“Ah, no. Wade warned me about that though.” She glanced his way. “He was quite adamant that I never take her up on an offer to cook me dinner.”
“Yeah, well, that woman can’t boil water without burning the pot.”
“She’s that bad?” She couldn’t imagine someone being that useless in the kitchen.
“Why do you think Wade cooks all the time?”
“I thought he was helping out with the baby because Emily is still working full-time.”
“Nope. Your brother likes to eat and if it were left to Emily, they’d be living on burned toast.”
“I guess Davie won’t be making cookies with his mum like Wade and I used to.”
“No, he’ll be making them with his dad.” He took his eyes off the road to glance her way. “Or his Auntie Vee.”
A smile curled her lips. She couldn’t wait for her nephew to be a little older, when she could make choc chip cookies with him. Or perhaps the Anzac biscuits her mother used to make.
“You should smile like that more often.”
She looked at him. “Like what?”
“Like you mean it, like you’re genuinely happy,” he said as he pulled into their driveway. “God, Vee. You have no idea how sorry I am.”
She sucked in a breath. Before she could comprehend his meaning, he had punched in the security code. The gates opened and he drove forward.
Unsure whether he referred to their past or not, she remained silent while he pulled the car up to the house.
Hopping out, she skirted the front of the car and met him on the gravel path. They’d barely taken two steps when she stumbled, the loose rocks shifting under her feet.
“Whoa.” His arm wrapped around her waist and brought her snug against his chest. “I’ve got you.”
For a brief second she held on, but then she came to her senses and steadied herself.
With her feet under her once more, she tried to pull away. “You can let me go now.”
His grip tightened as he tugged her closer. “I’m never letting you go again.”
Her gaze darted up to his. She wasn’t prepared for the emotional wallop she received when their eyes connected.
His gaze held nothing back. Fear, need, desire—love. She closed her eyes, but she couldn’t escape the strike to her senses he’d delivered with one look.
Denying what she saw only hurt them both, and there’d been far too many hurt feelings between them already.
Opening her eyes, she didn’t hide her sadness. “We can’t keep doing this to each other.”
“Then stop fighting me. Stop fighting us.” He brought his forehead to rest on hers. “I need you to hear me say sorry, Vee. Need you to forgive me for being scared and ashamed—guilty.”
“Brent—”
“Please.” He wrapped both arms around her, tucking her in against his body, her head on his shoulder.
