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‘Ruby, how many women do you think I’ve said that to?’ He touched his lips to hers, and she could have sworn she felt their hearts beating in unison. ‘This is not the sort of thing I joke about. Ever.’
He cupped her cheek in his palm, the tenderness in his gaze as tangible as the heat. ‘You drive me nuts.’
‘I’m hoping that’s a good thing,’ she quipped, her flirt gene flickering to life as love bloomed inside her.
‘And you’ve totally messed up my life. So much so that I don’t ever want it to be that tidy again,’ he said, his voice so rich with appreciation she felt her insides melt. His hand fell to her neck, caressed her collarbone. ‘And you finally made me see the truth.’
‘What truth?’
He huffed, looked away. ‘I figured I was like him. That I had the same weakness. The same inability to remain faithful. And that the best way to avoid breaking a promise would be never to make one.’
‘But that’s mad. You’re nothing like your father,’ she said forcefully, astonished that he could be quite that clueless about himself. ‘How could you be? You’re the most honourable man I know.’
He chuckled. ‘If you say so.’ He heaved a sigh. ‘But that’s not the point. It was never about him, it was about me. Being too much of a coward to trust anyone. To put myself out there and risk being hurt.’
She grinned, leaned into his palm. ‘So all those things you said? About love being just a word?’
‘Obviously complete rubbish. Thanks so much for pointing that out.’
She laughed, the bright happy sound underlaid by his rough chuckle.
‘Are you sure you want to admit to that, Counsellor?’ she purred, draping her arms over broad shoulders as the last of the anguish and confusion washed away on a tide of love and longing.
‘I’ll admit it under oath if you like,’ he said, sounding serious again as his hands ran down her back.
‘That’s very tempting.’ She stretched, pressing the swollen tips of her breasts into his chest as she threaded her fingers into his silky hair. ‘But I should warn you, I may use it against you at a later date.’
He chuckled. ‘Feel free to use me all you want, Ms Delisantro.’ Resting his hands on her hips, he pulled her against the proof of his love and desire. ‘In fact, I’m counting on it.’
She rose up, pulled his mouth towards hers.
‘Let’s use each other,’ she whispered, then placed a lavish kiss on his lips.
He angled his head, capturing her mouth to seal the deal.
And her heart did a victory roll before shooting off towards the cosmos.
EPILOGUE
‘RUBY, thanks so much for the cupcake tower. It’s fabulous. So fresh and funky. Everyone’s talking about it.’ Maddy beamed as she swayed gently from side to side in that unconscious way mothers did, with her newborn baby son sound asleep on her shoulder. ‘I’ve had to give your details to four people already. It’s like a work of art.’
‘But hopefully a lot more edible.’ Ruby grinned back at the woman who had become one of her favourite people. She laid her hand on little Daniel Callum King’s back. She breathed in the sweet scent of talcum powder and milk. The soft bundle wriggled under her palm and her grin softened—the yearning across her chest tightening like a vice. I want Cal’s baby. I’m ready. ‘So, how’s your little work of art doing?’ she said, pushing the now almost constant longing as far away as she could.
Cal’s hand squeezed her waist as he held her firmly against him. ‘I think you may have a rock god in your future, Mads,’ he said, has low rumble of laughter brushing against Ruby’s hair. ‘Given the amount of singing your son did in the church.’
‘Not funny.’ Maddy giggled. ‘Rye reckons he may have deafened the vicar. And the poor old guy’s hearing wasn’t exactly pitch-perfect to begin with.’
‘He’s got a healthy set of lungs,’ Cal said. ‘All the better to top the charts with one of these days.’
‘You wouldn’t say that if you were the one getting up four times a night,’ Maddy quipped.
‘Well, you know what they say about making your bed and then having to lie in it …’
Ruby listened to brother and sister spar playfully with each other and took some comfort in the fact that their relationship had become so close and relaxed over the last few months. There was none of the distance that she’d seen between them last summer. She and Cal came down to Cornwall frequently now. Rye had started teaching him to surf, and he’d embraced his role as uncle with surprising enthusiasm. Although the first time the two of them had babysat Mia hadn’t exactly been a roaring success—the little dynamo had managed to wind them both round her little finger, and when Maddy and Rye had returned from their dinner date at midnight, she and Cal still hadn’t managed to get her into bed.
But Cal’s words about his new nephew, even in jest, only made her yearning—and her confusion over it—more acute.
‘Why don’t I go and check on the tower, make sure it’s not getting too depleted,’ she said, interrupting the siblings’ banter.
