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I swipe tears before they fall. “Forgiven but not forgotten.” I hold her gaze. “There’s a difference, and it was easier to do after I found happiness. It cleared my head, and I realized…” I remember my time in Ulara, especially my first holiday, when I discovered more about myself in a couple of months than in the past ten years. “It took more energy to resent him.” I glance down. “Trust.” I meet her eyes. “I have a new team, and you’re my main gal.”
She smiles and shakes her head, and I laugh once through my tears. “Where’s the damn coffee?”
“No matter what, you’re only a phone call away,” I murmur.
“And a short flight,” she adds. “So please come and visit me in Brisbane.”
“I promise I will.”
* * *
When I leave the office to find Samuel sitting on a deck chair with Rose asleep in his arms. He’s wearing his jeans and a black tee, and to me, he looks as hot as he did in Ulara half-naked.
“Hey, you.” I lean over and kiss him, one that lingers. His tongue finds mine, and I groan when he deepens the kiss.
He chuckles lightly. “How was your day?”
“Better now I’m with you,” I gush.
“Are you ready to resign yet?” he murmurs.
“What?” I straighten.
With his free hand, he runs it over the snug material of my skirt along the contour of my hip. “Let’s take a walk.” He pushes up with Rose in his arms.
“Here, let me.” I take Rose and kiss her cheek. “How long has she been asleep because we’ll never get her to sleep tonight?”
He runs a gentle hand over her fair hair. “Only ten minutes. After half an hour, I’ll wake her. It’s why I want a quick chat while we can.”
Samuel places a hand on my lower back as we head toward the beach. The sun is low on the horizon. Twilight on the foreshore is nature’s gift to enjoy. I have Samuel and my time in the rainforest to thank for my gratitude, including the strength to weather the storms.
“How was your day?” he murmurs.
“You already asked me.”
“And you didn’t answer. I have approximately half an hour to make it better.”
“You already did,” I say. “Just by being here fixes everything.”
We take a seat on a boulder by the sand. “I’d like to believe it, only I don’t have the power to wield happiness.”
“No.” I stare down at Rose. “You both do.”
“Eden, as reassuring your words are to me, we should discuss our future.”
I assume it’s the promise he made to his father and how being a workaholic is his foreseeable future. It’s what his father believes taking care of us and his responsibility entails.
“I bought a house. It’s nearby. You could walk to work.”
“Like a block away? Wait. You bought one without me?”
“I wanted to wait, only it happened so fast. After lunch, I was perusing the real estate app and found this house. It was open for inspection within the hour and before the auction. I thought, why not?”
“You bought a house,” I repeat more in surprise, not anger. In fact, I’m delighted he wants to take the next step to stay here with us and build a life in a family home.
“It ticked all the boxes. On the esplanade and with a modern Scandinavian interior design. It reflected your style.”
“My style? I didn’t know I had a certain style since I haven’t designed a place of my own yet.”
