This, although theoretically reasonable, was completely absurd if he entered the same room as her. Every time he felt the urge to touch her, to smell her flowers, to feel the warmth of her body next to his, his barriers crumbled. He was helpless in her presence, and he fucked and enjoyed it. Did that mean he was a masochist in some way? He gave a damn. He was aware that he would eventually have to pay for this exquisite and lovely torment, but he was also aware that he could not escape it.As Cassie pulled into the Oceans Resort's underground parking garage, she turned to face Ainsley, perplexed. This was as far as a bridal store was located. She said, "What are we doing here?" as Ainsley parked and killed the engine. She clarified, "I'm meeting the dressmaker here." "I reserved her because I didn't like any of the locations along the ocean and because I had heard odd things about this eccentric woman who had a shop in Paddington. Although she seems strange, I appreciate her work.
Yet Madame Hilda only grinned. "Come, let us see how the others are getting on." After gathering her skirts, Cassie trailed behind Madam Hilda into the lounge area, where the other bridesmaids were waiting in identical dresses to her own. Ainsley seems ready for marriage. "These are not the dresses that I ordered," she said sourly. "No," in response to Madam Hilda, "but these are the dresses you're getting." Crossing her arms over her chest, Ainsley remarked, "That's not how this works. "I'm the bride, I get to decide what my bridesmaids wear." "That may be how it usually works," Madam Hilda remarked with a smile, "but when you walked into my shop and demanded I make dresses for you, you agreed to my stipulations." Ainsley's mouth curled into a scowl, but Madam Hilda didn't seem to mind. "You acknowledged having signed the contract," the elderly woman said. "Shall I have Annette read you the clause you agreed to?" Annette didn't wait for Ainsley to respond before begin
As they bid farewell to Madam Hilda and made their way into the hallway, she was in a trance. Since her room was only a few floors below, Cassie begged to skip the early afternoon drinks that the other women had planned and claimed she would simply go to her room for a night of sleep. When Brian came out, the other lady waived her off and went into the elevator, making her knees go numb at his sight."Cassie, were you looking for me?" he said in a worried tone. She bit her lip and shook her head. She pointed to the other door and replied, "No, ah, I mean, we were just in there for the dress fitting." He stopped in front of her and fidgeted with his hands, saying, "Oh." She turned to face him and remarked, "You're back early." "You can't possibly be done with eighteen holes already." He smiled. "No, but I've had enough of this asshole," he said. She shook her head, grinning. He said, "Do you want to come in for a drink?" She glanced at the floor before glancing up at him
"Are you a pilot then?" She inquired, eager to learn more about him and to ask the things that had been bothering her. "Is that how you became involved in the aviation industry?" "It was my dad," he added. "He flew charters and founded the firm with a single aircraft. When I was old enough, I obtained my pilot's license, and I flew with him, but I wasn't as passionate about it as he was. My interest was in the commercial aspect of it. I began implementing modifications to the company, and before we knew it, we had many aircraft, pilots, and enough revenue to retire Dad from flying. "Are you still flying?" she inquired. With a melancholy smile, he replied, "On occasion, mostly to keep my certification current, but also as a way to stay close to my dad." Her hand snaked out to coil around his as it rested on the couch between them, asking quietly, "What happened to him?" "Cancer," he answered. He attempted to quit smoking but was unable to break the habit. My mother found it d
Brian stalked away from the couch, away from the temptation he saw in Cassie’s eyes. He grabbed the room service menu and began to flick through it, anything to get his mind off what he really wanted to do, which was lay Cassie out on the couch, slide between her thighs, and lose himself in her. He flicked through the pages, needing the distraction. “Uh, sure,” she said, uncertainty flicking in her eyes. “Or we could go out if you’d prefer,” he said, trying to hide the desperation in his voice. “I could take you on our first date.” He smiled at her then, not wanting to frighten her away, but needing to put some distance between them. She grimaced. “If it’s all the same to you,” she said, “I’d rather stay in. Maybe we could watch a DVD or Netflix?” He breathed a sigh of relief. “Yeah, that sounds good,” he said. “So what can I tempt you with in the way of food?” “I’d really love a burger,” she said shyly and he couldn’t help grinning. He loved this about her, the lack of gu
His face broke into a relieved smile when he saw her, which made her stomach flip and her knees go weak. The man was a goddamned Adonis with his green eyes, dark beard, and those tattoos. He’d changed while she was gone and he wore linen drawstring pants and a white, long-sleeved t-shirt that pulled across the muscles of his chest and shoulders. She could see the swirls of ink showing through the thin fabric of his sleeves and her fingers ached to trace the lines. “Perfect timing,” he said. “Your dinner is served.” He performed a smart little bow and swept his hand to the side, ushering her into the suite. She went willingly, doubts and thoughts of begging off disappearing at the sight of him. She held up the bag in her hand. “Dessert,” she said, “as promised. I hope you like gelato.” “It’s only one of my favorite things to put in my mouth,” he said, taking the bag from her, his fingers brushing against hers. She swallowed. He put the gelato in the freezer and then took her ha
He froze lips a hair's breadth from hers. She felt his body stiffen and she jerked back, scrambling from his lap and reaching for her phone. She looked at him apologetically, but his eyes stopped the words in her throat. He’d seen the display of her phone, he knew who was calling and the lust that had darkened his eyes was gone, replaced with the cold hard glint of a stranger. He stood and stalked away as she swiped the screen to answer the call.Fucking cock is blocked by his stepbrother. Brian strode from the room, away from Cassie and her hot little body that he’d only been moments away from sinking into. Seeing Nathan’s name on her phone, seeing the way she had jumped instantly to answer it was like a cold bucket of water being thrown over his lust. His erection deflated and all the soft, sweet feelings he had towards her shattered. He ran a hand through his hair in frustration. He’d thought that tonight had meant something to her. He’d thought that maybe she was seeing hi
“Shut the hell up, Brian,” she yelled at him. “You don’t know what the fuck you’re talking about. You don’t even know me.” “I know you better than you think,” he yelled back. “I know that you are throwing your life away on a prick like Nathan. He can never give you everything you need.” “And you think you can?” she asked. “I know I’d be a damned sight better choice than him,” he growled. “At least I’d be faithful to you, at least I wouldn’t fucking marry someone else and try to keep you on the side.” The crack of her palm hitting his cheek broke the tension. She gasped and covered her mouth with her hands before stumbling towards the door. She wrenched it open and ran into the hall. His cheek burned and he stood there, stunned until the door slammed shut. The noise spurred him into action. “Cassie!” he called, pulling the door open and following her into the hallway. “Cassie! Come back. I’m sorry.” The elevator doors opened and she stepped in, turning to look at him with s
Six Months Later…Everyone he loved was in the room. They were celebrating. Barry and Becky had finally set a date. Lisa and Mason wouldn’t be far behind. Brian and Cassie kept sneaking glances at one another that they thought nobody else noticed. He thought he knew what was going on but he didn’t want to ruin the surprise. It was their news to share and he was happy to wait for them to be ready to share it. Liam and Loretta were here too. He’d been slowly getting to know them. There was a lot of hurt to work through, but they were getting there. Jonathon quite enjoyed having a younger brother even if it was only in small doses at the moment. Devi and Kirra were also there. Kirra was graduating in a couple of weeks and then she would be hopefully attending one of the universities close to home. She wouldn’t know if she got accepted until the new year, but Jonathan was quietly confident that she would get into her top pick. And then there was Emma. Every day with her was
“I know it’s too soon,” he said, cupping her cheek. “But I want you to know that I am in this for good. I want to spend my life with you Emma. I want us to be a family. You, me, Kirra, Devi, Liam, and Loretta—” “Loretta?” “My mum. I want one big, messy family with you and me at the heart of it. Tell me you want that too.” She pressed against him and brushed a kiss on his lips. “I do,” she said before putting the remaining half of the chocolate in her mouth and grinning. The wheel came to a stop and he drew Emma to her feet, moving them both over to the window. The entire city of Melbourne was spread out below them, but it dimmed in comparison to the woman in his arms. “I love you, Emma,” he whispered before kissing her while they stood on top of the world.He took her home. He couldn’t not. They had stuff to work out and a relationship to manage. He had a family to get to know and she had her mother’s illness to navigate and her sister’s final year of sch
He stepped into the pod and waited for the door to close before holding the final box out to her, his mouth dry. She reached for it but he snatched it away, lifting it beyond her reach. “Before I give this to you, I need to explain.” She looked from the box to his face and nodded. “Okay.” The wheel started to move and Jonathon moved them over to sit on a bench. He exhaled roughly. “Okay, so I don’t know how much of this you already know, but how about I just start at the beginning?” She nodded again. “My mother left when I was two. I always believed she left us for a man with money. I’ve recently found out that wasn’t true.” He took a deep breath and her hand rested gently on his chest as she moved closer to him. He took strength from her closeness. “Someone was impersonating me—” “Liam?” He nodded. “Right. Liam. It turns out Liam is my brother. He was trying to draw me out and get me to notice him. He ultimately wanted to meet his father. He didn’t
“Are you looking for this?” the security guy asked, holding out an old-fashioned paper ticket. Emma laughed as she snatched it from him, waving it over her shoulder as she jogged toward the front doors of the building. She slid into the car and Brian looked at her expectantly. “Um…” Emma looked between Brian and Cassie. “I want to say Luna Park, but I don’t think that’s right.” “Why Luna Park?” Cassie asked. Emma held up the ticket in her hand. “We went to a fête in Merveille and rode the Ferris wheel.” “The Melbourne Star,” Brian said, his voice gruff. “Of course!” Cassie cried excitedly, leaning over to give Brian a smacking kiss. “You’re brilliant.” Emma could barely keep still as Brian drove them across town toward the Docklands and the giant observation wheel. As much as she was enjoying herself, she wanted to see him. She had already forgiven him for his lie and now she desperately wanted to ask his forgiveness for her stupid, fearful, erratic
She walked around the corner expecting to see Jonathon outside the patisserie, but there was no one there. She stepped inside breathed in the sweet scent of pastries and chocolate and looked around, hoping to spot him, but he wasn’t there. “Are you Emma?” a lady asked. “Yeah,” Emma said, turning to the woman who sat at a small table with a familiar little box in front of her. “This is for you,” the woman said, standing and walking away. Emma sat and took the box, pulling at the bow and opening it to see another chocolate truffle, this time it had an ’S’ written on top of it in dark chocolate. She didn’t need the little ‘Eat Me’ note to know what to do. She put the truffle on her tongue and closed her eyes. The chocolate coating melted away to leave behind a cake center with the sweet tang of apricot jam. “Sachertorte,” she mumbled to herself as she sighed and opened her eyes. Emma picked up the note that had nestled beside the truffle in the box.The first time we made lov
Dear Emma,The first time we met I wanted to kiss you. I knew I couldn’t. I knew it was stepping across a line both personally and professionally, but still, I couldn’t deny the attraction I felt.Our relationship has had an unconventional start, a bit of a rocky middle, and an absolutely appalling ending, but there were some real high points along the way. Let me remind you of how good it was between us and how good it could be again.Do you remember our first kiss? I don’t think I will ever forget it. I thought I knew what I was getting myself in for when I leaned down to brush my lips across yours, but I was a fool. You were so much more than I ever thought I would ever experience. You took my breath away and I lost a little bit of my heart to you at that moment.If it meant as much to you as it did to me, meet me there at the place where we first kissed.Jonathon.Emma could feel the wetness on her cheeks and she sniffed as she wiped at the tears. “Well?” Cassie asked, rocking o
It was the first Saturday morning Emma could ever remember that had the three of them sitting around the kitchen table eating pancakes and laughing. What would have been a simple, family Saturday morning ritual for some was something out of a fairy tale for Emma. She knew they were a long way from being a happy family, there was still a lot of hurt to navigate and broken trust to overcome, but it was a start and for once in her life, she was willing to just go with it. On this day, Devi was back to the woman she vaguely remembered from before Tom died and Emma wanted to soak it up and memorize it. From pancakes, they’d gone to gardening. Emma shared her plans with Devi and Kirra. She would let the lease go on her flat and move back in here permanently. It meant she would be on hand if Devi needed her and hopefully give some stability for Kirra’s final year of school. After she graduated and went off to uni, Emma could look at what would happen next. They all agreed that if they were
Emma wanted to believe her, but it was tempting to turn away and close her heart off so she couldn’t be hurt again. Except it would hurt anyway. If there was one thing she learned through this whole saga with Jonathon it was that closing your heart off to others was a mistake. You ended up hurting everyone that way, not least of all yourself. She put her arm around Devi and hugged her. “Good for you mum,” she said.Jonathon worked all night and most of the day. He tried calling Emma but when she didn’t pick up or reply to his texts after the first twenty or so, he gave up. What he had to say needed to be said in person anyway. Inspired by the woman he had fallen irrevocably in love with, he had spent the night holed up in his test kitchen creating the perfect set of truffles. Anybody could buy a box of chocolates or a bunch of flowers but only he could create an entire set of truffles that spelled out just how much he loved her and how much she had impacted his life. He had words
Kirra said when Emma finally made it home. Emma had been wandering around the city trying to come to terms with what all this meant for her life going forward. She had made some hard decisions, but she felt like a weight had been lifted off her shoulders. It hadn’t helped with the pain in her chest where her heart was currently crumbling away to dust, but at least she knew that she wasn’t going to end up like her mother just because she had fallen in love. Life was always going to throw her curve balls and she just learned something about herself. Despite her previous belief, she was actually strong enough to withstand them, even swing the bat at them, and make the best out of a bad situation. “Hey, yourself,” she said, sitting at the table opposite Kirra. “Where’s Zoë?” “She had to go and run some errands.” “Where’s mum?” Kirra bit her lip and her eyes teared up. “I don’t know.” “She’s not here?” Emma asked, sitting up straighter and leaning forward. “When I got home, Z