Mrs. Mayfield’s eyebrows (they should have their own Twitter account) pinched together as she tried to work out whether or not Chloe was insulting her or complimenting her. Chloe smiled serenely and beside her Declan coughed into his napkin to hide his choked laughter. The fact was that Chloe was sick of being typecast. People looked at her and immediately made assumptions about who she was and most of the time it didn’t bother her… well, she told herself it didn’t bother her. But today, for some reason, it really got under her skin. Declan had treated her so differently than any other boyfriend ever had and she had come to this brunch with the full intention of trying to impress his mother, but the woman had already made up her mind. So Chloe had switched to plan B. She used all the tricks she had learned at the hands of her frenemies in high school. Mrs. Mayfield had placed her squarely in the blonde bimbo category and she was determined to prove to the woman that she was so mu
He groaned. Fucking golf. He hated it, but that wasn't the only reason he didn't want to go. He'd have to face his friends after the benefit and he still hadn't spoken to Barry about the way Becky treated Chloe that night. He really, really didn't want to go. “I would much prefer to come with you. I could be your assistant.” “I don't think The Little Mermaid had an assistant,” she said. “Wasn't there a crab-looking thing that was with her all the time?” “You would dress up as a crab to avoid going to golf with your friends?” He didn't answer, he just looked away, reaching down to start the car. “Is this about Becky?” she asked. “I didn't like the way she spoke to you the other night,” he said tightly as he left the driveway and headed back towards his house. “I’ve known her for a while now and I like her, a lot, but I've never seen her behave like that. It's not cool.” Chloe reached over and laid a hand on his leg. “Don't let this come between y
The husbands of her ‘friends’ stood around holding bottles of beer and leering at her, well, at her breasts any way, while the wives stood around shooting her death glares as if it was her fault that the men in their lives couldn’t keep their eyeballs in their heads! The costume she wore was in no way provocative but it did show a little skin, she was supposed to be a mermaid for fuck’s sake and it’s not like she chose the costume. The Little Mermaid had been requested by the birthday girl as was evidenced by all the mermaid paraphernalia that decorated the backyard. It didn’t help that all these men had known her when she was a teenager. She may have had a reputation back then for being a little wild, but she wasn’t like that any longer and she resented the fact that they were allowed to move on and grow up and become respectable businessmen but she was supposed to stay the teenage wet dream that they all thought she was. She had been a young woman exploring her sexual side and
He’d been like every other boy she’d dated back then, he just wanted to fuck and then tell everyone about it. She had a reputation back then that she didn’t entirely deserve. She didn’t sleep with every guy she dated, but every guy she dated told the world how he’d banged her in the back seat of his mummy’s station wagon. Matthew had been one of the ones that she hadn’t slept with and he seemed to still hold a grudge about the fact. Chloe rubbed her arms as her skin prickled with disgust. Her stomach was clenched and she felt the shakes as the adrenaline hit her system. If she wasn’t careful she was going to have a panic attack. She just needed to calm down, take deep breaths, and wrap this gig up as quickly as she could. She needed to get away from here and have a hot shower to scrub off any trace of Matthew’s hands on her. She rounded the corner and found Miranda, the birthday girl, squatting on the floor holding her stomach. She bent down next to her and smoothed her
That fucking white ball was going to be the death of him. “Tell me why we are doing this again?” Declan asked as he lost sight of his ball in the rough. “We’re grown-ups,” Brian said as he practiced his swing. “Grown-ups play golf… apparently.” “I still don’t get the point,” he grumbled as he moved off the tee to let Brian take his shot. “None of us enjoy it.” “But it does force us to spend several quality hours in each other’s company,” Mason said. “Especially now that all of you each have a woman to occupy all your other time,” Jonathon said. “Jealous?” Barry commented. “Not at all,” Jonathon replied with a smirk, “but at least playing golf once a week means I get to see you reprobates.” “Aw, that’s so sweet,” Barry said as Brian swung and connected with the ball sending it down the fairway. Declan grunted. He had probably played more golf than any of these guys and yet he was still the worst at it. There had to be a psychological reason
How would his family react if he decided not to marry whoever it was that his mother had in mind? And in the grand scheme of things, did he really care? Sure, he held on to the fairytale that one day he might have a mother who loved him like mothers were supposed to and not just see him as part of the Mayfield family assets. But was there any reality in which that would actually happen? Would marrying the woman she chose for him suddenly turn her into the perfect mother? And if he really didn’t care about securing her approval of him, why the hell was he going along with her ridiculously old-fashioned plan? He had stopped walking without realizing it and when he came back to his senses, his friends had gathered around him. “Are you in love with her?’ Mason asked. “I—” Was he? “I don’t know,” he said. “Maybe?” “Then you owe it to yourself to find out,” Brian said. “But—” Could it be that easy? “Where’s the harm in trying?” Barry said. “Spend some time
“Hey sweetheart,” he said letting the endearment roll off his tongue like he said it all the time. “You don’t sound too good.” In fact, she sounded awful and that did weird things to his insides. He wanted to be there for her, holding her, brushing his hand on her forehead, and telling her it would be all right because he would look after her. She huffed out a small laugh. “I feel like crap,” she replied softly. “Wanna talk about it?” She sighed. “Do you remember Courtney? From the reunion?” He had a vague recollection of the three women who had been sitting with Chloe, but to be honest, he’d only had eyes for her. “Sure,” he said. “Well, it was a party for her daughter. I was sure I told Peyton not to book a party with her. I didn’t want to do it and had I known I wouldn’t have gone.” “Was she a bitch to you?” Declan said sympathetically. Chloe groaned and he liked the sound of it in his ear, although it wasn’t the same groan that usually
Taking care not to jostle herself too much, she crawled out of the bathroom and climbed back into bed, reaching for her phone. It was barely six but she needed to let Peyton know that she wouldn't be in and then they would need to find someone to start the installation for The Mayfield Group. What a pain in the arse. She knew she shouldn't have done a party for Courtney. Not only had her little spawn of Satan given her a stomach bug, but her bastard of a husband had tried to put his sleazy hands all over her. Never again would she do a party for anyone in that clique. Her stomach flopped over again and she held herself very still wondering if she was going to have to rush to the bathroom again. God. What she wouldn't do for some dry ginger ale right now. She made a pouty face and rolled over, burying her head in her pillow. Living on your own sucked balls when you were sick. When her stomach settled again, she turned her head and brought her phone close so she could sen
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