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CHAPTER 454
Last Updated:
2024-03-25 12:46:09
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“So?” Zoë pounced as soon as Emma walked through the door. “How did it go?” Emma sighed. She was so confused. She turned down Jake because she felt too much for him and now she was turning down Jonathan because she didn’t feel enough. “I don’t think I can have this conversation without a drink,” Emma said, heading for the kitchen. Zoë followed her. Her friend had agreed to come and stay with Devi and Kirra while Emma went on her date. Kirra complained she didn’t need a babysitter, but that wasn’t why Emma wanted Zoë there. Emma didn’t want Kirra to have to put up with any of their mother’s crap by herself. Zoë was there to protect Kirra from any damage that Devi could thoughtlessly cause. They didn’t keep any alcohol in the house, something Emma had forgotten as she reached for the glasses. What she wouldn’t give for a shot of whiskey right now. Instead, she turned to the kettle and set it to boil. Tea would have to do. “I don’t think I like where this is going,” Zoë said as
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Devi didn’t look away from Emma, her eyes sad but understanding. “I know,” she said. “I know I have no right to speak into your life but I would never forgive myself if you walk away from this man because of me.” Emma didn’t know what to say. She was furious at Devi and yet hungry to hear what her mother had to say. Devi never spoke about Tom. “Your father and I fought the night before his accident,” she said quietly. Her fingers picked at the water glass in her hand. “He was working so much and he was tired. He begged me to get a job so he could slow down. Mimi offered to babysit and he’d lined up an interview for me. We argued. I didn’t want to work. I wanted to be home with you girls.” Emma snorted. “I find it hard to believe that we were so important to you,” she said. Devi nodded slowly in acknowledgment. “I deserve that,” she said. “I know I have been an awful mother. I know I let you and your sister down but you shouldn’t let my failings stop you from reaching for you
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How do you come to terms with everything that you had known about your life being a lie? Not quickly or easily. Emma supposed that not everything about her life had been a lie, just the bedrock. So many of her life choices were made with the erroneous assumption that Devi and Tom’s ‘big love’ was to blame for her shitty childhood. Now she was forced to look at it differently and the foundation she’d built her life on was no longer stable, but flawed. On top of that ground-shaking revelation was the very real heartache she was suffering because she missed Jake. It had been two weeks since that awful night when she turned him away and with every passing day the ache got worse, not better. She honestly thought if she nipped their burgeoning relationship in the bud, her feelings for him would fizzle and die out. She hoped a few days without his hands on her making her scream in ecstasy would cause those pesky emotions to crawl back under the rock where they’d come from. No such luck.
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Devi shifted over so that she was sitting beside Emma. She took Emma’s hands in hers and waited for Emma to raise her face so that they were eye to eye. “If he loves you, he will always want you and if he doesn’t then you are better off knowing now and getting some closure instead of pining away for him. Go. Go and talk to him. Tell him you’re scared. Tell him you were wrong. Tell him you love him.” Emma searched Devi’s eyes. She couldn’t remember the last time Devi seemed so lucid and completely present in the moment. There were no more ghosts in her gaze and Emma’s heart softened just a little bit toward her. The earnestness in Devi’s little speech fired something in Emma’s gut. She was miserable without Jake. She did love him, as much as she tried to deny it. “Okay,” she said softly. She stood. There was no time like the present.Jonathon grumbled as he gave in to the incessant knocking on his front door. He should have figured that his friends would come around at s
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“He’s not, what?” he asked. His lungs seized as he waited for her answer. She looked up at him, her feelings for him visible in her big eyes. “He’s not you.” She took a deep breath. “I love you, Jake.” He barely waited for the words to be out of her mouth before he pulled her to his chest and crashed his mouth down on hers. Her smoky taste flooded his mouth and he groaned as he deepened the kiss, needing more of her. He pulled her closer and her nails dug into his chest through his shirt. He broke the kiss and looked down at her dazed expression, realizing they were on the front porch and what he wanted to do to her should not be done in public. “Get in here,” he said, grasping her hand and dragging her through the door.Emma let him pull her through the door and crush her against his chest. She could barely draw in breath as her heart pounded madly. She expected a fight or a polite no at the very least. She expected him to reject her as she had rejected him and the rel
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“Wait here,” he said, levering himself off her and disappearing out of the room. Emma twisted her head to see where he had gone. She couldn’t discern where he had disappeared to and she was left feeling adrift. Just when she was about to pull her dress together and leave, he came back into the room holding a bowl and a towel. “What is that?” she asked, leaning up on her elbows. “An experiment,” he said with a waggle of his eyebrows. “Take your dress off.” She moved slowly, not sure what he was going to do. She stood from the couch and let her dress drop to the floor. He spread the towel on the couch and then helped her lie back down. He had already removed his shirt and he kneeled beside the lounge in just his jeans. “You see,” he said as he dipped two fingers into the bowl. “I’ve been having trouble with a particular flavor profile and I think you can help me with it.” He pulled his fingers from the bowl and they dripped with dark, melted chocolate.
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They made love in the shower. Not even the slow slide of two wet bodies was enough for him. Emma was back in his arms and his appetite for her was ravenous. He carried her to bed where she curled herself against him and Jonathon knew this was what he wanted for the rest of his life. She loved him and he didn’t think anyone would ever love him. His entire life he believed he would never be enough for a woman to love, that he would always fall short, just like he had for his mother. Jonathon was foolish to believe that having Emma back would cancel out the whole Liam issue. It had definitely taken his mind off it but now that they were sated and relaxed, his brain went there. Emma lifted her head from his chest and looked at him with concern in her eyes. “What’s wrong?” she asked. “Nothing, why?” “You went all stiff and your breathing changed.” “I’ll show you stiff,” he said, rolling her over and settling between her legs. Emma squealed and wriggled under h
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She screeched and jumped off the bed, running naked across the room and out the door to find her dress. Jonathon stopped and stared, appreciating the view, until she was out of sight. He sighed and smiled. At least one part of his world had righted and with Emma firmly back in his life, he knew what he had to do about his mother. It was time to face her and get some answers. As much as he loved his dad, he only ever had his side of the story. He needed to know her side of what happened and maybe he could finally understand why she had abandoned him. Emma walked back into the room, tying her dress together. “You’re not dressed,” she said, stopping to look at him. Her heated gaze made him want to forget about his friends, but that would only prompt more calls and possibly a personal visit to check on him. “And you’re not wearing underwear.” Her cheeks deepened in colour but she didn’t duck her head or shy away from his observation. “Nope,” she said with a grin. “Can
Last Updated : 2024-03-26
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One Night Stand With The Unforgettable Stranger EPILOGUE
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
One Night Stand With The Unforgettable Stranger CHAPTER 480
“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
One Night Stand With The Unforgettable Stranger CHAPTER 479
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
One Night Stand With The Unforgettable Stranger CHAPTER 478
“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
One Night Stand With The Unforgettable Stranger CHAPTER 477
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
One Night Stand With The Unforgettable Stranger CHAPTER 476
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
One Night Stand With The Unforgettable Stranger CHAPTER 475
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
One Night Stand With The Unforgettable Stranger CHAPTER 474
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
One Night Stand With The Unforgettable Stranger CHAPTER 473
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
