Free Accidental Reunion by Carol Marinelli

sentence. Instead, he chose the safety of his wineglass.
    ‘Might what?’ Lila prompted.
    ‘Might stop us from getting back together. You see, Lila, I told her about us ages ago when we were still in Scotland. And whatever you think, she really didn’t like me then, at least not in that way. We were just friends. I wanted to move home and she’d applied for a job in Melbourne—there was nothing more to it than that. Of course I said that she could stay with me for a while, at least until she found her feet. IfYvonne has been acting differently then it’s only in the last few weeks or so. Maybe she’s homesick or a bit lonely. And I guess if she has got a crush on me it must have been a pretty tough couple of weeks for her, what with me banging on about you all the time.’
    ‘You’ve been talking about me?’
    ‘Of course I’ve been talking about you, Lila, you’re all I’ve been going on about for the last few weeks, all I’ve been talking about since I finally made up my mind to come back home. Hell, I was hoping to bump into you at the shops one day or on the beach perhaps—but working alongside you, I couldn’t have planned that if I’d tried. I’ve been bending Yvonne’s ear, asking her if she thought there was a chance…’
    He stopped talking, unsaid words hanging in the air, teasing her with the impossibility of what he might have been about to say.
    His finger was running around the rim of his glass and he cleared his throat before he continued. ‘A chance for us. Whether we might be able to make things work this time around.’
    Did they have a chance? From the few exchanges they’d shared it was obvious there was a lot of hurt there, a lot of damage already inflicted. And the world had changed so much since then. They were two different people now. Older if not wiser. With different goals and dreams. She sat quite still, watching his finger travelling aimlessly around the glass.
    She should have left it there, waited for the morning to think things through, to open up and share with him how difficult her life was now, how a relationship with him, with anyone, in fact, was impossible.
    But she didn’t.
    This night was for them. Tomorrow could wait a while. Just to feel his arms around her again, feel the weight of his kiss…
    She simply couldn’t let the moment pass. Tomorrow was an age away…
    Leaning forward slightly, Lila took the glass from his hand, stretching over to place it on the coffee-table. She felt his eyes move, felt the weight of his gaze on her creamy cleavage, heard him swallow. He had always loved her breasts. His eyes moved quickly to hers but she knew he was aroused, knew that he wanted her, too.
    She saw a flicker of uncertainty in his features, and she knew she should also feel it. But right now she needed to forget. Forget the problems, forget the pain, and let Declan make it all right, like he always had before.
    ‘Lila?’ His voice was husky, questioning, and she silenced him with a kiss, but he gently pulled back. ‘Are you sure?’
    That they wouldn’t hurt in the morning?
    No.
    That she was doing the right thing?
    Probably not.
    That she wanted him?
    Yes.
    Oh, yes.
    Taking his hand, she guided it to her dress, closing her eyes as he slowly pulled down the zipper.
    ‘I’m sure, Declan,’ she said, her voice thick with need. ‘I’m sure.’
    *
    Familiarity bred contempt.
    It didn’t.
    At least not when the hands that were holding you, touching you, were so attuned that they moved instinctively where they were needed.
    When the mouth that moved slowly, teasingly across your stomach and up to your engorged and aching breasts knew when you couldn’t take restraint any more.
    As the rough scratch of his thighs pushed between her legs, her body arched beneath him, desperate for a deeper closeness, desperate to seal their union.
    He knew how much she needed him, wanted him, yet he made her wait. Made her wait until her long nails were digging into his muscular