Our Kind of Love (18 page)

The most important part of that sentence? She was about to have sex.

And she was about to burst from the thrill of it all. Anna found the straps of her clinging red dress and dragged them over her shoulders, shimmying out of it in a frustrated wiggle, until it hit the floor. She needed to get naked and she needed Joe to be naked too.

When she looked up at him, he’d stopped, frozen, all the frenzied activity of the past ten minutes stilled.

‘Don’t you dare tell me you’ve changed your mind,’ she demanded, her hands in fists at her hips.

‘Nuh uh,’ he muttered with a grin that she could see in the dark. He was taking in every inch of her and it sent a thrill right to her core, gave her a shot of confidence that her lacy red bra and knickers had found an appreciative audience.

‘Anna …’ he groaned and when she stepped forward and fought with his white shirt, he ripped it off and threw it across the room. Anna’s hands found the waistband of his dress trousers and as she fumbled with the button and zip, he found her mouth, his lips hungry and his tongue probing. As she reached around and pushed his trousers down, his hands found her breasts, gently cupping them, his thumbs strumming across her peaked nipples and Anna heard an animalistic groan. Then realised it was her.

‘You are unbelievable,’ Joe moaned as he dipped his head and sucked at one nipple through the red lace. With a flick, he’d undone the clasp and her bra was thrown onto the chest of drawers, landing with a clatter and a tinkle of glass. And then they were both naked and Anna leapt into his arms, throwing her arms around his neck and her legs around his thighs.

Tonight I have no history. Tonight I have no past. I have only this moment
.

When he lifted her, she rubbed against him, and was left in no doubt about what he wanted to do with his erection. Joe took a step back and they tumbled on to the bed, arms and legs tangled, Anna’s arms tight around his neck and his mouth on hers. With a quick move, she was on his lap, her knees bent on either side of him, pressing tight against his hips. When Joe leaned forward to take a nipple between his lips, when he tugged it and bit her so gently at first before sucking her into his own mouth, she was undone.

‘Joe,’ she cried out, so primed and ready and spread wide for him that she moved onto him, slid herself down his cock, holding her breath as she engulfed him, wanting to be filled by his length and power, scared by how it would feel but thrilled that it felt so right.

‘Anna?’

In her dream, Joe’s voice was gravelly and deep and his arms were so tight around her she was fighting for breath. And he was inside her, his smooth skin slick against her, his voice in her ear, possessive, hoarse with desire.

Pins and needles stabbed at Anna’s left arm and something was jammed up against her cheek. In her dream, it had been Joe’s face. Now it was only a cushion. And instead of the sounds of raw, desperate sex, there was simply a voice calling her through the fog and the warm sun on her cheek. She urged her reluctant eyelids open.

‘Hi, Dr Morelli.’

CHAPTER
21

The tall, blond man from Anna’s dream was standing right there in front of her. She swallowed, took a deep breath in an attempt to shake herself back to consciousness, embarrassed at the sudden heat she felt flaming in her cheeks and at the top of her thighs. She hadn’t had a dream in forever. And the first time she’d had a decent one, it had to be interrupted right at the moment of … damn it, interrupted by the person who was the leading man.

‘Hi, Joe.’

It was him, of course it was. This was Middle Point after all. He was standing at the end of the sofa, his hands tucked into the pockets of faded jeans, his uniform black T-shirt looking soft and comfortable. And there was a huge, sexy grin plastered all over his face.

‘Sorry if I woke you up from your nanna nap.’

Anna managed a grunt. A quick glance revealed the space next to her on the sofa was vacant and they seemed to be alone. The rest of the house was quiet. Every bit of relaxation she’d been wallowing in as she woke hurtled away in a frisson of nervous energy. How long had Joe been standing there? Had she,
merda
, muttered anything in her sleep? And why was he looking at her like that, all sly grin with the usual one eyebrow raised.

Anna sat up, rearranged her hair, surreptitiously wiped her chin just in case there was any sleep dribble there. ‘Where’s Julia?’ Her voice came out sleep-croaky and she cleared her throat.

‘Ry dragged her out. You looked dead to the world so they snuck out without you and left me on guard duty. You know, just in case axe-wielding murderers come to call.’ Joe strode past her to the kitchen and she watched his long-legged lope with great concentration. She heard the fridge open and before she could blink, he was back with a bottle and two wine glasses. Without an invitation, Joe made himself comfortable next to her on the sofa, screwed off the top and poured two generous splashes before handing one to her.

She stared at the bottle and then Joe. ‘Isn’t it a little early to be having a drink?’

Joe flicked a glance at his watch. It was a chunky silver piece, hanging loose around his wrist. ‘It’s five o’clock. That’s never too early in my book.’ Joe leaned back, propped one arm on the back of the sofa. If she moved one inch, his fingers would touch her.

‘Five o’clock?’ Anna glanced at her own watch for confirmation. ‘That’s impossible. I can’t have been asleep for two hours.’

Joe sipped his wine and settled in, propping his bare feet on a magazine on the dark wooden coffee table and crossing them at the ankles. ‘It’s the beach. The fresh air. The sound of the waves. It’ll do it to you every time. Don’t fight it. It’s a good thing, don’t you think, to relax and let go when you really need to?’

Letting go. Now that sounded like a good idea. ‘It can be.’

‘So was it at least a decent nap? The dead-to-the-world kind? Are you feeling relaxed?’

Anna stared out the front windows to the sky. She couldn’t look at him. The last thing she felt was rested. She felt like a coiled spring, tension building in her that she feared might mysteriously unleash at any moment. Relaxed was not the word to describe how she was feeling. ‘I was having a bad dream as a matter of fact.’

‘Lucky you’re awake then. I hear you’re down here for the whole Easter weekend.’

Anna looked at him sideways. ‘How do you know that?’

Joe scoffed. ‘Please.’

Anna tried not to notice that his tanned arm was a strong contrast against the white of the leather.

‘I’m here until Monday afternoon.’

‘Good.’ Joe grinned and sipped his wine.

Anna crossed her arms. ‘Why is that good?’

‘Because I think we need to talk.’

‘I don’t think we do.’

‘There’s something I’ve been meaning to ask you.’

Anna glanced at him. ‘Have you?’

Joe swirled his wine around in his glass, creating a tide that spun the honey-coloured liquid. He concentrated on the rhythm he made with it and then, having kept her hanging long enough, shifted his position, moving his long legs off the coffee table and crossing one over the other, in her direction. Now, his knee was inches from hers.

‘I’m wondering when you’re going to tell me the truth about the night we spent together.’

Anna tried with great determination not to feel the hairs goose bumping on the back of her neck. ‘I don’t know what you’re talking about.’

‘I think you do. I’m wondering, in particular, about the part where you told me you were married and then walked out.’

Anna jerked an arm out and grabbed the glass of wine Joe had poured for her. She gulped it down in one quick slurp. It gave her time to think about what she was going to do. When the glass was empty, she gripped the stem in her fist.

‘What are you––’

They both heard it and turned. The front door had swung open and Ry, Julia, Dan and Lizzie were coming inside with smiles and laughter and the sounds of the ocean at their backs. Anna found St Christopher and bit her lip. The conversation Joe seemed determined to have was not one to continue in mixed company. Or was simply one not to have at all if Anna had her way. She turned to smile at everyone else

‘You’re awake,’ Julia called as she walked to the kitchen, laden with bags. ‘I hope you’re hungry. We have enough food with us for dinner tonight and for the whole weekend.’

‘Hey, Stinkface,’ Lizzie called as she glanced over to where Joe and Anna were sitting on the sofa, acting as if she was totally unsurprised to see the two of them together. She was lugging two bags of shopping to the kitchen bench and hauled them to a rest on top of it. ‘Hey, Anna. It’s so good to see you.’

Anna stood and, without giving Joe the satisfaction of even a sideways glance, picked up her empty wine glass and joined them in the kitchen. ‘You too, Lizzie. You sure you have enough food?’

Lizzie laughed. ‘We plan to have a weekend-long feast of food and wine and we’ve done enough shopping so we won’t have to leave here for four days. You up for that, Anna?’

Anna had to admit it sounded like the best kind of medicine. And the more group activities, the better. That would mean her chances of being alone with Joe would be slim to none.

‘It sounds perfect,’ she sighed. ‘What can I do?’

‘Not a thing, Anna.’ Dan was beside her, and before she could turn he’d leaned down to her and kissed her noisily. Ry was close behind him and he shot her a cheeky wink as he passed her, a carton of wine in his arms.

The two couples laughed and bantered with each other as they unpacked groceries and Ry stored the white wine and champagne in the fridge. Anna sat on one of the kitchen stools and set her glass on the marble bench. She didn’t want to look over her shoulder to see what Joe was up to. Like a disobedient puppy, she didn’t want to give his bad behaviour any attention.

Why did he want to revisit that night?
You told me you were married
. Well, damn him. He hadn’t exactly told her the truth, either. Mr Suave Sydney Newsman was running from his own disasters and she didn’t recall him spilling his guts about that, either. So they’d both exorcised their feelings about their crappy marriages and their cheating exes by sleeping with someone they’d just met. Weren’t they both guilty of concealing the truth? Anna’s Catholic guilt flared inside her. What gave him the moral authority to throw accusations around like confetti at a wedding?

The slosh of wine filling her glass broke her concentration.

‘More wine?’ Joe asked as the golden liquid almost reached the brim.

‘Thank you,’ she managed.

‘I’d still like an answer. Why didn’t you tell me the truth?’ he asked so quietly that only she could hear. The touch of his lips in her hair transformed every strand into a lightning rod. He was so close she could see the laugh lines in the corner of his eyes and the growth on his jaw but she was in no mood to let any of his charms affect her.

‘Oh, you’ll get an answer all right. I’ll even give it to you in Italian.’

Joe’s single eyebrow raised in a question and his blue eyes locked on to hers.

‘
Vaffanculo
.’ Anna slipped off her chair and joined the others in the kitchen.

Once Joe grabbed his smartphone, it had taken him all of ten seconds to search for a translation.
Fuck off
. God, she was feisty. And man, she was about the sexiest woman he’d ever met. How was he going to manage to sit across from her all through dinner without saying – or doing – something he shouldn’t?

It was twilight in Middle Point and dinner was well underway. Ry, Julia, Dan, Lizzie, Joe and Anna were seated around the huge dining table in the glass palace, enjoying the last of the delicious meal and yet another bottle of wine direct from Ry’s cellar. Joe and Anna were sitting opposite each other at one end of the table, which gave him the perfect opportunity to study her. Her mane of satiny jet-black hair was pulled back in a ponytail. The style exposed the skin on her neck, which he knew to be as soft as silk. Long gold earrings dangled from her ears and sparkled as they caught the light from overhead. Her lips, bare of lipstick, were full and plumped when she smiled. She was in full flight; glorious, passionate, Italian, half-drunk, arm-waving flight.

And Joe was awe-struck. As well as half-cut and hopeful. A wide-eyed stare from his sister caught his attention and it broke his reverie enough to tune into the conversation, which had been flowing all around him.

‘You can’t mean it, Anna,’ Julia implored, shaking her head vociferously.

Anna nodded with sincere determination. ‘I absolutely do mean it. I know it’s heresy to say it at this table, when two-thirds of us are all pathetically loved up, but I’m over men. Absolutely, positively one hundred per cent over. I’ve had it with every arrogant bastard who can’t keep his pants zipped. I’m done. D.O.N.E.’

Joe, Ry and Dan exchanged concerned glances as if Anna might pick up a butter knife any second and try to remove their testicles in a display of solidarity with the Sisterhood of the Cheated On.

‘What about me?’ Dan laughed. ‘You lumping me in with the arrogant bastards and the blokes who can’t keep their trousers on?’

The whole table exploded into laughter. Anna’s laugh was by far the loudest and it reached right into Joe’s chest and shook him from the inside out.

‘Not you specifically, Dan.’ Anna waved her hand in the air theatrically. ‘Men in general.’

Then Ry chimed in. ‘And what about me?’ He glanced down into his lap. ‘Zip definitely done up.’

Julia picked up her fork, waved it at her husband. ‘And it’d better stay that way.’

Anna slapped her palms on the table and the glasses tinkled. ‘Well … except you, Ry. You’re obviously not a cheater. Or a bastard.’

‘Thanks for the glowing endorsement.’

Lizzie picked up a bottle of wine and refilled Anna’s glass. ‘Anna, I agree with you. Some men aren’t worth the lipstick.’ Lizzie and Dan exchanged a knowing glance. ‘But not Middle Point men.’

Anna swept her hair off her shoulders and grinned. ‘Oh, stop getting in the way of my crass generalisation. I obviously haven’t studied all the medical literature on the subject but let me wallow in my very unscientific conclusion, will you? It’s just easier if I swear off all men completely. Forever.’