An Uncommon Sense (26 page)

“Hi,” said Jodi shyly.

“Hi.” Grace looked over at the table. “Sorry, have I interrupted something?”

“No, no.” Jodi gestured to it. “I’m cooking you both dinner.”

Grace looked across at Ash. He was studying her mutely but his eyes were warm.

“I…” She went to say she wasn’t going to stay, but Jodi’s face was so eager she suddenly found she didn’t have the heart to say it. “Thank you, love. That would be very nice.” She slipped off her jacket and hung it over the chair.

Jodi beamed. She cast a quick glance at her dad and walked up to Grace, standing before her. “Um, I just wanted to say I’m sorry for the things I said last night.”

“That’s okay,” said Grace. “Don’t worry about it.”

“I do worry. I really didn’t mean them. I was upset. I really like you, Miss Fox. I’m so sorry.”

Grace smiled. “Well, for a start, you must stop calling me Miss Fox when we’re not at school. Call me Grace, love, please.”

“Okay, Grace.” Jodi beamed again and threw her arms around her. Grace hugged her awkwardly before the girl pulled back and walked away quickly to the kitchen.

Grace turned to look at Ash but he was looking down, and she followed his gaze to see her black vest covered in flour.
 

He walked over to her and began to dust it off. Grace watched him, raising an eyebrow as he took slightly longer than was necessary to make sure her breasts were flour free.

“I think you’ve got it,” she said wryly.

He grinned and stepped back. Her heart beat faster, but she ignored it and let him lead her to the table, sitting as he pulled out a chair.

“This is all rather fancy,” she said, flicking out a napkin and placing it on her lap.

He shrugged, taking the seat opposite her. “She wanted to do it. She takes Life Tech at school and she needs to cook a meal for an assignment. And anyway, I was glad of the excuse to get you to stay.”

She opened her mouth to reply, but at that moment, Jodi came in carrying their entree of stuffed mushrooms in a brandy and cream sauce, and for the next hour or so they didn’t have a chance to talk alone. Jodi served a pumpkin and cream cheese flan for a main course, and a scrumptious chocolate mousse for dessert. As they ate, she sat beside them and asked them questions about the food as she filled in her assignment sheet. Grace happily obliged but began to wonder if that was the only reason they’d asked her to stay.

However, after they’d finished and helped carry the plates out to the kitchen, Jodi stacked the dishwasher and cleared up as Ash made tea, and then the young girl took off her apron and gave them a bright smile. “Well, I’m off!”

“Off?” Grace’s heart missed a beat.

“I’m going to Liv’s tonight—we’re taking the boys to the cinema.” She gave them both a look. “I expect you to have made up by the time I get back tomorrow.” She winked at them. “And if you want to make a baby or two while I’m gone, feel free.”

Baby! Grace’s cheeks burned as Jodi ran out the room. She could hear the girl laughing as she exited the house, slamming the door behind her.

“What…?” She stared at Ash, who had taken up his classic pose of frustration, with hands on hips and his head dipped in defeat toward the floor.

He looked up and smiled apologetically at her. “That girl has a big mouth.”

Grace was speechless. She could only stare as Ash took her hand and led her into the dining room, then over to the large sliding glass doors. He opened them and brought her outside, onto the deck.

It was a warm night, and moreporks hooted in the bush, the cicadas already singing their song, even though it wasn’t quite summer. The Milky Way lay splashed across the darkness, and the Crux shimmered above them, the cluster known as the Jewel Box glittering with coloured stars.

He stood behind her and wrapped his arms around her. Grace wondered whether he could feel her heart pounding.

He kissed her ear. “I’m sorry,” he whispered.

“What for?” Her voice was little more than a squeak.

“For not saying I loved you back when you told me you loved me.”

“Oh.” She bit her lip. Tears stung her eyes.

He kissed her neck, making her shiver. “I’m crazy about you, Miss Fox. Did you know that?”

“No.”

“Liar.” He kissed her neck again. “You know you drive me wild. You and your sexy underwear.” He pulled the V of her black top forward and looked down her front. “White. Nice.”

“Do you mind?” She slapped his hand away, glowering.

“No.” He laughed and squeezed her tighter. “Grace, it was only when you walked out on me that I realised what I hadn’t let myself think before. I love you, and I think I loved you from the first moment I saw you. You bring light into my life. You ground me, and yet you also support me, although I don’t think you realise how much. You have a beautiful, light spirit, and you never fail to lift mine. I’d be heartbroken to think I had to let you go.” He turned her around in his arms to face him.

Her heart was thumping wildly. “Ash…”

He bent his head and kissed her. Long and lingering, until she felt slightly dizzy from the thunder of her blood through her veins.

“Um…”

He kissed her again. This time he cupped her head with his hand, keeping his other arm tight around her waist, kissing her with a hunger that gave her an ache between her thighs and made her breath catch in her throat.

“Stop!” she said eventually, trying to push him away. “You’re melting my brain, and I need to think.”

“What is there to think about?” He stroked her cheek. “I love you, Miss Fox. We’ve only known each other a couple of months, but I know we’re written in the stars.” He glanced up for a moment. When he looked back at her, he seemed hesitant.

“What is it?”

“There’s something I have to tell you. It’s about what your father said to me that night at the Centre. What I didn’t want to tell you in front of all those people.”

Her mouth went dry. “What is it? What did he say?”

“He said, ‘Tell her, he’s the one.’”

Grace stared at him. It had been a favourite tease of Bill Fox’s every time she remarked about a pop star or a movie star she’d fallen in love with. “Is he the one, Gracie?” he used to say.

Ash cleared his throat. “I didn’t want to say anything at the time. I felt it was unfair to both of us to be told something like that. I didn’t want someone to tell me my future. I want to make my own decisions.” He kissed her cheek. “But I’ve made my decision. There’s no rush, Grace, but I want you to know, one day I’m going to marry you, and I want you to have our children. We have a ready-made babysitter already.” He smiled. “What do you think?”

Grace pulled away from him and moved to the edge of the decking to look over the garden. The moon was a day off full and hung heavy in the darkening sky, its reflection like a foil disk in the lake. In the bush, a kiwi cried mournfully, making her shiver.

Tell her, he’s the one
. Ash’s words rang inside her head. Was it really true that her father was watching over her? Had he seen her with Ash? Did he really think Ash was the right man for her? There was no way she could prove her father had spoken to the tall, blond-haired Viking. She had to take it all on faith.

But wasn’t that what love was? A leap of faith? There were no assurances in love, no guarantees. A person could only try to choose a partner with whom they felt a special connection, and promise to love them and do their utmost to make it work. A person couldn’t promise a partner they’d stay with them forever—not and be absolutely sure of the outcome. Love didn’t work like that. You had to take a chance.
 

“Trust me,” said Ash from behind her.
 

Grace turned to face him. “I do,” she said simply. “I trust you more than anything in the world. I don’t know how you do what you do, but I believe you are doing it. At least, I’m willing to believe that
you
believe it. I don’t know if you’ve actually spoken to my father, but in the end, it doesn’t matter. I don’t need his prediction to know you’re the man for me, Ash. I love you. I want you, and I’d be honoured to become part of your family. Jodi’s a lovely girl, and I’d be glad to be around to help her through these difficult teenage years, if she wants me.”

She came up to him and touched his cheek. “My very own Viking.”

He met her gaze. Suddenly, he picked her up in his arms, making her squeal. “Vikings were known for plundering,” he said, carrying her back into the house. He shut the door behind them and walked through the living room and down the hall. “It’s a good verb, to plunder. I fancy doing a little plundering of my own. A little pillaging.”

“Ransacking?” she suggested, heart thumping.

“Ravaging,” he agreed, taking her into his bedroom. He threw her onto the bed, where she bounced with a squeal. “Fancy being ravaged, Miss Fox?”

“Absolutely, Mr. Rutherford,” she said breathlessly. “Ravage away.”

“Yes, ma’am.” And he kicked the door shut and began to unbutton his shirt.

About the Author

Serenity lives in the sub-tropical Northland of New Zealand with her wonderful husband and gorgeous teenage son. She writes fun, flirty and sexy contemporary romances for the modern woman who likes intelligent, spirited heroines and hunky but approachable heroes. She’s won several romance writing competitions and is a member of the Romance Writers of New Zealand. She would much rather immerse herself in reading or writing romance than do the dusting and ironing, which is why it’s not a great idea to pop round if you have any allergies. You can check out her website at
www.serenitywoodsromance.com
 

Look for these titles by Serenity Woods

Now Available:

Something Blue

White-Hot Christmas

Coming Soon:

Seven Sexy Sins

It takes a real man to wear a kilt. And a real woman to charm him out of it.

Love is a Battlefield

© 2012 Tamara Morgan

Games of Love, Book 1

It might be modern times, but Kate Simmons isn’t willing to live a life without at least the illusion of the perfect English romance. A proud member of the Jane Austen Regency Re-Enactment Society, Kate fulfills her passion for courtliness and high-waisted gowns in the company of a few women who share her love of all things heaving.

Then she encounters Julian Wallace, a professional Highland Games athlete who could have stepped right off the covers of her favorite novels. He’s everything brooding, masculine, and, well, heaving. The perfect example of a man who knows just how to wear his high sense of honor—and his kilt.

Confronted with a beautiful woman with a tongue as sharp as his
sgian dubh
, Julian and his band of merry men aren’t about to simply step aside and let Kate and her gaggle of tea-sippers use his land for their annual convention. Never mind that “his land” is a state park—Julian was here first, and he never backs down from a challenge.
 

Unless that challenge is a woman unafraid to fight for what she wants...and whose wants are suddenly the only thing he can think about.

Warning: The historical re-enactments in this story contain very little actual history. Battle chess and ninja stars may apply.

Enjoy the following excerpt for
Love is a Battlefield:

“You came!” Kate smiled up at him as they approached, and Julian had to remind himself to smile back. Flash teeth and relax. Laugh and flirt. The serious, competitive warrior he was on the field had a tendency to take over even when the situation didn’t call for it. And this situation, with a woman like that looking up at him with genuine pleasure in her hazel eyes, most definitely didn’t call for it. She was everything he didn’t know he found attractive in a woman, with a small and delicate build, a nose that turned up just a little at the tip and the kind of softness that normally put him on his guard. Cute but not obvious. Quiet but not shy. He wouldn’t have gone so far as to say she brought out his territorial instincts, but there was a definite urge to protect and serve.

So he smiled, pleased to find it didn’t feel quite as forced as he expected it to. “Sorry we’re late. Michael wanted to do his hair.”

Michael, whose longish, wavy hair almost always looked like it had been lifted straight off the pillow, grinned widely. “What can I say? I’m a vain man.”

The women scooted their chairs to make room for them. Julian sat next to Kate—so close he could smell her slightly floral perfume. She was still wearing the tiny slip of a dress from before, but she’d allowed her brownish-blonde hair to fall down in soft waves almost to the middle of her back and changed to a pair of gold sandals with bands going halfway up her calf, winding and hugging her flesh in ways that seemed almost indecent.

He had a hard time looking away. If it was possible to slap sex on a pair of legs, she’d done it.

“Do you guys want something to drink?” Kate asked, dangling one of those perfect legs close to his own without even seeming to realize what she was doing.