Holiday Affair (12 page)

“Promise?” she said as he lifted her and rolled her over on to her back beside him.

Nick’s lips descended on hers and he did his best to make her forget about anything other than the feel of his body on hers. Lissy’s eyes were heavy-lidded, her lips parted, and her breath came in sharp bursts as his body tightened in anticipation of her fingers on him.

“Please, now.” Her voice was shaky, wrung from her throat.

“You’re full of orders this morning, Lissy.” His fingers found her breasts and held them, gently tweaking her nipples into rigid peaks. Lissy’s fingers reached down and touched Nick with light strokes that soon increased in tempo. Nick groaned and moved on top of her, an incredible depth of feeling slamming through him, overwhelming him. Lissy grasped his shoulders and he moved slowly and evenly until he saw her slip over the edge and he quickly followed.

Emotion clogged his throat. All of a sudden he wasn’t sure whether he could survive this.

Lissy curled into his side and went to sleep. Nick reached out and gently pushed her damp curls from her face. Her mouth turned up in a half smile and her cheeks were rosy with the flush of their lovemaking. He carefully climbed out of the bed; she didn’t move as he dressed and quietly let himself out of her cottage.

Lissy slept the afternoon away and woke after the sun had set. She stretched, and for a moment, she smiled and thought how good she felt, considering the amount she had drunk the night before. The memory of the afternoon slammed into her. She rolled over and groaned, pulling the pillow over her head. She lay there quietly and became aware of the noises coming from the other side of the cottage. Nick was still home and obviously hadn’t gone to the barbeque at the farm. She groaned as she thought of the mistake she had made assuming Nick’s cousins were dates, and when she remembered the look on Tom’s face that afternoon, she wondered if she would ever be able to face him again.

I need to talk to Nick and find out exactly what he was
trying to achieve last night. If I’m going to do it, I’m going
to do it now.

She climbed out of bed, had a quick shower, dressed in tights and a jumper, and ran a brush through her unruly curls. She brushed her teeth, humming to herself. The relationship with Nick had finally come to a head, and they would have to sort something out. It didn’t have to be a lifelong relationship; they could just see each other for a while, enjoy each other’s company and move on. She opened the door to the veranda and Luney shot between her legs, meowing for her dinner.

“Oh, Luney, I’m so sorry. I forgot all about you. You must be starving.” She tipped out some food for the cat onto its plate, and closed the door and walked outside.

Tapping lightly on Nick’s door, she stood, waiting for him to open the door. It seemed to take forever. She heard him moving around the room and knocked a second time.

Finally, the door opened and he looked down at her. His face was impassive and her stomach dropped.

“You’d better come in.”

Oh my God, here we go again. I can’t understand this
man and his moods.

She followed him into his living room.

“Sit down. Would you like a cup of tea, or a drink…?” A ghost of a smile crossed his lips.

“A cup of tea is fine,” she said. She sat down at the dining table; he went into the kitchen and filled the kettle.

He waited in the kitchen until it boiled and she heard him clinking about with the teacups. He placed a neatly set tray with tea, milk and sugar on the table in front of her.

Sitting down opposite her, he poured her tea silently. She began to feel anxious, the easy loving mood between them this afternoon gone. Her confidence was fast disappearing.

He sat back and looked at her.

“What can I do for you, Lissy?” and with those simple words she felt her heart break.

She dug deep for a strength that she did not feel. “I came in to thank you for bringing me home last night and looking after me, and to let you know I’m fully recovered now. I’m going into work tomorrow to catch up, so I won’t be around if you’re looking for me.”

She was babbling and stopped talking. Her hands were tingling, her heart thudding and her stomach was churning with the rejection she could sense from him, but she was determined not to let him see how upset she was.

She drained her tea, smiled brightly at him, and lied.

“Poor Luney is waiting for her tea, so I’ll catch you later in the week.” Standing, she held her hand out to him.

“Friends?”

He slowly took her hand and looked up at her.

“Yes, Lissy, friends.”

With a smile fixed on her face, her jaw aching from holding it there, she walked to the door and let herself out with a wave over her shoulder.

“See you Monday, maybe.”

She just made it to her door and let herself into her side of the house, before she bent double, the intensity of his rejection hitting her like a physical blow to her stomach.

She sat in her soft lounge chair, arms wrapped around her stomach, and rocked backward and forward. She was beyond tears. The hurt went too deep. Luney jumped on the chair, sensing her distress and rubbed her fur along Lissy’s cheek. She reached down to the floor, pulling the blanket that had fallen up over her and the cat and closed her eyes, willing sleep to take her into oblivion.

Lissy spent the rest of the weekend hiding in her cottage. She was as quiet as a mouse, so Nick would think she had gone out. She could not cope with any questions from Mrs. Mac and she certainly didn’t want to see Nick.

Skulking around in my own home, like a prisoner
.

The phone rang late on Sunday night. She had pulled on her fluffy flannel pajamas and sheepskin boots for comfort, and was sitting in front of the fire trying to read some notes in preparation for the following day at work.

The delay before the beeps indicated an international call, and shortly after the tone, she heard her mother’s voice.

“Hey, Lis, just ringing to touch base. I haven’t had an email from you for a few days.”

“Sorry, Mum, I’ve been busy at work, and then I went out with the girls on Friday night and I’ve spent most of the weekend recovering.”

“A big night?” Her mother’s voice was playful.

“Yes, Mum, most out of character as you know, but a very big night for me. Never again. I still feel tired…I drank way too much champagne.”

“Lissy…?”

Here we go
, thought Lissy,
the end of Lars. I’ve been
waiting for it.

She propped her chin in her hand and waited for the news. “Yes, Mum?”

“Lars and I will be arriving in two weeks, a little bit earlier than we planned.” Lissy sat up, surprised by the news.

“I know you’re busy at work, but will you be able to get away to meet us at the coast?”

“Absolutely, Mum. I wouldn’t miss it for the world.

I’m so looking forward to finally meeting Lars. I can come down Friday night. How long are you staying?”

“How about we meet you at Gramp’s place and then come back to Armidale with you, so we can have some time with you after you finish work? If you have room for us, I can cook and Lars can keep the fire going. He’s very good at that.” Her mother laughed. “And I don’t just mean a wood fire. He’s a wonderful man, Lissy. I can’t wait for you to meet him.”

“That sounds great, Mum. It’ll be so good to see you.

I’m going down to the coast next weekend, so I’ll get some supplies in and air out Gramps’s cottage.” Her mother hung up after extracting a promise from Lissy to take care of herself and not go drinking again.

By Monday morning, Lissy had shed the hangover and accepted that any chance of a relationship with Nick was not going to happen. She puttered around, getting ready for work. The cottage sparkled, the ironing done for the week, and she had cooked dinners ahead and placed them in the freezer.

Still feeling embarrassed, she hoped Nick had not sensed the real reason that she’d gone knocking on his door on Saturday afternoon. She tried to hold on to her anger, but she felt quite sad.

He’s impossible to understand.

She groaned as she remembered the look on Tom’s face when he had seen her come out of Nick’s door, obviously fresh from Nick’s bed. She was determined to phone him from her office on Monday and explain and break-off their relationship. A relationship that had never really started. She stood in front of the mirror, putting on her makeup and pinning up her hair.

I hate the way Nick makes me feel.

No you don’t,
said the truthful part of her heart.
He
makes you feel alive and you love it.

She paused, mascara wand halfway to the wide eyes staring back at her from the mirror.

Where the hell did that come from?

She was not going to listen to her heart. After the weekend, she realized that she needed to get out of this mess. In a way, she was grateful to him for his clear rejection. Better now than later, when she’d gotten used to having him around. God knows, she had seen the effect of that on her mother over the years.

Lissy finished applying her makeup, all trace of hangovers, tiredness and tears now camouflaged. Nodding at her now calm reflection, she moved to her bedroom and chose her red suit and highest heels for confidence, and headed off to work.

…

“Woohoo, here’s Dr. McIntyre, life and soul of the party.” Lissy was greeted by giggles from her work colleagues. She had forgotten about Clare and Jenny, as she had worried all weekend about Nick and Tom.

“Don’t know about life and soul, but the headache was a beauty,” she said laughing with them, not letting any hint of her true feelings slip.
I could win an Oscar
, she thought to herself. It was like being two different people—

the happy carefree woman chatting to her friends, with a sad and tightly curled up emotional wreck hidden deep inside.

“Did Professor Richards get you home safely, Melissa?” Jenny asked.

“Yes, he was very nice. Got me home safely,” she said, lying. “I slept most of the weekend away. Nothing like a good night out with the girls to clear the cobwebs.”

“Are these yours, Melissa? They found them in the ladies room.” Clare held up a set of keys.

“Yes, what a relief,” said Lissy. “I was worried they’d been stolen.”

“How did you get in on Friday night?” asked Jenny.

“Oh, I have a spare key on the veranda.” The vision of Nick climbing through the window, with Tom looking like his world had come to an end as she stood there in Nick’s shirt, popped into her head.

“Anyway, girls, I have a ton of work today, so I’ll catch you later,” she said as she turned toward her office. She entered the room and shut the door firmly, preparing to bunker down. The morning passed uneventfully and there was no sign of Nick.

The hardest part was calling Tom, which she did as soon as she sat at her desk. He answered his telephone across the other side of the campus in his usual calm and polite manner.

“Tom, it’s Melissa.”

“Good morning, Melissa.” Tom’s voice was guarded.

“I owe you an apology. I was very rude to you and your cousins Friday night.”

Tom accepted her apology and agreed to apologize to his mother for her non-attendance at Saturday’s lunch. He cleared his throat as she said good-bye to him.

“Err…just one more thing, Melissa.”

Lissy held the telephone to her ear, looking out at the clear winter sky through her window, wondering what was coming. She was in a numb state as it was and nothing could make her feel any worse.

“Yes, Tom?”

“Melissa, I think it would be best if we don’t have dinner this Friday evening.” He said quietly. “I need some time to think this through. I’m not sure what’s happening with you and Nick…”

“Just a moment, Tom. Nick and I, we’re not an item.” He sounded skeptical. “Be warned Melissa, while I love Nick dearly as my brother, I am well aware he can be hard on women. He has never forgotten how badly Olivia, and then Rebecca, hurt him.”

“Tom, I have to go. Let’s just agree we’re over, even though it didn’t ever really start. I’m sorry. I think you’re a great guy, way too good for me.”

“Just be careful with Nick, Melissa. He knew you were going to be at Ivy Cottage on Friday night and he insisted we go there. We had planned on staying at home. He’s up to something. I know Nick well and I would hate to see you get hurt.”

Lissy put the phone down carefully, determined not to let thoughts of any scheme of Nick’s interfere with her hard-won calm or her work. Booting up her computer, she tried to immerse herself in her work and forget about Nick Richards.

Lissy spent the week in her office, typing up her research and annotating her web references. She survived on cups of coffee and didn’t leave her office during the day for the whole week except for the faculty meeting on Thursday. To her great relief, Nick was at a teleconference in another room and the meeting finished before she could attend. She also managed to stagger her work hours, leaving and arriving so that she didn’t see Mrs. Mac or Nick. She was feeling so brittle she thought she would snap if anyone tried to have a conversation with her. Sleepless nights and dreams of Nick in her bed contributed to her edginess.

Lissy survived the week. Just barely. It was with a great sense of relief that she turned eastward out of Armidale after work on Friday afternoon. She was headed for her grandfather’s house on the coast, where she would later meet up with her mother and Lars, as they’d agreed. When she deposited Luney and Sylvester with her neighbor, she saw Mrs. Mac’s brow furrow.

“I’ve hardly seen you this week, Lissy. You’ve been working too hard,” she said. “And you look tired…and you’ve lost weight.”

“It’s okay, Mrs Mac, work is really busy. That’s why I’m taking a break down at the coast this weekend. Catch a bit of sun and warm up.” She reached over and hugged her old friend.

“You really are a sweetie to help with this pair.” She handed over the cage, but Mrs. Mac persisted.

“Is that professor still giving you a hard time? I’ve hardly seen him around either.”