What Love Sounds Like (7 page)

‘Insist,’ Tilly parroted.

He sighed. ‘If I refuse there’ll be a bowl of ice-cream left outside my office door, won’t there?’

‘You bet,’ she said. ‘And I don’t need to remind you it’s a long way down the stairs if you slip in melted ice-cream.’

‘So your order…offer…is simply to ensure my good health?’ The beginnings of a smile shaped his mouth.

‘Of course. Tilly and I always have your best interests at heart.’

The corners of his eyes crinkled. ‘I am lucky.’

‘You are so lucky.’ Laughter lilted in her words. ‘Now for our first flavour we have fairy-rainbow.’ She peeled off the container lid. ‘Ta-da!’

Coloured sprinkles, edible pink glitter and fairy shapes all winked out from a vanilla ice-cream base. Kade stared, expression blank. Tilly grabbed another tub and passed it to Mia. She removed the lid to reveal more vanilla ice-cream this time swirled with crushed chocolate biscuits and chocolate chips. Tilly peered into Kade’s face but his reaction didn’t change. Tilly turned to choose another flavour. Mia motioned at Kade to smile.

‘Act excited,’ she mouthed.

A line creased between his brows.

Tilly prised off the lid herself and held the ice-cream directly under Kade’s nose.

‘
Wow
,’ he said.

Mia had witnessed more excitement from students sitting an algebra exam. But judging by Tilly’s smile it’d been enough.

‘So you’ll have some of this one then?’ Mia asked. The ice-cream had been mixed with an assortment of lollies, many of which had bled their colour into the white base turning it an unappetising grey. Kade nodded as though he’d finally agreed to host that teddy bear tea party in his out-of-bounds office.

Mia pulled a scoop from out of the picnic basket and dolloped a generous serving into a blue plastic bowl. Tilly selected a matching colour spoon and offered the ice-cream to her uncle. After a moment, he took it. ‘Thanks.’

He spooned the grey ice-cream into his mouth. The tanned skin of his throat rippled as he took his time to eat. ‘It has a very…interesting texture.’

Tilly leaned over to plant a kiss on his cheek. The effect was instantaneous. He choked. His spoon dropped into the bowl. In between coughs and ragged breaths, Tilly patted him on the shoulder. But her ministrations only seemed to lodge whatever was in his throat further.

Mia took the bowl from him. Her fingers brushed his. Heat glanced across her skin. She pulled her hand away and the spoon fell from Kade’s bowl onto the rug. She snatched up the fallen spoon but he appeared too busy coughing to register that their hands had touched or that colour burned in her cheeks. She passed him a water bottle, careful this time to keep their fingers separated. He twisted off the lid and gulped down a deep swallow.

His coughing lessened. Eyes, the same flawless blue as the bowl cradled in her hands, met hers. Thanks softened his gaze. He took another swig of liquid. He lowered the water bottle, cleared his throat and gave a husky chuckle. ‘So much for having my best interests at heart. The other day there was the caramel popcorn that almost choked me and now…’ he looked across at the grey ice cream in the bowl Mia still held, ‘whatever
that
is…’

He coughed again before continuing, ‘Even if you are familiar with the Heimlich manoeuvre…’ He replaced the lid on the water bottle and a smile touched the corner of his mouth. ‘I think your therapy needs to come with its own health warning.’

Tilly placed her arms around his neck and hugged him. Her affection snuffed out his mirth.

‘Thanks, Tilly.’ He edged away from her, face strained. ‘I’m fine now. What flavour will you try?’

She pointed to the rainbow tub. Mia placed Kade’s bowl onto the rug and filled a pink bowl with rainbow scoops for Tilly.

‘Perhaps you’d like to try some of this one, Kade? I promise there isn’t anything in here to choke on, only cream, condensed milk and sprinkles.’

‘Sprinkles?’ He pulled a face. ‘I’m not sure those pink fairy shapes and glitter even qualify as food.’

‘I’ll have you know that Fairy Surprise Sprinkles are the
crème de la crème
of treats. I drove an hour from Whylandra to Dubbo to find them for Tilly.’

‘Treats?’ he asked, still looking at the sprinkles with unconcealed suspicion.

‘Yes, you know, all the not-every-day foods kids like.’ His expression failed to clear. ‘Things like lollies, chocolate…’ Mia handed Tilly her bowl full of sparkling ice-cream. ‘And especially Fairy Surprise Sprinkles.’

Mia collected a green bowl for herself. Kade’s childhood had lacked more than just toys and friends. Her upbringing had been no picnic but at least while her mother had been alive she’d been allowed to live life as a child. Fairy bread, buttered bread covered in sprinkles, had been her favourite sometimes-food.

‘Kade.’ She stopped scooping ice-cream into her bowl. ‘Please tell me you know what treats are.’

He appeared to concentrate on watching Tilly tuck into her chosen flavour. The only sound to disturb the silence was the crunch of sprinkles as Tilly chewed.

‘Sure, I was given treats.’ He spoke slowly. ‘I just can’t remember exactly what they were.’

She placed her bowl on the rug and tilted her head to study him. ‘There must have been some foods you were given as a child for special occasions…or as a reward.’

He rested the water bottle against his leg before looking out over the garden. Mia too looked at the manicured lawn, established shade trees and garden beds lush with fragrant summer colour.

‘Well,’ he said after a moment, ‘after I’d help my grandmother dig in the garden, we’d have a cool drink and scones with jam. Do scones qualify?’

‘Yes. Yes, scones count as a treat.’ Mia’s voice gentled. ‘Maybe Tilly and I could make you some?’

She anticipated the quick shake of his head but not the visible tensing of his muscles. It was as though his body prepared for a flight response to a threat.

She pulled a final tub out of the cooler even as he uncrossed his legs getting ready to stand. ‘Now we have one last flavour to try. Maybe you could serve this one up Kade, as it has been in the freezer for the longest and will be frozen solid?’

She set the tub on the rug before him and handed him the ice-cream scoop. Would he stay or would he go?

His tanned fingers didn’t wrap around the white plastic handle.

‘Kade?’ Her eyes searched his. ‘Tilly and I promise you’ll like this flavour.’

Tilly nodded, worry pinching her heart-shaped face.

His lips tightened but then he took hold of the ice-cream scoop and sat back onto the rug.

‘Do I have your word that I won’t choke?’

She placed her hand on her chest. ‘Cross my heart. This flavour is just plain vanilla with not a sprinkle or lolly in sight. ‘

Kade picked up the tub.

Mia turned her attention back to her own ice-cream. She tasted a cold mouthful. Beside her Tilly continued to watch Kade, her own ice-cream forming a forgotten rainbow puddle in her bowl. Mia’s heart bled. Tilly remained concerned her uncle would still leave. She had to ease the little girl’s anxiety.

‘Kade, I still can’t believe you don’t like Fairy Surprise Sprinkles. Maybe I should have bought the Wicked Wizard Sprinkles, but even I draw the line at eating tiny, warty, green toads.’

Tilly giggled, her little shoulders relaxed and she began eating her ice-cream.

Kade didn’t comment. Instead he whisked off the container lid and, despite Mia’s words of reassurance, he examined the contents as if looking in a waterhole for dangerous objects.

‘Coward,’ she said.

Teeth, as white as the tub of plain, safe, ice-cream in Kade’s hands, flashed in a broad grin.

Mia stared. Her spoon halfway to her mouth.

Kade had just smiled. Not a remote-smile, an almost-smile or even a half -mile. But a full, unguarded smile. At her.

The ice-cream on her spoon slipped. Too late she raised her bowl. The rainbow-blob fell onto her chest and then with inexorable slowness slid beneath her dress to fill the sensitive valley between her breasts. Her lids closed.

Please don’t let Kade have noticed.

Her eyes opened to his large hand offering her a red napkin.

‘Need any help?’ His grin again flashed white.

‘No. Thanks.’

She reached for a serviette from the pile on the rug and took two attempts to pick up the napkin. Kade’s rare smile had left her more light-headed than any outback heatstroke. She stripped all breathlessness from her voice and fought for composure. ‘This is something I can handle on my own.’

He chuckled softly. ‘Coward.’

Kade’s amusement vanished as quickly as the ice-cream had disappeared beneath the top of Mia’s dress. Strain corded the muscles in his neck. So much for putting an end to her and Tilly’s unproductive fun. He couldn’t be around Mia for longer than two minutes before his focus melted.

If he’d thought she looked a pretty picture from his office window, up close she was stunning. She’d swapped her formal shirts and trousers for a cooler, casual sundress. Every so often the right strap would slide down her slender shoulder and the dress front would dip a little lower.

He swallowed a large helping of vanilla ice-cream, uncaring that it would numb his palate. It didn’t matter if Tilly turned her sad eyes on him, he had to leave. It didn’t take a rocket scientist to realise that Mia had become his new personal kryptonite. One gentle question about his childhood and personal information had left his lips at a rate of knots. One brush of her fingers against his hand and all reason vanished. One spoonful of renegade ice-cream and business contracts were the last thing on his mind.

He placed his spoon into his empty bowl and stood. Mia placed the serviette in the basket and rose to her feet too. The breeze moulded her dress against her. Her wayward strap again slid down her right shoulder.

‘Kade,’ she said, voice quiet, ‘when will Tilly see you again?’

He glanced at his niece who was busy stacking the used bowls and placing them into the picnic basket. ‘I’m not sure. I’ve work to do.’

’She misses you when you’re not around. It was a long two days for her.’

Kade ignored the twinge of his conscience. He shrugged his shoulders and stepped off the rug. ‘I’m a busy man.’

‘What’s so important to keep you from a child who needs you?’

‘Ten million worth of dollar signs.’ Even as he uttered the glib words he knew he was out of line. They might be normal talk in the corporate jungle but they had no place at an outback ice-cream picnic.

‘I see.’ Disgust pressed her lips together.

What was so wrong with being driven? Money gave him options and was a tangible measure of his success. Neither life, nor his own father, had ever given him cause to think anything other than money was what mattered. His flippant ten million dollar comment had been uncalled for but if anyone knew how upper management operated, it was Langford Windsor’s daughter.

He turned to Tilly to hide his confusion. ‘I really must go. Thank you…for a nice picnic.’ She smiled and he found himself smiling in return.

He reached for the vanilla container to pack into the cooler. Mia’s hand was quicker. The tub hung between them like a cable car suspended over a gorge.

‘I’ll put the things away.’ One of Mia’s eyebrows arched. ‘We don’t want to keep you let alone cost you any money.’

She was so close he could see the softness of her mouth that would taste as sweet as ice-cream and feel the chill of her condemnation. Tension coiled around his chest. He wanted Mia’s approval, not censure. He wanted her to listen to him as she listened to Tilly and wanted her to smile at him as she smiled at his niece.

What she thought of him shouldn’t matter.
Money. Focus.
That’s what life was all about.
Not people. Not feelings.
And especially not an auburn-haired speech pathologist with music in her laughter and secrets in her large eyes.

He released his grip on the container. He needed to get to work and back to the only world he could control. If Mia wanted to place the tub into the cooler herself, she could. She wasn’t the one he should be battling.

He had a war to win with himself.

MIA FROZE. Her ears strained, but the only sound to disturb the midnight quiet was her breathing. She eased her strangle-hold on the book clutched to her chest and continued along the hallway. The cotton of her pyjama shorts whispered in the intense silence.
Stop it.
There was no reason for her senses to be on high alert or her nerves as jittery as a red-lolly fuelled toddler.

Her pulse leapt again at a faint scrape of sound behind the door on her left. It wasn’t as though Kade was going to step out from the shadows and surprise her. She glanced out a hallway window toward the large shed that housed his helicopter. She’d heard the whir of rotor blades and the barks of the workmen’s dogs hours ago. He’d be well and truly asleep after his day trip to Sydney.

She released a slow breath and headed for the stairs. She’d no doubt that yesterday on their picnic the first bricks in the wall between him and Tilly had been dislodged. Then he’d put the making of money ahead of her welfare and every single loose brick had been firmly wedged back into place. An impression confirmed this morning at breakfast when he’d appeared power-dressed in his charcoal suit. He’d barely looked at Mia and only shot his niece a stiff nod, before piloting his helicopter to Sydney for a meeting. Kade could avoid Tilly all he wanted but Mia wasn’t about to abandon her unofficial duty. She
would
make room in Kade’s life for Tilly.

Mia pushed open the kitchen door. Two things registered as she entered the dark room. One, the range-hood light was on and two, the light from the open fridge spilled over a picture-perfect set of masculine abs.

Air quit her lungs.
Kade.
White shirt untucked. Unbuttoned. Milk wasn’t going to help her sleep now.

Her fingers clamped around the spine of her book. She had to leave before he caught sight of her and before her professionalism became undermined by spotted-green pyjamas and birds-nest hair. She stepped backward. A floorboard creaked.