by Iris Blobel
He placed a kiss on her forehead as he caressed her back. Not moving out of his arms, Sophie composed herself as she told him as many details as possible without going into everything. After all, she’d only known him for a few days. She talked about the events during the previous weeks. About her mother, about losing everything, about the last few years bringing up Mia, about moving from place to place without knowing where they would sleep every week, and lastly about inheriting the house from Ms. Bellinger.
“I’m just scared it’s all a blunder,” she finished her story.
He tightened his embrace around her body, pressing her closer to his chest. “It’s not a mistake. She told me about you two, so it’s not a mistake.”
These words were worth more than any money in the world, and hearing them suddenly eased her into a calmness she hadn’t experienced for a long time. It was like a big shift off her shoulders. And not only because knowing that Mrs. Bellinger knew them, but the relief that she was now truly able to dream about a future. A good future. Hoping that gone were the days of worry about tomorrow, worry about how to get food onto the table, and relief that Mia was finally able to stay longer than a few months at this school.
She gently pushed away from him and finished their teas.
“Zach?”
“Hmm?”
Before she lifted her eyes to meet his once again, she tried hard to suppress a sob. “Is there, like, anything she could’ve said?”
Sophie noticed he tried to read her face. “Said what?”
“Anything. Anything that would or could give me a clue to find out who she was. A clue as to why my mum’s ex-boss’ ex-wife has left me her house.”
With a cocked brow and a curious expression, he asked, “Ex-what?”
She chuckled at his expression. “Sorry, I seem to have missed this crucial part. Ms. Bellinger’s ex-husband was Mum’s boss a few years back before she died.”
“Well, no wonder you forgot to mention that. It kind of doesn’t seem crucial, does it?”
Sophie didn’t miss the sarcasm in his tone. “Sorry,” she whispered with a smile.
He lifted his hand and brushed a loose hair off her face. Something about his touch sent a rush of warmth through her body and her heart pounded hard against her chest. And with a sudden movement, which made her heart jump for an entirely different reason, he slapped his forehead. “The attic!”
Silence hung in the air. With eyes wide, she stared at him not sure what the attic had to do with all this.
“The lady had the idea of renovating the attic, but mentioned that she had to sort through all the stuff upstairs first.”
The attic! She wasn’t able to hold back a small smile now that she understood his outburst.
“Yes. That’s it. She asked me to help her clean up the attic. Apparently, the lady trusted me, because she mentioned there was too much stuff from the past, which needed to be sorted. There might be something up there of some use.”
In all the small excitement, she took his face into her hands and pecked on his cheek. “Thank you. Let’s check the attic.”
“Whoa. Hold it, cupcake.”
Taken aback, she turned and arched her brows quizzically.
“You don’t just go up into the attic like that. I assume your little girl will be back from school soon. Trust me. You do not want to be in the middle of your search only having to stop half way through.” He paused for effect. “And there might be mice.”
Her eyes shot open.
“How about I come over tomorrow afternoon and help?”
Drawing in her lips, she stared at him and sighed as her gaze slid along the hall towards the pull-down stairs into the attic.
“But I’ve got to work tomorrow morning and do the shopping,” she said quietly more to herself than to Zach. “It’s market specials day.”
With only a few steps, he came closer and cupped her cheek with his hand. “I’ll give you a ride.”
She turned towards the hall again and then to the big clock in the kitchen. He was right. Mia would be here soon. With a weighty sigh, she agreed. It had been weeks during which she wondered and guessed, she was sure she could wait another twenty-four hours.
“You’re right,” she told him. “And thanks for the offer. That’d be lovely.”
With a quick glance at the time on his watch and leaned close to touch his lips to hers in a quick kiss. “I look forward to it.”
Sophie touched her lips as she watched him leave. Confused for a whole different reason now. But thankfully, she didn’t have much time to figure out the emotional rollercoaster inside with Mia home soon.
Chapter Thirteen
Patience wasn’t one of Sophie’s virtues. As soon as Mia had come home from school and eaten her afternoon tea, both girls did their best to unhook the ladder and climbed upstairs.
“What’s up there, Soph? It looks scary.”
“Sorry, sweetie. I just had this idea we might find out a little more about the woman who used to own this house.”
“In the roof?”
A smile tugged at her lips and she touched her sister’s little nose with her finger. “Old houses have storage room under the roof.”
Uncertainty still registered in Mia’s eyes, but they started to climb the ladder. It was dark and damp in the attic. When Sophie realised with a shudder that she was half-covered in cobwebs, she frantically swished them from her face and arms with both hands. Taking a deep breath, she mused that she should have waited for Zach after all. No. With another shudder, she spat out what she imagined to be more cobwebs on her lips. The afternoon sun’s effort to shine through the little window up in the roof was appreciated. Sophie pretended the light made the attic look a little less creepy.
“I’m scared, Soph.”
She turned to look at her little sister. “Sorry, sweetie. As soon as I figure out where the light switch is, it’ll be much better. I promise.”
Small amounts of dust whirled up with every step she took, making Mia cough behind her.
“Sorry, Mia. Are you all right?”
Her sister nodded, holding back another cough.
“You wait here. I’ll be right back.”
Sophie ducked lower as she hesitantly and carefully tried to find the cord for the light switch. Even though he had told her not to go into the attic that afternoon, Zach had given her a few details about where things were. Like the light had always been to the right, next to the ladder, behind the shelf.
“Sophie?”
“Yes, honey?”
Another cough. When she turned to check on Mia, she stared right into a beam of bright light. “I thought this would be help to find your way around.” There was a big smirk on her sister’s face.
“Brilliant idea. You’re such a clever little possum.” She semi-crawled back to her sister when she asked, “Where on earth did you get the torch from, though?”
“This man.”
Mouth wide open, Sophie stared at her sister. “Which man?”
For once, she cursed herself for leaving the front door open all the time. And who the hell was this man? Not to mention why Mia wasn’t worried about a stranger in the house. It didn’t make sense. Who would… and why… And then it dawned on her that the torchbearer could only be Zach!
“G’day, cupcake.”
Instinctively, she stood at the sound of his deep and cheerful voice, but froze just as quick. The instant pain was enough to take her breath away when she bumped her head into one of the beam of the roof. “Damnit!” A wave of nausea hit her because of the pain.
“Sophie!”
“Are you okay, Soph?”
Crouching down, she rubbed her head and groaned. Her knees almost buckled underneath, as her hands tried to find something to hold on to, only to find another person.
Jerking back, she let out a little shriek.
“Jesus, Soph. It’s me.”
“You gave me a fr
ight.”
The beam of the torch lit up the corner across from her, and with her eyes still not adjusted to the semi-darkness yet, Sophie only could sense his presence right next to her via the warmth of his body and the soft sound of his breathing.
He adjusted the torch to lighten up the area they were crouching. Cupping her face, he asked. “Are you okay?”
“Do. I. Look. Okay?”
He choked back a laugh, which earned him a thump into his ribs.
She moved his hand and struggled to her feet. Swaying slightly, everything went blurry when she kneeled down.
“Shit.”
“What’s wrong,” he asked with concern.
“I think I’m going to faint.”
His hand was back, this time holding onto her arm. But she didn’t really notice, as the rustling around her made her nervous.
With everything covered and locked up for a few months or even years, Sophie didn’t trust her own words that she was only imagining things. After all, there might be little attic residents who could have felt disturbed by her presence. She just shook that thought aside as quick as possible. It became darker around her, and she wasn’t quite clear about whether the torch had been moved again or the blood was actually leaving her head. The last thing she wanted was to faint in front of Zach.
“Eeek.”
Surprised and startled by her own shriek, Sophie was too taken aback to react when he wrapped his arm around her waist with one smooth motion and hoisted her off the floor.
“Hey!” she shouted.
“Hey yourself, cupcake. I’ll get you downstairs and back on your feet first before you do any more searching up here. Who do you think you are? Indiana Jones?”
“Excuse me. This is a simple attic. I believe I can go into the loft without being Indiana Jones.”
“And bump your head?”
She saw that wink. “Your fault!” she exclaimed.
“Oh, for F’s sake,” he muttered and even more under his breath, irritating
Sophie.
“Let me down right now. I can walk on my own two feet just dandy.”
With narrowed eyes, Zach made an annoying clicking sound from the corner of his mouth. “Just relax, will you? I’m not going to hurt you. Don’t want you to faint halfway down the ladder.”
“Sophie? Is this the man from across the road?”
Guilt shot through Sophie noticing that she’d briefly forgotten about her sister and was so surprised by Mia’s voice that her fingernails dug even deeper into Zach’s shoulder.
“Yes, sweetie, that’s him,” she replied with as much calm as possible.
“So you’ve been talking about me,” Zach drawled.
“Oh, for God’s sake, get over yourself.”
As they reached the ladder, he gave Mia the torch. “Hold this for me, kiddo. I’ll be right back.”
He held Sophie so close, she was able feel his strong muscles even under the T-shirt he was wearing. Everything inside her tightening with need. It’d been way too long since she’d been that close to a man. Especially, someone as sexy as Zach. Resisting the urge to trace his chest with her hand, she held tight instead as he carried her down the ladder, and more or less threw her onto the couch in the lounge room.
“Hey! I’m not a bag of potatoes you can just throw around like this.”
He grinned and there was something about that smile. Or was it a sneer? The crinkling corners of his mouth and eyes sure made it look like he’d enjoyed it.
She couldn’t believe it. He seemed to be amused by her mishap in the attic. Damn it, after all, it was his fault by scaring the shit out of her when he appeared out of the blue.
She glared at him, but before she was able to say something, he had already left the room. Sophie stood, but didn’t trust her head a hundred percent. Her legs were still a bit wobbly and looking at the television she got an idea what it must’ve been like to be drunk — for the life of her, she wasn’t able to focus on anything in front of her. Frustrated, she slouched back onto the couch again and listened to Mia and Zach’s conversation from a distance.
“Kiddo, let’s go upstairs and check things out. Your mum’s apparently extremely impatient.”
Sophie nearly choked. Did he just say mum? As in mother? As in, Mia was her daughter? As much as she tried, and she tried very hard, because of the overwhelming curiosity in her, she wasn’t able to hear Mia’s answer but muffled voices. They must’ve already gone up the ladder and into the loft.
Without her.
Sophie leaned back again, trying hard to relax and settle her breathing. Did he say mother?
Damn it!
She clasped her forehead in the palm of her hand and shut her eyes.
And all of a sudden, the fact that her neighbours gave her a hard time made sense. Did they, too, believe she was a single mother? Exhaling a long sigh, she thought of her mother and how hard it must’ve been for her with two young children. All on her own. No Mrs. Belling who had left her a house to start over again. No sexy neighbour who helped finding answers to secrets in the attic.
She opened her eyes and looked towards the ceiling. “I miss you, Mum, and I hope you have someone to look after you wherever you are now.”
****
As soon as Sophie heard steps on the ladder, she had another attempt at getting up. Still a bit wobbly, but able to see clearly again, she rushed back down the hall.
“Did you find anything?” she asked eagerly.
Zach hadn’t even climbed down the ladder when Sophie stared at him, expecting an answer.
“Nope.”
Her face must’ve reflected her disappointment judging by his facial expression. Not to mention she was ready to sit down again, deflated by his answer. But she met his gaze straight on. “Well, I suppose you didn’t know what you were looking for.”
With one eyebrow raised, he slowly replied in a deep and husky voice, “A connection between you and Ms. Bellinger. Apart from the ex, that is.”
“You should’ve waited for me to come with you.”
Hands on hips now, he asked. “Is that so?” And added after a small pause, “The same way you waited for me?”
Mouth already open, she was about to counter but only let out a deep sigh. Her shoulders sagged. “Nothing at all?”
“I wouldn’t say nothing.” Zach brushed some of the dust off his clothes when he turned and looked directly at Sophie’s expectant eyes. “I didn’t mean it that way. There’s heaps of stuff, but probably not what you’re looking for.”
A melancholy frown flitted across her face.
“Sorry, Soph.”
She lifted one of her shoulder in resignation. “Not your fault.”
He handed her a box. “There you go. It’s labelled ‘Diaries.’ You might find some time to read through them. Perhaps they harbour some secrets. That is, if you don’t mind going through a stranger’s belongings.” A big grin was plastered on his face.
Sophie took the box, not listening to what he had just said.
“Hmm,” was all she was able to come up with.
“Cupcake.”
Sophie nearly jumped at the sound of his voice, hoarse with frustration. “What happened to the idea of going up there tomorrow?”
She stared at him, speechless. Finally, she registered her sister, who had silently stood next to them and listened to the whole conversation. Since when did she so easily forget about her sister? This whole situation was growing way over her head. Too many questions. Too little answers. Too many men…
Raking her hand through her hair, she turned to Mia. “Could you please have your shower already?”
“Sophie, it’s way too—”
“Please! Now!”
As the little girl disappeared into their bedroom, not happy to say the least. And she understood. Within only one hour, she’d neglected her little sister, the most important person in her life, twice. And then she dismis
sed her like a nobody. God knew how much help she might have been to Zach up in the attic. A short spell of dizziness hit her at the thought of Mia crawling amongst… Never mind. Best to ignore the fact of what they might be sharing the house with.
She bit her lip and met Zach’s gaze as she poked her forefinger at his chest. “Okay, you were right, and I was wrong not to wait for you.” She let out a little sigh before she continued. “But you have no idea how it is, the not knowing, the cluelessness, if that word exists. I might sound like a broken record here, but unlike other people, it’s hard for me to accept a house, not just a hundred dollars, I’m talking a fairly sized house from a stranger. Not a neighbour, not a family member. A stranger.” And even though she was still mad, she added quietly, “Thanks for finding the box, though.”
His eyebrows furrowed. “I thought Clara’s ex was your mum’s boss?”
Rolling her eyes. “That doesn’t mean I knew her, does it?”
“Fair enough.” A smile curved the corners of his mouth when he spoke. “How about you come over after work to do the shopping?”
“Okay,” she said with a nod.
He studied her thoughtfully for a moment. “And then we check the attic for more treasures.”
Biting her lip again, she agreed. When he turned to leave, she quickly stepped closer and touched his arm. “Zach?” Her voice was fragile and shaky, even to herself. “She’s not my daughter. As in Mia. She’s not. Mia’s my sister.”
His green eyes surveyed her kindly. “Well, what d’you know. Is that a secret? Just asking because you never mentioned that part when you told me about yourself.”
Sophie gathered from his kind gaze that he wasn’t mad anymore, or at least she hoped so, but couldn’t figure out what he’d meant by that. And then he turned to leave — again.
“Zach?”
He looked back at her with an exaggerated sigh.
“I kind of told you a lot about me. Could you tell me something about yourself?”
His left eyebrow raised a fraction. “Will you let me go if I do?”
She broke into an open smile.
He weighed her with a critical squint, but then said, “My name is Zachary Jonathan Taylor, twenty-nine years of age, and I was born just outside Launceston. I work as an escort in Sydney, and I’m glad to hear she’s your sister and not your daughter. But before she drowns in the shower, you’d better check on her.”