by Leah Murray
`Do you like it? Running a pub I mean?’
He shrugged. `Sometimes I do, sometimes I don’t. It makes good money in summer and it gives me something to do.’
She nodded.
`Okay, want to give me a hand loading the dishwasher?’ he asked, standing up.
`Sure,’ she replied, grabbing the glasses in one hand and following him into the kitchen.
She watched him tidy up, wondering what would happen next, her stomach flip-flopping like mad with nerves.
He turned to face her, leaned back against the kitchen bench.
`What do you want to do now?’ he asked and she flushed slightly.
`Um. I don’t know. I have to get back home reasonably early since I’m going into work tomorrow.’
He looked at his watch. `It’s nine. Is that reasonably early?’
`I can stay another hour or so,’ she said, flushing again as he sent her another predatory grin.
`Can you now?’ he replied, coming across and pulling her into his arms.
Swallowing nervously, she looked up, bristled at the amused gleam in his gaze.
`Stop laughing at me.’
He lowered his head and bit gently at an earlobe. `Don’t look so nervous then,’ he murmured in her ear and she groaned, tried to regain some sort of dignity but found it incredibly difficult to concentrate while distracted by the touch of his mouth on her skin.
She felt him loosen the sling and didn’t protest when he slipped it off, even though a part of her was desperately telling her to escape while she could. Nor did she move when he started unbuttoning the blouse, his lips tracing the outline of the fabric against her neck before moving back up to her mouth.
But when she felt the sudden chill of air against her skin, realized he had the blouse fully unbuttoned and that she wasn’t wearing any bra, the nerves suddenly kicked in again and she turned her head away from him, pulled the edges of the top together.
`Will, I’m not ready for this.’
`I know. I’ll stop soon,’ he murmured, not pausing in his gentle assault of her system. `I just want to look at you, feel you.’
She closed her eyes as he moved his lips over them gently, his hands circling her waist then moving up to cup her breasts.
`You’ve been driving me crazy all day Jo,’ he said, flicking his thumbs over her nipples. She felt them hardening at his touch and leaned her head back, losing herself in the sensation.
His hair tickled her lips as he bent his head, looked down at her, his hands filled with the gentle swell of her breasts and she breathed in sharply, tried to stop trembling.
After a moment he sighed, buttoned the blouse and wrapped his arms around her in a hug.
`I want you Jo. But I’m not going to push it.’
She took a deep breath, tried to think of a reply.
`Thank you,’ she said a few seconds later.
He kissed the top of her head. `Let’s go for a walk and then I’ll take you home.’
She nodded and he grabbed her hand, leading her out the back door. They walked down to the edge of the paddock, holding hands, not speaking much. She felt herself relaxing in the summer air, was a bit annoyed at her own cowardice when he dropped her home and kissed her goodnight, leaving her to walk into a cold, empty house.
A house she’d once thought warm and cheerful.
CHAPTER 8
JO SCROUNGED AROUND IN A drawer, trying to find a half-open pack of deworming tablets for a litter of abandoned kittens that had been brought in, cursing the fact that the nurse, Laura, had yet to return from lunch.
`About bloody time,’ she said, annoyed, as she heard the clinic door open.
`Well I would’ve called earlier but I was rather busy,’ said an amused voice and she turned in surprise.
`Oh, it’s you.’
`I don’t think I’ve ever gotten a normal hello out of you,’ Will said, smiling.
She rolled her eyes. `Sorry, I thought you were Laura. She’s late and I need her help.’
He came over, peered in the drawer. `What are you doing?’
`Trying to deworm some kittens.’
`I’ll help if you like,’ he offered.
`Okay, thanks,’ she said, turning and grabbing a new pack of tablets, leading him into the back room where three black kittens were curled up in a cage.
She opened the door and lifted one out, hugging it to her chest as it mewled.
`Okay, if you can just hold his mouth open I’ll pop the tablet in,’ she told him, handing him the kitten, surprised at how gentle he was with it.
They repeated the process with the remaining kittens and she smiled as the last one climbed up his shirt, obviously sticking its claws into his skin as he winced slightly. She reached out and took the kitten, turning to put it back in the cage.
`Hello Will, I didn’t know you were coming in today,’ Ian said from behind her.
`Hi. No, I just came in to see Jo,’ Will replied and she turned to see Ian raise his eyebrows in surprise.
`I didn’t know you two knew each other.’
`We met a few days ago,’ she said, flushing slightly.
Ian nodded and chatted to Will for a moment before turning back to Jo.
`Have you seen Laura?’
She frowned. `No. She’s out at lunch still I think.’
Ian looked annoyed but didn’t comment and waved a farewell to Will before leaving for his next appointment.
`Right, now I can give you a proper hello,’ Will said, grabbing her and kissing her soundly.
`I’m working Will. What do you want?’ she said, laughing and pushing him away when she could finally surface for air.
He grinned. `I came over to ask if you wanted to come to the pub tonight. Gus will take care of most things but I need to be there in case he needs some help, the guy who usually helps out is off sick tonight. If you don’t mind the occasional interruption you’re welcome to join me.’
She smiled. `Okay. What time?’
`I’ll be there from around one this afternoon so just come around when you’re ready.’
`Okay. I’ll go home and change then walk down.’
`I can come get you if you like?’
`No it’s all right. I don’t mind the walk.’
`It’s a date then,’ he said and she felt her heart start racing as he bent to kiss her again.
`Oh. Sorry to interrupt.’
Jo disentangled herself, flushed as she saw Laura standing in the doorway.
`Hi Laura. How’re things?’ Will asked casually and Jo frowned, wondered how they knew each other. Laura had to be a good eight years younger than him.
`Great, haven’t seen you in awhile,’ she replied, looking back over at Jo.
`I haven’t had a reason to come in for awhile,’ he said. `Anyway, best get back to it. I’ll see you later,’ he continued, turning to Jo and giving her hand a final squeeze before heading back out to the waiting room.
Laura watched him walk out then looked back at Jo, her blue eyes cool and assessing.
`You really have been keeping that one quiet haven’t you?’ she said.
`Not really and you’re late,’ Jo replied, incredibly annoyed and not in the mood for Laura and her innuendos.
She went back to the consulting room to wait for her next appointment, trying to forget the look that had passed between Will and Laura, but not quite succeeding.
`How do you know Laura?’ she asked later, sitting at a table on the balcony at the pub and looking out at the beach.
Will grimaced, reached out and grabbed her hand. `Why?’
`Why won’t you tell me?’ she asked, snatching her hand back, more annoyed than ever now he seemed to be avoiding the question.
He sighed. `She’s friends with my ex.’
`Oh.’
She wasn’t sure whether she was relieved or not by that reply.
`It’s all history Jo. Let’s just move on, shall we?’ he asked.
She sighed, smiled slightly as he
tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.
`Okay fine.’
`Great. Now, what do you want to drink? Are you still on those painkillers?’
`No. It’s not that painful anymore.’
`Okay, so how about wine? Or do you want to try something else?’
`I’ll stick with wine thanks.’
`Right, be back in a sec.’
While she was waiting for him, Hayley came over and pulled up a chair.
`Hello. You mind? I thought I’d come and have a chat. We haven’t really had a chance to talk since Will’s been keeping you to himself’
Jo smiled. `Sure. Take a seat. You been here all day?’
Hayley grimaced. `From around ten. It gets real busy in summer with all the tourists. I guess it evens out though because there isn’t much to do in winter.’
She smiled. `Will tells me you’re working up at the vet’s. How’re you liking it there?’
`It’s good. I really like Ian, he’s taught me a lot.’
Hayley’s grin widened. `No mention of Laura I see.’
Jo sighed. `Is it that obvious?’
`No. To be honest I overheard Will telling Julia about it. Don’t you worry about that girl. She’s a right bitch, none of us can stand her.’
Jo felt herself relax, knew she was in friendly company. `Good, glad I don’t have to pretend to like her, she’s annoyed me from day one. What did Will say?’ she asked, interested.
Hayley laughed. `Nothing much, just that you had asked about her.’
Jo nodded, decided to change the subject. `So, how long have you known Will?’
`Forever really. He’s been friends with Gus since they were kids and I’ve known them both since we were all about ten or twelve.’
`How did you end up working here?’
`Gus talked Will into a partnership deal a few years back and we figured if Julia and I worked with them we could keep the costs down, make a bit more money out of it. It beats what I was doing before, anyway. Answering phones at a call center in Plymouth.’ She grimaced. `It was a long drive and incredibly boring. Now I get to sleep in late, have time off whenever I need it so long as Julia’s free to cover me. It’s great. Actually we all love it. Will’s the only one who gets a bit restless sometimes, but I guess that’s because it’s a far cry from what he’s used to.’
Jo frowned. `Really? What did he do before? I haven’t asked him.’
Hayley suddenly looked awkward. `Um, he was a pilot.’
Jo raised an eyebrow, remembered the conversation from the night before.
`Helicopters, right?’
Hayley looked surprised, nodded, and was about to comment further when she glanced behind Jo and smiled. `Speak of the devil,’ she said.
Jo turned to see Will. He leaned over and handed her the glass of wine, looked from her to Hayley with suspicion.
`What are you two gossiping about?’
`Nothing bad,’ Jo said, laughing as Hayley met her eye and winked.
She smiled across at Will as he sat down and he grinned back, their eyes locked together for far longer than was necessary.
Hayley stood up. `Right well, I’m off home. See you guys later.’
`Bye,’ Jo said, watching her leave with a smile. She admired people like Hayley, always happy and cheerful.
`She’s really nice,’ she said, looking back at Will and he nodded.
`Yep, she’s great. Always smiling.’
Jo wrinkled her nose. `Wish I could be like that.’
`I like you fine just as you are,’ he said and she smiled, took another sip of her wine before leaning back in her chair and looking around.
It was around eight and the pub was starting to get crowded, mostly with young tourists out for a good time. A DJ had set up in a corner of the room and some tables had been moved around to make room for a dance floor, which was already full. Gus was at the bar and Julia in the kitchen, a waitress she didn’t know wandered from table to table taking orders.
`You’ve got quite a cool place here,’ she said, turning back to Will.
He smiled. `Thanks.’
She took another sip of wine, looked out at the vast blue of the sea over the edge of the balcony railings, hearing the gentle crash of the waves against the sandy shore.
Involuntarily, she shivered.
`I wish I could figure out who that guy on the beach was,’ she said after a moment of silence.
`Are you sure you haven’t any idea who he is?’
The shiver turned into fingers of ice, gripped at her throat and for a moment made it hard for her to breathe.
Maybe she should tell him about Jack.
What if he had found her? Maybe it was him who’d sent the guy after her.
But no. It was history, no point rehashing it.
So she shrugged instead, avoided eye contact, and started drinking.
Will wasn’t sure when he realized Jo was past the point of being tipsy and seriously on the road to a major hangover. Probably it was around the time he saw that the bottle of wine he’d brought over was empty and he hadn’t had a glass.
They’d moved to a corner table, inside, as the air outside became chilly, mostly chatting about their childhoods, favorite music and movies, but all along he’d been brooding.
He hadn’t missed her hesitation when he’d asked if she had any idea who was after her, nor had he failed to notice her reaction the night before when he’d joked about her having something to hide.
It didn’t take a genius to figure out she was hiding from something, or someone. It was the latter option that bothered him.
Now he looked back over at her as she reached out, made a grab for his beer.
He pulled it away neatly. `Hey, slow it down a bit.’
She grimaced, sitting back against the booth, scowling, and his mouth curved at the petulant expression, certain she’d die of shame if she was sober enough to realize what she was doing.
He watched as she sighed, then lifted her hair off her shoulders with her hand, the movement emphasizing the curve of her breast.
`Man it’s hot in here,’ she said, leaning over and pushing the little window beside them further open.
`I think that’s the alcohol talking,’ he said drily and she flushed.
`I haven’t had that much.’
`Of course not,’ he said, sarcastic, `but it’s juice for you from now on.’
She sat up straighter, annoyed.
`You can’t tell me what I can and can’t drink.’
He laughed. `Actually I can. It’s my pub. If I decide you’re not having anymore, you’re not having anymore.’
She narrowed her eyes at him. `You are a bully.’
`And you’re trying to pick a fight,’ he said, pushing over the basket of fries they’d been sharing. `Here, have something to eat or you’ll regret it in the morning.’
She frowned but picked one up and nibbled at it anyway.
`You’re a real know-it-all Will,’ she muttered after a minute.
He laughed again. `Why thanks for the compliment.’
She grinned suddenly. `But I guess you are kinda hot.’
Shaking his head, entranced with the way she managed to look cool and classy despite being drunk as hell, he reached out to ruffle her hair.
`You’re not too bad yourself.’
She shocked him by leaning forward suddenly.
`Kiss me Will,’ she said and he bent down, tasting the alcohol on her lips, running his hand over her thigh under the table and wondering how he was going to manage to keep his hands off her for the rest of the evening.
A sudden shout from the corner of the bar drew his attention and he cursed as he saw Gus stepping between two men who were standing facing each other, breathing heavily.
Will felt the anger rising, tried to push it down and keep calm. He stood and walked over to the group. `Everything alright here lads?’ he said, adding a note of authority to his tone that usually worked with drunken idiots. But tonight
it didn’t seem to have much of an effect as one of the men eyed him with obvious annoyance.
`And who the hell are you?’ he asked.
`Me? Why I don’t see that it matters, just cool it. Consider that a warning,’ Will replied.
The men stared at him, measuring their chances of taking him on. Gus had his back, was leaning an elbow on the bar now and Will figured he had made his point. He turned, but even as he did so, he felt the rush of air behind him and ducked, narrowly missing the stool that was aimed at his head. He straightened, didn’t quite manage to miss the swinging fist and tasted blood. It was all he needed.
Years of training and pent up frustration combined as he tackled the guy, shoved him down on the ground and twisted his arm behind him till he squealed like a stuck pig. `Fucking prick. I told you to watch it,’ Will said, squeezing at the thick neck until the ugly, twisted face turned puce.
He tried not to acknowledge the sense of satisfaction it gave him.
`Will.’
He looked up, focused on Gus shaking his head and then the sea of faces surrounding them.
Cursing again he stood up, pulled the man to his feet and shoved him towards the door, not caring as the asshole tripped and rolled down the last few steps that led out to the street.
Gus followed with the other troublemaker and the two of them stood watching as the pair stumbled off down the road, yelling streams of curses in their direction.
Taking a deep breath of cold air, he turned to Gus.
`Sorry, that’s the closest I’ve come to snapping in a long time.’
`Yeah but you didn’t. It’s progress. Now come back in, you’re bleeding on the damn floor and I ain’t going to clean it up.’
Smiling ruefully, Will flinched, lifted his hand to his mouth and realized he’d split the lip.
He went back to the bar, started around to the back office only to be confronted with Jo, who looked pale.
`Oh my God, are you okay?’ she asked, raising a hand and touching his lip gently.
He grinned, flinched again, wondered if he could milk this for what it was worth.
`I’ll be fine, just a cut,’ he said stoically, heading into the office for the first aid kit.
She came in after him and he sat down on the desk, enjoyed being fussed over as she cleaned the blood from his jaw, held a piece of cloth to his lip to stop the bleeding, her expression serious. After a few minutes, she stepped back.