by Annie Seaton
‘That we prop open every door with something, in case that mysterious wind blows the doors shut again. I’m going to have a good look at that lock tomorrow.’
‘You be careful before I get there. I’d hate you to get locked in alone and not be able to let me in.’
‘If I’m going to get locked in again, I’d much prefer to have your company.’ Greg leaned past her to open the door of the car, but when he stepped back, he reached up and took her chin gently in his hand. ‘Thank you for a lovely night. I’m really pleased you came with me. If I ask you nicely, will you come out with me again? As friends, of course.’
Ginny trembled as Greg’s thumb caressed her lips. That wasn’t the sort of thing that friends did, but she was helpless in his hands. Not willing to trust her voice, she nodded as she held his gaze.
He dropped his hand and smiled. ‘Good, we’ll have to check that diary of yours.’
Chapter Eleven
Ginny hummed as she rearranged the dresses on the rack. She was going to call Sally after she chose what she wanted at the house today and then she’d have to make room for a heap of new stock. And she would be reasonable; this was going to fill her shop with new stock. Everything was in perfect condition, and she would make a good offer for it. Business slowed about eleven-thirty when the market up the road got into full swing, with the aroma of different foods enticing market-goers out of the shop, as well as the lively music coming from the park, catching everyone’s attention.
‘Right,’ she said to herself. ‘Early closing for you today, Ginny Silver.’ It had been a good morning and closing an hour early wouldn’t hurt. Not that she was in a rush to get to the beach. It was past time she relaxed. Spending some of her hours out of the shop in the company of a new friend was a bonus. Greg was expecting her at one; he’d offered to come over and collect her, but she had insisted on driving her own car.
Last night, she’d wondered what she would do, and what Greg’s expectations would be if she’d invited him in, but he had simply walked her to the bottom of the steps, kissed her cheek, and waited while she walked up the stairs and unlocked the door of her apartment. As much as she gave off a sophisticated demeanour, her experience in relationships—or encounters—was sadly lacking. The last time she’d slept with a man—scrap that, you couldn’t really call Darrell Hampton a man— make that a young man, was a long time ago. They’d got together after the year twelve formal, and even though it hadn’t been an unpleasant encounter, it hadn’t been an experience that Ginny had sought out again. Darrell had married Jenny James a few months later. Five years on, Ginny hadn’t been tempted again. She had kept her distance from people in all parts of her life.
With a wave, Greg had headed out to the street, and she’d rushed across to the window and watched him walk to the ute. Her fingers lingered on her cheek where his lips had brushed a moment earlier.
But he was only a friend. These warm tingles attacking her tummy were to be ignored.
Now the thought of seeing Greg again in an hour or so made her smile and damn if those silly tingles didn’t start up again. Maybe she was coming down with something.
Today she was going to surprise him by going casual. It was a cool spring day, and she’d brought a pair of jeans and a T-shirt and her Converse sneakers with her from home. She had still bowed to her fashion sense and picked up a light red jacket that was like a Japanese kimono, with black swirls of dragons and pink cherry blossoms patterned down the back.
After she had changed, Ginny touched up her lips with a swipe of lip gloss, and after slipping on her sneakers, she headed to the door with a jauntiness in her step that hadn’t been there for a long time.
Several people smiled at her as she walked to her car, and she smiled back, feeling content and happy with the world. The lightness that flowed through her limbs was unfamiliar, and the worry that normally sat in her chest like a stone wasn’t there today.
The universe was with her, she didn’t get a red light all the way to Bondi and jagged a parking spot only two doors down from the house on the hill.
As she walked up the footpath, the sound of the crashing surf and the squawking of the seagulls put her in a holiday mood.
She paused outside the house and looked up at the room where they had been trapped on Friday night.
Greg was standing at the window, and she waved with a big smile, and pointed across the road; she’d wait for him on one of the seats above the beach.
She crossed the road and chose a double seat on the grass above the rock wall and waited for him to join her. After a few minutes, when he hadn’t come across, Ginny turned and was surprised to see him walking up the street from the bottom of the hill.
‘You’re early.’ He took her hand in his and brushed her cheeks with warm lips. ‘Let’s go eat, I’m starving,’ He gestured back the way he had come. ‘There’s a fish and chip shop on the corner.’
Ginny frowned. ‘Greg ... were you just up in the room in the house. The one where we were on Friday night?’
‘No. I haven’t been to the house yet. I got held up with a few calls. I figured I could do my looking around while you’re working upstairs.’
She tugged her hand out of his and pointed to the top floor of the house. ‘Look, I’m sure there’s still someone at the window.’
He followed her gaze and shook his head. ‘I can’t see anyone. Maybe it was a reflection on the glass.’
Ginny wasn’t convinced. ‘I’m sure I saw someone. I even waved.’
‘Do you want to go for lunch, or will we go up and have a look first?’ Greg seemed to take her seriously.
Ginny paused and then shook her head. ‘No. Let’s go eat. It must have been a reflection.’
Greg kept hold of her hand as they walked down the hill. The street was crowded and a couple of times they had to step to the side to make room for children on bicycles riding beside their parents. Once Greg put his arm around her and held her tucked into his side as three children on bikes preceded their parents.
Ginny swallowed as he held her close. A flutter of warmth ran from her tummy right down to her toes, and her knees actually trembled. She gripped his hand tightly and he looked at her curiously.
‘Okay?’
She nodded as her cheeks heated. God, anyone would think she was fifteen, not twenty-three. ‘Yes, all good.’
‘I didn’t tell you how nice’—Greg grinned—‘woops, there’s that word again. You look nicer than nice.’
Ginny giggled and relaxed.
‘You look lovely,’ he said. ‘Is that word allowed?’
‘Thank you. Old fashioned, but um... nice.’
Greg chuckled and bumped her lightly with his shoulder. ‘Come on, I’ll shout you a nice lunch.’
Ginny groaned but her lips twitched. ‘That would be very nice.’
They reached the shop and Greg rolled his eyes when he saw the crowd. ‘A bit of a wait, by the look of things.’
‘That generally means the food is good. It smells yummy.’ Ginny said. ‘Can you survive the wait? I’ve got a muesli bar in my bag.’ She grinned up at him.
‘How about I order, and you go over and nab us a patch of grass?’
Ginny looked up at the menu board, told Greg what she wanted and wandered out of the shop.
As she walked along the path looking for a spare spot on the grass, a loud scream reached her.
‘Oh my God. Virginia!’
She turned slowly, and her eyes widened as a pair of hands grabbed her shoulders.
‘It is you, isn’t it? I’ve been trying to find out where you disappeared to for years! Oh my God, Virginia, I can’t believe it’s you.’
Ginny put her hand over her mouth. ‘Margie?’ Margie Holmes had been her best friend right through high school until her family had moved to Brisbane at the end of year ten.
‘Margie Wright now. That’s my husband over there, and our little boy. I’ve been looking for you everywhere. I went back to the school reunion last
year, and you weren’t there, and no one knew where you were. And you’re not on Facebook or Instagram unless you’ve got one of those crazy made up profile names.’
‘Shabby-Chic,’ Ginny said with a smile. ‘And I go by Ginny now.’
‘No wonder I couldn’t find you. It was as though you disappeared off the face of the earth. I even put your school photo into Google and did a reverse image search, but nothing came up. Only that movie star I used to say you looked like. Are you on holidays at Bondi?’
Ginny shook her head. ‘I live here now. How about you?’
Margie’s shriek was full of excitement. ‘We’ve just moved here too. We don’t even have anywhere to live yet. Ryan just got transferred to an investment firm in the city. And I don’t know anyone, I can’t believe we’ve bumped into each other. It was meant to be. Just like your lovely Gran used to say.’
‘It is, isn’t it?’ Ginny shook her head. It was funny to see someone from her old life, but she and Margie had always been close friends. When she’d moved to Sydney, Ginny had deliberately cut ties with her life in Mt Isa. It had been easier to cope when there was no one else to lose. Maybe she would have stayed in touch with Margie if she’d still lived there, but when Margie and her family had moved they’d lost touch.
Seeing Margie was strange, but good.
As they chatted, Ginny spotted Greg walking up the path, his arms loaded with three white cardboard boxes of fish and chips. He spotted her and crossed to the grass where she and Margie had moved to, so Margie could watch her husband and little boy down on the sand.
‘Greg, this is a friend of mine from Mt Isa. Margie, this is Greg.’
Ginny blushed when she saw Margie glance down at her ring finger.
‘Pleased to meet you.’ Greg tried to juggle the boxes of food and hold out his hand at the same time, but Margie waved him away.
‘No. You guys go and eat. I’ll go down to the beach and when you’re finished we’ll do some more catching up. Virginia... Ginny ... don’t you dare disappear again.’ She pulled out her phone. ‘Give me your number just in case.’
Ginny obediently recited her mobile number. ‘But we will catch up before we go. Greg and I have work to do after lunch, but I’ll make some time.’
Margie headed to the beach with a wave, and Greg put the boxes on the grass.
‘Virginia?’ he said with a smile.
‘Ginny is Sydney. The new me,’ she said.
‘I like the new you.’ Before she could answer Greg leaned over and brushed his lips over hers.
Heat rushed into her face, into her tummy, down her legs and into every part of her.
Every part.
Her face got even hotter and she fanned herself.
‘Summer’s not far off,’ Greg said with a little smile.
Ginny sat still and quiet as he unwrapped the food, determined to put some space between them. Things were moving a bit too fast for her.
Her voice was bright when she finally spoke. ‘It’s nice that I’ve made some new friends and found an old one all within a couple of days.’
Greg passed her a box of chips and put his head to the side. ‘I’m shattered.’
Ginny froze, and the box fell unheeded to her lap. ‘What’s wrong?’
‘I’ve been relegated to nice?’ His grin belied his words, and Ginny couldn’t help herself. She leaned over and bumped him with her shoulder.
‘Yes, but you are very nice.’
‘Very is better.’
They sat close to each other and made their way through the pile of chips, and two huge pieces of fish. A strange feeling overtook Ginny; it was as though she’d known Greg for a long time. She was comfortable in his presence and she felt good about herself when she was with him.
‘Penny for them?’ Somehow Greg had got close and before she knew it, he had turned her around and pulled her back against his chest.
‘I’ve got greasy fingers,’ she said trying not to touch his jean. As she leaned back against him she could feel the slow thud of his heart against her back.
‘No, don’t answer that. I want to tell you something. ‘I feel as though I’ve known you for a long time, Ginny.’ His words echoed her thoughts.
‘I know. I guess it’s because we talked so much when we were in the house together.’ She twisted her head and looked up at him; at the same time he lifted his hand and gently brushed her hair back from her forehead. ‘I don’t usually feel this comfortable with people.’
‘I don’t usually need to be with people, I’m usually happy in my own company, but I don’t know.’ He shook his head, but his eyes stayed on hers. ‘I’ll be honest. Since Friday night, I can’t get you out of my head.’ His voice dropped as he lowered his head closer to hers ‘You’ve bewitched me, Ginny Silver.’
Warm lips, still with a taste of salt, brushed against hers and Ginny stretched up to meet them. The pressure increased, and she closed her eyes and Greg’s lips teased backwards and forwards against hers. A warm rush settled down low, and she almost purred with contentment. Greg’s hand cupped the back of her head and the pressure of his lips increased.
‘Mummy, is that your friend? Is she feeling sick? Is he kissing her better?’
Ginny leaned back away from those magical lips and tried to pull herself back to the present.
‘Sorry to interrupt, but we have to go and look at an apartment.’ Margie stood above them, and Ginny pushed away from Greg and scrambled to her feet.
‘Oh, um, er, it’s fine. We were just about to leave anyway.’
‘To work?’ Margie’s smile and raised eyebrows showed her disbelief. ‘I didn’t want to leave without seeing you again, and promising that I’ll call you this week.’
Ginny nodded trying to bring herself back to the present. ‘That would be great. Make sure you do.’ She bent over and pulled a business card from her bag and handed it to Margie. ‘This is where you can find me through the day.’
‘Shabby-Chic. I love it,’ Margie said as she read the card. ‘I’ll definitely call in.’
Greg stood beside her as she waved her friend off, and they watched as Margiee and the little boy caught up to a tall man who was waiting on the footpath.
‘Are you okay?’ Greg wrapped his arms around her protectively. ‘You look a bit shaken.’
‘I’m fine.’ Ginny plastered a smile on her face, feeling anything but fine. Knowing she was heading off to a whole empty house with Greg for the afternoon was sending those warm thrills crazy.
Chapter Twelve
Greg was determined to pull back. Every good intention he’d had, and every vow that he’s made that he would keep his hands off Ginny, had disappeared as they sat there on the grass together.
Ginny had set his feelings on fire. Like he’d said, it was as though she’d bewitched him. He’d been in a long-term relationship before the accident, and he’d taken other women out, but never in his life had he felt such a strong pull to a woman. It scared him.
In one way he wanted to go to the house with Ginny this afternoon, but Greg was worried about his self-control. In another way, he wanted to run a mile, be alone, and get his head immersed in work and plans, to see if he could get her out of his head. It was ridiculous; he hadn’t even known her for forty-eight hours.
‘So are you ready to go to work?’ Her voice was low and held a note of something he hadn’t heard before. A teasing husky note.
He swallowed and nodded. ‘I am.’
Greg gathered the rubbish and put it in the bin, and they walked slowly up to the house. There was a subtle tension between them and he knew that Ginny was as aware of it as much as he was. She kept a good distance between them. They walked through the gate, and he pulled out the keys to open the front door.
‘It’s locked today. That’s a good sign,’ he said.
They stepped into the foyer together and Ginny’s eyes were wide as she looked up. ‘Can you feel it, Greg?’ She sighed and put her hand on his arm. Her fingers were warm on h
is skin. He lifted his hand and out it on hers. ‘This house has memories.’ Ginny’s voice sounded as though she was far away. ‘No matter what happens to it, the memories of people living here, and children growing up, will always be a part of it.’
She reached for him, and he closed his eyes as her arms went around his neck. Ginny’s lips were against his, and he used one foot to close the door behind them.
‘Happy times, and sad times. It’s like life.’ Her soft lips vibrated against his. ‘No matter what happens, the memories are there to help us get through. It’s a lesson in life. One that I need to take heed of.’
She lifted her head and her eyes drilled into his. ‘It’s time I took risks. I’ve been too scared of getting hurt, and I’ve only been half alive. Kidding myself that a shop full of old clothes would be enough to keep me happy for the rest of my life. If you want to be my friend, Greg, that would be good. If you want to try being more, well’—her gaze dropped, and her cheeks flushed—‘that would be alright with me too.’
GREG TOOK HER HAND and led her up to the room they had been in together on Friday night. She waited as he propped the footstool against the door and turned to her. He brushed her hair back from his face, and his fingers were gentle.
‘I would like to make love to you,’ he said softly, her lips warm beneath his. ‘But only if that’s what you want.’
‘Oh, yes,’ she whispered back. ‘But I’m nervous. I’m not very... very experienced.’ Shyness brought heat to her cheeks, but he tilted her chin up with his fingers. She lifted her hand and ran one finger across his lower lip, her own lip caught nervously between her teeth.
But Greg’s kisses were slow and leisurely, and before she knew it, they were lying together on the old brass bed. Her breath caught as he dropped kisses on her eyelids, then slid his lips slowly down her cheek to the corner of her mouth. As she let it out in a sigh, he took her hand and pressed it against his heart.
‘Can you feel what you do to me, Ginny?’