Chapter 14
The clock has been ticking so slowly that I’ve literally shouted at time twice but finally, thank all the deities, it is now five minutes to midnight. After much deliberation with Emerald, I’m wearing a sundress over the cornflower blue bikini, my hair piled up in a topknot and just a bit of waterproof mascara on my lashes. Plus three thousand pounds worth of diamond necklace, which Emerald insisted was actually quite a low-key amount of diamonds for a swim.
She tied it round my neck and it shimmered in the light and I did not argue.
Stella’s already asleep in her room when Em, now in soft pyjamas and fluffy slippers, basically slaps me on the butt as I go to leave.
‘Go get some!’ she cheers, waving me off.
I’m too flustered to respond.
Heart racing, I walk in the moonlight across the lawn and down the steps to the pool. I can hear the roar of the ocean beyond the cliffs.
And I can see Luke.
He is sitting on the pool’s edge with his feet dangling in the water. My heart goes crazy, my brain not quite able to process that this is happening. It’s dark, but wall lights illuminate the pool and I can see a bottle of champagne with two flutes set down next to Luke.
He must hear me coming because he turns, his face lighting up in the moonlight when he sees me walking towards me.
‘Hey,’ I say softly, nerves kicking in as I sit down next to him.
‘Hey yourself.’ He smiles. ‘It’s good to see you.’
‘You too. You picked a decent spot.’
He grins. ‘Beautiful, isn’t it?’
‘Is this where you bring all the girls?’ I ask. I’m aiming for playful but not sure I hit quite the right note.
A brief frown flashes across his forehead before he looks at me in earnest, shaking his head. ‘There are no other girls. The only person I’m interested in is you, Jess.’
It seems so strange to me that this could be true, and yet I also believe him. This beautiful man with all these options open to him. Why me? I wonder. But one thing’s for sure, I’m not going to waste this night asking questions.
Our shoulders are touching as we sit side by side. The water glows blue in the evening, illuminated by pool lights.
‘So,’ I say after a long pause. ‘Wanna race?’
Luke raises an eyebrow as he side-glances at me. ‘I mean, I never turn down the chance to be competitive but, just to warn you, I am quite fast.’
Should I tell him, I wonder, or save it ’til later?
I go for the latter.
‘I’ll do my best to keep up.’ I grin.
‘Sure?’ he asks.
‘I’m pretty sure,’ I reply, standing up and pulling my dress off over my head. I swear I hear him gasp as I throw it onto a lounger.
‘Jesus,’ he says. ‘You are beautiful, Jess.’
I don’t know how to reply to this so I just carry on talking.
‘We should establish some rules of the race.’
‘Oh?’ A smile twitches at his mouth, his eyes still on me.
‘Mmm.’ I nod solemnly. ‘No sabotage, obviously.’
‘You think I’m going to cheat?’ he asks, pulling off his T-shirt and dropping it onto the same lounger as my dress. Our clothes are tangled together in the moonlight.
‘Hard to tell.’ I cock my head to one side.
‘Hmm,’ he says, ‘you just focus on trying your best, and I’ll see you at the finish line.’
‘Hoh.’ I laugh.
‘Any more rules, or shall we race?’
‘We haven’t established a prize for the winner yet,’ I say. I’m about to walk over to the pool steps when Luke catches my hand. He spins me back towards him until my body is pressed up against his, and I’m breathless. Engulfed by him. He lets go of my hand, slowly circles his arms around my waist, and tips his head down so that his mouth is just centimetres away from my ear.
‘Winner takes all?’ he whispers.
‘Agreed,’ I manage, very very aware that if I just tipped my head up his lips would be on mine. Every part of me screaming to do exactly that. But now that I know what’s happening, now that I’m certain he likes me too, I want to wait. I want to make him wait. I want to stretch this moment out because lord knows stuff like this does not happen to me and I want to make the most of every last drop.
So I take the smallest step back, unable to tear my eyes off Luke. And he keeps his eyes on me as I ease myself into the water.
‘Ready?’ I challenge.
Luke smiles at this, dive-bombing into the pool and sending so much splash up into the air that my face is wet.
‘Oh my god.’ I laugh as he emerges.
‘Couldn’t resist.’ He wrinkles his nose. ‘It’s actually quite cold in here.’
‘I know,’ I say, shivering. ‘Didn’t you say the pool was heated? You basically lured me here under false pretences.’
‘Guilty, your honour.’ He laughs. ‘No, I promise it is heated, it’s just that we’re outdoor swimming in May, in Northumberland, at midnight, so—’
‘Do you need a moment to acclimatise?’ I tease. ‘You know, before you lose?’
‘That won’t happen. Unless you want me to throw the race?’
‘So cocky.’ I chuckle. ‘You just try your hardest, Luke. I’ll see you at the other end.’
He watches as I line up, ready to swim. He gets into position next to me, and I can see how confident he is.
‘On three?’
‘One, two, three, go!’
I push off, my arms getting into the familiar rhythm they know so well. I strike through the water, faster and faster. I can see that he’s not that far behind me, so I drive harder, enjoying the feeling of gliding through the cool water. I reach the other side in no time, turning to see Luke hit the wall seconds later, a look of surprise written across his face.
‘Not bad.’ I grin. ‘A good effort. God loves a tryer.’
‘Okay.’ He laughs, pushing his hair out of his face as he struggles to catch his breath. ‘Okay, okay. You’re fast. You’re really fast. I feel like there’s something you’re not telling me?’
I bite my lip.
‘Might have omitted a few key facts,’ I say, although I am now seriously distracted by the fact that his hands are around my waist in the water, tracing the line of my bikini. It feels almost too good, like I might just melt into water myself if he carries on for much longer.
‘Oh really?’ he murmurs. ‘And what facts are those?’
I hitch a leg up around him, pulling his body closer to mine.
Luke sighs and I’m almost undone.
‘I used to swim for my county,’ I half-whisper into his ear.
Luke looks impressed, amused and stone-cold focused all at the same time. ‘Hmm,’ he says with a shake of the head. ‘Withholding information. I’ll have to add that to my dossier on you.’
Then he cups his hands under my ass and hoists me out of the pool so that I’m perching on the side.
‘Ah yes, the court case,’ I reply as his broad torso steps between my thighs. His hands trace down my sides, his thumbs circling just below my ribcage, and I’m not sure how much longer I can withstand this.
‘The court case,’ he confirms. ‘It’s basically watertight, now.’
‘Are you making water puns because we’re in the pool?’
‘Well, that would be very shallow of me.’ He grins as I wrap my legs around him again, tracing flecks of water with my fingers as they trickle down his chest. He pauses, watches my fingers and tracks his gaze back to mine, holding me with his steel-grey eyes.
I cannot wait any longer.
‘Luke,’ I say. ‘Water you waiting for?’
A low rumble of laughter and then he’s scooped me up from the side of the pool and brought me back into the water. My back is pressed against the side of the pool. He’s directly in front of me.
‘Jess,’ he mutters, something flashing across his eyes as he closes the space between us.
The feeling of his lips grazing mine sends my whole body into overdrive, every sensation heightened in that moment. The gentle lapping of the water between us. The feel of his hands on mine, holding me tight.
‘Luke.’
And then his phone rings.
His phone rings.
‘Fuck’s sake,’ he mutters, pressing his forehead against mine in frustration. ‘That’s my work phone. I’m so sorry but I have to take that, just in case. Please,’ he says, inching back the tiniest amount even though everything inside me is screaming for him not to do that, ‘hold that thought.’
All I can do is nod.
He pulls himself up and out of the pool, every part of me wishing he would hurry up back over here because this is without a DOUBT the sexiest thing that has ever happened to me in my entire life, by about a thousand per cent. The water. The moonlight. The sheer Luke-ness of Luke.
I hear him pick up the phone, I hear him ask what’s wrong, and I see his face fall. And I know, in that instant, that he’s not getting back in. When he hangs up he pads back over to me, crouches down so he’s closer.
‘Jess.’ He shakes his head again, only this time he looks quite cross. ‘You would not believe how sorry I am to say this, but I’ve got to go. One of the cleaners has got locked into the fitness centre and until the grounds manager starts next week, I’m the only one with a set of keys. I … I can’t believe how bad this timing is.’ He gives me a look of pure regret and I feel it too.
‘The fitness centre’s only ten minutes away, and it shouldn’t take me long to sort out, but this water’s not that warm and it could be thirty minutes before I get back.’ Luke rubs the back of his head with one hand. ‘God, I want to ask you to wait but I know that’s not the right thing to do.’
I’m basically ready to shout ‘I’ll wait’ but he’s right, the water is pretty cool. I consider reaching my body up, kissing him anyway, but I don’t want to rush this just because he’s got to go. I want more of that magic we shared. More more more, to be honest. So I rethink.
‘Hey, don’t worry about it,’ I say, getting out of the pool. ‘We can … reschedule.’
Luke looks agitated as I towel off.
‘Jess, you’re killing me,’ he says. ‘Tempted to quit my job right now and stay right here with you.’
I laugh at this. ‘We don’t need two unemployed people in this situation,’ I say. And I see he looks confused so I add: ‘I quit my job before I came here. Listen, there’s always another night, right?’
‘Yes, please,’ he murmurs, handing me my dress. ‘I really am sorry.’