Chapter Twenty #2
The benches were wiped, the sink was clean, the dishes stacked, but the coffee pot was still on the stove.
I don’t know why, but I looked to see if it had been washed.
And when I saw that the dregs of coffee still sat in the bottom, something warm stirred in my belly, knowing that he’d been here a few mornings ago and the trace of his coffee was still sitting there.
It made him feel close. And it pulled at something ephemeral inside me that I couldn’t grasp long enough to make sense of.
It was deeply masculine, his space. But still soft and inviting. A complete extension of him.
I leant against the bench and that’s when I noticed the fridge – it was covered with photos, the most chaotic part of the whole setting, but somehow the scattering of images layered over one another gave a playful lightness, a spirit, to the kitchen.
They were adventure pictures, mostly. Mountain scenes.
Snow. Slopes. Climbing shots. Hiking pictures.
There were lots of people, smiling faces.
But, unmistakably, heavily featured was the girl I was sure he’d called Tessie.
Beautiful, dark-haired, creamy skinned; broad, dancing smile.
She was gorgeous. There was a photo of them side by side that looked like it must have been taken more than a decade ago.
Late high school, if I were to guess. Abel was fresh-faced in a suit and she was a teenage beauty in a pale blue dress.
Their formal? Maybe they’d been high-school sweethearts.
The thought gave me a twisty, murky, petulant feeling in my tummy … one that was probably good. I was here in Abel’s house for practical purposes, not because I needed to be worried about who it was that he was holding in his arms.
As though to emphasise the point, my conversation with Mum and her new boyfriend Greg surfaced in my mind.
Men were a danger to my mum, and so far, they’d only been a danger to me too.
I was in no position to consider the romantic potential of anyone.
Even someone as seemingly close to perfection as Abel.
I made myself a drink of water. Even the taps were nice. Even the glassware was elegant and solid.
The stairs tugged at me, disappearing in a steep, turning fashion.
I think I groaned out loud when I reached the top.
The warmth had risen up here and it was snug and comfortable.
On my right, a closed door I assumed must be a store room.
Straight ahead was a low-ceilinged room with a pitched roof that was obviously a study, its window looking out into the black night.
And to my left, literally the most divine bedroom I had ever seen.
I almost whimpered at how beautiful it was.
The pitch of the roof was steep and it reached right to the floor in the corners. A king-sized bed was in the centre, with navy blue sheets that looked so soft, I needed to touch them.
I just stared at that bed, gripped by a flash of images of possibilities that had my heart rate picking up.
I had to consciously drag my eyes away to take in the rest of the room before I got completely carried away.
Bedside tables and lamps. Soft carpet beneath my feet, grey and understated.
Timber-lined wall behind the bed. A box window looked out to where I imagined I’d be able to see the garden or the harbour in the morning.
And a small alcove ensuite with a shower, toilet and sink.
It was utterly to die for.
I finally snapped myself out of my stupor. I could walk around drooling over this house all night, but it was now past eleven and I should think about going to sleep.
When I’d brought my clothes upstairs and found a spot for my bag, I stripped down to take a shower.
The hot water beat on my skin and as I watched the way it streamed around my naked body, I couldn’t help think about the fact that Abel had stood here, just as naked, a few days before me.
Maybe it was weird of me to use his soap and dry myself with his towel, but I was too tired to think about that.
The whole experience was the loveliest thing I’d ever treated my skin to.
Another version of Mary would have made sure the sheets were clean before getting into someone else’s bed.
But I was this Mary. The one who was increasingly infatuated with the man for whom I was house-sitting.
So, like the weirdo that I was, I pulled back the covers and slipped inside Abel Sutherland’s bed without any clothes on, the softest sheets in the history of the earth kissing my fresh, clean skin.
It smelt like him. It felt like him. It was painfully delicious.
I thought I might lie there for the rest of my life.
I turned my face into the pillow, closing my eyes and taking whole lungfuls of his scent. When I opened my eyes, my gaze landed on the bedside table and I don’t know why I hadn’t noticed the familiar cover before. It made me smile with nostalgia.
I picked up the book and started to read, the words flowing like syrup into my brain.
It was so long since I’d read anything for pleasure and while it didn’t have the same intoxicating effect of the words being carried on the dreamy voice of Abel, before long, the story swept me into its pages and I read until I was too tired to keep my eyes open.
And then, with the light still on so the sweetness of this perfect room around me didn’t vanish, I let my eyes close.
I fell deeply, deeply asleep in Abel Sutherland’s bed.
I woke feeling like a cat, lazy and sultry. I looked at my phone to check the time, my head still on the pillow. A message awaited me.
Abel: Did you find what you need?
I smiled. Groggy, drunk with sleep.
Me: Yes. I found EVERYTHING I need.
I sent it before I could register what he’d probably been referring to. Like the key, the plants I needed to water, the pet I was supposed to feed, not the bed of my dreams.
Abel: I’ll let my neighbour know not to come feed Kate Winslet.
I frowned. Was that the cat?
As if reading my thoughts:
Abel: Kate Winslet is the cat.
Abel: Obviously.
Me: Obviously.
Me: ???
Abel: Have you two met?
Me: Me and the neighbour?
Abel: No. You and Kate Winslet.
I chuckled.
Me: Not yet …
Abel: She’ll be in the laundry behind the hot water cylinder. All her things are there too. You’ll work it out.
Me: I’ll take good care of her.
Me: Anything else?
Abel: No. Just be in my house. Shower in my shower.
I blushed.
Me: Okay.
The three dots danced and then stopped. Danced and then stopped.
I stared, wondering what he was going to write, but it didn’t come. I should probably get up.
Me: Hey thanks btw. This place is … amazing.
It was a few minutes before his reply came.
Abel: Pleasure. Like I said, I go away a lot. You’d be welcome to house-sit whenever you wanted. You know where the key is now.
I didn’t let myself indulge in the tempting thought of that. I couldn’t. This was a short-term solution. A one-off.
Me: That’s very nice of you.
Abel: What can I say? I’m a very ‘nice’ person ; )