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The sound of power tools woke Hope the next morning. It was still dark, and it took her a second to get her bearings.
The noise outside stopped and she heard two men talking in low voices, but she was unable to make out what they were saying. She glanced over at Mitchell. He hadn’t stirred. She pulled up the doona to cover them both. Mitchell was naked too.
The whine of the saw started up again and she flinched. Mitchell gave a snore and rolled over, pulling the covers with him. How on earth could he sleep through the racket? She yanked the covers back towards her.
‘Mitch. Wake up.’ She almost had to shout to be heard above the sound outside.
She nudged him again. The noise outside stopped.
‘What time is it?’ he asked, his voice gravelly. It had been very late when they’d finally fallen asleep.
She leaned across him and found his phone which he’d left on the chair by his side of the bed. ‘Just after seven.’ She groaned. ‘Far too early for...’
Mitchell’s lips met hers, cutting off her words.
‘Too early for what?’ he asked after she gently shoved him off with a frown.
‘Too early for whatever’s happening out there.’ She pointed to the French doors that led onto the deck. ‘What is going on?’
Outside, the men started talking again. Mitchell’s head snapped up and he swore softly as he flung the doona aside and swung his legs over the edge of the bed. ‘That’ll be Jordan.’
‘Jordan?’ Hope squealed. She gripped the doona and tugged it to her chin. ‘What’s he doing here this early?’
Mitchell ran his fingers through is hair. ‘I totally forgot he and Lachie were coming over. We’re building a pergola to go over the back deck today.’
Naked, he padded to the bathroom. The power tools started again. Surely it couldn’t be legal to make that much noise this early on a Saturday morning. It was so loud she could barely think straight.
‘Is it safe to let two doctors near dangerous power tools?’ she called out.
‘It’s alright,’ Mitchell called back. ‘Clancy and Ian will be here to supervise.’
‘Awesome. The whole gang will be here,’ she mumbled.
Hope heard the shower start up. She debated getting out of bed and joining Mitchell but that would require hopping across the room on one leg and that wasn’t the safest thing to do. If she was home, she would have used crutches.
She stared at the closed bathroom door. Margot’s car was parked out the front so if the boys were clever enough, they would have worked out she’d borrowed it and stayed the night. Great. How was she going to slip out of the house without them seeing her?
The whining of the saw stopped again, and Hope closed her eyes and tried to come up with a solution.
She hadn’t intended to sleep with Mitchell when she’d invited herself for dinner, but the moment she stepped inside his front door she knew she’d end up in his bed. A warm flush swept through her. Dinner had been magnificent, the wine was some of the best she’d tasted and with the effect of the fire, the music, the soft lighting and Mitchell’s company, the atmosphere had been perfect.
The moment their bodies joined, she knew it was right. The chemistry which had bound them together all those years ago was still there, but now their desire for one another was stronger and deeper. She had no regrets because being in Mitchell’s arms felt like coming home.
Someone rattled the door handle of the French doors. She looked up and screamed when the door swung inwards and Jordan stepped into the room. She pulled the doona over her head.
There was a long pause. ‘Morning, Hope.’
She slowly lowered the covers, exposing only her flaming face.
‘Morning, Jordan. You’re here early.’
He grinned, leaning casually on the door frame, one leg crossed in front of the other. ‘Could say the same thing.’
Hope glared at him. ‘At least turn around while I put something on.’
Chuckling, Jordan turned his back.
Hope hastily grabbed Mitchell’s t-shirt from the floor and pulled it over her head. Judging by the smirk she’d seen on Jordan, it wouldn’t be long before everyone in Macarthur Point heard the news.
‘It’s about bloody time you two got your act together.’ He threw the words over his shoulder. ‘Where’s Mitch?’
Hope pointed to the bathroom. She could still hear the water running. ‘In the shower.’
‘What? He didn’t ask you to join him.’ He shook his head and tut-tutted. ‘I thought I’d taught him better than that.’
Mitchell’s phone rang and she glanced at it. It was Courtney trying to Facetime him. Hope frowned. Why was Courtney calling Mitch?
She snatched it up and swiped her finger across the screen.
‘Hi, Courtney.’
Courtney’s grainy face filled the small screen. ‘Hope?’
‘That’s me.’
Courtney’s eyes narrowed. ‘Hang on. Are you in bed?’
‘Yes. I’m in bed.’ Like most normal people at this time of day, she wanted to add.
‘But that’s not my house.’
How observant. ‘No, it’s not.’
Hope was about to explain when Jordan joined her on the bed and waved at the screen.
‘Morning, Court.’
Courtney squealed. ‘Are you at Jordan’s?’
Jordan took Mitchell’s phone from her hand. ‘Nah, she’s at Mitchell’s.’
Courtney beamed. ‘Oh,’ she drawled. ‘Well played, Mitch Davis, well played.’
Hope put her hands over her face. She didn’t need to see her cousin to know what was going on in her head.
‘Lachie on his way yet?’ Jordan asked.
Courtney shook her head. ‘That’s part of the reason I was ringing. He’s been called in for an emergency bowel obstruction so I wanted to let Mitchell know he can’t help out today.’
‘All good.’
‘I was also calling Mitchell because I was worried about Hope.’
Hope took the phone back from Jordan and held it up to her face.
‘Mum said you didn’t come home last night, and I tried your phone and it went to voicemail. I never expected this!’
‘I didn’t realise I had a curfew,’ Hope said.
Courtney laughed.
‘By the look of the bags under Hope’s eyes, she needed a curfew,’ Jordan said. ‘I don’t think she got any sleep last night.’
Hope pointed to the open door and mouthed, ‘Go.’
Jordan winked as he closed the doors behind him.
Hope smiled at the screen. ‘I’ll be home soon,’ she said, aiming for a normal tone of voice. ‘Do you want me to bring you a coffee?’
Courtney shook her head. ‘No, but what I do need is for you to get your butt here and give me all the details of what happened last night. Otherwise I’m going to have to guess.’
‘I’ll be home in half an hour, and I promise I’ll tell you almost everything.’
‘I have a doctor’s appointment for Ollie at nine so it will have to wait until I get back.’
‘See you then.’
Hope hit the end button, tossed the phone back on the bed and sank back into the pillows. Seconds later, Mitchell appeared, the towel low around his hips. She sucked in a breath and stared at his chest. Need rushed through her again, heightening her emotions.
He winked. ‘You should have joined me.’
She grimaced. ‘Sorry, I would have, but I got a little side-tracked.’
Mitchell’s brows drew together. ‘Doing what?’
She pointed out the doors just as Jordan and Clancy walked past, carrying a long piece of timber between them. Jordan waved, and Clancy gave them the thumbs up.
Mitchell’s eyes widened as he turned back to face her. ‘Do they know you’re here?’
‘Yep. And I don’t think they’d fall for the “we fell asleep and nothing happened” line.’
Mitchell sank onto the bed and stroked her hair. ‘You okay with that?’
She nodded. Last night when they’d gone to bed, she hadn’t been thinking about the next day or what to tell their friends. She’d been thinking of nothing except recreating the past and making new memories.
‘What should we tell them?’ he asked, glancing outside.
She shrugged. ‘Tell them we’re madly in love, want to make babies and spend the rest of our lives together.’
His head snapped around. ‘Is that what you want?’
She hesitated, blinking rapidly. Is that what she wanted? ‘Honestly?’ She chewed her bottom lip. ‘I’m not sure. Things are moving quicker than I can get my head around.’
‘I know you struggle with the idea of settling down here—’
‘It’s not just here,’ she interrupted. Macarthur Point is wonderful—I just struggle with the idea of settling down in any one place full stop.’
He stroked her cheek. ‘I know you’re a free spirit, and I know you thrive on change. Thing is, I don’t. Everything I have built here is for a reason. All my life I’ve craved roots and I have them now. I’ve created the kind of life here that I’ve always wanted, and I can’t leave.’
‘I wouldn’t dream of asking you to leave.’
The idea of saying goodbye again made her feel sick, but the idea of putting down the roots Mitchell was talking of, was equally sickening.
The power tools started up again. Mitchell stood and glanced out the window. ‘I’d better go and supervise.’
She nodded. She would have preferred he stay so they could talk more, but she understood he needed to go.
He kissed her forehead. ‘Let’s just take each day as it comes.’
She watched him go back to the bathroom. When he appeared a few minutes later, he was fully dressed and ready to work. He stood in the doorway and looked at her.
‘I don’t want to hold onto you if it’s going to make you feel like I’m trying to control you.’
She gave him a weak smile. ‘Thank you for understanding.’
‘I’m trying.’
He left her alone, taking all the good vibes of the night before with him, leaving her with nothing but her swirling thoughts and an ache in her heart so heavy she wasn’t sure she could move.