Sienna. Of course. Damn her.
Get out of my head, will you?
* * *
‘I need wine.’ A glance at her phone told Sienna it was well after nine. Hardly wine o’clock. Too bad. Her last glass of wine had been on the lawn of the bach in Coromandel, with Harry beside her telling some embellished story about a road trip he’d done in outback Australia. She’d poured one the first night home after the weekend, and ended up tipping it out, unable to face it on her own. Wine was for enjoyment, for sharing, for laughter and chatter.
And for celebrating spreading my wings. Tick.
There was a bottle of champagne in the back of the fridge, put there yonks ago when a grateful parent had given it to her for saving his daughter’s life. Normally gifts from patients and parents went into the staff pool, but Dale had insisted she take this one home—the patient had been his niece. The bottle had languished in the fridge waiting for the right occasion. Well, tonight she’d finally found one.
The sound of the plastic cork popping made her smile, but as she poured the liquid into her glass the smile drooped. Champagne wasn’t made for drinking alone. New life, remember? The list was making things happen. Celebrate.
A vehicle pulled into the drive next door, making her pause. Harry was late home. Friday-night drinks with the crews? But his arrival was perfect timing if she had the courage to invite him in for a drink. He’d say no. She’d apologise for everything she’d said. He’d still say no. Did she need that?
Yes, if she was going to keep moving forward. No, because rejection stung.
‘Harry,’ she called over the fence. ‘I’ve just opened a bottle of champagne. Would you like a glass?’ He was probably thinking she had an alcohol problem, given the time of night.
His head appeared around the back of his four-wheel drive. ‘I’ve already had a couple of beers.’
‘Fair enough.’ She turned away. At least she’d tried.
Call that trying? Come on, Si.
Turning back, she drew a shaky breath. ‘I’m celebrating a grand total of three hours ten minutes’ flying time.’ Nerves warred with jubilation. ‘I don’t really like drinking alone.’
His sigh was loud enough to be heard across the fence. ‘Pour me a glass. I’ll be right over.’
She headed inside so she couldn’t hear when he called out his change of mind. Champagne spilled over the bench as she tried to fill a glass for him.
‘So you’re still getting a buzz out of heading up into the sky in a tiny flying machine?’
Sienna whirled around to stare at him standing in her doorway. ‘Absolutely. I should have done it ages ago. Right from the first time rolling down the runway it’s been thrilling. Very different to anything I’ve ever done before. Exciting, scary, demanding.’ Slow down. Harrison could still disappear on her if he thought she’d lost her mind.
He stepped inside. ‘So your fear of heights hasn’t raised its head as the hours go up?’
Handing him the glass with champagne inside and on the outside, she stared at him. Wow, he was gorgeous, but she already knew that. Now that she’d experienced his lovemaking there was no going back on her feelings for him. All she could do was rein them in while he was close. ‘Not one moment of trepidation.’
‘So no jumping off a building needed.’ That couldn’t be disappointment in his voice, surely?
The bungee-jumping idea still rattled her. ‘No.’ Not even with you.
‘I’m impressed.’ Harrison moved across to the table and pulled out two chairs, tilting his head at one.
Sinking onto the seat, she sipped her drink, needing the false sense of courage it gave her. If only he’d smile at her, turn her insides to mush. Then what? They had fallen out; he was here out of politeness, not because he wanted to make love with her.
‘Thanks, so am I. I haven’t been scared once. Honestly, when I hold the controls and the instructor tells me to pull back slowly and steadily and the nose of the plane comes up and then we’re off the ground and the plane’s flying because I did that—along with a lot of help—it’s the most incredible sensation out there. I can’t get enough of it.’
A bit like you. I can’t get enough of you, and yet there are times when I want nothing to do with you.
Harry sat, stretching his legs half across the dining room. ‘Go you. What’s next? Going onto the bridge of a cruise ship and taking that out to sea?’
He’d seen her list, knew everything that was on it. Including having a fling. Tick. She hadn’t written ‘end the fling quickly’ but mentally she gave that a tick too. ‘I might plan a short trip to South America to see Dad some time in the new year.’ Since when? Since right this moment. It wasn’t her preferred option but it was a load better than not continuing to push the boundaries. ‘I’m getting the hang of this.’ Hopefully not so much that she turned into a clone of her father.
‘You won’t want to return to the ward.’
His ability to read her mind still flummoxed her. ‘Yes, I will. I’ll always be a doctor at heart. That’s who I am before anything else.’ The wine was top-of-the-range yet she wasn’t getting the buzz she’d expected.
‘So you’ll start using up some of the leave you’ve got accruing.’ He swirled the champagne around in his glass, staring into it as if he was looking for something. But all he said was, ‘Are you heading back to work on Monday?’
‘Yes. The body’s back to normal, no aches or bruises.’ Though sometimes if she moved suddenly her ribs would give her grief.
Harrison’s eyes widened when she said body, but he didn’t give her the once-over. There certainly wasn’t any lust going on in his expression. He had got over her—very fast. ‘That’s good. I saw you coming back from a ride last night. The new bike looks like it’s got every bell and whistle going.’
Had he been looking out for her? Can’t have. He was giving off vibes that said he wanted nothing more to do with her. ‘I upgraded.’ Damn this. ‘W
hat have you been doing since the weekend other than work?’
His shrug was eloquent, and really annoying. ‘Not a lot. The job takes most of my time, as you know.’
‘Sure. But there’s more to life than work,’ she gave back, tired of being the only one who had to sort out her life. ‘You could find a permanent job somewhere and stop running away.’
Rolling his glass back and forth between his hands, he glared at her. ‘You don’t pull any punches, do you?’
Her chin jutted forward. ‘I’m learning. And guess who taught me?’
The glare faded, replaced with something like longing. ‘Glad I’ve been some use.’
‘Some use?’ Harrison hadn’t pushed her off the road that night, though he had distracted her enough to lose concentration, but he hadn’t let her get away with her need to keep everything under control either. ‘That accident woke me up to certain things.’ Be honest, if nothing else. ‘But your irritating habit of rubbing me up the wrong way has helped. A lot.’
His eyes widened again, and his fingers relaxed their dangerous grip on the glass. ‘Even when you didn’t agree?’
‘Mostly when I didn’t agree with your damned fool suggestions.’
‘None of them were foolish, just backing up what you really wanted to do in the first place.’
Man, he could be such a know-it-all.
‘You—’
No, stop.
Playing You said... I said; if I can do this, you can too wasn’t going to get her anywhere. He was going to head back over the fence shortly, leaving her to her sad heart.
‘This is crazy.’ Draining her glass, she reached for the bottle. ‘More?’
He’d barely started the first glassful. ‘No.’ The glass started twirling between his fingers again.
Silence fell between them.
Sienna sipped her wine, trying to enjoy it. This was a celebration, after all. Not that anyone was dancing or singing.
‘I got a job offer today.’
Great. Not. No denying he was leaving now. Melbourne here he comes. ‘When do you start?’