‘I’ll see you around twelve, then. That’ll give me the morning to work out what I need to do this week on the prosthetics project.’
He nodded, picking up the mugs from the tray and handing one to Caro, then taking a swig of coffee from the other. ‘Okay, I’ll leave you with the washing-up, then. I’d better get going.’
She ate her toast while he found his clothes and put them on. Then he kissed her, and Caro heard the front door close behind him.
Getting out of bed, she walked across to the bathroom, peering at her reflection in the mirror. All the things that Drew had said last night... She’d never really thought much about her looks, and Blake’s betrayal had made her feel worthless and ugly. But she valued Drew’s opinions much more than Blake’s.
Her hair glinted in the overhead lights. Her eyes were marvels of evolutionary genius, but then so were everyone else’s. There was nothing extraordinary about her features or her figure, but if you liked fair skin she supposed both were passable. And, last night, Drew had given her new respect for all her body was capable of. Perhaps, after all, she might accept that he did find her beautiful...
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
‘YOU’RE LOOKING VERY pleased with yourself.’ Ellie put the last of the birds that had been washed this morning in the drying pens. Drew had already perched himself on a stool, unable to stand any longer.
‘Am I?’
‘There you go again. Answering a question with a question never works, Drew.’
‘You asked a question?’
Ellie puffed out an exasperated breath. ‘All right, then. Dad said he was driving along the coast road early this morning, and he saw your car parked off the road by Smugglers’ Top. He was concerned about you so he stopped to take a look, and he saw you walking across the beach.’
‘Right. Does he have photographic evidence, or is this just word of mouth?’
‘He said you were looking a bit furtive.’
‘I was not looking furtive.’
‘Ha! So you were there!’ Ellie clapped her hands together. ‘Can’t I be a bit pleased for you, Drew? It’s time you started dating again. And Caro’s really nice, even if she can be slightly kooky at times.’
‘Mostly that’s just because she’s thinking about something that’s
way over our heads.’ Drew leapt to Caro’s defence and Ellie shot him a knowing look.
‘That’s true. I really like her a lot, Drew. And she was an absolute star, coming out with us to help with the birds.’
‘Yes, well, she’ll be coming in this afternoon to help with cleaning them up. So don’t start with her, Ellie. She isn’t used to everyone knowing her every move, she has a normal person’s expectation of privacy.’
‘Of course I wouldn’t say anything to make her feel uncomfortable.’ Ellie wrinkled her nose at him. ‘And it’s good of her to come. You could do with a hand, the standing’s a little too much for you.’
That and a couple of very gratifying positions last night. Ellie really didn’t need to know that.
‘Yeah, you’re right. I could use some help. But don’t start getting carried away, Caro and I are very different. Like my mum and dad were, and you know as well as I do what happened there. Caro has her work...’
‘And that doesn’t play out so well with you.’ Ellie gave him a knowing look.
Drew sighed. ‘It’s not going to get that far, Ells. We’re not really dating, we just have...a thing.’
Ellie nodded, suddenly leaning forward and planting a kiss on his cheek. ‘Well, I hope your thing makes you happy. You deserve it, Drew.’
‘Thank you. And if you want to get sloppy, go do it with your husband. Lucas signed up for it when he married you.’
Ellie chuckled, poking her tongue out at him, the way she used to when they were kids and flouncing out of the room. Drew shook his head, Ellie wouldn’t like the term flouncing very much.
Caro did make him happy. And she’d told him that he made her happy. They just had to be careful and remember that any commitment that they were tempted to make wouldn’t work.
And maybe he should try to look a little less happy when he was at the clinic. Although with the prospect of Caro arriving in half an hour’s time, that wasn’t going to be easy.
* * *