Tumble Creek (14 page)

After a long moment, and not losing eye contact, in one fluid movement Brock was off the couch and standing in front of her.

His sexy, dark-brown eyes roamed over her hair, face, neck and shoulders. ‘Stunning,' his voice rumbled. Sofie pressed a hand on her stomach in an attempt to ease the butterflies. But then he went on to say, ‘Doesn't matter what you wear, or where you are, you're always fucking stunning!'

‘Oh,' Sofie said on a breath.
Okay, that was lovely.
Lightheaded, she dug her fingers into the mantelpiece, holding on for dear life.

His hands came up, hesitantly reaching for her, but to Sofie's disappointment, he stopped and tucked them in his armpits.

She'd learned by now that that was it, he wasn't going to try and touch her. She asked herself why. He'd pashed with her in the back room of Veronica's and it hadn't a problem then.

Well, she'd see about that later. ‘Let's go before my chariot turns into a pumpkin,' she muttered, her disappointment clear.

She breathed the cold night air deeply, bracing as it hit her lungs and chased away the blues. Out by the car, Brock held the passenger door open. Sofie danced around on the spot, trying to work out which leg would be best used to get in. She lifted her left, then right, and then on tiptoes tried to hoist her bottom up onto the seat. No amount of wriggling and faffing about worked.

She turned to Brock, who had one hand resting on his hip, the other elbow resting on the top of the door, relaxed hand hanging down. Eyebrows raised, head inclined, controlling his laugh and losing. His expression said,
am I surprised?—hell no
.

Sofie planted her hands on both hips, lifted her chin to look up at him and said, ‘Someone raised your car, though it's probably always been like this, I've just never had to try and climb in. So I'm thinking, I reckon you like this dress.'

‘Yep.' He fought a grin, which skewed his mouth sideways and made him look amused, and so very hot.

‘You wouldn't like to see it ripped though, would you?'

‘You're asking a red-blooded bloke, would he like to see a sexy-as-hell woman's skirt rip to the top of her thighs?'

‘Is that what's going on in your head and putting that—' she waved her hand in his direction, ‘—that silly grin on your face?' She'd almost said
hot
grin.

‘Absolutely. Doesn't mean I want to see it happen for real. Only in my dreams, Babe.' He paused, probably thinking over what he'd just said. ‘Well maybe for real.' And without another word, he scooped her up, deposited her in the passenger seat, closed her door, strode around the bonnet and slid behind the wheel.

Sofie did a quick mental inventory of old dresses she could shred to the thigh.

***

Sofie could feel the heat of Brock's hand resting, politely, on the small of her back as they walked into Veronica's. She sighed, wondering how to get more of his hands all over her naked skin. He showed all the right signs, but something was holding him back. ‘Not going to happen, is it?' she mumbled to herself. ‘Happy birthday to me.'

Sofie stopped just inside the door and the first thing that hit her was the abundance of candles everywhere. The restaurant always had them, but this was an extraordinary amount, like a fairy tale. Classical acoustic guitars softly playing in the background added to the romantic atmosphere. Diners were quietly enjoying their dinner, but where was everyone? For a heart-stopping moment, Sofie wondered if she had the wrong day.

Suddenly a group of people hurried out from the back, yelling, ‘Happy Birthday!' Four of them carried a long refectory table with helium balloons and streamers attached to its centrepiece of flowers and candles. With the table set in place, Sofie was surrounded by family and friends wishing her a great birthday—Claudia, Michelle, Jennifer, Calum, Calum's grandmother, Connie, their uncle's housekeeper, Shirley, Takumi, Bruce and his new wife Kathleen, Fiona and Ryan.

There was one person missing. Silently Sofie wished Britt was there and that she was safe, and would stay that way. A cold shudder rippled through her; she shook it off; of course she'd be okay. Brock curled an arm around her back, placed his hand on her hip, and pulled her in to his side.

Head dipped, he whispered in her ear, ‘You okay?'

‘Yes, I'm fine. Why?'

‘Nothing.' He straightened.

Naturally, the food was the best. Elliot made pan-seared salmon with spicy coconut sauce on a bed of steamed rice and fresh vegetables on the side. Mouth-watering, delicious.

The conversation around the table turned to childhood stories about Sofie's mischievous adventures. Something she was going to deny black and blue the moment she could get a word in.

‘No,' was Jennifer's definite answer to something Sofie missed in the babble of voices. ‘Sofe was always up first, creeping around making herself a snack and cups of tea. Nearly set the place alight once. I think she's got a thing for fire.'

‘Jen—I have not got a thing for anything!'
Except late night sex with a hot police officer … hopefully.

‘You have too,' Jennifer went on, ‘you were playing with matches and my teddy caught alight. Luckily you had the smarts to throw him in the sink and turn the tap on.'

‘I what?! That was you, not me!' Sofie waggled her finger at Jennifer.

‘Oh no it wasn't. And then because Teddy had black and melted fur in parts and normal fur on other parts of his cute little body, you got to him with the scissors and trimmed him all over.'

Sofie worked hard to keep a straight face. ‘I remember that day because I was in bed with a mysterious rash and you got up to mischief.'

‘Yep,' Calum nodded soberly, ‘I can see that.'

Jennifer turned to him, and cried out, ‘You're supposed to be on my side.'

‘No, staying honest and true,' Calum answered with a wicked grin.

Jennifer shrugged and carried on. ‘Then you rubbed him dry and covered Mum's best towel with soot and stuck him in the bottom of the toy box.'

‘No-no, see, if it was me, I would have thrown him in the bin.'

Jennifer gasped, her eyes huge, but definitely trying to hold back a grin.

‘I remember hiding under the covers because the toxic smell was so disgusting it made my rash worse and then Mum walked in to see why I was making a fuss. And then all hell broke loose.'

‘What? That's just selective memory,' Jennifer laughed.

‘Jen, honey?' Calum put in.

‘Yes, sweetie-pie,' Jennifer said, piling on the sugary twee.

‘Stop it, you two,' Claudia warned, ‘you're making my teeth hurt.'

‘Nah, go on, Bro,' Michelle giggled, ‘I know you've got something to share.'

‘While I was helping Jen unpack a few crates that had arrived all the way from England, I came—' Laughing, Jennifer slapped her hand over his mouth. But that didn't stop him; voice muffled he went on, ‘I came across a skanky, balding, patchy black and brown bear.' He pulled her hand away, only to have to grapple with the other. Chuckling, Calum held both of Jennifer's hands. She warned him not to go on or there'd be consequences, which he ignored, of course. ‘The story is, Jen here, starved of affection, create a little drama and set fire to the bear.'

Laughter erupted around the table, and from nearby tables as well.

For dessert Jennifer had made Sofie's favourite, crepe suzette. She wasn't expecting presents, but Claudia brought them in on a tea trolley. Perfume, lacy underwear, a new mirror with an amazing Moroccan, hand-beaten silver frame and a matching hanging lantern for when she had a new back deck.

They laughed, told stories, drank more wine, and laughed some more. Friends started to filter home and Sofie moved her chair back to say goodnight and thank them for giving her a birthday to remember.

‘Night, Claud; night, Jen. You gave me a wonderful birthday, thank you.'

***

Brock enjoyed the night, especially the times he had Sofie in his arms. Using the excuse that her dress was too tight, he again scooped her out of his Ranger. And the little vixen squirmed so her breasts, belly and hips were snuggled against his hard body. Giggling, she curled her arms around his neck, making her breasts jiggle against his chest as he carried her to the front door. Man, he loved the feel of her in his arms, it sent blood racing through his body.

‘This is becoming a habit, Brock,' Sofie mumbled. ‘It can't go on, people will talk, they'll think I'm legless.' She pounded his chest and giggled harder. ‘You get it?' she shoved her face in his T-shirt and took a deep breath. ‘You smell great. I could suck in your scent all day.'

‘Sofe, you're drunk.'

‘Oh? Nah, tipsy maybe, not drunk. I vomit when I'm drunk. So no, not drunk. Legless? Yeah, but you can do that to me anytime, first thing in the morning actually. You have that amazing power … Uh-huh.' Sofie nodded then poked him in the chest. ‘You must be careful with that. I'm rather partial to you, you know.'

‘Partial to you.'
Hmm, he liked the sound of that, a lot. Darkness cocooned them and he allowed himself the pleasure of grinning. This was going to be an interesting evening. Reaching the front porch, Brock set Sofie on her feet and opened the door; he ushered her in, closed it behind him and asked, ‘You want a coffee, or something else?'

‘I want something else,' she purred, giving him a seductive look.

He stared at his shoes to let her comment sink in. ‘You're sure about this?' He turned serious, intense eyes on hers. The gut-wrenching emotion he openly displayed was something he couldn't prevent. He hoped with every fibre in his body that he didn't scare the crap out of Sofie. But she had to understand that what he was about to say was
too
important. ‘Because this starts, you and me, there's no going back.' Hands tucked away under his arms. To his relief, Sofie's smile went all the way to her eyes, which was something she always did, but right then she made it special. He drank in her gentle, meaningful gaze. He read longing, a deep understanding, but most of all hope. Another sharp pang pierced his chest, so profound. He was on the edge of something magnificent, something rare, and he didn't want to jeopardise any of it.

Then, as if speaking to herself, she whispered something extraordinary. ‘Did I lose my legs again just now,' her voice low, lost in the wonder of it, ‘and did I somehow miss the best part of losing them?'

Brock worked hard to contain a grin as he stared, unseeing, at his shoes. She was cute and adorable. He loved the things she said about him, about them. How she spoke her mind. Then, not moving his body, he slanted his head to the side and captured her eyes with his. ‘Sofe,' his deep voice drawled, ‘had I kissed you, or touched you, you wouldn't have missed it. Perhaps you're referring to something else, and I don't think either of us missed that.'

‘Ooh,' Sofie began quietly. ‘Even though you just sent a shiver straight to my girlie parts and …' It may have been the wine talking, but still she had his full attention, then she did an uppity little head wobble and continued, ‘I need to know, what makes you so special?'

Eyes still locked on hers, his gaze deepened, searching; but he didn't miss Sofie's body give a little shiver. Her reaction made his blood hot. And when she crossed her legs and squeezed her thighs together, he held back a smile.

Then he said the only thing he could, ‘Special? Without a doubt,
you
do.'

Her eyes glistened, and her mouth trembled.

He wanted to hold her so bad his hands tingled. It took every ounce of strength to stay put.

‘Oh God, that's the nicest thing
anyone
has said to me—
ever
. Brock Stewart, you just rocked my world.'

Brock gave her a solemn nod. ‘There's a lot of good you should've been given. You still want to take us further?'

‘Brock …' Sofie breathed. Beautiful, trusting blue eyes gazed into his. A few heart-thumping moments passed, then she nodded and, voice a sweet whisper, added, ‘Definitely.'

He straightened, let go the breath he didn't know he'd been holding, and ushered Sofie into his bedroom. ‘Okay, there's a lot you need to know about me, but not tonight. Do you trust me on this?'

She nodded again and started kicking off her shoes.

‘Fuck!' Sofie's eagerness made his fingers tingle and sent an ache to settle in his groin. He clenched his teeth and shoved his hands in his armpits.

‘Fuck what?' Sofie pressed.

Brock took a deep breath. ‘Not many people would put their blind trust in me so explicitly and then kick off their shoes, get ready for me.'

‘First of all I'm not blind. Secondly, people? You do this often?'

‘Sofe …' He didn't mean to sound frustrated, but hell, it had been a while, and he was out of practice. He'd probably come before they started.
No! Jesus, don't think that.

To his astonishment, Sofie pressed a hand over his mouth, and then told him, ‘I've had my share of morons who broke my heart. I've had a damn long time to mend and get smart. I know you're kind, you're caring, and understanding. You proved that again the other day when you said it was Claudia's moment to shine. You
are
a beautiful, altruistic person. And over time, we will know all there is to know about each other, all the deep hidden secrets out in the open, blow fresh air through them. I couldn't be surer when I say, you're not hiding anything truly important that would hurt me. We look at each other, really look. We have an unspoken connection. It's an achingly beautiful feeling deep inside me. I hope it's the same for you. I want this. I want you. I don't care about anything else. Right now I'm in need of your undivided attention. To put it bluntly, Brock, I'm horny for you.'

That piercing sensation grew deeper in his chest, his breath caught and happiness flooded his entire body. Brock tightened the grip on his hands and whispered, ‘Babe, I can't believe …'