Propositions (9 page)

“Mm. I think so.”

Slowly he slid into her, filling her with every inch of his sturdy length. Tantalizing shivers shot to every one of her nerve endings. Jessica felt Nate quiver as he buried himself deep inside her. Her core clenched tightly around him. It would be so nice to make love to him all night and wake up next to him in the morning. She could imagine the tenderness on his face as the sun peeked through the curtains.

No!
This was not about tender lovemaking, this was about sex. Damn good, hot sex.

Nate’s quick, erratic hip movements brought her back to the moment. His body pulled back and he plunged into her hard. Faster. Deeper.

“It’s been way too long, Ms Mason,” Nate’s heated breath brushed across her face. “I highly recommend we do this more often.”

* * *

After round two in the shower, Nate’s legs could barely hold up his weight. What was it about sex with Jessica that made his whole body feel like rubber afterwards? The stress in his mind and body had all but gone. He slipped on his robe and walked out of the bathroom, only to find her sitting on the side of the bed getting dressed. He glanced at the clock on his bedside table and saw it was nearly one o’clock in the morning.

He ran his hand through this wet hair. “What are you doing?”

“I’m going home.”

His gut clenched as if he’d been punched. He froze and tried to think of something to get her to stay. He wanted her to spend the night, have a lazy breakfast in the morning with her and make love to her again. He sat down beside her as she did up her boots. “You don’t have to.”

“I can’t stay. That complicates things, Nate, you know it does. We’ve discussed this … situation. Besides, I have Conner’s football game at ten o’clock.” Jessica stood up and straightened her clothes. “So … I’ll see you on Tuesday at our next meeting.”

Nate had never felt so helpless as he followed her out to the door. “Wait.”

Jessica stood with her back to him for a moment before she turned around. The look on her face caught him off guard. She was all composed and difficult to read. He wanted to say something to get her to stay, but words escaped him.

But then it dawned on him. This is what she wanted. This is what he said he wanted.
Wasn’t it?
No strings attached. All he could offer was a warm smile as he reluctantly opened the door. “I’ll see you Tuesday and look forward to our next … rendezvous.”

Jessica closed her eyes and rubbed her fingertips over her temples. The month of July so far had been a whirlwind for her. Over the past few weeks she’d managed to see several campaigns and events roll out the door, even while the majority of her time had been spent working on the opening of Somers Hotel.

She’d hoped after a few weeks the fire between Nate and herself would have extinguished, but that had not been the case. A smile crept across her face as she thought about the times they’d successfully hooked up after meetings, dinners and lunch dates. His office. Her office. His apartment. The quickies. The head-jobs she’d given him at his desk. The things he did to her on the couch in her office. The sex was incredible. But this game they were playing had her continually on edge—trying not to get caught, trying not to act suspicious in front of staff and trying to keep her heart protected.

Every day she tried to convince herself to end the affair, but she kept going back for more. He was like an addictive drug—she couldn’t wait for the next hit. She glanced at her watch. Could she sneak a quick visit to see Nate now? No. Not today. There was simply too much work on her plate. She had this weekend off, catching up with him would have to wait until then. A weekend at Gumtrees would be ideal.

The idea of spending a weekend between the sheets with Nate, locked away in a cabin, played out in her mind. The log fire would be blazing. They’d be naked, wrapped up together in a warm blanket, watching the flames dance in the hearth. They’d drink wine, eat some divine food …
But no.
What was she doing fantasizing about romantic getaways that could never happen? That was not on her dance card. Yet again she had to pull herself into line. Nate was short-term. Temporary. She wasn’t going to open her heart and risk being hurt.

And there was Troy. The thought of him brought her back to harsh reality. At least her mind no longer spiraled out of control when she heard his voice on the phone, as he called now on a regular basis. Slowly it had sunk in, that yes, he was well and truly back, and she was not having a repetitive nightmare. Conner remained adamant about not wanting to meet his father every time she brought up the subject. Excuses of exams, sports and his part-time job taking up all of his time. Troy had been incredibly patient, but Jessica knew he was desperate to meet his son. She decided to try Conner again. She reached for the phone and dialed his number.

“Conner, it’s Mom.”

“S’up?” He sounded sleepy. Had she woken him up at three in the afternoon?

“I was wondering if I could take you out for dinner on Wednesday for your birthday? Your choice of restaurant.”

“Thanks, but I already made plans to see a band play at the uni. Sorry.”

“Oh. Okay. Well … Um, I’m thinking of going out to Gumtrees this weekend and I was wondering if you wanted to come with me. It’d give you a chance to meet Troy.”

‘
Mom!’

“Conner, I just have the feeling he’s going to wind up on your doorstep unannounced if you don’t agree to see him soon.”

“Mom, we’ve discussed this.”

“I know. And I understand how you feel, I really do,” said Jessica. “But you won’t be able to go on ignoring him forever. He calls me every week to ask about you.”

Silence stewed between them as she heard Conner punch something like a wall.

“Fine. One meeting.”

“Thank you,” said Jessica. “Would you like to bring Becky along? I’ll book you a separate cabin if you’d like.”

She heard him sigh down the phone. “Yeah. We’ll drive up by ourselves on Saturday after lunch.”

“If it
’
s any consolation, I’m just as nervous about this as you are.” Not only for Conner, but a strange coil of mixed emotions swirled inside her stomach knowing she too was going to see Troy again.

“Not helping, Mom.”

“Probably not, just want you to know I’ll be there for you. No matter what. Ok? I’ll go ahead and book the cabins.”

* * *

Jessica parked outside her usual cabin at Gumtrees and climbed out of the car. She stood and stretched every inch of her body—from the soles of her feet through to the tips of her fingers.

She turned around to see Troy walk out of the cellar shop. His bow-legged walk showed he spent way too much time horse riding. His dark brown moleskin jacket made him look like a big, warm teddy bear. His eyes reflected her anxiety.

“Jess.” He touched the edge of his Akubra hat, and then, as if on second thoughts, he gave her a hug.

She smiled at his awkward embrace. “Troy, nice to see you again.” Disbelief still rippled through her veins at the sight of him. Her heart didn’t know if it wanted to burst with joy or bleat in pain as his vivid blue eyes looked into hers.

“Do you want me to go get the key for you?”

“No, I’ll get it. I want to say hi to Marie and Nick. Conner won’t be here until after lunch. I’m going to go settle in and maybe go for a quick ride on Stirling, if that’s okay?”

“Sure is. Let’s go. I’m was just heading up to the office as I’ve got some paperwork to do this morning. I’ll catch up with you at lunch.”

* * *

After changing into her riding gear Jessica sat on the side of the bed holding a folder on her lap and running her hands over the smooth plastic cover. The silence of the cabin was welcoming and gave her a moment to collect her thoughts. Conner was finally going to meet his father. After so many years. She had wanted this for so long and now the moment was nearly upon her, all she could do was feel petrified. How was Conner going to react? She sighed, knowing it wouldn’t be long until she found out.

But first things first. She stood up and headed out the door for the homestead. She climbed the few sandstone steps into the office and went inside. Troy sat behind the desk typing with one finger on the computer. Jessica smiled at him, amused. Yes, there were some things about Troy that had definitely not changed in twenty years.

“Hey, what’s up?” he asked.

“Here.” She handed him the folder.

“What’s this?”

“It’s an album I made of photos of Conner growing up. Baby photos, school, holidays, etcetera. I had Zoe, my assistant, scan and copy a heap of things I thought you might want to see.”

Troy hesitated, then took it from her. “Wow, I don’t know what to say.”

Jessica glanced away to avoid looking at his eyes. “I’ve written some quick notes—the year and stuff—on each page for you, too. It’s no scrapbooking masterpiece, but I think it covers everything.”

Troy, seemingly lost for words, ran his free hand through his thick hair. “Geez … Thanks.”

They stood in silence as Troy opened up to the first page. Jessica knew it was a picture of Conner at birth. She saw his eyes fill with tears and felt her own eyes start to sting. She had to get out of here before she was too overcome.

“I’ll leave you to it. I’m going to go for a quick ride.” She turned and headed briskly back out the door.

* * *

After putting Stirling and all her gear away, Jessica walked out of the stables. She was meandering back to her cabin, absently kicking the odd large stone with the tip of her riding boot, when she looked up and saw Troy sitting on the steps to her cabin. As she drew closer, she could see his eyes were red, as if he’d been crying.

“Hey.” She spoke softly. “You all right?”

“Thank you for the folder. It’s amazing. It looks like you’ve been a wonderful mother. You look so happy in all the photos.”

She smiled. “I’m very proud of him. Believe me, it hasn’t all been smooth sailing, but I think he’s turned out all right.”

“I can’t fathom what you went through thinking that I didn’t want to be a part of his life. But God, Jess. I would’ve if I’d known. I was so stupid not to call you and tell you about Nicola. I was too ashamed and gutless to face you.”

She resisted the urge to roll her eyes. “You can beat yourself up for all your wrongdoings when I’m not around. I don’t want to hear you’re sorry anymore. I don’t want to hear you wish things were different. What’s done is done. It’s all in the past.”

Together, they had to get beyond the hurt, heal old wounds that had reopened and move forward somehow. As friends, as past lovers, as parents of a grown child.

After a moment, Jessica sat down next to him. She was still trying to piece everything about him together. “So, you’ve never told me, how on earth did you end up working for Nick?”

Troy straightened his legs and crossed his ankles. “After Nicola died, I ended up in the Napa Valley. I think after growing up in the Hunter Valley, the wine industry has somehow always been in my blood. I studied viticulture, learned the ropes of winemaking, and made a few contacts back here to touch base with. One day, I was having lunch and talking to Grace, the manager at Harrigan’s, and I ran into Nick. The rest is history. It all came down to good timing.”

“So what exactly are you responsible for around here?”

“Since this is only a small vineyard, I do a bit of everything. I manage the vines ensuring they’ll fruit well ready for harvest early in the new year. And I will oversee production of all the winemaking. Nick’s trying to focus on expanding the accommodation and functions side of the business with Marie. I help out in the cellar shop and do the odd tour group if they need me, but I’m mainly out in the field.”

“So what’s your plan? For the future I mean?”

“Plan? What plan? This is it.” Troy shrugged a little. “Working for Nick is great. He’s a good boss. I love what I’m doing. Would you believe, I have more money than I’ll ever know what to do with, thanks to Nicola, but just haven
’t found anywhere to settle down yet? For now,
 I’m really happy here. I get accommodation in the old cottage and meals in the restaurant. What more do I need?”

Jessica eyebrows furrowed. “Do you want your own vineyard one day?”

“If one came up for sale, maybe I’d consider it, but otherwise I have no such grand plans. I’m a man of simple means.”

What?
Troy was content with his life? How could that be possible? It was just something that Jessica couldn’t comprehend. He seemed to have no goals, no plans, no ambitious dreams. Hers were never-ending. Adding Somers Hotels to her business portfolio was starting to attract new attention and was keeping Alex happy. With renewed fervor, she wanted to expand her business with new office locations, add more clients to her list and, for a treat, go on a shopping holiday with Max in Hong Kong. And that was just what she’d thought of in that split second in time.

Jessica turned to look as she caught sight of a car pulling off the main road and heading up the driveway toward them. The silver Audi crept along, its engine purring like a sleeping lion.

Time seemed to stop.

“That’s Conner,” Jessica managed to say as her stomach twisted into knots.

“Conner drives an Audi?” Troy said.

“Yes. I bought it for him for his eighteenth birthday. Why?”

“Do you remember the piece of scrap metal I used to drive in high school when I was seventeen?”

“Yes, I do. How could I ever forget?” She closed her eyes recalling all the sex they’d had in that car. “Audi is one of my clients. I can get a good deal on one if you’re interested.”

Troy shook his head. “I’ll keep that in mind, but they don’t make work trucks, now, do they?”

“No. Definitely not.” Jessica drew her attention back to the driveway to where Conner was parking. She stood up and stuffed her hands in the back pockets of her jeans. Her heart rate escalated and she felt sick to her stomach. “Well, here goes nothing.”

As she looked back at Troy, his face was ashen. “I’m panicking. What if he doesn’t like me?”

She laughed. “He’s one up on you there. He hasn’t liked you for twenty years. Come on, come and meet our son.”

“Will do. Just give me a sec.” Troy remained seated. Jessica could see him
 wringing his hands together and that his legs were shaking.

She took a gut-filling breath, turned and slowly made her way over to the car, the gravel crunching beneath her boots.

As Conner stepped from the vehicle, his blond hair danced in the breeze. While he had Jessica’s olive skin and her mouth, everything else about Conner was clearly from Troy’s gene pool.

“Hey, Mom.” Conner kissed her cheek as always, and Becky came around and hugged her too.

As she turned her attention back to Conner she could see his striking eyes were full of anxiety. “You okay?”

He nodded, but she knew better. This was really hard for him.

“You ready?”

Jessica glanced back towards the cabin and saw Troy finally approaching.

This was one of the most surreal moments of her life. Her stomach felt like it had tied itself into one massive ball of knots. Her heartbeat pulsed in her ears and she felt like her knees might give way at any moment.

Conner flicked his head back, brushing away the hair from is eyes and took a sharp breath, trying to keep his cool as Troy came to stand in front of them.

“Conner, Becky,” Jessica said. “This is Troy.”

She could tell Troy was trying to be strong, fighting to contain tears that were evident in his eyes. He held out his hand to shake Conner’s, but swept him into a full embrace instead. He lost the battle with his emotions as he held his son in his arms for the first time.

Watching them together was overwhelming and Jessica found herself having to swipe away a few tears of her own with trembling hands. Maybe not knowing or having his biological father affected Conner more than he ever let on.

Conner tried to step back, but Troy placed his hand behind his neck and drew their foreheads together. “I am so sorry. I never knew.”

Conner sniffled as he pulled away and brushed away his own tears. “S’okay.”

Jessica heart was thumping in her chest. It was both beautiful and agonizing to witness. She hated seeing Conner in pain and fighting to be strong. Seeing Troy so overcome was bewildering; his very presence still blew her mind.

Both men stood looking at each other in disbelief, she knew that this was their moment and that she needed to give them some time alone.