She wished it did, but all of the old doubts were still there, the dread that she might fall back into disaster again. ‘No.’
‘Then I guess we’ll say that there’s someone out there for you, and someone for me. Leave it at that.’
So this was the way he wanted to play it. Just a kiss between friends. Like hell it was. That had been the first step on a path which led straight to two naked bodies and mind-blowing sex. They needed no words to know that.
He was right, though. Sex with Edward, if she ever managed to survive the intensity of the foreplay, would be like jumping from the frying pan into a searing fire. She couldn’t afford to be fooled again by quiet charm and hidden depths. She wanted—needed—everything to be in plain sight.
‘Yes. That would probably be sensible.’ It seemed almost wrong to stand up now. Like the biggest lie of all to deny what had just happened. But she did it. ‘I’m going to...’
Saying that she was going to bed would sound like a come-on. And his gaze was still so very enticing. Charlotte was under no illusions about whether she would be able to say no to him if he reached out for her now.
His slow smile was laced with all of the intentions that neither of them seemed able to follow through on. ‘I’ll leave you to it.’
‘Thank you.’
What was that for? Starting things? Stopping things?
She leaned forward and planted a kiss on his cheek, drawing back again. ‘Goodnight. I’ll see you in the morning.’
CHAPTER TWELVE
IT HAD OCCURRED to Edward to burst into her room, carry her off to his, and make love to her until the raging in his blood let up. That might well have been a long and exhausting process, but that wasn’t what had stopped him. It was what came afterwards—the falling in love and realising that he couldn’t give her what she needed.
He was older now, and perhaps a bit wiser. He’d seen more of the world. Met Charlotte. Maybe things could be different. But maybe wasn’t a good enough word for someone like Charlotte.
No emotional commitment. The words on Kathy’s lips had puzzled and upset him. If he dared to make love to Charlotte, then those words on her lips might just kill him.
So he wouldn’t. Instead he’d carry on as normal.
More or less normal, anyway.
It was with a pang of unusual regret that he rose from the kitchen table at seven the following morning and began to scribble a note for her, saying that he was going to catch up on some work he had to do at the Hunter Clinic and wouldn’t be in for lunch.
‘You’re up early.’
Her bright morning smile interrupted him, almost choking him with desire.
‘You, too.’ The house was still quiet, and Edward wondered whether he’d made a mistake in not following his instincts last night. If Isaac was asleep, there was still time...
‘Oh, I’ve just taken the opportunity to come down and make some sandwiches. Isaac’s playing in his room. He’ll be racing around wanting to get dressed soon.’
‘Ah. I’ll leave you to it, then...’ It looked as if the Hunter Clinic was his best bet after all.
‘We’re going to the park this morning. Some of Isaac’s friends go boating on the lake on Sundays. I’ll leave you a salad for lunch...’
‘There’s no need...’
‘Or you could come with us if you’d like?’
Charlotte, Isaac and Edward. Almost as if they were a family.
Edward picked up the note he’d been writing, screwed it into a ball and dropped it into the kitchen wastebin. ‘Yes, I’m at a loose end today. That would be nice.’
* * *
The summer sunshine sparkled on the water like diamonds swept up from the bed of the lake in the wake of the small boats which bobbed on its surface.
‘Mum... Mum, they’re already here. Quick!’