Faking It to Making It

She spotted Paige and Gabe, chatting to an older couple—Mae’s parents, judging by the twin sets of vibrant red hair. Lissy and Bamford were there together, but as friends, not lovers, and the two of them were cheerfully laughing at something Lissy had said. Even Clint and Mae were about—Clint chatted with friends in suits, many wearing no shoes, and Mae was on the other side of the crowd, spinning in a slinky backless number, the cool sea air clearly not touching her at all.

And then the crowd parted and there he was. The man she loved.

Seeing Nate after being sure she’d never see him again amazed and terrified her. As for the bone-deep knowledge that she adored the guy and had every intention of making him believe her... That made her knees positively quake.

Especially when he looked the antithesis of ruffled—clean-shaven, with sunlight glinting off his neat dark blond hair, in a suit that made the most of the glory beneath it and with his eyes covered with sexy sunglasses. He looked...perfect.

He brought a glass of champagne to his lips as he turned to survey the crowd, and she knew the moment he spotted her. His hand stilled, his mouth kicked at one corner, and his chest fell as he breathed out long and slow.

The tinkling of laughter, the clinking of champagne glasses, the soft swoosh of waves lapping at the shore—faded till all Saskia could hear was the thundering of her heart.

He excused himself, put his champagne on a passing tray, shoved one hand in a trouser pocket and walked towards her. She ditched her heels as they kept sticking in the soft sand and walked towards him, meeting him halfway.

When he came close he took off his sunglasses and she could see the smudges under his eyes, the worry lines etched at their edges. And, since he looked just how she felt, her heart gave a thumpety-thump because it might have something to do with her.

“Hi, Nate,” she said, her voice hearteningly strong.

“Saskia.”

He leaned in to kiss her cheek and stayed there a beat past familiar. A beat into want. She let her eyes close, filled herself with his warmth and his heady scent. Before she did anything stupid like throw herself into his arms, she pulled away.

“Credibility?” she asked.

His eyes didn’t leave hers as a small smile curved the corner of his mouth. “Not this time.”

Her heart thudding like a runaway hammer, Saskia glanced over his shoulder at the wedding party in the distance. “I had to come. I couldn’t disappoint Mae. She did help me finish my online dating research, after all.”

He tilted his chin in understanding and the smile curving at the corner of his mouth kicked a little higher. “Well, I’m glad you came. In fact I have something for you. Brought it just in case.”

She looked down to see a small silver bag with frothy silver paper poking out of the top. “You do realise the bride and groom are the only ones meant to be getting gifts today?”

“We got them a toaster.”

“Did we, now?” she asked, cool as she pleased, even while her stomach soared at his use of “we.” She tried to mentally slap it down but it continued to buzz along happily.

Paige waved to Saskia across the beach, started to move, then saw she was with Nate and took a ninety-degree angle away from her.

Saskia’s hand shook as she took Nate’s gift. His finger brushed hers and a spark shot between them—the same spark that had been there at the first meeting. The one she’d clung to as she’d fallen deeper and deeper under his disarming charm.

She peeled away the soft silver wrapping to find a solitary bar of goats’ milk soap. Her one downfall into decadence. She’d mentioned it maybe once and he’d remembered. And sought it out. And it was near impossible to find. That little shop in the Dandenongs was about the only place you could get it. Meaning he’d gone looking. With her in mind. In an effort to make peace? Or more...?

Blinking, she looked up at him, clueless as to what to say.

“It came in a pack of two,” he said. “I kept one for myself. My skin’s never felt better.”

He smiled his innately charming smile, only this time there wasn’t any performance in it. Just him, his eyes roving over her face as if he couldn’t quite believe she was there.

When his eyes landed back on hers—blue, hot, hungry—her whole body began to pulse. “Thank you,” she said, her voice thick.

“You’re most welcome. Now, since I haven’t quite got around to finding a standby date, would you care to accompany me?”

He held out his arm; she slid her hand in the crook.

They walked in no particular hurry towards the rest and Saskia said, “I knew you hadn’t asked anyone else.”