Luci spread her towel over the cushions and pulled her sundress over her head, revealing a very tiny bikini. Four triangles of black fabric tied together with black ties. His eyes were drawn to the diamond freckles that nestled between the swell of her breasts.
She pulled a tube of sunscreen from her bag and rubbed it into her shoulders and chest. Seb’s brain pounded in his head and his heart raced, sending blood rushing through his body into all five of his extremities. He squatted down and took the lid off the ice box, giving himself a minute to regain his composure. He breathed deeply. He could smell the sea air and sunscreen. He thought he could also smell Luci. Fresh and floral. This girl was doing his head in. She was quite unselfconscious, apparently quite comfortable stripping off in front of him. He guessed there was no reason why she should worry. She had no reason to think he wouldn’t be able to keep his eyes off her and people showed just as much flesh on Bondi Beach. But seeing her in a tiny bikini was sending his hormones wild. Not that it was her fault.
He was worried now, worried that she might prove irresistible, worried that he could find himself in hot water. She was down to earth, gorgeous, funny and she smelt sensational. And now she was stretched out beside him wearing nothing but a string bikini. He wasn’t sure how he was going to be able to keep his hands to himself.
He wasn’t sure he wanted to.
Actually, he knew he definitely didn’t want to but he had no idea what she thought. Maybe she was looking for some fun, maybe she was disillusioned after her divorce and was looking for some short-term satisfaction, but he suspected it was just wishful thinking on his part. He didn’t even know how long she’d been divorced. It could be five minutes or five months. She could have sworn off men altogether.
He offered to rub sunscreen onto her back. That was a legitimate way of not keeping his hands to himself and was possibly the best idea he’d had in a long time, along with inviting her out for the day. Her skin was soft and velvety smooth under his fingers. She lifted her hair away from the nape of her neck, getting it out of his way, and he was sorely tempted to press his lips to the knobbly bone at the base of her neck where it met her shoulders.
Instead, he stepped back, opened the ice box and offered her a drink. God knew, he needed something to help him cool off. He passed her a bottle of water. She sipped her water and then lay back, lifting her face to the sun and closing her eyes.
Seb turned back to the ice box and began to assemble a small plate of cheese, crackers and fruit. He was trying to keep busy, to keep his mind on mundane things and off the fact that a very attractive and semi-naked woman was lying inches away from him. He was unaccustomed to feeling this nervous, and to make matters worse Luci appeared completely at ease and unaware of the effect she was having on him. Which was probably just as well.
He could probably learn a thing or two from her. She was relaxed, easygoing and she didn’t appear to have let her failed marriage stop her from having fun. She certainly hadn’t shut herself off from others, like he had. He knew he had laughed more often and smiled more frequently in the past three days than he had in the past three years. And the only thing that had changed was that Luci had come into his life. He had separated himself socially, his focus had been on his work and his boat for the past three years, and he had kept any interaction with others to a minimum. His chosen response to any invitation was to decline it politely and yet Luci hadn’t hesitated to say yes to all three of his invitations—an after-work drink, a lift home on his bike and now a day on his boat.
For a man who had knocked back most opportunities to spend time with other people over the past three years he didn’t want to think about why he was suddenly inviting someone into his life. He must be crazy. Maybe his solitary lifestyle was slowly driving him mad.
What was it about Luci that made him feel the need to spend time with her?
He knew what it was. It was the way she made him feel.
Three years ago he’d lost everything, including a large chunk of his heart and soul, but Luci was waking him up again. He’d been holding his breath, marking time, treading water, and now he felt like he could breathe again.
He put the fruit platter into the shade and ran his eyes over her still figure. Her skin was already turning golden in the sun, her breasts were round and firm, her stomach flat, her legs were toned and athletic, and her toenails were painted pale pink.
Luci sat up. Had she felt him staring at her? Maybe, but she didn’t seem perturbed.
‘This is much more fun than studying,’ she said as she sliced a piece of cheese and popped it onto a biscuit. ‘I have never spent a day like this before. All the boat trips I’ve ever been on involved fishing with my dad in the Gulf of St Vincent in a little tinny, much like the one you rowed before. Nothing nearly as fancy as this.’
‘Wait until I finish her. Then we’ll be talking fancy.’
‘Really?’
Seb laughed. ‘No. I don’t need fancy. She just has to be comfortable. A decent bed and a fridge and I’ll be happy.’
Luci stretched her arms over her head and her breasts lifted. They were barely contained in her minuscule bikini and Seb couldn’t help but notice. He was finding it extremely difficult to ignore her. He really was in trouble.
‘Poor Callum,’ she said with a half sigh as she surveyed their surroundings. ‘I wonder what he’s up to this weekend. I think he might have drawn the short straw in the house-swap stakes.’
Seb smiled. ‘I’m sure he’ll be okay.’
‘Have you spoken to him?’ she asked.
‘No. I sent him a text, saying I was in town and that I was crashing at his place—after discussion with you. He replied saying he’s not fussed.’
‘I hope he’s settling in.’
‘You said he’s working with your dad?’
‘Yes. And with my friend Flick.’ Luci laughed, a warm, rich sound. ‘God, I hope he survives. There’ll be plenty of patients inventing illnesses in order to get a look at the new doctor. I hope he’s made of stern stuff.’
‘You don’t need to worry about us Hollingsworths. We’re tough.’ They were definitely the strong, silent type, masters of putting on a brave face and keeping their own counsel. Sometimes he wasn’t sure how they had managed to get through the couple of traumatic events they had faced in their lives but he didn’t want to think about those days now. Today was about Luci and he was keen to find out more.
‘You haven’t spoken to your dad?’
‘No, I’ve spoken briefly to Mum but not Dad. He works such ridiculous hours, I don’t like to interrupt unless it’s something really important. He’s supposed to be retiring this year. I know Mum is looking forward to that. Perhaps they’ll finally be able to do some of the things they’ve been putting off. But, of course, that depends on Dad finding someone to take over the practice. Even though Vickers Hill is only a couple of hours from Adelaide, not everyone wants to work in the country and he won’t leave his patients in the lurch.’
‘Vickers Hill is north of Adelaide?’ Seb asked, even though he knew the answer. He’d looked it up, intrigued to know where Luci had come from.
Luci nodded. ‘Known for its wine. Dad has bought a small acreage and he and Mum are going to grow grapes and have chickens and ducks. That’s the plan anyway. I think they should move further away otherwise Dad will find it hard to retire completely. Old patients will still come to him with their troubles if they see him around town but I guess that’s for him to sort out.’
‘Can you see them leaving?’
‘Not really.’
‘And what about you? Are you missing home?’
‘Not one bit. How can I be missing home when I’m surrounded by this? So far I don’t