He was breathing hard. So was Julia. She’d stepped back from him. It must have been she who had broken the contact, then, because Mac was sure his feet hadn’t moved. What was she thinking? What on earth could he say that might diffuse the intensity of what had just happened? Did he want to?
And then Julia peeped up at him and grinned.
‘You have to marry me now, you know,’ she said.
Mac’s jaw dropped but then it hit him. This was a joke. Maybe Julia’s reaction to the kiss had been nothing like his own. Or maybe she was just as astonished as he was and needed enough space to get her head around it. For whatever reason, she was going to make light of it and right now, it seemed the perfect way forward.
‘Hey…’ He feigned shock. ‘It was only a kiss.’
‘Only a kiss? Cheers, Mac.’ But her lips twitched and there was a glow of merriment in her eyes.
Mac’s smile felt rusty but it was still there. And it grew. He could feel it stretching something that had got way too tight inside him. ‘It was a pretty good kiss,’ he said thoughtfully.
Julia nodded in agreement. ‘Exactly.’ She sighed. ‘So now you have to marry me.’
Mac’s smile broadened. ‘Is that so?’
Julia nodded again. Firmly. ‘Yep. I paid attention at school and Sister Therese said…’
The bark of ironic laughter came from nowhere. Oh, God…if only Julia knew that she was making a joke about the very thing that had been haunting Mac so keenly. He could actually hear a faint echo of his own voice from a decade ago.
‘I’ll marry you, Chris. We can make this work.’
And hers. Scathing.
‘You can’t be serious! You think I want a kid? Holding me back? Interfering with everything I want to do with my life?’
‘It’s my baby, too. You can’t just—’
‘It’s my body, Alan. I can do whatever I like and you can’t stop me.’
How could he have thought that Julia and Christine were alike? The very idea of marriage had been an insult. A threat, even, to the woman he’d believed himself in love with. Something that could never have been discussed reasonably, let alone joked about.
That Julia could make a joke of it was the other end of the spectrum, wasn’t it? Maybe he should find that almost as offensive but, somehow, it wasn’t.
She didn’t know and, at this particular moment in time, it really didn’t matter. How could it, in the wake of that astonishing kiss that had taken him somewhere he’d never been before? A place that held release rather than tension. A pleasure so pure it was paradise.
Relief was coursing through him as well. If he wanted to make something out of this new development in their relationship with each other it was going to be up to him. Julia wasn’t bothered. She could laugh it off. Even better, any damage done by his behaviour tonight was repaired. They would be able to work together again without a barrier that would have been unbearable.
He could play this game. He could laugh it off too and make it go away.
‘Come on, then,’ he said, completely deadpan. ‘I’ve got a full tank in my car and Gretna Green isn’t that far away.’
Julia laughed. She turned away, shaking her head. ‘Are you kidding? I only listened to Sister Therese’s rules, I didn’t obey them.’ She was walking away now, towards her small car, but her words floated back, still coated with laughter. ‘Kisses don’t make babies. You’re safe, mate.’
Safe?
Safe?
Who was she trying to kid?
Mac wasn’t in a remotely safe place right now. What was worse, a part of him didn’t think he wanted to be either. The part that wanted to go after Julia right now and grab her and take her in his arms for another kiss.
At least part of his head was still functioning sensibly. He wrenched open the heavy door of his vehicle, eager to shut himself into the temporary sanctuary.
‘He what?’
‘Kissed me. Come on, Annie. This line is so good you might as well be here sitting on the end of my bed. You heard just fine.’
‘I’m just…surprised.’
‘You and me both.’ Julia’s laugh was hollow. ‘Actually, I have the horrible feeling it might have been me, kissing him.’
‘Who made the first move?’
‘Him. No, me. Oh, God, I don’t know. I was worried about him after the job because he’d been so quiet and I kind of ambushed him in the car park. And…and it just kind of happened. The thing is, what am I going to do about it?’
‘Why do you have to do anything about it?’
‘Because he’s my partner. The last three months have been the best I’ve ever had and I don’t want to spoil our working relationship. I might have already!’
‘Why? Was it a horrible kiss?’
‘No…’ Julia’s sigh was heartfelt. ‘It was even better than I thought it would be.’
‘Aha!’ Her sister pounced. ‘I knew you fancied him.’
‘Of course I fancy him. Who wouldn’t? He’s gorgeous.’
‘So what’s the problem? You’re a big girl now, Jules. Go for it. Lord knows, a fling would do you the world of good. How long has it been? Two years?’
‘Nearly three.’
‘So this is the perfect opportunity.’
‘Why?’
‘You’ve only got another three months there. More than long enough to find out if it’s a real possibility. An easy way out if it’s not. Life shouldn’t be all work and no play, you know.’
‘That’s rich, coming from you.’ Julia chuckled. Then she sighed. ‘It wouldn’t be just playing,’ she said then. ‘And that’s why I can’t go there. It’s just too scary.’
There was a short silence on the other end of the line. ‘You wouldn’t say that unless there’s something really special about him. You think you’re going to fall in love with him and get hurt again, don’t you?’
‘I’m probably halfway there already,’ Julia groaned. ‘And if I wasn’t before that kiss I certainly am now.’
‘All the more reason to try it out.’
‘I can’t.’ Julia shook her head even though her sister was half a world away from seeing the decisive action. ‘No way. Because he’s special. One of us would end up getting hurt. Probably me. Maybe both of us.’
‘Not necessarily.’
Julia spoke softly. ‘He adores kids, Anne. He’s the perfect father-in-waiting.’
‘Oh-h-h…’
The sound was so full of understanding and sympathy it brought tears to Julia’s eyes.
‘You won’t believe what I said to him after that kiss.’
‘What?’
‘I said…’ Julia had to catch her breath to swallow a sob that was determined to escape. ‘I said that he’d have to marry me now because of what Sister Therese used to say at school. Do you remember? About kissing and babies?’
‘Oh,