Page 6 of Seduction Under the Southern Stars

“Oh, Elora…” Hallie’s voice is soft. “I’m so sorry.”

“No wonder you were shocked to see him,” Zoe says.

I force a laugh as Fraser lifts a brow. “Oh, it was a long time ago now. It was hard, but I got over him. I assumed he’d stayed in Europe somewhere. I didn’t even think to look him up.”

The truth is, though, that I didn’t want to know. I didn’t want to see him on Facebook or Instagram, and look at photos of him living another, better life. Of him with other women. I didn’t think I could bear it. He’d gone, and I had a feeling he wouldn’t be coming back. Why would he, for a fourteen-year-old girl with whom he’d exchanged one single kiss? I was young, but I thought enough of myself to be determined not to pine for him forever.

So I pushed him to the back of my mind, where he has remained like an old book on a shelf, gathering dust.

But I’ve never gotten over him. And now he’s back, looking a thousand times more handsome.

Oh my. How am I going to cope?

Chapter Two

Linc

I walk to the museum’s entrance, pull out my phone, and call for an Uber. While I’m waiting for a ride to pop up, Joel appears at my side.

“I could have driven you there,” he says.

The phone registers a Toyota Prius four minutes away, and I press accept. “Ah, it’s okay. It’s not far.”

“So you’re coming back here afterward?”

I nod.

We study each other in the warm January sunshine.

“Dad wouldn’t like it,” Joel says eventually.

“So don’t tell him.”

Joel’s lips twitch, and I know he’s probably feeling the same as me, like we’re sixteen again, smuggling a pack of beers into the barn, where we used to hide, as alcohol was forbidden at Greenfield. Atticus knew, of course. Joel’s dad was smarter than I gave him credit for, and he always let us get away with just enough to make us think we were being rebellious. I respected him then, though, and I respect him now. He loves his daughter, and he only wants what’s best for her. But I’m no longer under his jurisdiction, and I don’t have to answer to him anymore.

“Did you know she’d be here?” Joel asks. “When you came to meet me?”

“I had no idea. I didn’t even know she was still into archaeology.”

It’s an outright lie. I’ve never asked Joel about her, but I have, of course, Googled her, and searched for her on social media. She has Facebook and Instagram accounts, but they’re both private, and Atticus gave me strict instructions not to contact her, so I didn’t want to send her a friend request. But I know she went to Victoria University here in Wellington. And I knew she was working at the National Museum.

“She got a First-Class Honors degree in Archaeology,” Joel informs me, “and she’s taking a Master’s now. She’s smarter than you and I put together.”

I laugh. “Yeah. That doesn’t surprise me. She was always the most intelligent person in the room, even as a kid. So… she’s not… you know… married or anything?”

“No.”

“Boyfriend?”

“No…” He narrows his eyes. “Are you here to cause trouble for her?”

“I wouldn’t dream of it. There’s only so much havoc even I can cause in a couple of days.”

Joel snorts. “Right.”

I grin and clap him on the shoulder. “Relax, bro. It’s good to see you.”

He gives a reluctant smile. “Yeah, good to see you, too.”

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