Page 13 of Prognosis Irreconcilable Differences

CHAPTER THREE

Jacqueline stood staringat the Gold Coast panorama before her as the last of the sunset’s orange hues turned to a blushing crimson in the evening sky and lights twinkled on up and down the coast. Nathan’s sixtieth floor penthouse in Q1 towered over all the other skyscrapers, and dwarfed Surfers Paradise beach far below.

Was it only this morning she’d been tucked up safely in her sleepy little hollow, in another state, living her life her way? In a few short hours she’d not only crossed state borders but surrendered control of her life to Nathan.

For now.

She placed her hand against the floor-to-ceiling glass, feeling the cool against her palm. She shut her eyes and then opened them. The stunning view greeted her again. She gave another quick blink.

Nope. Still there.

She wasn’t sure if it was vertigo or the enormity of being back in Nathan’s world, but she suddenly felt dizzy. She placed her other palm on the glass, reaching for an anchor amidst the unexpected turbulence in her life.

Nathan walked into the massive open plan lounge and spotted her by the windows, stopping to stare at her silhouetted figure. She’d barely spoken to him since breakfast. She hadn’t been sullen, merely...resigned, packing and making her own locum arrangements while he organised their transport.

Which had made him feel worse. Spitting-mad-angry he could handle — hell, he was used to it from volatile Jacqui — but this subtle duty-under-sufferance routine was tapping his guilt reservoirs and milking them for all they were worth. The fact that he was totally beat, the dying remnants of the flu still maintaining a foothold in his system, left him more susceptible to her silent censure.

Maybe it was his lowered resistance, but watching her as she admired the view he couldn’t help but think she looked good here. Which was a stupid thought.

Pointless.

She was here for such a short time, and then she’d be gone. Here to play her part and then disappear, with their signatures on a dry legal document.

But he couldn’t deny the unsettling feeling he’d had of late that something was missing from his life. Back at Jacqui’s house, having Shep around again, he’d thought maybe it was animal companionship he’d been lacking. But now, having Jacqui here, he wasn’t so sure. Maybe it was her? Or at least a woman to share his life with.

Her shape called him from across the room. Even after years of not seeing her, her body was as familiar to him as his own, and his fingers curled into his palms in primal recognition. From her height, to the rich glory of her russet curls, to the strength of the muscles in her arms, thighs, calves and stomach — every detail was imprinted into his fingertips.

Silhouetted like this, he could see the angle of her shoulder blades, the arc of her spine, the curve of her waist, the dip of her back, the rise of her bottom. He remembered those places vividly despite the years. He remembered how she liked to be kissed, where she liked to be touched, and how she sounded when she came apart in his arms.

In fact, there wasn’t anything he didn’t remember. And, flu or not, he wanted to touch her again so badly desire sucker-punched him hard in the solar plexus and fogged his vision. He grabbed the back of a chair, his fingers biting into the fabric as he fought for control.

He hadn’t expected this. He hadn’t expected to feel such a potent rekindling of the lust that had enthralled him in the earlier years, blinded him to their differences. Sure, he’d expected to feel some attraction — Jacqui was still a damn fine-looking woman — but he’d thought it would be gentler, mellowed somehow, more nostalgic.

Not like this. This powerful surge of possession that had him in its grip. This urge to brand her as his own again if only for a few weeks. He’d fooled himself into thinking he could see her again, and have some faux platonic reconciliation and it would all be terribly civilised. But he wasn’t feeling remotely civilised at the moment. He was feeling very, very primal.

He blinked to dissipate the haze of longing, and took a deep breath before releasing his grip on the chair and moving towards her with sudden clarity. ‘I’ll put your bag in the master bedroom.’

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