Page 51 of Best Laid Plans

And she was falling apart with insecurity.

She wished she knew how Will really felt about this second night, but it was such a difficult question to broach. And she might not like his answer.

She told herself that she should be grateful he was willing to help, and she should be pleased that he hadn’t pressed her to talk about Josh. If she started down that track, she could revealtoo much about her feelings for Will. She could complicate the delicate balance of their friendship. Spoil everything.

Perhaps Will was nervous, too, because he arrived two minutes and thirty-five seconds early, but Lucy opened the door even before he knocked.

‘Evening, Lucy.’ His smile was shy, yet so charming it was surely designed to make her heart do back-flips.

She ran her damp hands down the side seams of her jeans. ‘Come on in.

Will came through the doorway but then he stopped abruptly. ‘I’ve brought you a little something,’ he said, holding out a slim box tied with purple ribbon.

‘Oh.’ Lucy gulped with surprise. ‘Thank you.’

‘I know rocks don’t really have special powers, but see what you think.’

Her hands were shaking and she fumbled as she tried to undo the ribbon, pulling the knot tighter, instead of undoing it.

‘Hey, I’ll get that.’

The brush of Will’s hands against hers sent rivers of heat up her arms. Her heart thumped as she watched the concentration in his face, the patience of his fingers as he deftly prised the knot free. Finally, he lifted the lid and showed her a neat little pendant on a pretty silver chain.

‘Will, it’s gorgeous. Is it an amethyst?’

‘It is, yes.’ He sent her another shy smile. ‘Apparently, amethysts have traditionally been linked to fertility.’

‘Oh, wow. That’s so thoughtful. Thank you. It’s beautiful. I love it.’

He smiled gorgeously. ‘Let me do it up for you.’

Lucy decided it was quite possible to melt just from being touched. She was burning up as Will fastened the pendant. She turned to him.

‘It suits you,’ he said. ‘It brings out a deeper blue in your eyes.’

To Lucy’s surprise he looked suddenly nervous. On impulse, she stepped forward and kissed him. On the mouth.

Gosh. When had she become so brave?

Will returned her kiss carefully, almost chastely and she felt a cold little swoop of disappointment.

She lifted her hands to his shoulders and felt him tense all over. ‘Will,’ she whispered. ‘What’s wrong?’

CHAPTER TWENTY

WILL knew he could do this.

All day, he’d rehearsed in his mind how he would make love to Lucy as her friend. He’d thought about nothing else as he’d driven the tractors up and down at Tambaroora and the whole idea had seemed solid and plausible.

Now, however, Lucy was close – kissing close – and his certainty evaporated.

Or rather, his certainty shifted focus. And the focus wasnoton friendship. Far from it.

He wanted nothing more than to gather Lucy into him, to kiss her with the reckless frenzy of a lover, to kiss her slowly all night long, to lose himself in her fragrant softness.

He wanted to forgetwhythey were doing this. He wanted to forget her past history with his brother. He wanted to think about nothing but...

Lucy.

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