Page 54 of Best Laid Plans

He fought back an urge to pull her to him, to nibble and taste her neat little ears. ‘Cutest ears in the southern hemisphere,’ he said.

‘But they might not look too flash on a boy.’

She bit her lower lip and touched the pendant at her throat. ‘I wonder if it’s happening, Will. I wonder if I’m pregnant.’

‘You’re sure to be,’ he said and he did the only thing that was right. He reached for his clothes.

Lucy held back her tears until after Will left, but she’d never felt so desolate. To watch him walk away was like cutting of a lifeline and she felt like an astronaut adrift in endless emptiness.

But there was no point in letting him see how much she hated to let him go. He was heading off to Papua New Guinea tomorrow and he was sure to get a job there. She’d always known he was never going to be tamed and kept in one place.

He was a catch and release kind of man, like the wild animals she cared for and then set free.

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

WILL telephoned when he got back a week later. ‘Have you started tucking into the liquorice allsorts?’

Lucy was relieved to report, ‘Not yet.’

‘Any symptoms?’ he asked hopefully.

‘Hard to say. It’s still too soon, but I’ve been rather tired and I need to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night.’

‘They’re promising signs, aren’t they?’

‘Could be.’

Problem was, Lucy had become hyper-aware of her body, anxious to discover the slightest hint of change. She was sure she felt different this month, but she couldn’t be certain that the differences were real and not simply the result of her overactive imagination.

Just in time she bit back an impulse to tell Will she’d missed him. But it was true, of course. She’d missed Will terribly. Desperately. The longer he stayed away the more she was certain that making love to him on a second night had been even more dangerous than she’d feared. She loved him.

Still.

Always.

With all her heart.

She could no longer hide from the truth and she had no idea how she could go on pretending anything else.

But she had to accept that Will was never going to change, never going to settle down. He might be attracted to her, but he’d always been restless and he would always need to keep travelling, seeking new sights and challenges.

When she was younger, she’d known this, and she’d tried to protect herself by simply being his friend. Now she’d thrown caution to the wind and she had to accept that her love for him was a weakness she’d have to learn to adjust to and live with – the way other people adjusted to a disability.

‘How was your trip to Papua New Guinea?’ she asked, keeping her voice carefully light.

‘Oh, there’s plenty of work up there. I’ve had a couple of offers, so it’s a matter of deciding which job to take.’

‘That’s great.’ Good grief, she hoped she didn’t sound as unhappy as she felt. ‘A very fortunate position to be in.’

‘No doubt about that,’ Will agreed. ‘So… about you. This week is the week – the big countdown, right?’

‘Yes.’ Lucy let out a sigh. ‘I wish I didn’t have to wait. I’m afraid I’ve become mildly obsessive. I’ve taken to reading my stars in every magazine I can find. I’ve even thought about going to see Sylvie.’

‘Who’s Sylvie?’

‘The hairdresser in the main street. She tells fortunes as well as cutting hair, but I’m not quite desperate enough to trust her talents. I’m actually trying very hard to be sensible and philosophical.’

‘Will you use a home pregnancy test?’

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