Page 29 of Lime Tree Hill

Here we go.“Noted. Two?”

“I want to stay in my parents’ place. Alone.”

“Separate houses?” He huffed and shook his head. “Sorry, but if the deal goes through, I’ve already promised it to one of my managers.”

“Well, where do you suggest I live?”

“Let me see? With me at Lime Tree Hill? I’ll be away for a week or two in November. That should give you a bit of a breather.”

“November’s months away.”

Mitch shrugged. They probably wouldn’t last until mid-winter, let alone spring, but it was good to plan ahead.

“Is there a spare room in that shed of yours?”

Noticing the blush on her cheeks, Mitch suppressed a grin. She was stunning up close. Fresh and clean and sexy. The type of girl who could easily slip under his skin. But her fierce determination impressed him the most. With Barry unwell, the realities ofpacking up their family home, and her return to Clifton Falls, she had a lot on her plate. But she always handled herself with such dignity.

“What, no snuggling together under a crisp set of cotton sheets? That’s not much fun.” He laughed at her shocked expression. “Anyway, it’s a loft, not a shed. And yes, there’s a spare room. It even has a bed. Number three?”

“You’re a surfer, aren’t you?”

“I am.”

“I want you to teach me.”

Mitch leaned back in his chair, his arms crossed as he studied her, keeping his reaction low-key. “What, to surf? Are you a strong swimmer?”

“Not really. But I’ve been taking swimming lessons in Sydney. At the Icebergs Pool.”

“Do you have a board?”

“Not yet. Will you help me pick one?”

“Sure.” Learning to surf was the last thing he’d expected as a condition. He’d tried to teach Prue once, without success, but he wasn’t averse to teaching Tayla. It might even be fun. “Why surfing?”

He noticed her hesitation.

“Our family spent a lot of time at the beach in the summer when I was a kid, but I never enjoyed swimming in saltwater. The waves scared me. The day after my sixth birthday, we were at the beach with friends. Lisa and Ruby promised to look after me while the adults set up the picnic. Dad insisted we stay in the shallows. But everyone got distracted, and I suddenly found myself out of my depth. I got caught in a rip and nearly drowned. According to family legend, when Dad realized what was happening, he screamed my name at the top of his lungs and ran into the waves. A surfer helped him pull me ashore. They had to resuscitate me, and I spent a night in the hospital.”

“Shit.” He reached for her hand and squeezed it, the gesture sonatural, he didn’t even think about it. “So how do you feel now when you’re in the surf?”

“Nervous on a good day, terrified the rest of the time.”

He frowned. “But you swim in the river?”

Color rushed to her cheeks as she pulled her hand back. He had seen her that day and she knew it. “Only by the grapefruit trees, where the current evens out. I can wet my hair, but not my face.”

“So why do you want to learn to surf if you’re afraid of the open water?”

She hesitated. “When I was in high school, being a surfer chick was a prerequisite for membership in the popular club. I was never that girl. It’s not that I want to relive those teenage years, but sometimes, when everything else seems impossible, focusing on one goal gets you through. Do you know what I mean?”

“Sure. I get that.”

“When I lived in Bondi, I walked along the beach most days. No matter the weather, surfers were always out, some of them for hours. I’d sit in the sand and watch, wishing I had the guts to join them. And despite what happened when I was a child, waves have always fascinated me.”

“Yeah, me too. I’m happy to teach you, but we should wait until summer. It’s no fun learning in the cold. Anything else?”

She took a deep breath. He was fairly certain she wanted to add another condition, but if she did, she wasn’t ready to voice it. “Not right now.”

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