Page 89 of Lime Tree Hill

“Tough titty? Who says that?”

“Excuse me.” Ruby cut into her chicken. “I’m trying to impart words of wisdom here.”

Stabbing a potato with her fork, Tayla smiled. “Go ahead.”

“But if he does, and you’re timid and unsure, that doesn’t make for an equal partnership. And equilibrium is the key to a successful relationship, don’t you agree?”

“Yes, but?—”

Ruby pointed her knife at her sister. “Stop right there. Do you want to be a ‘yes but’ girl all your life? Let’s break it down. What’s your main concern?”

Taking a calming breath, Tayla sat up straighter. “I can’t stop thinking about him…you know, in that way. Being apart makes it worse. I even dream about him sometimes.”

Ruby leaned across the table and whispered, “Sex is your main concern?”

“It’s okay for you. You started young. I had no idea what I was missing. Now it’s as if we have a connection that I can’t explain or comprehend.”

“Excuse me. I was a perfectly respectable eighteen when I started,” Ruby said, her lips twitching at the corners. “So, I take it he’s good in bed?”

Heat crept up Tayla’s neck and face. She had no comparisons to draw from, but even so… No man made love to a woman the way Mitch did without knowing a thing or two. “Don’t be nosy.”

Ruby laughed. “He’s good. In fact, by the look of that blush on your cute little cheeks, I’d say he’sexceptionallygood.”

“We’ve only been intimate for a short time, but it’s like I’m a different person. Guys never noticed me before, but since I’ve…well, I can feel it—that interest from men. Weird, don’t you think?”

Ruby lifted her glass toward her lips but stopped halfway. “Doesn’t that make you curious?”

“About what? Sleeping with someone else?”

Her sister shrugged.

“No, I couldn’t think of anything worse.”

“Yeah, I’m the same. Imagine showing your bits to another man.” Ruby raised her wine glass in a toast. “Congratulations.”

“For what?”

“You, my baby sister, have finally fallen in lusty love.”

Tayla clinked her glass against Ruby’s, unsure of how to respond. All this time, she’d convinced herself she wasn’t falling in love with Mitch. But lust? Tayla was definitely in lust with her husband. Maybe ‘lusty love’ was just another term for sexual chemistry. “I have, haven’t I? That’s crazy!”

Tayla climbed off her scooter and removed her helmet before strolling down the path and up the steps to her front door. A pair of running shoes to the left of the mat puzzled her. Her sister had left two days before, and anyway, they were much too large to be Ruby’s. Once inside, she checked out the tiny living area, then tiptoed to her bedroom and peeked around the doorjamb.

Mitch lay naked on the bed, a sheet draped across his lower back, a paperback face down on the pillow next to him, and his rounded butt on full display. He stirred and rolled over, the filtered glow through the shutters casting ribbons of sunlight across hischest. Her eyes widened at the sight of his erection tenting the cotton sheet. She stared as he flashed his lazy smile.

“You’re home.” He sat up and propped the pillow behind his head, seemingly without a care in the world.

Tayla stayed glued to the spot. “What are you doing here?”

He laughed. “Visiting my beautiful wife.”

She stepped forward. “Why didn’t you tell me you were coming? Everything’s almost packed, the fridge is bare, and I need a shower.” She paused for a breath. “And how did you get in?”

He held out his hand. “Hey. Come here.”

She sat beside him, bursting into tears as relief washed over her. “I can’t believe you’re really here.”

Cradling her face in his hands, he kissed her with care. “I missed you. Your landlady thought me turning up on your doorstep unannounced was so romantic that she didn’t hesitate in letting me in.”

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