Page 47 of So That Happened
They left the windows open and the late-afternoon sun bounced off the surface of the water, reflecting shards of light against the tiled walls.
Josie swished the water in front of her, sending ripples right down to where her toes poked up through the surface. Even now she was sitting in front of him her feet stopped well short of his.
It was so peaceful she experienced a pang of pre-emptive holiday sickness. At least that was what she thought it was. She’d never had this particular feeling before. Normally she was too intent on getting back to work to feel anything but relief at returning home. But the rush and hustle of the city felt a million miles away from them right at that moment.
He’d been right about her needing distraction. The anxiety she’d been living with for so long was greatly reduced when he was around. This was exactly what she needed.
Space. Time. Calm.
A hot man and plenty of no-strings sex.
13
They spent the next day in and out of bed, both hungry for more as they continued to explore each other’s bodies.
They’d come to a wordless agreement to keep things only about the sex, taking care to skirt around anything personal or vaguely emotionally inflammatory. After the intensity of the last few days Josie found it a welcome relief. This kind of arrangement should have felt sordid, but Connor’s easy nonchalance made it easy to bat away any niggles of apprehension. They both wanted the same thing and that made for the perfect balance in their non-relationship.
That night Connor tried to teach her how to make the dish he’d served the first time they’d eaten together, but they didn’t get very far before things escalated into a food fight and they ended up having messy sex on the kitchen floor.
She hadn’t laughed so much in her entire life.
This free love thing was a welcome antidote to the stress and rapidity of real life. She was a different person with Connor – someone who laughed and played around and woke up with a smile on her face instead of a frown. There was no urge to constantly compete and improve, and the surges of panic and anger that she’d lived with for as long as she could remember barely touched her consciousness.
She finally got why sex was so damn popular, having spent years feeling ho-hum about it. It was especially diverting when you had someone as moreish as Connor on tap.
Josie was in the kitchen washing up the breakfast things when Connor strode in and pressed himself close into her back, wrapping his arms around her waist and kissing the side of her neck.
‘I just heard from one of the other project leaders. There’s been a delay in getting materials out there so they don’t need me for at least another week,’ he murmured against her skin, his breath tickling the fine hairs there and sending sparks of longing straight to the erogenous zones he always made come alive when he touched her.
‘Oh, okay.’ She feigned nonchalance, but all the while her heart sang with joy in her chest, beating out a happy rhythm.
He gave her one last sucking kiss on her neck before releasing her and leaving the room, his heavy footsteps sounding a joyful pattern on the wooden floor.
She was glad he hadn’t asked whether she minded, because there was no way she’d have been able to lie well enough to convince him that she didn’t care whether he left or not.
* * *
A couple of days later they drove into Aix and wandered around the street markets, passing brightly canopied stalls groaning under the weight of gargantuan-sized fruit and vegetables. Josie’s mouth watered as the sweetly aromatic smell of produce ripening in the sun hit her nostrils.
Stopping to point out his selection to a stallholder, Connor chatted away in rapid French, making the guy chuckle so much he slipped them a free handful of strawberries. Josie marvelled at Connor’s ability to find common ground with everyone he met, tossing a compliment here and an interested question there, drawing everyone in to the warmth of his company. She envied his people skills – they were something she knew she’d do well to study and replicate.
The alien sense of belonging left her dumbstruck as he included her in the conversation, turning his body to encompass her in his personal space and directing every other comment in her direction. They could have been a couple out for a leisurely afternoon amble around the city for all anyone else knew. A twinge of gloom came out of nowhere, pinching her chest and leaving her breathless as it hit home how false this all was. How fleeting.
She must have made some sort of gasping sound, because Connor shot her a look of concern.
‘You all right, Josie?’
She nodded, flapping away his concern while scrambling to re-establish the sanguine mood she’d been so captivated by only a minute ago. It was like tipping over from being fun drunk to having had one drink too many.
‘Fine, I just need to sit down and have a break. It’s pretty hot out here.’
* * *
Connor took in Josie’s flushed face and the deep pinch of a frown on her forehead and realised it was time to move on. The last thing he wanted was for her to collapse in the heat again. Nodding a goodbye to the stallholder, he took her arm and guided her to the side of the busy street, searching around for somewhere to sit down.
‘Do you want to get a cold drink?’ he asked as she lifted the hair away from the back of her neck and flapped her hand up and down to create a wave of cool air.
‘Actually, I’m gasping for a coffee and something to eat,’ she said, her eyes wide and troubled. ‘I think my blood sugar’s a bit low.’
