Page 54 of Highland Games
‘I forgot how much you know about the rat life cycle. At least you haven’t got him a girlfriend.’
‘Oh, I’m still considering it. I can’t have him lonely when I’m out.’
He looked at her and she smiled back innocently.
She helped him heft the pieces of the bed together until all that was left was the headboard. He hesitated before unwrapping it, his fingers pausing on the buckle of the ratchet strap.Just get on with it.He tugged the straps apart and the blankets fell to the floor with a heavy thwump.
‘Can you take the other end and we’ll get it into place?’
There was no reply from Zoe. He held his breath.
She had seen it.
‘Is that me?’she asked in a hushed tone, walking forward.
In the centre of the headboard, in the middle of the tree canopy, where before there had been a circle of unfinished wood, was now her face, her long curls waving out to join in with the leaves of the tree. The carving was of her head, neck and bare shoulders. She could have been wearing a low-cut dress, or she could have been a naked wood nymph. Sitting on her left shoulder, peeking out from behind a single curl of her glorious hair, was Basil.
A lump formed in her throat. It was like looking at her reflection staring out from a mirror of gold, a mirror that hid all your flaws and showed you the beauty often only others could see. She didn’t want to believe it was her and yet knew to her soul that it was. Did he see her like that? She was beautiful, ethereal. And yet there was also a glint of humour in her expression, a Mona Lisa smile.
His face was blurry through her tears. ‘Is that really me?’ He nodded. ‘It’s incredible. Did you use a photo?’ she asked, her voice a whisper.
He shook his head. ‘I didn’t need one. My head’s so filled with you, there’s no room for anything else. You’re the only thing I see.’
His eyes were so bright, as if he was trying to offer up his soul to her. But there was something else too. Something desperate. She blinked, then the look had gone.
He lifted up the headboard. ‘Can you hold this up for me?’
She complied, watching him absorbed in his work, his strong hands gently tapping in wooden pins. In a painful moment of clarity she realised she had fallen into an endless abyss of love. A love she had never experienced before. No one else had ever touched her heart in this way. When they met in the courtyard, he had been a physical god. Now, that physical attraction had deepened into something else, something luminous and transcendent. She had seen his strength, his vulnerability, his humour, his creativity, his commitment to any task set before him. She knew the outer shell of his looks was just a fantastic illusion. The true treasure lay within.
When the slats were fitted, Rory pulled the cover off the mattress and they heaved it into place. The bed was vast; an entire city state. Zoe shivered in anticipation and went to the boxes containing her bedding.
She brought out a soft wool mattress protector and Rory went to the other side of the bed by the wall to help her put it on. She felt a thrill watching him. The task of making a bed so mundane, and yet with him, and this bed, in this place, it was so magical her heart almost stopped. His movements were so confident and strong, his gaze so intent.
She put the folded bottom sheet in the middle of the mattress and he took it and shook it out.
‘Do you know how to make a bed properly?’ he asked.
‘What?’
‘It was one of the first things I learned in the army. And now, you’re going to learn the vital skill that has kept our country safe for so long.’
She giggled. ‘Do I have to be able to bounce a bullet off it at the end?’
Rory raised an eyebrow and her heart rate spiked. ‘I could bounce a grenade.’
Desire shot like lightning through her body. The skin of her breasts contracted, her nipples tingling. Nervous anticipation fluttered in her tummy, and a pulse throbbed deep inside her. She grabbed the sheet. ‘Okay then, Rambo, show me how it’s done.’
They both took the sheet and lifted it into the air. It billowed like a parachute above them, then settled slowly onto the bed. Rory lined it up so the crease line lay exactly down the middle, then smoothed the surface out with his big hands.
‘Would you like me to get the tape measure?’ she asked snarkily.
He stared at her. She looked quickly away, immolated by the fire in his eyes.
‘Okay. We’re going to do the corners first. Take the long bit out like this, then we’re going to tuck this end underneath to make the corner neat and tight and tuck it under like so.’ His demonstration was masterful.
‘Oh! Hospital corners. I always do them.’ She deftly tucked in the corners of the sheet on her side, as he had done. He deflated.
‘Have I saved the free world yet?’ she asked.
