Page 69 of Summer of Fire
‘There’s something I want to say,’ Jack said. ‘The other day when you asked about me and Hannah?’
‘Yes,’ she said, unable to breathe.
‘There is no me and Hannah,’ he said. ‘Not in that sense, anyway.’
‘No?’ Lizzie’s insides quivered and relief cascaded through her.
‘No. Call me slow but I only realised what you meant earlier today.’
‘So, you are not in love with Hannah?’ Lizzie’s stomach danced with nerves, but she pressed on, swallowing her pride. She had to be sure.
‘No, I am not. I have never been in love with Hannah. In fact, and this is the crazy bit, Hannah is my brother Henry’s girlfriend. She’s also the daughter of my mother’s best friend. If her mother is still alive, that is.’
All the pieces slotted together in Lizzie’s mind like a kaleidoscope as he painted the picture for her.
‘That’s why you care so much about Hannah!’
‘Yes, my brother and Hannah planned to marry, but then war broke out. He joined the RAF, and she joined the Resistance. And then she went missing. He was devastated, of course. I can’t wait to tell him she’s alive and well.’
‘Oh, thank goodness,’ Lizzie said. ‘Your poor brother. What he must have been through.’
Jack nodded. ‘Yes, although it’s far from over. The messageshe left for me showed she has no intention of leaving the Resistance. I’ve asked her many times to come to England. She’s already done so much to help the Allies, there would be no problem organising it. My mother would be overjoyed to have her stay in our family home. But Hannah is strong-willed and determined to do all she can to bring down the Nazis.’
‘I can see why she feels that way, given what they are doing to the Jews. And what they did to her family.’
Lizzie had thought about it a lot. She found it difficult to grasp the reality of seeing your family arrested and sent to a camp because they didn’t conform to the Third Reich’s Aryan criteria. It was hard to get her head around how cruel Hitler’s Germany had become in a few short years.
Jack sighed. ‘We need her in the field, but for the sake of Henry—and for my conscience—I would like to see her settled in London. It’s selfish, but it crushed me when she went missing. If anything happens to her, it will be on my head. I recruited her personally, so I feel responsible.’
Lizzie reached for his hand, and he clasped her fingers.
The air between them crackled as his skin brushed hers.
‘At least I have good news for Henry. And for my mother. It’s hard enough thinking of him flying every day. At least he will know now that Hannah’s alive.’
They looked into each other’s eyes and their faces drew closer and their lips touched. Jack kissed her, at first lightly, then more hungrily, like a starving man.
Lizzie kissed him back, but after a few seconds, she drew away abruptly and whispered, ‘You said it was a bad idea to get involved.’
If he was going to kiss her and then pull away again, she’d rather not kiss him at all. It was too painful to want him and lose him again.
He traced her lips with his finger and devoured her withhis eyes. ‘Itisa bad idea. But I’ve thought of nothing else since you left. Do you want me to stop?’
Darts of joy shot through her whole body, lighting her up, as his words registered. ‘No. I’ve thought of nothing else either. We could be dead tomorrow. Let’s make tonight a night to remember.’
He bowed his head and swept her into his arms. They were like two magnets circling each other until they were irresistibly drawn together again.
At that moment, nothing else mattered.
Lizzie forgot the danger that awaited her the following day, and she melted into him as they kissed. His hard body covered hers and this time she surrendered to his touch completely, and he to hers.
It was as though their souls and bodies merged into one, and she cried out in ecstasy as they made love deep into the night, until they fell into a blissful sleep in each other’s arms.
CHAPTER 33
The next morning, Lizzie stirred and turned to face Jack as he slept. His arms were still wrapped around her, and she snuggled into him, revelling in their closeness. The touch of his bare skin against hers was intoxicating, and she marvelled at how pleasurable their lovemaking had been.
After the fumbles she’d shared with her Jersey boyfriend who was a virgin like her, she hadn’t dared imagine it could be that amazing. Jack was a skilled lover, so there were benefits to falling for an older, experienced man, she reflected happily. Little shoots of elation surged through her tummy. If this was to be her last day alive, it was a good way to go, and she had no regrets.
