Page 100 of Sugarloaf Ridge Lies

In the cold hard lightof morning, sipping coffee in the kitchen, I have no regrets. I hope to hell Liv doesn’t have any either. After she came, she completely passed out. As much as I wanted to stay, I returned to my room. Not only to deal with a serious case of blue balls, but having a taste of her, if she asked for more, I wouldn’t have been able to say no.

Getting her off is one thing. Being with her, having sex, making love, whatever form it takes, is something else entirely. It’s not right to continue in this direction when we haven’t had a serious talk about the baby.

What happens when the baby is here? And what about the father?

“Morning,” she says, her bare feet padding on the timber floorboards to the table.

“Mornin’.” I set about making her a tea.

She leans her hip against the kitchen counter as I dangle the teabag until it’s the shade she likes.

“I, ah,” she whispers.

I dispose of the teabag, hand her drink, and wait patiently for her to talk.

“Not sure what to say.” She brings the cup to her lips and blows on the hot liquid before taking a sip. And then another, regarding me, brows tight.

“It’s okay, Liv.” I break the silence. While I want to haul her in my arms, feel her tremble against me, as she did last night, I won’t pressure her. If she wants things to move further, it’s up to her.

“I want more, it’s just... Look at me.” Her shoulders drop and she glances down to her feet then back up to meet my eyes.

I lick at my lower lip as I give her a once over. “I’m lookin’, and don’t quite get what you’re sayin’.”

“Some days I feel as if I’m turning into a whale. I know I’m only seventeen weeks along, but I swear I’ll wake up one morning and poof! Whale.”

I chuckle. She seriously has no idea. I take the drink from her and pull her closer, so her belly presses against my waist. “If only you saw what I do when you look in the mirror. You’re stunning.”

She scans me with those piercing blue eyes, and in that moment I know. No matter what the future holds, I want to share it with this woman in my arms.

Liv guides her hands into my hair and sweeps back the long locks.

I run my palm over the same path. “I need a cut, I know. I look like nobody owns me.”

She runs the strands through her fingers once more, this time capturing the ends as if calculating the length.

“I can do it?” She shrugs.

“You know how?”

She nods. “Yep. I was an apprentice hairdresser when I was eighteen.”

“Well, okay then. How ’bout now?”

She holds her hands out wide. “I happen to be available.” She winks.

I take a chair to the bathroom and, before too long, Liv has a fluffy towel wrapped around my shoulders and is snipping away at my wet hair. Having her hands on my scalp has my insides in knots. Whilst I’m desperate for her touch, it has me itching to reciprocate.

“How long did you do hairdressing for?” I scan over the tubes of cream and makeup, which take up half the room around the basin. I like them there a little too much.

She combs and trims the next section. “Lasted almost a year. The salon I worked at was pretty bitchy. Add being paid peanuts for long hours on my feet sweeping hair, I decided it wasn’t for me. I just did cuts for my grandpa after that. I’ve never been able to cut long hair for some reason.”

“And your knowledge of taxes? Did you study for that?”

“Ah-ha. I completed a certificate in bookkeeping, and after a year of study I realised it wasn’t something I could do day in and day out. I need to be around people, not with my head buried in numbers.”

“Any other talents I should know about?”

She moves in close, trimming the hair around my ear. “Bees. I know how to look after bees.”

---