Page 99 of Reluctant Chemistry

His mind racing, Luka only registered three words:bikini, bag,andlock. “Yeah, thanks.”

He sat in the driver’s seat and ran his hands over the steering wheel, CeCe all but forgotten as soon as she disappeared inside. Luka studied the dash, inserted the key in the ignition, and grinned when the Kombi started first time. He shifted into reverse, and as he backed around the house to the front door, he laughed at the sound ofMagical Mystery Tourstreaming through the speakers and the faint whiff of lavender from the tiny bunch hanging off the rearview mirror.

CeCe stood on the deck, a look of pure joy lighting up her face. Luka rolled the window down farther. “Are you coming, Kombi Girl?”

She pretended to hesitate before leaping onto the driveway. He expected her to open the passenger door and jump inside, but instead, she stuck her head through the driver’s side window, cupped his face, and kissed him. “I could get used to this look on you, Chopper Guy. Parked up in the front seat of my Kombi.”

“You just kissed me.” He leaned out the window and kissed her back.

“Yeah. I thought it was about time I showed up.”

46

Whiskey Over Ice

Luka took the back route, past the airport, and turned off at the junction of Five Mile Delta and the Eastern Pacific Highway. From there, Petrie Bay was barely fifteen minutes’ drive. With orchards and market gardens along one side of the road and the South Pacific Ocean in the distance on the other, it was CeCe’s favorite stretch of coastline.

As they passed Lime Tree Hill, ‘Magical Mystery Tour’ flowed through the speakers. Luka looked at her and smiled. “This CD’s kinda growing on me.”

“Yeah? Someone left it in my mailbox, gosh, almost five years ago now.” She smiled as she recalled arriving home that Tuesday after Easter to find a small package from Luka on her nightstand with the CD and her sarong inside.The first time she’d played the title track, she’d lain on her bed and cried.

The day had been a scorcher, with no breeze and a burned-off sky, and waves spoke in whispers as they approached a parking spot at the northern end of the bay. She’d never seen it so calm. Out enjoying the perfect conditions, kids frolicked in the breakers, and along the shoreline, families gathered for picnics.

They sat and watched the roll of the surf until Luka turned side-on in his seat. “Thank you. I really needed this today.”

“How come?”

“I thought we’d lost our way.”

His words wrapped around her like an old friend’s embrace. He leaned forward, his breath warm on her neck, and kissed her, one hand on the steering wheel and the other along the back of her seat. CeCe relaxed into his touch, and as his tongue swept her mouth with impressive style, her shoulders loosened.

Luka pulled back and smiled. “Shall we go for that swim?”

“I think we’d better. I’m suddenly feeling all hot and sweaty.”

His chuckle followed CeCe out the door. Beside the van, she tugged her dress over her head and stood before him in her bikini.

He stared. “That color really suits you.”

“Thanks. I just bought it today.” She tightened the straps at her neck. “I’m not normally a fan of bright green, but the sales assistant talked me into it.” She watched him, those moody eyes intense as always. “Are you coming in?”

A playful look flashed across his face. “In where?”

She leaned forward and helped him out of his T-shirt. “The water, remember?”

He grabbed her around the waist with both hands. “Maybe we should just head back to my place and park the Kombi in the shade.”

“No way.” She stepped back. “Get those jeans off, Chopper Guy, before I take them off for you.”

CeCe turned and headed for the water. By the time he caught up with her, she was already knee-deep in the surf. He swept her up and carried her as he waded through the breakers. And when he set her on her feet, she could feel his hardness as their bodies molded together.

Saltwater on their lips and sun in their hair, they kissed. And as Luka wrapped her in his arms, his gaze searched hers. “I never stopped caring about you, CeCe, and as much as I tried to in the past, I now have no desire to get over you.”

He released her and drifted away on the ebb of the tide until he was out of reach. Just like their first time together at Sandwater Bay, CeCe floated through the swell and watched him swim toward the horizon, his stroke relaxed but powerful.

CeCe closed her eyes and drifted on her back, letting the waves lift and lower her as she recalled those Tulloch Point days. So much had happened in the years they’d been apart, but as the sun gradually lost its strength and a light breeze rippled across the bay, those years ceased to be of importance. By his own admission, Luka had no desire to get over her, just as she had no desire to get over him.

Their next step could only be forward.

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