Page 57 of Her Dom's Secret Past

Chapter Sixteen

John

I’m a rightgit!

We’d gone shopping and had a blast, but I insisted on doing more even when Anabelle said no. No wonder I ended up barely able to walk. All I could do was thank the heavens that I found Anabelle, because I didn’t know of many other women who’d put up with me.

Our long weekend was perfect. On Monday, some of the furniture was delivered and the rest came on Thursday. We had fun setting up what had arrived. My barbecue was delivered, but it wouldn’t be installed until later in the week, which meant we couldn’t test it out. Anabelle kept telling me how much she loved the house and it made me very happy. I hoped eventually she’d move in permanently.

She was in my life now and I intended for her to remain—I adored her dearly and with each passing day that love only deepened. She was on my mind continually and I kept planning ways to make her happy.

I drove her to work on Wednesday morning and I thought she was as sad as I was that the weekend was over. When I suggested we make it a permanent arrangement, she hesitated.

“Are you sure, John?”

“Sure? Heavens, it’s the one thing in this world I am sure about. When I thought I’d never see you again, I was certain my world was crumbling around me. I had no interest in anything. All I could think of was that I’d lost you. Now I’ve found you again. My heart is singing. I never want to be apart from you.”

She searched my face and then she gave me one of those beautiful smiles that lit up her eyes.

“In that case, I’d love to.”

That night I picked her up after work and took her back to the apartment. Somehow, I ended up spending the night, but the next morning she insisted on taking herself to work. She explained Thursday nights she often had late appointments. She never knew what time she’d get away from the salon. I could see her point so I didn’t see her again until I took her to dinner on Friday night.

It was funny. We’d only now found each other again, but not seeing her Thursday night made me rather lost. I was sure all day Thursday and most of Friday I kept thinking I’d never see her again.

When I lost her, my heart had shattered and then to find her again, I was like a man renewed. I guessed that was why I missed her. Maybe part of me worried this was all a dream and she wasn’t back in my life.

Anyway, I picked her up from her apartment on Saturday afternoon and we took in a movie. After the movie we had dinner before driving back to the house. That meant Anabelle could stay through until Wednesday morning. Life couldn’t get any better unless she moved in permanently.

We had coffee in the sitting room overlooking the deck and river. I heard Anabelle give a huge sigh. I turned my head and watched her.

“It’s peaceful here. As soon as I arrived, all the stress of the week just disappears.”

“I’m glad. Now you have the next three days to relax.”

“Have you seen your kangaroos?”

“Yep, most mornings they’re out and I’ve seen them once in the evening. They’re doing a good job of eating the grass, but I think I’ll need to get someone in to mow.”

“Good idea. There’s a lot of grass down there.It’swinter now and it won’t grow too much, but come summer, it will go absolutely crazy. If I were you, I’d leave a little area for the kangaroos.”

“I wonder what other animals are hiding in the bush.”

“Oh you’ll have plenty. There’ll be possums, both ring-tail and brush tail. Bandicoots, koalas, and your kangaroos. Wallabies, echidnas, and lots of bats. Lots of other animals and birds. Oh, and wombats.”

“Wombats! LikeRolly?”

“Yep, just likeRolly. There’ll be others too, the list would be very long.”

I couldn’t believe the amount of animals Anabelle was listing, and to think there would be my very ownRolly. I hoped I manage to see one. This was so different from my home in England. I lived right in the middle of London and pigeons with the occasional swans and ducks were the most I’d see. Here, I’d seen birds of every imaginable shape and size, lots of them. They were brightly colored and rather noisy, but I’d grown to love it.

“There are lots of birds that come around. Some of them in big flocks and they are brightly colored. They arrive when the sun rises and are rather noisy.”

“Probably Rainbow Lorikeets if they are colored.”

“They’re red, blue, green, and yellow.”

“Okay, then that’s what they’d be.”

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