Sam chuckled. "Yes. Even though we'll miss you a lot, Kris and I are already looking forward to those weekends. They'll be great because absence makes the heart grow fonder."
"Looks like you want me to pack up and leave Melbourne already."
"You know you're very close to accepting your boss's offer, Jaz. It's a senior role and it's more money. And I don't think you should worry about your parents being far away from both you and Jessa. I bet you when you make the move, they'd think about moving too."
"I hope so. I really do hate the thought that they'd be by themselves without one of their kids close by."
"What have your mum and dad said about you moving?"
"Well, Mum got teary when I told her but she said I should do what I want. But you're right, Sam. If I do accept the role, Jess and I could convince Mum and Dad to move here, too."
"Did you tell Jessa about your books before she left for her honeymoon?" Samantha asked.
"No. I chickened out."
"Why? You said you were excited about letting her know. I'm sure she'd be thrilled about the fact that there's another writer in the family."
Jasmine snorted. "Jess is one of the star writers for Lifestyle by Design. You know how huge that is, with the magazine being so highly popular and well-respected. Compared to her, I've got a long way to go."
"Hey, don't sell yourself short. If people knew your pseudonym, they would probably mob you before they would your sister."
"Yeah, right," Jasmine smirked. "Anyway, in relation to telling Jess about my writing, even though I could trust her to keep a secret from our parents, I don't think she would keep it from her best friends. They're as thick as thieves and tell each other almost everything."
Sam laughed. "Just like you, me and Kris."
She chuckled. "Yeah, just like us."
"Well, so what if Jessa tells her friends? Maybe they've even read one of your books and are already your fans. And from what you've told me, Jessa's friends are great people."
"They are," she confirmed with a loud exhale. "But one of them is Kane's sister."
"Aha! So it's really about the guy you want to run away from."
"I don't want to run away from him. He's simply not available."
"Fair enough. If that's the case, what would it matter if he learned about your secret life?"
Jasmine looked out the window as she twirled a strand of hair around her finger. Would it matter if Kane found out she wrote steamy romance novels? Even though her novels were a celebration of love and its physical expression, she anticipated not everyone would be open to them. Would he even want to read them? She grew warm at the picture of Kane reading the sexy scenes in her books.
She shook her head vigorously to rid herself of the embarrassingly erotic thought. It was ludicrous to keep dreaming about a man who was unavailable. Even if the other woman was only his girlfriend and not his fiancée, she would still keep her distance. After her humiliating experience with George, she didn't want to go where she could be painted as a whore who destroyed relationships.
But Kane said it was complicated.
"Jaz? You there?"
Samantha's voice jolted her out of her pondering. "Yeah, I'm here. What were we talking about?"
"Where did you go, girl? I said what would it matter if this guy Kane knew about what you do in your spare time?"
"You know I still very much want to keep my writing top secret. If I'm still too shy to even tell my family, why would I want him to know? We've only known each other for over a week."
"That's a point," Samantha agreed. "I guess I'm just intrigued by this sizzling attraction you two seem to have."
"I know, Sam," she said with a sigh. "There's something there. But he's engaged so there's no way we could be together."
Her chest hurt at the reality of her words.
~~~~~~~
Jasmine's fingers stopped tapping on her keyboard when her phone rang. Shoot. She was just finishing a scene where her lead character was having a toe-curling orgasm from the man she thought she'd lost forever.
She frowned at the caller ID. 'Blocked', it said. She stared at it, reluctant to answer for fear it could be one of her workmates wanting to chat about how her holiday was going, then ask a quick question or two about one of her clients.
What if it's Kane calling?
Her mind flashed a picture of Kane's head between her legs, giving her as much pleasure as her heroine just got, and she quickly moistened at the thought. Damn, it wouldn't do her good to think of him while she was writing erotic scenes.
The ringing had stopped and she felt a pang of regret for not answering it. What if it had been Kane? What if he was ringing to tell her he'd broken up with his fiancée because he couldn't stand the thought of never being with her? What if he wanted to tell her he couldn't wait to kiss her all over —