"Did you and Kate have a nice night?" He sat at the table and took a sip of the coffee.
"Yes. She wanted to write, so we did." Libby was still standing, and glanced between him and the door. "I should go."
He couldn't let her leave without clearing the air. "Libby, wait. Sit down." He pulled out the chair next to him and turned so he was facing her.
She hung back.
"We need to talk about last night."
"Okay." She sat. Their knees touched and Libby twitched. Desire curled in his belly. She was adorable, but he had to focus. "I don't get involved with Kate's nannies," he blurted and then cursed his bluntness.
Her shoulders slumped slightly, but she nodded. "It's not good for Kate."
No, it wasn't, but, darn it, he wanted this – he wanted her. Libby's body language suggested she wanted him as well. There had to be some way they could make it work. "Last night was the first time I've broken the rule." He paused and then took the risk. "I want to break it again."
Libby's eyes widened and he had to stop himself from kissing her right then. He took hold of her hand and rubbed his thumb over the back of it. "I'm not good with strangers." She didn't need to know why. "I enjoy spending time with you and I want to spend more time together." He paused. "But if you don't feel the same way, tell me and I'll leave you alone." He waited for her answer.
Libby was quiet for a moment. "I like spending time with you as well." She smiled. "But what about Kate?"
The question made Adrian like her even more. "We're only here for a couple more weeks. She knows nothing serious can come from this." He glanced at her. "At the end of the tour, you'll stay in Australia and we'll go home." It would be a casual relationship, a holiday romance.
Libby faltered and then nodded, maybe a little too quickly. "Of course."
They didn't know each other well enough for anything else, so why was he disappointed? Had he hoped she'd disagree with him?
Adrian tugged Libby closer, keeping his eyes on hers. "The choice is yours."
Indecision crossed Libby's face and then she smiled, her happiness showing in her eyes like a field full of sunflowers. She leaned forward. "Kiss me again."
He needed no further encouragement, and their lips met. There was an initial spark of lust, then, as they kissed harder and deeper, a feeling of contentment swam through him.
He clasped the back of her head, but the plait stopped him from running his hand through her hair like he wanted to. He stood and drew her into his arms, then kissed her again, using one hand to pull her tight while the other worked at undoing her plait. Finally her hair was free and he ran both hands through it, kissing her deeper again, and then ran a hand over her side and up to her breast.
Libby's soft gasp sent desire shooting through him. He found the hem of her sweater and traced his hand over her bare skin up to her lacy bra and over the swell of her breast.
She moaned softly and pulled back. "No. We can't. Kate."
She was right but he stole another kiss, hugging her closer and sampling her soft, luscious lips. He wanted to go further, do more, but her words echoed in his head. He released her, trying to clear his head, but his body still throbbed. "You're right." He rested his forehead against hers. "You make me forget everything." He'd never had to worry about a child before.
Her hands came up to his cheeks and she kissed him. She inhaled deeply. "I should go."
He wanted her to stay, but he had to ignore what his body was telling him. He had to think about Kate, but if he was going to be good tonight, he wasn't going to wait a few days to see her again. "Come with us tomorrow. We're climbing the Sydney Harbour Bridge."
"I'd love to." She kissed him again and then reluctantly stepped away, reaching for her bag.
Adrian took it from her and taking hold of her hand, he walked her to the door. Carefully he put the bag back on her shoulder and drew her close. He kissed her chastely. Anything else would make him forget his intentions.
"I'll see you tomorrow."
"I'll look forward to it." With a final glance back, she walked down the corridor. He watched until she was safely inside her room.
He'd definitely started something.
And he was happy.
Happier than he'd ever been before.
Chapter 12
Libby stared up at the enormous arch of the Sydney Harbour Bridge looming above her. She was beginning to doubt the wisdom of agreeing to go on the bridge climb with Kate and Adrian. Not only was she not good with heights, she was also taking another day off from her writing.
Was she letting herself get too attached? Should she have told Adrian no? He'd made it clear they weren't going to have a long relationship, that this wasn't going to last longer than the tour. She closed her eyes briefly. As long as she remembered that, she would be fine. She was allowed to do something frivolous just for herself every now and again. She could have a fling if she wanted to. She was a grown woman.
They would be discreet, and make sure Kate didn't have any unrealistic expectations. Neither of them wanted to upset Kate.
She wouldn't get caught up. Today she'd given herself the day off, but she would spend the next two days writing.
If the relationship wasn't going to last, she shouldn't spend her valuable writing time with them.
Her gaze followed the arch up and up to the summit, which suddenly appeared to be half a mile high. Squinting, she saw little ants climbing up the arch – human ants. Damn, it was high.
"Come on, let's go." Kate was bouncing up and down with excitement and tugging Adrian's hand.
"Settle down, kiddo. If you get too excited, they might not let you climb," Adrian joked.
Kate immediately stopped bouncing but tapped her hand against her thigh instead.
Happy to be distracted, Libby followed Adrian, Kate and George to the check-in point. They were greeted by a very passionate host, who took their details, made sure Kate met the minimum height requirement and set them up with all the safety gear.
Libby put on the special bridge suit and tied her hair back with the supplied scrunchie. Kate jabbered away to their tour guide, asking a million questions, but all Libby focused on was the swirling, sickly feeling in her stomach.
"I need you to all sign the declaration form and we'll be ready to go," their guide John said.
Libby read through the document. Could she say she wasn't fit enough to participate in the climb?
"Libby, are you almost ready?"
At John's voice, Libby realized the others were waiting for her.
"Ah, yes," she said, but she still wavered about signing the form.
"Libby's not good with heights." Adrian's southern drawl interrupted her thoughts.
"Don't worry, Libby," the guide told her. "We've taken loads of people up the bridge who've been afraid of heights. We'll take it really slow for you."
"Think of it as an adventure, Libby. I'll be right ahead of you," Kate said.
"I'll be right behind you to help," Adrian said. "Like you helped me." His smile soothed her nerves.
She could do this. Libby scrawled her signature at the bottom of the form and Kate jumped up and down in excitement.
"Fabulous. Now it's time for the safety briefing." John led them into a room where he took them through all the necessary safety information. Afterward Libby was a little more confident. The guides were definitely ready for anything and took safety seriously. She wasn't even allowed to take her camera in case she dropped it.
Libby followed them out of the check-in center to the start of the bridge climb and allowed herself to be clipped to the safety harness. George was directly behind the tour guide, followed by Kate, and then Libby, with Adrian behind her. The roar of traffic heading over the bridge was dulled by the headphones they wore to listen to John's commentary.
There was metal everywhere. Hard, strong, cold steel below and to each side. Libby ran her hands along it to reassure herself. Someone touched her shoulder and Libby turned to Adrian, who gave her the thumbs up sign.
The climb began, rung after rung, and for a while all Libby did was focus on putting hand after hand, foot after foot, and keeping her breath even. She had never climbed so many steps.
John told them about the history of the bridge and Libby focused on his voice and the climb, not looking down.
They soon reached a platform, where they stopped and rested for a moment. Kate's face was flushed with the exercise but she gave Libby two thumbs up. Libby smiled, breathing deeply, and looked out over the harbor. It was a beautiful, sunny winter's day, still cool, and not a cloud in the sky. There was a light breeze, and in the shade of the huge iron structure it was quite cold. Libby was grateful for the fleece John had given them to wear under the climbing suit.