She had no words at all. In all her wildest dreams she had never imagined this.
‘Aria, I’m going to kiss you now, something I should have done a very long time ago.’
He bent his head at the same time she leaned up and suddenly they were kissing and it was everything she had ever imagined it would be, like two halves connecting. His kiss was gentle as he wrapped his arms around her. She slid her hands around his neck, pressing herself up against him. God, she had wanted this so much for so long. She pulled back briefly to look at him. His eyes were filled with affection and warmth and she leaned up and kissed him again.
Noah’s phone beeped in his jacket pocket and she pulled back.
‘Crap, sorry,’ he said, brushing his hand through his hair. ‘I have lunch with your dad now and, as much as I love your dad, I’d much rather stay here with you.’
Aria smiled, shrugging out of his jacket and handing it back to him. ‘Go, he said he’s got something to ask you.’
‘What’s that?’
‘I have no idea.’
Noah sighed. ‘I better go. Would you like to have dinner with me tonight? In my suite, where we have more time and no interruptions.’
She was suddenly unable to find any words as images of what might happen once she arrived in his suite flashed vividly through her mind. God, she wasn’t ready for that. They’d had one kiss. Well, that and years of flirting, but still, it seemed a sudden leap. Maybe he just meant dinner and this was all completely innocent.
‘I’d like that a lot,’ Aria smiled.
‘And if you really don’t like the tattoo I gave you, then we can wash it off… in the shower.’
Her heart thundered in her chest. There could be no mistaking his intentions now and there wasn’t a single part of her that didn’t want that.
He gave her another brief kiss and then stepped back, parted the branches and ran back to the hotel.
She smiled as she leaned against the trunk. Her whole life had been on this tiny island, but right now her world seemed that little bit bigger.
Aria was sitting in reception a while later, giving Katy a fifteen-minute break. She had never been so happy before in her life. She ran her fingers gently over her lips. She could still taste Noah there and she couldn’t wait to kiss him again later in his suite. She’d seen him and her dad talking over lunch earlier. Sometimes she would join them in their meetings and they’d talk about hotels or put the world to rights, but her dad had specifically said that lunch today was a private chat. It had looked very serious, whatever it was.
She moved her fingers to where Noah had drawn on the back of her neck. She’d looked at the drawing as soon as she’d got back to the hotel and found a small heart, which had made her smile even more. All of this felt too good to be true, but it was: they had kissed, he had talked about moving here.
Noah suddenly walked into reception and her heart soared at the sight of him. It took her a few seconds to realise he was dragging his suitcase behind him.
She stood up. ‘Are you leaving?’
He nodded, looking distraught. ‘Something’s come up.’
‘Are you OK, what’s happened?’ Aria said.
He shook his head. ‘I’m sorry, I really am.’
‘For what?’
This wasn’t making any sense.
‘For… before, in the garden…’
She stared at him in shock. He was back-pedalling, going back on what he’d promised her.
‘Wait, you’re coming back, right?’ Aria said.
After the longest time, Noah shook his head. ‘I don’t think that’s a good idea.’
Her eyes widened. She instinctively touched the heart he’d drawn on the back of her neck and his mouth pulled into a tight line.
‘I’m so sorry.’ He handed her his business card. ‘Can you email me my invoice and I’ll make sure it gets paid.’
She just stared at him, finding no words at all as he started to walk away. He turned back. ‘Aria, I will always be here for you, as a friend. If you need me, if you want to talk, as friends, then my number is on the card.’
‘Friends? After what we just shared, that’s what you’re offering?’ Aria said, finding her voice.
‘That’s all I can offer right now, I’m sorry.’
With that he turned and walked away, taking her heart with him on his way out.
Chapter Two
Present day
Aria stared at Noah Campbell’s name on the reservation list and sighed. That day they’d kissed had been the last day she had been truly happy and then everything had fallen apart. She had been devastated by Noah’s betrayal, hurt that she had trusted him, angry that after what she had told him, he’d still left.
But then everything had got a whole lot worse. A few days after Skye and Clover had got there, her dad told them all that he had only a few weeks to live. By Easter he had gone, and if Aria had thought the pain Noah caused her was bad, it was nothing compared to that of losing her beloved dad.
Noah had called several times after her dad had died, but she’d never taken any of his calls. He’d been at the funeral, of course. There had been people there from all over the world to give her dad the big send-off he deserved. Noah had given her his condolences – he possibly might have squeezed her shoulder, she couldn’t remember, the whole day had been a bit of a blur. He’d told her they needed to talk, and to give him a call when she was ready. But she’d never called him. She didn’t want to hear how the kiss had been a mistake. After he’d let her down so spectacularly, she didn’t want to talk to him at all.
Except today he was coming back and he wasn’t staying for a few days as he had on all his previous visits, he was going to be here for a month, and she had no idea why.
She didn’t know how she was supposed to react to him when he arrived, but she was damned sure she wasn’t going to hide away from him.
She picked up her clipboard so she looked busy and walked out into the reception area.
‘Has Mr Campbell arrived yet?’ Aria asked Tilly, one of the receptionists.
‘Not yet,’ Tilly said.
Aria glanced up at the amusement in Tilly’s voice and saw she was smirking at her.
‘What’s that tone for?’ Aria said.
‘Well, it’s the fourth time you’ve asked today.’
Aria let out a heavy breath, giving up the act. She had known Tilly all her life and there was no point trying to hide anything from her.
‘It’s not what you think,’ Aria said. Well, it had been exactly what Tilly was thinking but not anymore. ‘There was… a bit of a bad experience the last time Mr Campbell was here and I’d rather I met him head on.’
Tilly rubbed her oversized belly as she eased back onto the chair. The poor girl probably should have gone on maternity leave a few weeks before but Aria knew that Tilly didn’t want to let her down. Tilly hadn’t quite reached her due date yet but Aria guessed the baby would arrive any day now.
Tilly fixed her with a look, seemingly not convinced. ‘It feels like something more to me. You seem nervous and agitated and I’ve never seen you like this before for any guest. I can’t decide if you’re happy about seeing him or angry.’