Sweet as Honey (The Seven Sisters) - By Caitlyn Robertson Page 0,5
was that which she chose to give him. And whatever Dex had felt for Cathryn was well and truly gone after what she’d done to him.
The past didn’t matter. Who they’d been with, what had happened before they met—that was all irrelevant. All that mattered now was being with him, and being loved by him.
“I love you,” she whispered. She nuzzled his neck, smelling his subtle aftershave, and touched her lips to his warm skin.
“And I’m crazy about you.” He lifted her chin and kissed her again. “Want me to show you how much?”
Her lips curved. “You’re such a wicked man. Doesn’t it worry you that people might see you canoodling in your uniform?”
“I’m off duty. And ‘canoodling’? What century are you from again?”
She gave a happy sigh as he continued to press his lips across her cheeks and nose. He did adore her. She should be thankful for what she had rather than keep fabricating problems. “We are canoodling. It’s the perfect word for what we’re doing. We’re the most old-fashioned couple I know. Besides which, people don’t know you’re off duty. It’s not like there’s a sign above your head or anything.”
His thumb brushed the nape of her neck, making her shiver. “Want to canoodle some more?”
She thought about it. “Will you put your hat on?”
In answer, he retrieved it from the fence post and pulled it on. “Yes, ma’am.”
Another little shiver ran through her. “Ooh, I love it when you call me that.”
Laughing, he pushed her back against the wall and lowered his lips to hers again, the warm sun highlighting his features with bright gold.
Chapter Three
Wanting to make the most of Honey while he had her to himself, Dex prepared for a long embrace, but they’d only managed a brief smooch before a voice interrupted them.
“Put him down, Honey. You don’t know where he’s been.”
Irritated, he pulled back and glanced over his shoulder to see a dark-haired, cheeky-looking guy watching them with amusement. Dex grinned. “Hey, Chase.”
“Koru around?” Chase asked.
“He’s in the café.” Honey straightened her apron. Her cheeks had flushed an attractive pink. Dex winked at her, and the flush deepened. He stifled a chuckle. She was very easy to embarrass, and he enjoyed teasing her, loving the way she reacted to him.
“You may not want to go in, though,” Honey added as they followed Chase toward the café. “Reuben’s in there.”
Chase stiffened visibly, and his brow darkened. “What’s he doing here?”
“Waiting for his girlfriend,” Dex said wryly.
“Ouch.”
Pity swept over Dex, and he clapped the other guy on the shoulder. “Sorry. That was a bit harsh.”
“I’m mortally wounded.” Chase pushed open the café door and the smell of coffee and hot pastries wafted out. “I may never recover.”
Unfortunately, Dex thought, that statement was probably true. Honey had told him the story. Chase had adored Daisy Summers since the first day Koru had taken him to the café to meet the rest of his family, and he had been smitten as soon as his eyes fell on the tall, blonde-haired sister.
Daisy had cast her gaze over Chase, sized him up in ten seconds flat and dismissed him just as quickly. Smart, astute and having taken a business degree back in England, Daisy ran the commercial side of Matariki, but wasn’t satisfied with that. She wanted more out of life than the rest of the Summer siblings. Money. Possessions. Status. Three things Chase Jackson didn’t have.
Chase worked in his father’s building firm and wrote science fiction novels in his spare time. Unpublished science fiction novels. He had no savings, not an iota of business sense and spent every cent he earned on computer paper, surfboards and beer.
Daisy wasn’t impressed.
She was, however, a romantic at heart, or so Honey said, although Dex couldn’t see it himself. The oldest sister always seemed aloof, cold even, and he couldn’t imagine her relaxing her guard enough to be won over by a bunch of flowers or a love poem, however well written it was. But somehow Chase had touched the dreamer inside of her, or maybe she’d just been entranced by the muscles he’d developed lifting bricks all day every day. Either way, they’d dated for over six months before Daisy had finally realised that inside the idealistic lover was a lazy layabout who was never going to amount to anything. She broke up with him and soon after hooked up with Reuben. “Rebound,” Honey had stated when she’d told Dex that.