turned into him. I know.’
And he brought her hands to his lips and kissed them. ‘You do things to me, Eve. You turn me inside out and upside down and I want to be with you, but I just don’t know if I can do this. I don’t know if I can love the way I should. The way you deserve.’
‘Of course you can. It’s been there, all along. You knew what was happening was wrong. You tried to save your mother. You tried to save me and Sam by cutting us loose. Because you didn’t want to hurt us. You would never have done that if you hadn’t cared, if you hadn’t loved us, just a little.’
‘I think…’ He gave her a look that spoke of his confusion and fears. ‘I think it’s more than a little. These last weeks have been hell. I never want to be apart from you again. I want to wake up every morning and see your face next to mine. I want to take care of you and Sam, if you’ll let me.’
She blinked across at him, unable to believe what she was hearing, but so desperately wanting it to be true. ‘What are you saying?’
‘I can’t live without you. I need you.’ He squeezed her hands, just as he squeezed the unfamiliar words from his lips. ‘I love you.’
And she flew into his arms, big, fat tears of happiness welling in her eyes. ‘Oh Leo, I love you so much.’
‘Oh my god, that’s such a relief,’ he said, clutching her tightly. ‘I was afraid you would hate me for how I treated you.’ He tugged her back, so he could look at her, brushing the hair from her face where it had got mussed. ‘Because there’s something else I need to know. Eve, will you take a chance on me. Would you consider becoming my wife?’
And her tears became a flood and she didn’t care that she was blubbering, didn’t care that she was a mess, only that Leo had loved her and wanted to marry her and life just couldn’t get any better than that. ‘Yes,’ she said, her smile feeling like it was a mile wide, ‘Yes, of course I will marry you.’
He pulled her into his kiss, a whirlpool of a kiss that spun her senses and sent her spirits and soul soaring.
‘Thank you for coming into my life,’ he said, drawing back, breathing hard. ‘You are magical, Eve. You have brought happiness and hope to a place where there was only misery and darkness. How can I ever repay you?’
And she smiled up at his beautiful face, knowing he would never again live without love, not if she had anything to do with it. ‘You can start by kissing me again.’
LEO Zamos loved it when a plan came together. He relished the cut and thrust of business, the negotiations, the sometimes compromise, the closing of the deal.
He lived for the adrenaline rush of the chase, and he lived for the buzz of success.
Or at least he had, until now.
These days he had other priorities.
He shook Culshaw’s hand, who was still beaming with the honour of walking Eve down the aisle before leaving him chatting to Mrs Willis about the weather. He looked around and found his new bride standing in the raised gazebo where they’d been married a little while ago. She was holding Sam’s hand as Hannah jigged him on her hip, the sapphire ring sparkling on her finger nestled alongside a new matching plain band. Evelyn—Eve—he still couldn’t decide which he liked best, had always looked more like a goddess than any mere mortal, but today, in her slim fitting lace gown, her hair piled high and curling in tendrils around her face and pinned with a long gossamer thin veil that danced in the warm tropical breeze, she was the queen of goddesses, and she was his. She laughed as her veil was caught in the breeze, the ends tickling Sam’s face and making him squeal with delight. And then, as if aware he was watching, as if feeling the tug of his own hungry gaze, she turned her head, turned those brilliant blue eyes on him, her laughter faltering as their eyes connected on so many different levels before her luscious mouth turned up into a wide smile.
And it was physically impossible for his feet not to take the quickest and most direct route through the guests until he was at her side, his arm snaked around her waist pulling her in tight, taking Sam’s free hand with the other.
‘How is my beautiful new family enjoying today?’
And Sam pulled both hands free and pointed, ‘Boat!’
‘Sam is beside himself,’ Eve said, as Hannah put him down and let him run to the other side of the gazebo to gaze out between the slats at the sailing boat lazily cruising past the bay.
‘Culshaw’s the same. Asking him to give you away has made his year, I’d say.’
‘I like him,’ she said, as they watched him animatedly tell Mrs Willis a story. ‘He feels like family to me.’
‘Canny old devil,’ he said as he folded his arms around her. ‘Did I tell you what he said when I tried to apologise and tell him that we hadn’t really been engaged that weekend in Melbourne? He actually said, “poppycock, everyone knew you were destined to be together”,’ and Eve laughed.
‘Maureen told me the same thing.’
‘And they were right,’ he said, drawing her back into the circle of his arms, kissing her lightly on the head. ‘You are my destiny, Eve, my beautiful wife.’
‘Oh,’ she said, turning in the circle of his arms. ‘Did you hear the Alvarezes’ news?’
He frowned, ‘I’m not sure I did.’
‘Felicity is pregnant. They’re both thrilled. I couldn’t be happier.’
He nodded. ‘That is good news, but at the risk of trying to make you happier, I have a small present for you.’
‘But you’ve already given me so much.’
‘This is special. Culshaw’s agreed to sell Mina Island. It’s yours now, Evelyn.’
‘What?’ Her eyes shone bright with incredulity. ‘It’s mine? Really?’
‘Yours and Sam’s. Everything of mine is now yours, but this is especially for you both. It’s a wedding gift and a thank you gift and an I love you gift all rolled into one. And it guarantees you can bring Sam back when he’s older any time you want and show him everything he missed out on now.’
‘Oh, Leo,’ she said, her eyes bright with tears, ‘I don’t know what to say. It’s too much. I have nothing for you.’
He shook his head. ‘It’s nowhere near enough. It was here that you gave me the greatest gift of all. You gave me back my heart. You taught me how to love. How can I ever repay you for that?’
She cupped his cheek against her palm, her cereulean eyes filled with love, and he took that hand and pressed his lips upon it. ‘I love you, Evelyn Zamos.’
‘Oh, Leo, I love you so very, very much.’
They were the words he needed to hear, the words that set his newly unlocked heart soaring. He kissed her then, in the white gazebo covered with sweetly scented flowers, kissed her
