he was on top of the job. His name was David Markey and he was only twenty-eight, but he’d had experience as assistant manager at a resort on Kangaroo Island, which was down below Adelaide off the coast of South Australia. According to his résumé, he was keen to take up a position in a more tropical climate. Elizabeth had thought him a good possibility and she was glad he had interviewed well, leading Harry to choose him.
They were to arrive by helicopter on Saturday morning and the moment Elizabeth heard the distinctive noise of the rotors, her pulse started racing. She’d barely slept the night before, thinking of Harry and how it might be with him this time. It was difficult to contain the nervous excitement buzzing through her but somehow she had to keep it in check while she handled the business side of this visit.
Professionalism insisted that she couldn’t run down to the back beach, waving madly like a child as the helicopter landed and flinging herself at Harry the moment he stepped out of it. Waiting in the office for the men to enter it was the right and sensible thing to do—the Elizabeth thing, she thought wryly, not the Lucy thing. But Harry was counting on her to be sensible and helpful. This was not butterfly time.
She’d asked Jack to meet the helicopter, introducing himself to David Markey as well as giving any help needed with luggage. While she waited, she forced herself to check through items laid out on her desk in preparation for making the job transition as easy as possible for David—a list of the current guests and the villas they occupied with a notation of activities some of them had booked today, contact numbers for the chef and the Pickards, a list of staff names under headings of housekeeping, maintenance and restaurant. It was all there waiting...waiting....
Harry led the others into the office. His vivid blue eyes connected with hers with such riveting intensity, Elizabeth was pinned to her chair while her heart rocketed around her chest. She stared back, feeling as though he was wrapping a magnetic field around her entire being, claiming her as his, tugging her towards him.
She stood. Her thighs were quivering, but her legs moved as though drawn by strings, drawn by the power of an attraction that had become totally irresistible. His smile bathed her in tingling pleasure. She was so consumed by sheer awe at the strength of feelings shooting through her, the man moving in beside Harry didn’t register on her radar until her attention was directed to him.
Harry lifted his hand in an introductory wave, inclining his head towards the slightly shorter man. ‘David Markey, Elizabeth.’
‘Good to meet you,’ the newcomer promptly said, stepping forward and extending his hand.
Elizabeth met it with her own hand, belatedly smiling a welcome. ‘Likewise, David. I hope you’ll be very happy working here on Finn Island.’
He was a clean-cut, good-looking young man—short brown hair, bright brown eyes with a ready smile to charm, a typical front man in the hospitality industry. ‘I’m very glad to have the chance,’ he said enthusiastically.
Jack had manoeuvred around the two men, wheeling two suitcases towards the door into the manager’s apartment. Harry gestured towards him as he spoke to David. ‘If you’ll just follow Jack, he’ll show you your living quarters and answer any questions you might have about them. I want a private word with Elizabeth.’
‘Of course. Thank you,’ was the ready reply, and taking the privacy hint, he closed the apartment door after himself.
The brief business with David had given Elizabeth enough distraction to recover from the initial impact of Harry’s presence. Having regained some control of herself, she turned to him with a sympathetic smile. ‘Tough week?’
‘Mmm...’ His eyes twinkled teasingly as he spread his arms in appeal. ‘I think I need a hug.’
Her heart started racing again as she laughed and moved straight into his embrace, eager for the physical contact she had craved all week.
He hugged her tightly to him, rubbing his cheek against her hair, breathing in deeply and releasing a long, shuddering sigh before murmuring, ‘There is nothing like a warm living body to make you feel better. I have so much wanted you with me this week, Ellie.’
‘I wished I could have been there for you, too, Harry.’
‘Can’t be in two places at once,’ he said wryly, tugging her head back so they were face to face. ‘I’ll stay here overnight if that’s okay with you.’
‘I was hoping you would,’ she answered, openly showing that she welcomed every intimacy with him.
Desire blazed into his eyes. He lifted a hand and ran a feather-light finger over her lips. ‘If I start kissing you I won’t want to stop and there’s no time for it now. When Jack comes out I’ll leave you with David. Sarah wants me to lunch with them, hear all the news about Mickey firsthand. You should lunch with David in the restaurant, introduce him to the guests. I’ll catch up with the two of you afterwards, find out how he’s doing and hopefully get you to myself for a while.’
Assured they would be together later in the afternoon, Elizabeth didn’t mind seeing Harry go off with Jack, happy with the plan of action he’d laid out. She knew how fond Sarah was of both the Finn brothers, and it was nice of Harry to answer the housekeeper’s concern about Michael. It was also appropriate for her to introduce David to the guests since she was known to them, having been the resident manager all week.
Over lunch, David proved to have a very pleasant manner with the guests and the restaurant staff. Elizabeth quite enjoyed his company herself. He readily answered her questions about his experience on Kangaroo Island and was keen to question her experience at this resort, garnering as much knowledge as he could as quickly as he could.
It occurred to her that it might not take a week to fill him in on everything and make sure he understood the whole working process of the island. He wasn’t coming in cold to the job as she had. He was already a professional in this field. It might only take a few days and then she could get back to Cairns.
To Lucy...
To Harry...
To real life again...
Although the island getaway hadn’t really been a getaway for her. She’d been well and truly faced with real life here—forced to accept the reality of Michael’s connection with Lucy, having her misconceptions about Harry ripped apart, learning that an attraction based on sexual chemistry could gather many more levels, given the chance.
Her time here had been one of intense emotional turmoil, yet coming now to the end of it, she was ready to move forward, wanting to move forward, hopefully with Harry, who had become a very vital part of her world. No denying that. Though she was not going to spin rosy dreams about him, as she had with Michael. She would do the realistic thing and live in the moment with Harry.
The moment could not come fast enough today.
She accompanied David back to the office after lunch and they settled in front of the computer workstation to go through the booking system. It took an act of will for Elizabeth to concentrate on it. Anticipation was like a fever in her blood. She kept glancing at the wall clock, wondering how long Harry would stay with Jack and Sarah, aching for him to leave them and come for her.
It had just turned two o’clock when he entered the office, filling it with an electric energy that zapped through every nerve in Elizabeth’s body.
‘How’s it going?’ he asked.
‘Fine!’
