‘And how did you imagine our first time to be?’

‘Well …’ He cuddled me close and stroked my hair off my face, as he whispered exactly what he’d envisioned in every minute detail.

Oh. My God!

Chapter 49

49

Perth

I never imagined I’d fall so hard and fast for anyone after Adrian, but, from that first time we slept together, every cell in my body obsessed over Dan. I wanted to live and breathe him. Now that he didn’t have Lion to go home to, the nights I was in the Point he stayed over at the shack and we had sex at the rate of teenagers but with much more depth. During the days, when I wasn’t working at Brewed or on the paper, Dan would sometimes sneak away from The Lobster Factory, allegedly to help me with some heavy lifting at the shack. However, although he had helped me a little with the revival of the old floorboards, more often than not we ended up between the sheets instead.

Sometimes we didn’t even make it to the bedroom.

With Dan I felt like a new person. We made love on the floor in the kitchen surrounded by half-built cabinets, in the shower, on his boat, and once in the town hall after the rest of the committee had left following a meeting.

Phone sex was another whole new world Dan had opened me up to. On my nights in Perth, when the kids were safely asleep, we’d FaceTime. I missed him like crazy, but technology helped bridge the gap—I could see why Generation Z were so addicted to it! Thanks to him, a smile had become a permanent fixture on my face, and no mess Adrian left in the house or argument I had with Saxon and Payton could erase it.

Hayley noticed the first time she saw me in person post-sex. We were chatting on the sidelines at Payton’s soccer game when she frowned. ‘You look different. Have you changed your hair? No, that’s not it. New outfit? Oh my God.’ She gasped. ‘You’ve had sex!’

‘Shhh,’ I hissed, thrusting my finger against my lips. Thankfully, the kids were all occupied with the game and Adrian was doing linesman duty on the other side of the pitch.

Not that I cared if he found out—my body and what I did with it was no longer any of his business.

‘You have though, haven’t you?’ Hayley asked, her hand still resting against her chest.

Her eyes widened as I grinned my reply, but this time she had the good sense to lower her voice. ‘Where’d you meet him? Tinder?’

‘Don’t be ridiculous.’

‘Well?’ she prompted.

‘His name’s Dan and—’

‘Your neighbour!’ Hayley clapped her hands together and danced a little on the spot like an excited schoolgirl. ‘Tell me everything.’