The only thing missing was that the bridegroom still did not use any endearments and the bride was careful to follow suit. And why it mattered so much to her, Megan couldn’t have said. But it did matter. Details like that seemed very important indeed in a long-term relationship.

But passion was there, at least, sometimes seeming to float through the air that separated the two of them, igniting at the most unlikely moments and always bringing intense pleasure to them both.

‘We are,’ he said one day, ‘incredibly well suited sexually.’

‘Yes.’ She held her breath, hoping he’d say something tender, but he just murmured sleepily in her ear that she had a gorgeous body and snuggled up to her.

Don’t expect instant miracles, Megan, she told herself as she lay waiting for sleep to wipe away that moisture brimming in her eyes. No one promised you miracles. Just take it one day at a time. Don’t be greedy. Be thankful for what you’ve got, which is more than you’ve ever had before.

But with every day that passed she did want more, wanted it quite desperately.

Chapter 8

The relatively short, five-hour flight from Singapore to Western Australia seemed to pass quickly, but Megan could tell that Ben was thinking of business again as they collected their luggage at Perth airport.

That tight expression on his face was beginning to seem like a gate that kept slamming into place between them, and when he was in that mode, he seemed to think of nothing else but the task in hand.

A large chauffeur-driven vehicle was waiting for them again at the airport and they were whisked away towards the city. Traffic was heavy, with huge trucks thundering past them, and the road was lined with garish business signs and commercial buildings.

He glanced at her and smiled. ‘Disappointed?’

‘Well…’ she hesitated, looking up at the lowering skies, ‘…I thought Australia would be – you know – sunny.’

‘It’s winter, when we get most of our rain. It’ll probably be sunny tomorrow, part of the time, anyway. It rarely stays dull for long.’ He leaned forward and spoke to the driver. ‘Before you deliver us to the hotel, would you please take us along Riverside Drive and up to King’s Park.’

‘That’s the new casino.’ He pointed to a lumpy geometrical building. ‘And on the other side of the river you can see the city block.’

‘Skyscrapers!’ She was so disappointed. To her, having grown up in a cosy village surrounded by neat fields and farms, skyscrapers were an urban obscenity. ‘What river is that?’

‘The Swan. In summer, there are boats and yachts everywhere and at night the water reflects the city lights. It can be very pretty. I asked for a hotel suite looking out towards it.’

She nodded. Now he was neither lover, nor businessman, but had changed into a courteous stranger.