‘One of the things I like best about you is how you say whatever’s on your mind,’ Callanach grinned.

‘You mean I have no filter,’ Ava smiled back.

‘I mean you’re exactly who you seem to be. No pretence, no show. You wouldn’t know how to be deceitful if your life depended on it. I, on the other hand, have learned to lie. First to myself, then to the people I love.’ He lowered himself off the arm of the sofa and down next to Ava, propping his feet on the coffee table. ‘I’m impotent, Ava. I have been since Astrid accused me of rape. I’ve tried therapy, medication and a gorgeous, leggy Spanish doctor. I’m broken. You’re the only person who makes me forget about it. No stress or pressure when I’m with you. Just reality, true emotion, open conversation. So no, I’m not thinking about going back to France, where all this began. The only place I want to be is right here, with you.’

Ava turned to face him, arms folded.

‘What the genuine fuck?’ she rebuked. ‘You’ve been going through this since the day I met you and you didn’t let me in?’

‘Ava!’ Callanach said, incredulous. ‘How could I possibly have …’

‘You really are a bloody idiot,’ Ava told him, taking his face in both of her hands and leaning forwards, pressing her lips against his, letting her body slide into his chest.

She pulled away thirty seconds later, red-faced and breathless.

‘Um, I’m not sure what to say. I shouldn’t have done that. Listen, I’m leaving, and I’ll understand if tomorrow you …’

Callanach reached one arm around her waist and slid his free hand around her neck.

‘Shut up,’ he said softly, lifting her from where she sat and onto his lap, pulling her face back down to meet his, parting Ava’s lips with his own.

She pushed her fingers into his dark, curly hair, pressing her body against him, feeling his warmth as she let her tongue drift slowly along his lower lip before pulling away slightly to stare into his eyes.

‘Seriously?’ she asked quietly. ‘Of all the women you could have, why would you want me?’

‘Because if I can’t have you, I don’t want anyone at all. Seriously.’

He pulled her hair back slowly to expose her throat, running his tongue from the dip at the base of her throat between her collarbones and up the soft underside of her jaw, before releasing her so she could meet his kiss once more.

Ava grinned, exploring his body beneath his shirt, feeling his tensed muscles moving in waves beneath her hands, tendons flexing and releasing. She ran her short, ever-practical nails over the hills and valleys of his upper body, delighted with herself as he arched and breathed out heavily.