He kissed her until her nerve endings sizzled, her heart was pumping and her thoughts were more tangled than they’d been at the beginning.
When he finally released her, she looked at him dizzily. “I don’t know why you did that, and I’m not sure it helped.”
“I did it because I knew it would feel good.”
“I suppose you think you’re cute.”
“I’m a man. That kiss reduced my abilities to think about anything that didn’t involve being naked with you.” He cupped her face in his hands. “You seem to have a lot going on in your head. Instead of talking to Martha, you really should talk to me.”
She wasn’t sure she was ready to do that.
“I’ll think about it.” Posy bent and stroked Martha’s thick feathers. “Thanks for listening, my little feathered friend.”
She checked the other chickens and walked to the door, her feet rustling though the thick layer of straw.
Luke closed his hands over her shoulders. “Posy—”
“What?” She found his gaze unsettling and she was already unsettled enough for one lifetime.
“Nothing. Never mind.” He released her. “There are a million things I want to say, but a henhouse isn’t the place to say them and I’m worried about the impact on Martha.”
Posy secured the door and followed Luke out to the path that ran between the barn and the lodge.
“I should go.” She felt awkward suddenly. “I have a million things to do in the house, and I want to check on Mom. I want to make sure she’s eating properly. She wants you to join us for dinner tomorrow, by the way. It will be the first family dinner we’ve had since everyone came home, because Mom was in bed to start with and then didn’t want to infect anyone, so she mostly stayed in her room. Will you come?”
“If it’s a family dinner, are you sure I’ll be welcome?”
“She specifically asked me to invite you. She likes you.” She saw his hesitation and wondered if she’d put him in an awkward position. “You can relax. It’s not ‘meet the parents’ or anything.”
“I’ve already met your parents.”
“I know, but I saw you hesitate. You definitely hesitated.”
“The reason I hesitated has nothing to do with you and me.” He paused again. “Is your mother better?”
That was why he’d hesitated? Because he was concerned for her mother? “She’s better, thanks. And she won’t have to do anything. My sisters and I will cook, although I haven’t broken that news to them yet.”
“In that case I’ll be there. Thank you.” He glanced back at the barn. “Much as I’d rather procrastinate, I need to finish my draft. I’ll see you later.”
He walked away, leaving her none the wiser about her feelings or his.
In a few months his book would be finished and he’d leave. She could watch him go, or she could leave with him.
She thought about it as she walked back to the lodge and carried on thinking about it as she heated soup and took it up to her mother.
As she walked past the bathroom, she could hear the shower running and sounds of someone being sick. Hannah’s bedroom door was open, so presumably she was the one using the bathroom.
Posy felt a flash of anxiety and paused outside the door. She wanted to offer support but wasn’t sure if her sister would want it. She remembered Hannah holding Beth’s hair back after her first experience of alcohol, but that wasn’t the same thing, was it?
Balancing the tray of food on one hand, she tapped on the door with the other, but there was no answer.
Singing Christmas carols to cover the sound of Hannah being sick, she elbowed her way into her parents’ bedroom. “How are you feeling?”
“Better, thank you, although if you’re going to carry on singing, that might not last long.” Suzanne was sitting up, her knitting on her lap. “Is someone being sick?”
“No. It’s the shower.
” Posy nudged the door closed with her hip. If Hannah wanted to tell Suzanne, then that was up to her, but she wasn’t going to hear it from Posy. “You’re not as pale. That’s good.”