His mobile buzzed with an incoming text. Karly must’ve arrived. However, when he saw the sender, his gut clenched with dread. At least reading his father’s text meant he didn’t have to hear Rowan’s whiny pleas via voicemail. Every message Rowan left was the same.
‘Can we meet up, son?’
‘I’d love to see you, son.’
‘We have so much to catch up on, son. Please call me.’
Hearing Rowan call him ‘son’ irked most. If his father had given two hoots about having a son, he wouldn’t have abandoned him because gambling was more important to him than family.
Screw Rowan.
However, as he skimmed the text, one line stood out.
There’s a kid at the factory where I work. He’s doing it tough. I think he may be homeless. Can you help?
Damn it, the ‘homeless’ captured his attention. He had no idea how Rowan knew about him opening the Carlton facility. Not that he’d kept his involvement a secret, but he didn’t want it to appear as though he was creating emergency housing for youth to enhance Grenville Sanctuary’s reputation, so he didn’t publicise it. But dear old Dad had somehow got wind of it and was now asking him for help.
Ironic, that after all these years of ignoring his father’s impassioned pleas to meet, it had taken Rowan reaching out and doing something selfless for a kid in need that had Hudson doing something he thought he’d never do.
Respond to his father.
Karly had it all planned out. Take Hudson out for a coffee, preferably to one of his favourite local haunts, catch up like friends, then give it to him straight.
But her plan hit a snag when he opened the door to his swanky agency, led her to his office and closed the door. The snag being before she could utter a word, he had his hands on her and his mouth claiming hers in a commanding kiss that didn’t let her draw breath, let alone think.
Not that she wanted to. Think, that is. They were combustible together. Their moans punctuated the silence as she had the best sex of her life on his desk. Hot and frantic. Hands everywhere. Sweat-slicked skin. Coming together. Unable to get enough.
When they finally drew breath, their gazes locked and they burst out laughing.
‘Welcome to Melbourne,’ he said in a lazy drawl. ‘We take our tourism very seriously.’
‘If that’s the welcome all tourists get to your fair city, I’m not surprised so many elect not to return home.’
They laughed again, and with a complete lack of self-consciousness adjusted their clothing. That was what struck her the most about her relationship with Hudson. They mightn’t have known each other long, and for some of that time she hadn’t wanted to know him, but since they’d slept together things between them had been easy rather than awkward. She appreciated it and hoped it would continue once he learned the truth.
Yeah, right.
‘You hungry?’
‘Starving.’ She hadn’t eaten before she’d hit the road three hours earlier, too nervous to stomach anything. The scintillating sex on a desk for the first time might’ve distracted her for a little while but now reality hit.
She had to tell him the truth.
But she’d planned on telling him at a café anyway so maybe they could eat first, then she could reveal the truth.
‘There’s a local Vietnamese place that serves the best pho and salt and pepper calamari.’
‘You’re making me drool,’ she said, pretending to dab at the corners of her mouth. ‘Let’s go.’
He hesitated, his scrutiny unnerving. ‘I have to be somewhere in ninety minutes.’
Great. She couldn’t dump her news on him and run, especially when his worried expression indicated his errand wasn’t a good one. Grateful for a short reprieve, especially after the encounter they’d just shared, she said, ‘Okay.’
But it wasn’t. He had this look in his eyes, a glint she’d almost label as fear. It didn’t make any sense. What would a confident guy like him be afraid of? Unless he’d developed feelings for her too and with each interlude his confusion grew, like hers.
‘Are you all right? I mean, I know we’re good together but surely I haven’t robbed you of speech?’
Thankfully, her teasing flippancy garnered a small smile. ‘Ever had to do something you didn’t want to?’