It could work, it should work. He wanted to be there for his boys, as much as he could be, and that meant relocating. The General had been present in his life but in a bad way. He wanted to be there for his boys, in all the ways his father hadn’t been. He’d already missed out on three years of their lives, and he didn’t want to miss any more or be a part-time dad.
And, while he was genuinely delighted Thadie had rediscovered her love of designing, thrilled that she was doing something for herself, he knew she still wanted a proper family.
Just a year ago she’d been prepared to marry someone she didn’t love to provide a father for the boys. They had a much stronger connection than she and Strathern had, so Angus had no doubts about her agreeing to his moving in with her. They didn’t need to get married or make huge declarations of commitment, not yet anyway. If whatever they had needed to be defined, they could do that later. They’d only reconnected a month ago, they didn’t need to make promises or hard-to-take-back statements yet.
Yeah, he was edging closer to the boundary that separated No Man’s Land from Commitment, but he could ease his way over. There was no need to rush.
It could work, he thought. It would work. ‘What are you smiling about, my sexy Scot?’ Thadie asked as she approached him.
Thanks to her heels, her eyes were nearly in line with his. ‘Just that you look utterly amazing tonight, sweetheart.’
Her hand drifted over her hip. ‘It’s not exactly a my-heart-is-broken outfit, is it?’
He dragged his thumb across her exposed collarbone and watched as goosebumps appeared on her skin. He loved the fact that she was so responsive to him. ‘We need to talk, Thads.’
She nodded. ‘I know, Angus, and we need to tell the boys that you are their dad, but can we take tonight? I want us to have a night to ourselves before we talk about the boys and how we’re going to co-parent and raise them when we’re living a continent apart.’
He had a couple of ideas on how to get around that...
But her eyes, intensely dark, holding a million secrets and promises, begged him to push reality aside and live in themoment. He was happy to stand here and make small talk as she charmed the room, knowing that she’d be his later, naked and glorious in his arms. He would be the one who’d be settling between her legs later, sliding inside her, making her his. Listening to her crying, or sobbing, his name as he pushed her to explore the range and depth of her pleasure. And when he was done, he’d start again...
When she woke up in the morning, they’d have sleepy, morning sex and, if he was lucky, more fun in the shower later. But all that would be overshadowed if he started a serious conversation tonight.
He brushed his lips against hers, in a brief, intense, promise-filled kiss. ‘Sure, we’ll talk later.’
She pushed her hand inside his suit jacket, and lightly drifted her fingers down his sides, and over his ribs. Silver sparks of desire glinted in her eyes. ‘As soon as the speeches are done, we’re out of here,’ she promised him.
He closed his eyes, took a large gulp of his wine and he instructed his body to stand down, to wait. He’d been taught self-control and patience in the army, but one touch from Thadie could decimate that hard-fought-for trait.
Late Monday morning Thadie noticed Angus’s car parked under her oak tree next to her garage and smiled, happy he’d made it home before her. Instead of going to lunch at a restaurant, they’d agreed to meet back here to talk. And maybe, because they had an empty house—the au pair had taken the twins to visit Jabu and then they had mini-football—they could indulge in some sexy times before Angus had to leave for the airport and she to await the boys’ return.
Thadie pulled into her garage, switched off her engine and banged her hands against her steering wheel, excitementpouring off her in waves. Clara, her designer friend, adored her designs and they’d spent the morning making plans, bouncing ideas off each other, laughing and enjoying each other.
Over the next few weeks, they’d draw up legal agreements formalising their new venture. Thadie freely admitted that she was a bit rusty, she’d forgotten some of the finer details about garment construction, but there was nothing she couldn’t relearn. What was most exciting was that she and Clara clicked, instantly and profoundly. Clara loved her presence on social media and they both believed in sustainable fashion and reducing the industry’s huge climate-change footprint. They both loved nature, enjoyed the same colour palettes and Clara briefly picked Thadie’s brain on childbirth and raising boys, as she was expecting a little boy shortly.
They were, as the Italians said,simpaticoand Thadie could see them not only having a wonderful business association but building a close friendship. She was thoroughly over-excited. She couldn’t wait to see Angus and tell him about her morning.
Under her excitement was a small stream of irritation because life and the universe had conspired to keep them from telling the boys Angus was their dad. When they’d returned to the house yesterday, Jabu had rocked up unexpectedly and whisked them away to visit the zoo, which had turned out to be a whole-day excursion. She and Angus had spent a quiet day, alternating between dozing, swimming, and making love. The boys had returned tired and crotchety and had been too exhausted for life-changing announcements. Thadie and Angus had reluctantly agreed to delay the news until his return trip.
In the meantime, she needed to find out what it entailed to add Angus as the father on the boys’ birth certificates, to tag his surname onto theirs. She and Angus wanted joint custody, but did that need to be formalised? She needed to talk to her lawyer about that. And although Angus was paying for the aupair and would pay their school fees going forward, he wanted to put them on his medical plan and pay her maintenance, a ridiculously large figure she didn’t need.
They had so much to discuss, and this was a perfect time. They wouldn’t be interrupted by their little men demanding attention.
Thadie left her car, slung her bag over her shoulder and walked up the path to her front door. She went inside, tossed her bag onto the coat stand and stepped out of her high heels. ‘Honey, I’m home,’ she trilled, shrugging out of her white linen jacket.
Angus walked through the half-open door from the entertainment deck, his sleeves rolled up and his tie pulled loose. He took one look at her face and grinned. ‘You nailed it, didn’t you?’
Thadie ran to him and he caught her, boosting her up so that she could wrap her legs around her hips. She kissed his mouth before pulling back, her smile ferociously wide. ‘Isonailed it!’ she crowed.
‘I’m so proud of you, sweetheart,’ he told her and she heard the pride in his voice. He walked her over to the kitchen area, placed her on the island and handed her an icy crystal flute, filled with pale gold champagne. ‘Here’s to your new venture, Thads.’
She looked at the glass, then at the bottle of champagne, one of the most expensive in the world, available only online and at specialist liquor stores. Organising the champagne would’ve taken quite a bit of work and she was touched. ‘You didn’t know that I was going to get this right, Angus.’
He touched his glass to hers. ‘Of course I did,’ he told her, standing between her legs. ‘Now tell me all about it.’
She rattled on for twenty minutes, her mind jumping around, and she was sure she made little sense, but Angus listenedpatiently. Eventually, realising she was repeating herself, she sighed and shrugged. ‘Sorry, I’m just fizzy with excitement.’ And because she felt so alive, and because he was looking at her as if she’d hung the moon and stars—so powerful and special and clever—she threw her arms around his neck, kissed his jaw and placed her lips by his ear. They could talk later. ‘Take me to bed, Angus.’
He glanced at his watch, groaned and pulled back so that she had to drop her hands from his neck. ‘I’d love to, Thads, but we have just under an hour before I need to leave for the airport—’