‘I’d like to get up and get dressed now,’ she said, her willpower having returned.
‘Are you sure you want to?’
‘Nicolas! Get off me, please.’
‘Oh, very well.’ And he levered himself up off her body. ‘Fancy a shower together?’
Serina winced. ‘Haven’t you had enough?’
‘Of you? Never.’
‘I wish you wouldn’t say things like that.’
‘Why?’
‘Because it’s unrealistic.’ She scrambled to her feet and reached for her clothes. ‘I need to go to the bathroom,’ she snapped. ‘Alone, if you don’t mind.’
Nicolas frowned as he watched her go. She still didn’t trust him, he realised, didn’t trust his love for her, or his commitment to her.
What could he do to reassure her? Ask her to marry him?
It seemed a premature move to Nicolas. But women saw things differently to men. An offer of marriage conjured up all sorts of romantic connotations for women. It spelt out love in ways that mere words couldn’t.
Nicolas decided then and there to do just that. Tonight, over a candlelit dinner. He’d have to buy her an engagement ring first, of course, a really nice one. Port Macquarie was sure to have some decent jewellery shops. Tourist towns catered to people who had money and time on their hands to shop. It meant he would have to make some excuse to have a couple of hours alone this afternoon. He would say that he was tired and needed a nap before their night out. Sounded a bit lame but he couldn’t think of anything else.
Meanwhile, he would have to get dressed, quick smart, so as not to annoy Serina further when she emerged from the bathroom. She hadn’t been too pleased with his having his way with her a little while ago. But she only had herself to blame, kissing him the way she had when she arrived, then flirting with him so outrageously. Still, he would make sure that in future he kept their lovemaking to places where there was no possibility of their being disturbed.
He’d just pulled on his shirt when she opened the bathroom door, looking just a little wary. Till she saw he was properly dressed.
‘I was thinking we might go for a drive around the beaches for the rest of this morning,’ he said straight away. ‘Then have a spot of lunch somewhere cool, overlooking the water.’
‘Sounds good,’ Serina said, feeling somewhat guilty for her attitude earlier. It wasn’t as though he’d forced her to have sex. She’d been more than willing in the end.
‘Great! But before we go, come and take a look at the view from the terrace. It goes for miles.’
It certainly did, from the horizon out to sea to the mountains in the west. The only minus at that moment was the heat and the westerly wind that whipped Serina’s hair across her eyes as she tried to take in the full, 360-degree panorama.
‘This would be superb on a warm winter’s day,’ she said as she struggled to hold her hair back. ‘Or a balmy summer evening.’
‘But not today,’ Nicolas said. ‘I agree. I just wanted you to see it. Let’s get going.’
As Serina turned away from the glass security fence that surrounded the terrace, a whiff of smoke suddenly teased her nostrils. Frowning, she anchored her hair back from her face more securely and stared in the direction the wind was coming from.
West.
‘Nicolas!’ she said sharply. ‘Come over here.’
He hurried to her side. ‘What is it?’
‘Over there,’ she said, pointing towards the mountain range in the distance. ‘Can you see it?’
‘See what?’
‘Smoke.’
Nicolas narrowed his eyes against the glare of the sunshine and peered hard in the direction of Serina’s finger.
‘Yes. I can see it,’ he confirmed.
‘Oh, my God! It’s a bushfire, isn’t it? Over Rocky Creek way.’
‘There’s no need to panic. From what I can see it’s only small and probably in the state forest. The one beyond Rocky Creek. They used to have fires in there practically every summer, but they never reached the town.’
She turned to him, her eyes full of worry. ‘But you don’t understand. The town has spread. And the people Felicity’s staying with this weekend, they live right on the edge of that state forest. With this wind, the fire won’t be small for long and it could be upon them before you can say boo.’
‘Surely the rural fire service would evacuate them, if there was any danger.’
‘Like they did in Victoria?’ she countered despairingly. ‘Even if we had the resources, which we don’t, things can go very wrong very quickly. In extreme weather conditions like this, sometimes there’s not enough time to evacuate everyone. There are lots more people living out in the bush now than when you lived in Rocky Creek. Kirsty’s parents live farther away than most. And there’s only one access road. What kind of stupid mother am I to let Felicity stay there this weekend? I knew the weather forecast. And I know the dangers. Greg drummed them into me. If anything happens to Felicity…’ she cried, her face going ashen at the thought.