“I don’t care about him or the restaurant anymore. I really don’t. What’s done is done and I’m more than happy here with what I have.” Especially you. She looked at Adam, and reached for his hand. “Thank you again. I can never tell you how much I appreciate what you did for me. I was terrified he was going to slit my throat and I think for a while there I just about blanked out.”
Adam squeezed her fingers. “How could I let him hurt you? That was never going to happen. And for the record, I’ll be staying with you in the café until everything is settled too. If you don’t mind that is.”
Thank goodness. “Adam, you don’t have to.” She glanced at her father, unsure if they’d been talking behind her back.
“Well, I want to and if nothing else, I’ll get a decent meal every night.” He leaned down and kissed her softly.
Her father walked away, giving them a moment. Lena, looked into Adam’s eyes, her heart melting at the raw emotions he couldn’t hide from her. She needed to take her time with this budding relationship, she knew that. Rushing in wasn’t really the best way to do it after her recent divorce. “Adam, I hope you don’t mind if we take things as they come with no commitment just yet. I know it’s not fair to use you like this, I have to know in my own heart that there is more than sex here for me. I want to know that we will last before I take the plunge again.” And I’m so tempted right now to do that.
“I get it and that’s fine with me. So long as you know I’m not going anywhere I’ll be happy.” He cupped her chin and dropped another kiss on her lips. “I don’t have the best track record either to tell the truth, and we do have a lot of things to deal with. I want to make sure Kyle is happy and secure before we rock the boat anyway. I get all that, Lena, and I’m happy with it. So long as we’re together I can cope with slow.”
The next couple of weeks quieted down and for that Adam was grateful. He took another delivery of deer, thankful he’d engaged an agent to procure them for him, knowing this herd would be free from any disease. He stood watching the does prancing around their temporary yard. Even though they had a vet clearance, he wasn’t going to put them with the other stock until they’d spent four weeks in quarantine. Just to ease his mind.
“I love how their tails flick around. It’s like they talk with that little tuft of white fluff.”
“I guess they do in a way.” Adam rested his hand on Kyle’s shoulder as they stood watching the animals. “Their new mate will arrive in a couple of weeks. I’m really looking forward to getting him. He’s a good looking beast with the best set of antlers I’ve seen in a long while. We should have plenty of fawns next season if they do what nature intended. Things might actually start to look up for us.” They couldn’t be any worse than the last few months.
“Do you think Mum will get back to her old self? I mean, she’s better now Cole is locked away, and I think the restaurant could be doing better than it is. That kills her, I know it does.” He rested his chin on the wooden rail of the fence. “After winning restaurant of the year, everything has gone to shit. She deserves better than that.”
“I’ve actually got something to talk to you about, man to man. You up for it?”
“Sure. Anything to get her happy back on and I’m your guy.”
“I have some friends who have certain friends. How about we contact them and see if we can move things along for her?” I’ll do whatever it takes.
“If you think it will work, sure.” Kyle smiled. “Do you reckon it will win you any brownie points with her?”
“You know, you might be a little bit too clever for your own good young man. I’ll need you on the night because I intend for the Hidden Café to be booked out next Saturday. And no letting it slip.”
Kyle held his hand up for a high five slap. “Deal.” The sound of palm on palm frightened and scattered the deer to the other side of the paddock.
Later that night, Adam placed a couple of phone calls. “Father, how’d you like to come up and see the farm? I want to take you out to dinner somewhere special.”
“I wondered when you’d come to your senses and see I did the right thing for you. A little bird tells me things are going well with the ‘clean up,’ shall we say.”
“Let’s agree to disagree on whether or not it was the best thing at the time. I might come around to your way of thinking in the near future.” He knew he would all things considered, but why give his father the credit now when they still had things to resolve. The judge still did deals Adam hadn’t agreed with, and so had everyone else. It seemed to be the way the legal system worked. He was glad to be out of it.
“Fine. I take it there is something more to this than you’re telling me.”
“Actually, yes there is.” He gave his father a quick rundown on what happened to Lena and her review. “Think you can help out?”
“I take it this woman means a great deal to you, Adam?”
I want her more than I’ve ever wanted anything. “She does and so does her son. I think you’ll like her. She has a spine but at the moment she’s doubting herself terribly for no good reason. I’m trying to smooth out the odds in her favor.”
“No matter what you say, you’re more like me than you know.
