Page 107 of Moonlight Kisses at Willow Tree Hall

His voice trailed off.

She couldn’t stop herself. She pulled him against her and reached up so that their lips could meet.

She felt him moan against her mouth as her hands slipped around his broad shoulders. She moaned too as she let one hand drift up into his hair. The other kept her body pressed up against his, neither breaking the kiss that bound them.

As the kiss deepened, their bodies began to sway back and forth in the soft breeze that had begun to blow across the orchard. Being so close, she could feel the hard muscles of his body crushed against hers.

Finally, he broke the kiss. His face inches from hers, she realised he was equally as breathless as she was.

They didn’t need to say anything. Didn’t want to. So they both smiled at each other and walked hand in hand through the orchard, the harvest moon still shining down on them as they went.

42

Jack looked at the huge pile of apples in the shed next to the restored press, but his mind wasn’t really on anything but Lily.

They had shared another kiss. Under the harvest moon, she had kissed him and it had been wonderful. Another shared moment together. Another step forward in their relationship, he was hoping. He was glad he had finally told her about the prom and his reasons for leaving her there.

He was hoping that he was forgiven. Her kiss had certainly told him that perhaps she had. If only he could forgive himself, he thought. Or perhaps that was the cost of his guilt. That he had to carry it with him always.

‘Hello.’

Smiling, he turned around and found Lily watching him from the doorway.

‘Hello yourself,’ he replied.

‘That’s a mighty big pile of apples you’ve got there,’ she said, grinning.

He noted the blush on her cheeks, almost as ruby red as the apples themselves.

‘Let’s hope we can get some of them pressed today,’ he told her. ‘Your grandad’s already hooked up a long hose outside so we can wash them.’

‘OK. I’ll get going on that,’ she said. ‘I brought a colander with me so they’re not completely soggy when they go into the press.’

‘And I’ve got a chopping board so we can cut out any rotten bits as well as core them.’

They quickly established a routine. Lily washed down a pile of apples before quickly chopping them. Jack then took the prepared apples and placed them into the funnel of the apple press. As he turned the crank, the wheel chopped up the pieces, which then dropped into the large bucket at the bottom of the funnel.

Once the bucket was full of the chopped apples, Jack then turned the lever that Lily’s dad had made, which pressed the fruit down, causing the juice to run out of the slats in the sides of the bucket and into yet another container.

During the first pressing, Lily held out her finger to catch a droplet of apple juice. She sucked on her finger to taste it.

‘Mmm,’ she said, nodding her approval. ‘That tastes wonderful.’

‘Does it?’ he asked, staring at her bottom lip, which had a drop of apple juice still on it.

How had he ever thought that she had turned ice-cold? Lily was warm and kind. And incredibly sexy.

He turned away to gulp down some water from a bottle he had brought with him, but it did

nothing to cool down his quickening pulse.

He was almost grateful when his phone rang out. Except it was his mother calling.

‘Excuse me,’ he said, quickly heading outside into the fresh air.

The weather had definitely turned colder and the clouds were heavy, threatening rain.

‘How are you both?’ he asked, after saying hello. ‘Are you all set for the birthday tomorrow night?’