Page 68 of All Yours

‘Oh,’ she managed. So, it wasn’t that he wanted her to stay longer, it was that she was being given notice. She took another sip of wine and turned the glass slowly between her fingers while she found her words. ‘That’s earlier than we thought,’ she said.

‘I know,’ Fox said.

‘So, you need me to move out.’ Robyn’s mind was running through her options already. Somewhere she could go for the next month with Willow. It would be really tricky in the run-up to Christmas when everyone had family plans and visitors. She immediately thought of Rosie and Wren but then pushed that option aside. She didn’t want to impose if she could help it, not when they were so close to having their twins.

‘Well, no, actually.’ Fox leaned forward on his elbows. He ran his hand over the stubble on his jaw and she could hear the roughness of it on his palm. His hazel eyes were full of orange glints as he questioned her. ‘Not if you don’t want to.’

The only thing she wanted to do when he was looking at her like that was kiss him.

‘What do you mean?’

‘Fiona is not able to live in for the foreseeable so I was wondering if you and Willow wanted to stay in the pool house. Until you leave for Botswana.’

‘Oh, wow, really?’ She clapped her hands to her cheeks. ‘Could we?’

‘It’s the least I can do, seeing as I’m cutting your contract short.’

Robyn grinned and raised her wine glass to cheers against his bottle.

‘Thank you so much.’ She watched the soft crease around his eyes as he returned her smile.

‘Honestly, it will be nice to still have you around.’

They both sipped their drinks, eye contact holding.

‘I’ve never had help with childcare before,’ Fox continued. ‘And you’ve made the whole experience so easy. It’s been great having you here. And the boys have loved it. I think the new nanny will have a hard job living up to you.’

Robyn felt a flush blooming on her cheeks.

‘It’s scary moving on,’ Fox said. ‘It’s always just been me and the boys, on our own. And now I can see that there are other ways to do things. That, actually, other influences can be good. Like bunny chow.’

Robyn laughed.

‘I’ll give you the recipe before I go.’

They both looked at each other again, and Robyn wet her lips with her tongue. The conversation felt loaded. The fact that she would be leaving, the fact that he said she could stay until then. Her tummy flipped as she realised what this could mean. She rested her chin on her hands, bringing her face closer to his.

‘So, as of Friday, I’m no longer employed?’ Robyn said, arching an eyebrow.

Fox ran a finger down the condensation on his bottle before raising his eyes to hers.

‘That’s right.’

His voice was deeper, and the tiniest smile was on his lips. He matched her position, leaving their faces inches apart. The air between them suddenly felt charged with electricity.

‘So, you won’t be my boss any more.’ Robyn watched the flicker of desire across his face.

‘There will be no contract of employment between us,’ Fox said. His eyes were challenging her now.

‘You know what that means, don’t you?’ she murmured, hearing the breathiness of her own voice.

‘It means we could be friends until you leave,’ Fox suggested, eyes burning into hers. The smell of his cologne, laced with sandalwood, was driving her crazy. She wanted to pull him by the collar and crush her lips to his. Instead, Robyn reached a finger out and gently touched his lower lip, feeling the rush of his breath over her hand.

‘And maybe we could enjoy being extremely unprofessional together?’

Fox moved fast and caught her finger in his teeth, touching the pad of her fingertip with his tongue. She gasped and he grinned, devilishly, before letting her go.

‘I think that sounds like a lot of fun,’ Fox said. ‘I’m in.’