I smell.

Today has been a long day full of bodily fluids, and no matter how much you scrub, it’s impossible to get rid of lingering scents. I’m going home to stand in the shower until all the hot water is gone, and after that I’ll probably stay in the cold. Today of all days, I should be relaxing and enjoying myself, but when Margaret was ill, I had to stand in to work for her. That’s what happens when you’re a team.

I pull into my driveway before noticing there’s a familiar silver car parked on the street. Drew.

My heart leaps at the realisation that he’s here on a day when I usually feel so alone and neglected. My mother is far more interested in who she sets me up to marry than the day she gave birth to me.

He steps out of his car, grabbing a sports bag from the passenger seat before walking toward me. On his face is a grin a mile wide, and I realise he has a bouquet of flowers in his hand.

“This is getting to be a habit. What are you doing here?” I ask, breathless with joy.

His dimpled smile lights me up. “I needed to see you, so I swapped shifts. I’ve got tonight off, but I’ll have to go back tomorrow evening because I have an early shift to make up for it.”

“One night is plenty.” Despite his bag and the flowers, I fling my arms around his neck when I grow close, and he drops what he’s carrying as he pulls me up off the ground and spins me around.

He buries his face in my neck. “God, I’ve missed you. Even if you do smell a bit funky.”

I laugh. “No births today, but I did do a couple of new-born checks and got a bit of baby poo on me. Twice. I know it’s not stinky, but it’s got that aroma I need to wash off.”

“That’s a great hit rate. Congratulations.”

I close my eyes and breathe him in. He has no such aroma issues. “You, on the other hand, smell good.”

“Doesn’t mean I can’t join you in a shower.”

He picks up his bag and the flowers. Laughing, I grab his hand and pull him toward the house. Not that he resists. His body slams into mine from behind as I get to the front door, and I giggle as I slide the key in.

As I push the door open, I turn and jump into Drew’s arms, hooking my legs around his waist. He chuckles, dropping his things just inside the door, but for a moment, I lose focus. There’s a dark blue car slowing across the road. I blink slowly, wondering if I’m seeing things. If I’m not mistaken, that car belongs to Ash Harris.

The wheels spin as it takes off, and Drew takes two steps inside the door, dropping me to the ground. “Hey. Are you okay?”

“What?”

“The colour’s gone from your face.”

I shake my head. “I thought I saw …”

“What?”

“Ash’s car.”

“Ash?” His eyes narrow, and he turns to look out the door.

“It’s gone now. It might not have been. I’m just being paranoid.” I push the door closed.

He cocks his head. “That man worries me. Especially after the last dealings you had with him.”

“I know.” I press my palms to Drew’s chest. “The last thing I want to do is think about him while I get so little time with you.”

Drew nods. “Must be shower time, I reckon.”

“I think so too.”

He bends, his mouth covering mine. I love kissing Drew. He’s home.

“Shower.”

This time he leads me, and as he fiddles with the mixer in the shower to get the temperature right, I let my clothes drop to the floor.

He turns toward me, a wistful smile on his face. “That view was totally worth the trip.”

I laugh.

“Get in the shower and I’ll join you in a second.”

The water’s at just the right temperature, and I raise my face to let it wash over me for a moment.

His body presses against mine, with only the water running between us. I’m tired and having him to lean against isn’t helping me stay awake.

He grabs the shower gel and loofah, giving a generous squirt before rubbing my stomach.

“Are you washing me?”

“Do you mind?”

“Not at all.”

I lean my head back on his shoulder and close my eyes as the water dances down my body. He draws circles on my skin, looping around my breasts and then dropping the loofah to run his hand over the same spots to remove the bubbles.

“That bit’s clean.”

I laugh. “Thanks.”

He runs a finger down my back. “I think I could do this all day.”

“There’s only so much hot water.”

“Let’s not waste any more time, then.” His hand snakes around me, and those long, skilled fingers find my clit.

I reach up, clasping my hands behind his neck. “This is exactly what I needed today.”

He nuzzles my ear. “I want to be everything you need.”

It doesn’t take long, his left hand gently squeezing one breast, his fingers between my legs. I’m aching and needy and wanting, and I don’t know what day or time it is anymore. I love this.

“I need you,” I cry.

“You have me.”

“Don’t worry about the condom.”

His hot breath is on the back of my neck. “Lean over.”

I cry out as he slams into me, and I brace myself in the corner of the shower. It’s raw and brutal, but it’s what we both need. He grips my hips and slides out only to come back in just as hard. My head bumps the wall, but the slight discomfort doesn’t matter when he’s inside me.

“I didn’t mean to do that. Are you okay?” His voice is filled with concern, and my heart flutters.

“I’m fine.”

“I’ll make it up to you later.”

I have no idea what that means, but I’ll take everything he gives me, and my whole body shudders as he slows and cups my breast.

“Hayley, I’m so close.”

When he says my name, I shift my feet, bringing my legs almost together. He groans and squeezes my nipples.

“You feel so …” Drew doesn’t finish his sentence as he gives one last thrust, pulsing inside me. He’s perfect—this is perfect. I could live my life being loved by him every single day.

My legs wobble, and he supports my weight, washing me down with a sponge. I turn and meet his soft, warm lips that tell me he’s feeling the same way I am.

I shriek as the heat disappears and is replaced by ice-cold water running down my back. Drew laughs. “I guess we were in here a while too long.” He reaches for the mixer and flicks it off, pushing open the shower door and grabbing a towel.

“You first,” he says, wrapping it around me before grabbing another one. He ties it around his waist, and I cry out in surprise as he scoops me up and into his arms.

“Aren’t you cold?”

He shrugs. “Pretty sure you’ll warm me up.”

I grin.

“Are you hungry? I’ll make us some cheese toasties if you’ve got the ingredients.”

I snuggle into his chest as he carries me to my bed. “It’s all in the kitchen.”

He places me gently on the sheets, and drops his towel, slipping into bed beside me and pulling up the covers. In his arms, the cold of the shower is forgotten. His skin is warm, and I burn all over, waiting for him to touch me. I wriggle out of my towel and drop it to the floor now I’m under the duvet.

His fingertips are on my cheek, and he runs his thumb across my bottom lip. “It’s obscene how much I’ve missed you.”

I laugh, and tears well in my eyes at the thought that we’ll only get a single night before he leaves.

“What’s wrong?”

My stomach churns. I don’t want to bring it up again, but we promised to be open and honest with each other. I hate the way I feel, and then I feel guilty over it. “I’m struggling with this distance. I just want to be with you.”

“I want to be with you too. I’m sorry things are the way they are. I wish they were different.”

“Can we skip the food? I know it’s early, but I just want to cuddle up and sleep.”

Drew curls around me, enveloping me with his body. “Tired?”

“Very. Even more so after all that hot water and exercise.”

He presses his lips to my neck. “Happy birthday, Hayley.”

“You remembered?”

“I do pay attention. Even if I’m far away. I didn’t get the chance to say it when I arrived, given you pouncing on me.”

I roll onto my back and find myself gazing into his eyes. They’re so full of emotion.

“Today wasn’t just about showing up to get laid. I wanted to spend your birthday with you.” He cups my cheek, and I close my eyes. He’s everything I wanted, and having him here eases the pain of us being apart. “I’ve got a present for you in my bag.”

My eyes fly open. I go from being sleepy to being too excited to nod off.

“I’ll grab it.”

I admire his bare arse as he walks out of the room. Drew’s a thing of beauty, even if he doesn’t know it. The view from the front as he returns leaves me sighing.

“Here.” He hands me a flat black box with a bright red bow tied around it and climbs back into bed.

I tug at the ribbon, and Drew laughs as I throw the lid of the box off the bed.

Inside is the most delicate fabric, and I pick up a piece of the clothing. It’s the softest black G-string I think I’ve ever seen.

“I love it. But it’s so random. You know what underwear I usually wear.” My drawer is full of cotton briefs. The most exciting I get is that they’re different colours.

“Well, I thought that you might like something to wear when we’re together. Although to be fair, you could wear granny knickers and I’d still want to get them off you.”

I laugh. “They’re lovely.”

“There’s a matching bra in there too. Lily helped me with the sizing. If it doesn’t fit, we can exchange it. Gives you another excuse to come and see me.”

“I’ll try it on. You’re so thoughtful. Thank you.”

He grins. “I’d be a pretty poor excuse for a boyfriend to not be here for your birthday.”

I place the G-string back in the box. “I’m so glad you came. The gift is perfect. How did you get to be so good at picking pretty underwear out?”

“According to my credit card statements, Lucy shopped there a lot. She was such a clothing snob, I knew it had to be pretty high quality.”

I let go of the box. “Let me get this straight. You bought me lingerie from a store you know about because your ex used to wear this stuff?”

He blanches. “I was going through the statements because my lawyer told me to in case she stopped talking about it and actually tried to get any more money out of me. I saw the name and went to the website.” His gaze drops. “I wouldn’t have a clue about what she wore. All I knew was when I saw the things I thought how great they’d look on you.”

My heart thuds watching him. All the excitement in his face faded when I got angry, and he’s done nothing wrong. “I’m sorry.” I palm his cheek, and he raises his face to look at me again.

“No, I’m sorry. I should have thought that out better than I did. You deserve better.” His words melt me inside. He cares. I know that much. He’s come all this way just to spend time with me when he’s supposed to be working.

I love him.

My chest clenches at the thought, but there’s no other way to describe how I feel about Drew Campbell. We dance this dance around it, but that’s my reality right now, and I think maybe it’s his, too.

“Do you want to know why there are five G-strings in that box and not just one?” he asks, his husky voice telling me how much he wants me again right now.

“Enlighten me.” I lean closer.

“I figured there was a good chance they wouldn’t last long. The sight of you in one of those? Well, it might take everything for me not to rip it off you.”

If he was any other man I might have laughed at his words, but if Drew does feel the same intensity I do, he might just mean it.

“Drew,” I whisper.

“You’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me, Hayley. That’s why I’m here, despite the distance.”

Hot tears spill down my cheeks, and he shakes his head. “Don’t you ever cry with me. I don’t know how much longer you’ll put up with this, and I want our time together to be happy.”

“It hurts.” My voice breaks before I can say anything else.

Drew nods. “I know it does. For me, too.” He reaches up and wipes my tears away. “I’m sorry about the stupid underwear. All I wanted was to see you, to be with you. This is driving me crazy, and I can’t do a damn thing about it.”

He reaches for the box in my hand, and throws it to the floor. “I’m such a dick. Here we are with limited time together, and I’m making you cry. I’m sorry.”

I shake my head. “It doesn’t matter. You’re here. That’s what’s important.”

“Yeah, but it’s your birthday.” He pulls me into his arms, and I flop in his embrace, letting him hold me. “I miss you every second I’m not here, and I don’t know what to do about it.”

“I miss you too,” I whisper.

Drew closes his eyes. “How are we doing this to each other? This is supposed to be a happy day.”

“It’s no different to any of my other birthdays.” I wriggle out of his grasp and lie back on the bed. The G-string I took out of the box is still in my hand and I stretch it between my fingers. “Think I can use this as a slingshot?”

Drew laughs, lying next to me and sighing. “You can do whatever you want with it. I’m sorry.”

“You bought me a gorgeous present. There’s not really anything to be sorry about.”

I drop the G-string to the floor and snuggle into his arms. “Thank you. It means a lot that you’re here.”

“Where else would I be?”