She smiled at that.
‘So Ryan was the last person you slept with?’
‘Well technically no, we never got that far. But I’ve dated a few men since then and I’ve always ended it before it got anywhere because the thought of sex made me think of him and that night and I start to panic all over again.’
‘Why was it different with me?’
‘Because I trusted you completely. Because you have been nothing but kind since we first met. You think nice and lovely aren’t compliments because your ex-girlfriend made you think they were something bad or something to be ashamed of. But they aren’t. You are wonderful and I couldn’t have done it with you if you weren’t.’
‘I wish you’d told me you were nervous about sex before we did it. I would have been more careful.’
Her eyebrows shot up at that. ‘There is nothing you could have done to make it better for me. You were kind, respectful, gentle, and quite honestly it was the best sex I’ve ever had, because of that.’
He smiled and kissed her. ‘For me too.’
She smiled at that.
He stroked her face. ‘So I can understand why you were put off sex after what Ryan did but it doesn’t really explain your hatred for rich people. Ryan didn’t act that way because he was rich, he acted that way because hewas a dick. I’m not sure you can tar all rich people with the same brush. I’m sure some of them are nice.’
‘I suppose, although I’m yet to meet a nice one and I certainly would be wary about being involved with someone so rich again.’
Luke was silent for a moment. ‘Well, I think you should try to keep an open mind.’
She wasn’t sure why he was focussing on that but she could see this was important to him. ‘OK, I’ll try.’
He looked worried and she didn’t know why. ‘Are you OK?’
‘Yes, I’m fine, couldn’t be happier.’
She didn’t think he was being entirely truthful about that but as she was about to ask him about it he kissed her. ‘I’m so damned happy,’ he whispered against her lips before kissing her again, so sweetly, so passionately that she forgot everything else.
CHAPTER TEN
Flick was busily helping Luke put together the newly delivered shelves the next day. Well, helping was probably a bit generous as he was doing most of the work. If she were putting them together they would be wonky, loose and fall apart after a few hours. But she was passing him screws and giving him moral support so she was helping a little.
‘I need a few more tools, I’ll be back in a sec,’ Luke said, getting up from where he was kneeling on the floor. He walked past her then doubled back and gave her the sweetest kiss before disappearing out of the gift shop door.
Flick stood up and wandered over to the archway to check on Polly. All the gadgets and machines had been delivered and Polly’s boyfriend was now busily installing all of them for her. The room had been painted in yellow and Rose was working away at the back of the room adding bees, flowers and grass to thewalls. The new tables and chairs had been delivered and looked fantastic. The new countertop hadn’t arrived yet but apart from that Polly looked almost ready to go.
Polly saw her standing there and waved her over.
‘How’s it going?’ Flick asked.
‘Good, really good,’ Polly said, excitedly. ‘Honestly, this is a dream come true for me, I can’t tell you how happy I am and I want to thank you, and Luke obviously, for making my dreams a reality.’
‘You don’t need to thank me,’ Flick said. ‘Just seeing this place be a success will be thanks enough. If this works, there’ll be more people coming through the door and that can only be a good thing for the studios and artists.’
‘I hope so. It feels like a lot of pressure to get it right. If I fail, the whole studio fails.’
‘It won’t be your fault if the studios close. The artists are so set in their ways that this place has been dying for years. It will be them who will be the making or breaking of the studios and their willingness to get behind the change.’
Polly nodded. ‘I thought I might do a bit of a soft launch tomorrow, just coffee, teas and cake. I thought I’d put a post out on Facebook asking people to come and test the cakes. Buy a drink and get a free slice of cake in return for honest feedback. It will just get people through the door and let them know what we’re doing up here so everyone knows that change is coming. I know the new countertops aren’t here yet but Rose ispractically finished and I’m going to make sure the place is spotless this afternoon.’
‘That sounds like a great idea. The more buzz we can create around this place the better. I think the grand opening is likely to be next week but there’s no reason why we can’t start getting people through the doors now.’
Polly nodded. ‘Also I love what you are doing with the art therapy workshops for those with brain injuries. Although I have nothing to contribute in terms of teaching art, I will donate free drinks, cake and sandwiches for every workshop.’
‘Wow, Polly, thank you, that’s really generous.’
