Be My Valentine Read online

  She had a place of her own. Sure, she was renting, but she’d been in this unit for years already and the landlord was in no rush to move her on. She had created a comfortable, warming mood with her mismatched furniture and decorations and she loved her little place. It might not be everyone’s style, but it was hers. There was nothing really that she was particularly unhappy about.

  Except that it all felt empty. And she felt so lonely.

  And it was all since she’d met Joey.

  The kettle switch clicked as it turned off, the water still bubbling inside the appliance, breaking her out of her haze. There was no use in sitting around her unit wallowing in self-pity. It was her birthday, for crying out loud. And Valentine’s Day or not, she deserved to spoil herself.

  Deciding to have a coffee at the shops instead, she slipped her shoes on, grabbed her bag and headed to the door. She should buy something to add to her decor. Perhaps a plant to talk to might make things a little less lonely around here.

  ***

  Joey shook out his free hand beside him and sucked in a deep breath of air, his other hand tucked behind his back. He’d been shaking in his boots by the time he’d arrived and, if Andie hadn’t assured him it would be best if he waited until closer to lunchtime, he might have been here at the crack of dawn. Maybe he would have been more confident if he’d ignored her advice and shown up earlier and not allowed time for doubts to grow. He wiped his sweaty palm on his pants and had just mustered up enough courage to knock when, right before his hand could connect with the solid wood, the door swung open. And there she was.

  Harley.

  Her captivating eyes. Her soft brown hair, left out to rest over her shoulder. The sweet freckles. Her lush lips. His mouth went dry as he imagined kissing those lips, just as he’d imagined that—and much more—every night since he’d left.

  God, he’d missed her. He hadn’t realised just how much until now.

  ‘Joey?’ She’d whispered his name, but he felt his body react all the same.

  He wanted to take her sweet, beautiful form in his arms and kiss her until her legs were too weak to stand. And by then, there’d be no need for standing. The scene played out in his head, and he’d almost decided it was the best way of telling her straight-up that he wanted to take things to the next level when he found himself thrusting the bunch of colourful flowers he’d carefully chosen into her arms and losing all logical thought.

  ‘Ha-dah.’ Her brows pulled together as she gingerly took the bouquet, showing him he hadn’t made any sense. He cleared his throat. ‘Happy day. Ha—’ He snapped his mouth shut and forced himself to take a deep breath, unable to tear his gaze away from those enchanting eyes. She was even more stunning than he remembered. ‘Happy birthday.’

  He smiled when the words finally came out how he intended them. A smile played at her lips and he felt that twinge again. God help him. Feeling desperate for a smooth recovery, he waved a hand towards the bouquet, almost knocking it out of her arms in the process. Harley fumbled with the bouquet, managing to catch it by pressing it against her stomach. His eyes dropped to just above the colourful flowers, landing on the two creamy mounds peeking out of her low-cut top. He swallowed, bringing his gaze higher to meet hers, fighting to bring his body under control.

  ‘They looked like you.’ Her eyebrow shot up. ‘I mean, they reminded me of you with their colours and … stuff,’ he stammered. He wished he’d written a script or something—anything to give him a better chance of wooing the pretty woman who hadn’t left his dreams since he’d met her. ‘They’re … well, I don’t actually know what they are.’ The florist had told him, but he’d be flat out remembering his own damn name at the moment.

  ‘Gerberas,’ she said quietly, her smile wide. ‘They’re my—my favourite, thank you.’

  He couldn’t resist smiling. ‘You’re welcome.’

  ‘Was I … ah … expecting you?’

  He shook his head without breaking eye contact. ‘No, I—I wanted to surprise you.’

  ‘Well, it worked.’ She glanced down at the flowers in her arms. When she lifted her gaze to meet his again, there was something else in her eyes that he couldn’t quite discern. His heart skipped a beat. She took a shaky breath. ‘It’s been a while.’

  She bit into her lip and he realised what that look was. Hesitation. Worry. Awkwardness? Had he misread the signals before he’d left? Had he imagined that she might have felt the same as him in their chats afterwards? He moved a hand to reach out to her, then quickly dropped it to his side before she noticed.

  ‘I was on the sea,’ he said, matter-of-factly.

  He wanted to tell her that he’d tried. That not a single day passed where he hadn’t tried to contact her. That he missed hearing her voice. Missed her. But he couldn’t. Not until he was certain he knew how she felt. And that she hadn’t gone and got with some other guy. His eyes drifted to her supple lips, the urge to kiss them still strong. He’d almost kissed her before he’d left to go back to work all those months ago, but he hadn’t. He didn’t want to be the kind of guy to kiss a girl—especially one who’d just had her heart broken by some arrogant asshole—and run. He didn’t want to do that to her. But he also hadn’t regretted anything more in his life. The very thought that she might have found someone else in the time he was away hadn’t even occurred to him until now. Joey swallowed, bringing his focus back to the present. To that flicker in her eyes that gave him some hope that maybe she felt the same way as he did.

  ‘There’s rarely reception out there,’ he finished.

  She held his gaze a moment longer, her mouth opening as though she wanted to say something, but nothing came out. Eventually, she sighed. ‘I was just about to go to the shops. I was going to … buy a plant, actually. Do—do you maybe want to come?’

  He wasn’t sure why he was surprised at her offer—wasn’t that what his plan was? Deliver the flowers and spend the rest of the day with her? He smiled, his body relaxing only the slightest. At least she didn’t not want to see him. ‘Yeah, I’d like that.’

  Her smile grew wide again, and he felt like anything would be worthwhile just to keep seeing that smile on her face. ‘Great,’ she said, nudging her thumb over her shoulder. ‘I’ll just pop these in some water and we can head off.’ Harley started walking away, then paused, turning back to look at him again. ‘It’s good to see you again, Joey.’

  He wanted to say something classy, some kind of smooth pickup line. But all thought left him when she looked at him like that. He smiled instead.

  Chapter 3

  Harley couldn’t believe her eyes.

  It felt like a lifetime ago since she last saw his bright brown eyes and contagious smile. And when she’d come face-to-face with the man who’d been inhabiting her mind a hell of a lot more than he probably should, she’d thought she was having some whacked-out dream. It really must have been some night for her to conjure up a life-sized Joey on the other side of her front door the next day—on Valentine’s Day, no less. Her birthday.

  But her head was still throbbing, and she’d already showered, so it couldn’t be a dream. The only logical conclusion was that she was hallucinating. She’d seriously considered closing the door and opening it again to see if he was real, but she’d gone the path of least resistance and simply said his name—quietly enough that it wouldn’t disturb her neighbours, loud enough for him to hear her. Then, taking her by surprise, he’d thrust a bouquet of beautiful gerberas into her arms.

  He really was there.

  And he’d remembered her birthday.

  Now, as she watched him walking with the takeaway coffees towards the table she’d claimed, his dark brown hair neatly trimmed—slightly longer on top than it was on the back and sides—she still struggled to believe he’d really been there at her door. That he was here now. His eyes connected with hers as he navigated around the food court tables and he smiled. Butterflies came to life in her stomach, beating ferociously at the walls, and her heart pou
nded in her chest. A prickle of heat raced across her body, bringing all her nerves to attention.

  It had been months since she’d heard from him—even longer since she’d seen him—and he still made her feel this way. Why would he come back now? Why wouldn’t he tell her he was coming?

  ‘Your coffee, birthday girl,’ he said, sliding her coffee towards her and sitting in the chair opposite. She glanced at the tattoo on his left forearm, which she’d never noticed before—a woman dressed in a grass skirt and coconut bra.

  ‘Thanks,’ she said, wrapping her hands around the warm cardboard cup.

  She took in a shaky breath. If she’d had any ideas of what to talk about before, they’d all left her now. The car ride over to the shops hadn’t been eventful, filled only with short polite conversation. Most of the ride had been her stealing glances of him only to find he was looking at her, too. Then he’d smile, she’d blush, and they’d both look away. She felt like she was back in school hanging out with her crush. It was no different. She took a tiny sip of her coffee to test the temperature. Too hot to drink. She shifted in her seat, resting her elbows on the table and putting her weight forward.

  ‘So, what are you back for?’

  He stayed silent for a moment, and she might have wondered if he’d heard her if he hadn’t been smiling like that, his eyes glinting with a hint of mischief. Finally, he brought his cup to his lips. ‘I wanted to see you.’

  She blinked, not sure if she’d heard him right. As his words replayed in her mind, she wondered if it was just one of his jokes. But then he mirrored her position, leaning forward slightly, his elbows on the table, his hands wrapped around his cup. His eyes suddenly serious.

  Flustered, she said the first thing that popped into her mind. ‘Seriously, though.’

  His eyebrow quirked, his eyes flickering with amusement and something else that sent a delicious shiver down her spine. ‘You don’t think I’m being serious?’

  God, she hoped he was. The thought that he might have taken leave just to see her …

  But he couldn’t have. No one ever did things just for her. She was the kind of person people caught up with if they were in town, but not the kind that people came to town for. Or, at least, that’s how it had been in the past. Looking into Joey’s gorgeous chocolate-brown eyes, she realised he could very well be serious. And oh, she really wished he might have come to see her, to spend her birthday—and Valentine’s Day—with her as some grand romantic gesture or something of the sort. But no, he couldn’t have. His sister lived in Perth. Naturally, he would have come to see Andie and thought it would be a good chance to catch up with Harley, too. After all, Andie would be a little more preoccupied now than she would have been for previous visits.

  ‘I don’t know what to think,’ she said. ‘We barely know each other, Joey.’

  He frowned. ‘We talked on the phone heaps.’

  ‘Yeah, for the first month or so of you being away. But it’s not the same as’—she pointed a finger between them—’this.’

  ‘I tried to call as much as I could,’ he said, his brow creased. ‘The reception out on the sea is shoddy and—’

  Joey paused, as if considering whether or not he should say what he’d been about to say. He studied her deeply, the intensity in his gaze making her heart pound harder and her breaths quicken. He ran a hand over his clean-shaven jaw, and her fingers itched to see how smooth it was. Then, seemingly coming to a decision, he took in a deep breath and reached for her hand. His warm fingers sent fire up her arm and straight to her belly, the small flame burning harder and brighter at her core. Her eyes dropped to his hand on hers, roughened from work, yet strong, broad, and deliberate.

  ‘Not a single day passed where I didn’t think about you, Harley. Where I didn’t want to see you. I wanted to spend today with you. For your birthday and—and Valentine’s.’

  Her cheeks grew hot as he held her gaze, a flicker of hope stirring inside her. He’d thought of her. He’d wanted to see her. He hadn’t forgotten about her. And, reading between the lines, maybe he felt just the same as she did.

  ‘Is it really so hard to believe I came here for you?’ he added, releasing her hand with a squeeze and returning his back to his cup.

  A coolness settled over her hand, her body instantly missing his touch. When he said it like that, it wasn’t so hard to believe. But now that he was no longer touching her, doubts drifted in. Had she imagined he’d touched her hand? With a heaviness, she pointed out the obvious.

  ‘But Andie’s here, too. You could have come back to see her.’

  Amusement flickered across his face, but she half-suspected she saw a hint of something else, too. A sadness, or something. ‘Well, she is my sister,’ he said. ‘But she has Tay now. Even staying at her place last night felt a little awkward. And I’m happy to see her, but I wanted to see you more.’

  Her heart sunk a little lower. What was he saying? That he just decided to take leave to come and see her? What about when his leave was over? He’d go back to work, go back out on the sea where there’s no bloody reception, and she wouldn’t hear from him for months again. Then what? He’d just rock up on her doorstep again without telling her he’s coming to visit?

  She shouldn’t feel this way about him. Shouldn’t want him to have come for her. She couldn’t even get a non-distance relationship to work out. Why should a distance relationship be any different? She swallowed, his words finally catching up to her.

  ‘You were here last night?’ She didn’t know why it surprised her. Somehow, for some reason, she’d thought he must have just got in that morning.

  ‘Yeah, I got to Andie’s as she was getting ready to go out with you and Libby. You should have seen her reaction.’

  ‘She didn’t know you were coming either?’ Andie’s questioning last night suddenly made sense. She’d thought she’d been acting strange. Then again, Harley had been too drunk to really think much for most of the night.

  ‘I didn’t want her to tell you. I wanted it to be a surprise. I figured I could hang with her for the first night, then spend the rest of my leave with you. I didn’t think she might have had other plans.’

  A smile tugged at her lips, her heart feeling like it was going to explode at the thought that he really might have come for her. It was a strange feeling. ‘And what if I had plans?’ she teased.

  He opened his mouth and closed it a few times, as if searching for an answer. Finally, he came up with one. ‘Then I would have followed you around like a lost puppy until you agreed to hang out with me.’

  ‘Stalker,’ she jested.

  ‘You love it.’

  Yeah, she did. She bit into her lip to prevent herself from saying it. His eyes seemed to shine as he looked at her, a perfect smile gracing his handsome features. His nose was straight, his jaw square, his cheekbones defined. Though he didn’t have quite the looks she had a tendency to fall for, he certainly was attractive. The way her cheeks grew hot when he looked at her like he did now only proved it. She cleared her throat so she wouldn’t get stuck down the rabbit hole of processing how she felt about Joey. And how he might feel about her. She reached out a hand and touched the tattoo on his forearm, withdrawing her hand shortly after. The fire in her belly had sparked again at the contact.

  ‘What’s the significance of this?’

  She had no tattoos of her own, but she’d heard that each one tended to have a meaning or some kind of significance to the person who got the ink. She hadn’t seen this tattoo of Joey’s last time she saw him, but now that she thought about it, he’d been wearing long sleeves or a jumper since the weather was starting to cool then. Now that it was hotter, he wore a plain dark blue tee and dark grey jeans. The outfit suited him.

  ‘Well, it does this.’ He shifted his forearm between them so she could see the grass-skirted woman better. The muscles in his forearms moved as he wiggled his fingers, making the lady shake her hips as though she was doing the hula. She had never thought of tatt
oos having an entertaining purpose, and yet, it was the coolest one she’d ever seen.

  She flicked her gaze up to meet his. ‘So you got a tattoo of a hula lady so you could make her wriggle her hips?’

  ‘Lulu is not just any hula lady,’ he said, his eyes teasing. ‘She’s the best hula lady this side of the equator.’

  ‘You named her?’

  ‘Wouldn’t you?’ he said, as though it made sense. She laughed, shaking her head, and he shrugged, relaxing his arm. His eyes grew serious and she realised there was more to the story. The funny larrikin Joey she’d come to know hadn’t gotten that tattoo just for the amusement factor. ‘My pop—Mum’s dad—had one in the same spot,’ he said after a few moments. ‘He was more of a father to me than my own was. He’s why I wanted to be a sailor in the first place. He’d been a sailor his whole career and always told me stories about his seafaring. Dad didn’t like that I wanted to be like him. He wanted me to go to uni like Andie did and make something of myself.’

  Harley had been about to say how stupid that was—that being a sailor was making something of himself. That his dad should have had more respect for him for wanting to serve his country. But she stopped herself before the words could tumble out.

  ‘I tried it, too,’ he continued, seemingly oblivious to the thoughts racing through her mind. ‘I got an early entry into an economics and commerce course and studied over the summer session. And that was enough. It near on bored me to death. When Pop passed, I went out and signed up for the navy.’

  She couldn’t help but feel there was more to the story, but she didn’t push it. ‘I bet your dad wasn’t happy about that,’ she said before she could stop herself. His returning smile made her heart melt.