He wasn't sure what to expect, but he hadn't expected to have his breath knocked out of him, to feel as if his heart was about to explode and his lungs collapse. At this rate he would be hard before he even strung a sentence together.
He stammered through his greeting. "Ev, eve..evening."
Grace threw him a questioning look, because she couldn't understand his problem. "Come in a sec, would you." She invited as she held the door open, "I was just on the phone. I won't be long." She waited for him to step into the house and then indicated for him to take a seat. Once he was seated she moved quickly to the phone.
With her back to him she picked up the phone, "Mum, Joshua is here, I'll have to go." She listened attentively before she said, "Yes, I will, yes. Love. Bye."
She turned back to face him. "Sorry about that." She said when he still hadn't spoken. Her voice pulled him back to the present. He attempted a smile. "Are you ok?"
"Just poleaxed." He replied without thinking. "What?" Grace was puzzled by his reaction.
He shook himself, smiled ruefully and admitted candidly, "You're gorgeous."
She erupted into nervous laughter. "Yeah right." It wasn't a ploy for further compliments. With two breathtakingly beautiful sisters, she genuinely had never considered herself gorgeous.
He came closer. "Honestly." His hands caressed her upper arms, sparking a frisson of electricity that she came to associate only with his touch. She took a breath, inhaled the woody scent of his aftershave mingling with a scent she only associated with him, and felt her heart skitter. His hands dropped to encircle her waist. "Stunning would be closer to the truth."
She laughed nervously and tried to lean out of his hold. "Now you're laying it on a bit thick."
He could hear it in her voice. She didn't believe him. He took her chin in his hand, and tipped her face up so that his eyes would endorse what he had to say. "I can't believe you don't know how beautiful you are." He was surprised to see her squirm.
"Thank you." She replied shyly. Her confidence, her ego and her self esteem suddenly buoyed with the unexpected praise.
He shook his head, she was full of surprises. "You are." He reiterated frankly. He bent his head and brushed his lips lightly against hers. Once more the jolt that he associated with touching her seemed to ignite his body and make what was already hard now painfully hard. "And if we had the time I'd stop here and prove it to you." He stepped away. Took a breath. Grace smiled tremulously at the promise she heard in his voice. "We'd better get going, we're late."
"I'll just get my shawl." She retrieved the filmy length of material that was lying on the arm of the couch and followed him to the door.
He drove them to Hamilton, but because they were late, all the near parking bays were taken and they had to park a long way down a rather busy River road. They had to walk several hundred metres to reach the paddle steamer moored on the Waikato river. He held her hand. She let him. It felt right. Joshua relaxed a fraction, their first date was going well.
It was just approaching eight-thirty and they were the last couple to board the boat. Grace hitched up her long straight black silk skirt as Joshua handed her onto the gangway to the boat.
The skirt, with a slit from the hem line to almost mid thigh, was topped with a strapless boned filmy gold bustier. Once again his eyes were drawn to the bare golden shoulders and slender neck. At her neck was a simple twisted coil of fine pearls. Her hair was pinned expertly in a riot of curls, with a few tendrils escaping to soften the look. Fine pearl threads hung from her ear lobes and the only other jewelry she had on was her watch. She looked elegant and beautiful. And she was with him, he couldn't help the smile that appeared on his lips. She was with him, on the boat. She hadn't backed out. Progress.
As soon as Grace and Joshua boarded the steam driven paddle riverboat they were offered champagne in long stemmed glasses.
With one hand in the small of her back he propelled her urgently along the narrow corridor until they were at the rear of the steamer, just in front of the now unmoving large wheel. Right now, he wasn't ready to share her with any of the crowd. He wanted a few minutes with her.
"How many are they expecting?" Grace asked and then nervously took a sip of her fizzing drink. She felt slightly uncomfortable. She'd seen the dresses worn by some of the other women on board. They had money stamped all over them. Not her league. Damn, she wasn't ready to be emotionally battered again. No wonder he'd told her she was gorgeous, he knew she'd have to cope with this. Hell. She'd made these clothes herself. She'd chosen them to wear tonight for their very simplicity, knowing she would be once again in a different league.
If she hadn't noticed their clothes, the jewelry would have given them away. None of it was paste she was sure. She looked at her simple gold and platinum watch, a present from her family when she'd got her doctorate. She toyed with a strand of her earrings as she fought down apprehension.
"About fifty to sixty I think." He finally said as he watched her sip the champagne again and then said, "Have I mentioned how gorgeous you look?"
"Yes." She laughed anxiously, "And thank you for being so thoughtful."
"Thoughtful?" He queried in confused tones.
"I don't belong here." She muttered beneath her breath as she lifted the glass to her mouth.
"What?"
"Nothing." She shrugged, feigning indifference. Joshua frowned. What was the matter? He focused on her. For every step they took forward they took two back. Just when he thought they had made progress, she was showing signs of unease. It made him apprehensive. He looked at her, hoping to pick up some clues.
The gold strapless top left an enticing amount of her shoulders and the curves of her breasts bare. The colour of the material also made her amber toned skin glow warmly. She had taken a lot of time with her appearance too. Her eyelids were dusted with a fine coat of gold eye shadow and outlined with jet kohl, a rich russet lipstick coated her lips and she had sparingly applied a fine coat of foundation and powder. She was beautiful.
Joshua looked at her. "You're staring at me." She smiled slowly, moments of apprehension dissolved as she realized he really was impressed.
"You're beautiful."
"Cut it out." Her mind sidetracked and she was pleased to have her thoughts diverted.
"You'd better get used to it." Joshua told her frankly, sensing that he had finally convinced her, "Half the guys here are going to tell you the same thing."
"The other half will be trying to stop their partners from running off with you." She retorted immediately. Joshua laughed and hugged her to him, pleased that she considered him attractive.
"Only half?" He teased as he gently rubbed the back of his hand against her cheek. A slow sexy smile materialised in Grace's eyes and on her lips. It promised so much. Joshua's head descended slowly. Their eyes remained open and locked on each other as his head continued to come closer. Progress.
"Joshua." Bellowed a loud, instantly recognisable, currently unwanted, voice from a few feet away, "What are you guys doing back here?"
Muttering a fervent curse, Joshua abandoned his intention to kiss Grace.
Grace chuckled. "He has great timing hasn't he." She murmured with a smile.
Resigned to having lost the moment, Joshua shook his head at Zac's untimely appearance. Grace turned to greet his brother. Zac came forward, stepped closer and kissed her cheek. His eyes were wide open in astonishment.
"You look great." Zac said sincerely. His eyes swept over her making her feel gorgeous. "Wow." He kept shaking his head as if he couldn't take it all in. "You scrub up great Doc."
"Thank you." Grace murmured a trifle abashed by his open admiration.
For once, Joshua wished he hadn't been right about other men's reactions. He was going to have to work damned hard to keep her with him this evening, given Zac's drooling expression.
"You've seen her before Zac." Joshua chided as his brother kept taking inventory.
"Yeah, but not like this."
Grace shifted uneasily, tucking a fictitious errant lock of hair behind her ear.
She seemed unfamiliar with people complimenting her on her appearance. Even now she was shuffling from one foot to the other in insecure acceptance. She was totally artless and unaffected by her beauty. That's what made it even more potent. Joshua found that thought startling.
"I saw you guys clamber on board ages ago, but when we left our mooring and you didn't show up on the deck up front, I came in search." He smiled happily, still captivated by Grace. He kept staring at her. "Craig, Luke and the girls are waiting."
"Thanks." Joshua said with a hint of exasperation that completely escaped Zac's notice.
"Come on," Zac took Grace's arm, "You look amazing." He gushed with total abstraction, "There's a handkerchief size dance floor up front, how about a dance?"
"Zac." Joshua interrupted forcefully, "This is my date, which means I dance with her." He extricated Grace from his brother's clutch, "Where is Shelley anyway?" Joshua demanded, hoping to remind his brother of his own date this evening.
Zac was infatuated with his latest girlfriend of two days, so why was he holding on to Grace like a limpet.
"Told you, up front with Craig, Luke and Lysette." Automatically, without thinking, he reached for Grace's hand. He tugged her along, totally oblivious to Joshua's narrowed gaze. They had only taken a few steps when Joshua finally snapped.
"Zac if you don't let go of her hand within two seconds I'm going to throw you overboard!"
He wasn't joking. That much was clear from the tone. Grace came to a sudden halt and Joshua cannoned into her. He reached out to steady her. His fingers brushing against her breasts as he grabbed her upper arms.
Zac also stopped and having decided that his brother was not joking, quickly released the hand he was holding. "Don't get stressed Joshua." He remonstrated with his usual brand of impudence, "I was only leading the way."
"Then lead." Joshua told him, "She doesn't have to be towed like a bloody car." He growled his message as he stared at his brother.
Zac's dark eyebrows rose skyward, but he said nothing as he turned and headed back the way he had come. Slowly Grace smiled at Joshua, then shyly slid her hand into his. Together they followed Zac.