Songbird (Songbird, #1) Read online

  He got up from the bench press and started walking over towards us. Kelli patted me on the knee encouragingly then got up and made herself scarce, leaving me sitting on the bench alone. I felt my heart race and I quickly tried to tidy up my messy ponytail, and dispose of some of the perspiration in my hairline. I discreetly checked for body odour. I was a bit stinky, but then, I was in a gym, so I figured that was acceptable. Besides, he had been sweating too. I could tell because his singlet was clinging to his very noticeably defined, drool-worthy body.

  I looked in his direction again. He was standing only maybe four or five metres away from me, rearranging the barbells so they were in the correct weight order. Okay, so he either had OCD or was biding his time. I took a deep breath. Should I speak to him? I could casually go over to the rack to put my weights back, which could work. But I’d only just gotten them, and he would know I hadn’t actually used them yet.

  “Have you finished with your weights?”

  My head shot up. While I had been lost in thought, trying to work up the nerve to approach him, he had approached me, and oh my God, his voice was so deep and gravelly it gave me goose bumps.

  My stomach did a somersault, and heat rose up my cheeks.

  I shook my head. “No, I haven’t started yet.” I couldn’t tear my eyes away from his. They were mesmerising.

  The corner of his mouth twitched. I was sure he could see the affect he was having on me. He stepped towards me, his mouth opening to say something else, but Mal came in and called him away.

  “Let me know if I can help you with anything,” he said, as he went to follow Mal. “I’ll be around here a lot.”

  I bit my lip and sighed. There were about a dozen things I could think of that he could help me with, none of which we could do in a public place.

  After finishing my arm work, I casually looked around again, but he hadn’t come back. I looked over at Kelli and shrugged, feeling a pang of disappointment. So much for Mr Hotbod. He had left the building.

  We quickly showered and dressed for work. It was hard to find clothes that wouldn’t crease in our bags, so I’d decided on a black pencil skirt that finished above the knee and a pale-blue pinstripe fitted blouse. At least if Mr Hotbod was still around I looked half decent.

  As we headed out to grab some breakfast, we walked past the reception desk, where Mal was chatting to someone who was hidden around a corner.

  “Hi Mal,” Kelli called as we walked past.

  Mal looked around and waved, and we waved back.

  “Hey Mal, who was that hot guy in the weights room before, with the tattoo all down his arm?” Kelli yelled from across the reception area.

  I kept walking. Food and coffee were my priority right now; I was starving. Besides, if he had been interested, he would have come back, right?

  Looking over my shoulder to see what Kelli was doing, I just managed to glimpse the guy Mal was talking to. It was Mr Hotbod, and he was laughing as Mal replied to Kelli, “I thought you had a boyfriend?”

  Frantically, I tried to signal to Kelli to shut the fuck up, but she wasn’t looking in my direction.

  She called back, “Not for me, for Tara. She needs to get laid, and she thought Mr Hotbod was a prime candidate.”

  Mal laughed and his head snapped around in my direction. I cringed and covered my face with my hands, absolutely mortified, before deciding that breakfast was not that important anymore. As I made a quick dash for the exit double doors, I hazarded one last glance at Mr Hotbod. His eyes were burning straight into me, a confident smirk on his face.

  Then he gave me a little wink.

  THE DAY for me was like any other as I tended to my manager’s travel requirements, meetings and fielded phone calls on his behalf. But for Kelli it dragged on endlessly, as she kept checking her watch.

  We came back from lunch, and I was surprised to see I had five missed calls on my desk phone. I checked my mobile; there were another three missed calls. I checked the number and froze; they were all from the same person—Stephen. I quickly deleted them without listening to the messages. Surely if I avoided him long enough he would just give up. At least, I hoped so.

  At five minutes to five, when Kelli was packing up her desk, Jacqui came back from a meeting and huffed exaggeratedly when she saw what Kelli was doing. “You can’t go home yet, we have to work on the budget report. It’s due next week.”

  The look on Kelli’s face was priceless. I could see she was biting her tongue when she said ever-so-politely, “I’m sorry, Jacqui, but there’s not a hope in hell that I’ll be working back tonight.” And with that she turned to me and asked, “Are you ready, Tara? Let’s go.”

  And out we went.

  The elevator took far too long to arrive, and even longer to travel the fifteen floors to the ground, having to stop at nearly every level on the way down to let more people in. By the time we arrived on the ground floor, Kelli was flustered and ready to tackle everyone out of the way to get home.

  As she was trying to muscle her tiny frame from the back of the elevator, I saw a familiar face over the heads of the crowd, standing in the foyer opposite the now open doors. I hadn’t met Cooper yet, but I knew his cheeky face from the many photos on Kelli’s wall.

  Grabbing Kelli’s arm, I pulled her back. “Take a deep breath and relax,” I whispered to her.

  “Why? What are you talking about?”

  “Cooper’s on the other side of this wall of people, waiting for you, so don’t go charging out like a bull in a china shop.”

  She stopped and grinned at me. She then took a deep breath in and exhaled slowly, quickly turning to check her make-up, which was perfect, as always, before casually sauntering out of the elevator straight into Cooper’s waiting arms.

  After an embarrassingly long kiss, which caught the attention of everyone coming and going in the foyer, Kelli introduced me to Cooper. As was my standard greeting, I held out my hand for a handshake, but he gave me a tight hug as he jokingly said, “So you’re the notorious Tara who’s been leading my girl astray!”

  I laughed, and then gave him a serious look. “Yes, that’s me; I’m a bad influence on the usually timid Kelli.”

  He gave me one of his cheeky grins, the same as I had seen in many photos, before continuing a little more seriously, “I’m pleased to meet you, and I’m more than happy that she has such a good friend to hang out with.”

  “I think I’m the lucky one,” I replied sincerely.

  We made our way to the car and headed back to Kelli’s. Once inside, I suddenly felt like the apartment was way too small, and I was in the way.

  “I might go to the gym,” I said, trying to make myself scarce so they could have some time to themselves, but Kelli frowned at me.

  “We’ve already been to the gym today, why are you going again? Do you have a thing for Mal?” she teased, twitching her eyebrows up and down at me. Then she gasped, “Maybe Mr Hotbod will be there again.”

  Laughing, I shook my head; on second thoughts, maybe the gym wasn’t such a good idea, after Kelli had opened her big mouth and embarrassed me. In fact I didn’t know if I would ever be able to show my face there again.

  “Ah, no and no,” I replied. “I just thought you might like some time alone. It has been a while since you’ve caught up.” I gave the quotation mark sign with my fingers as I said “caught up”, but they just laughed.

  “Don’t be silly, sit down and have a drink with us.” And with that, Cooper jumped up and got three beers from the fridge.

  Cooper spent the next hour and a half regaling us with tales of his army buddies, and the practical jokes they played on each other. Because they were such an elite group in the Special Forces, they were only a small unit of six, so were like a family. They looked out for each other and were really tight, which I guess they needed to be, if they were going to have each other’s backs when it came to crunch time. As he spoke, I found it funny that they all seemed to have nicknames like Tech or Bear.


  “What’s your nickname?” I asked Cooper.

  “Mine’s Chook.” I raised one eyebrow questioningly, so he continued, “Cooper gets shortened to Coop, like chicken coop, and overtime it’s become Chook.”

  “So what are all the other guy’s real names, and how do you come up with the nicknames?”

  He went through and explained the other names. Riley was Cooper’s best mate and he was half Irish, so it made sense to call him Irish. He was also the highest ranked in the unit and the most qualified helicopter pilot, having flown the most hours. Bear was a huge guy, and his real name was Matt. Daniel, who was otherwise known as Tech, was the technical specialist. Roger, aka Ram, was always first in, literally ramming the door down, and Jax was short for Jackson.

  Some were based on the person’s name, like Cooper’s, and others were from either what their role was in the unit, or their physical appearance.

  “Like Spock here.” He laughed and pointed to Kelli.

  “Do NOT call me Spock!” she exclaimed, and hit him in the chest with the back of her hand.

  I looked at Kelli, she had gone bright red from her chest all the way up her cheeks.

  “Why do you call her Spock?” I asked, bemused.

  “Have you seen her ears?”

  Kelli tried to move away from Cooper but he held tight. I had noticed that since we had sat down, or maybe even since we had met up with Cooper in the foyer at work, he was always in physical contact with Kelli, either holding her hand, stroking her hair or with a casual hand on her knee, and in return she looked up at him lovingly as he spoke. It was a beautiful thing to watch. They weren’t over-the-top lovey-dovey, but they were clearly devoted to each other by their actions.

  Cooper hugged her tight and she giggled. “You know I hate that name.”

  “I know, but I do love these little pointy ears of yours.” He nuzzled her neck and she giggled harder, while still trying to keep her annoyed frown. It didn’t last long.

  I decided if I was going to gate-crash their reunion, the least I could do was cook them dinner, so I ran down the street to buy a few groceries. Then I busied myself in the kitchen while they snuggled and joked around with each other on the couch.

  “Dinner is served,” I announced after half an hour. I’d decided on simple parmesan crusted lamb cutlets with a Greek-style salad.

  “This is delicious!” Cooper praised, and then turned to Kelli. “I thought you said she couldn’t cook!”

  Kelli elbowed him in the ribs. “No, I said she tells everyone she can’t cook because she was told so by her ex, who we appropriately refer to as Shithead. She’s actually really good.”

  Cooper turned to me with a cheeky grin on his face. “I think you’re just tricking so you don’t have to spend time slaving away over a hot stove.” He pretended to ponder something for a second, his finger tapping his chin. “I think I’ve just worked out your nickname. I’m going to call you Fox … ’cause I reckon you’re a sly one.”

  “Why does she get called Fox and I’m Spock? That’s not fair!” Kelli said indignantly, folding her arms over her chest.

  “I could call you Yoda,” Cooper teased, before adding in his best Yoda impersonation, “Pointy ears has she.”

  We sat up until the early hours of the morning, drinking beers and laughing, until finally Cooper and Kelli decided to call it a night. We had been sitting on the couch, which doubled as my bed, so I couldn’t really leave the room to give them privacy, and they didn’t seem in a hurry to go.

  Collapsing into my makeshift bed at about three am, I was ready for sleep, when the noise started from the next room. I smiled to myself. At this rate I wasn’t going to get any sleep tonight, so I found my iPod, put the ear jacks in and turned up the volume. The walls here were very thin; I would definitely need to start looking for a more permanent residence.

  Kelli and Cooper spent the next day out together, while I did the rounds of the real estate agents and some much overdue chores. It was depressing; the apartments that were in my price range I wouldn’t let a cat sleep in, although one of them smelt like a whole lotta cats had already made it their home. And the ones I liked were out of my price range, or had twenty applications already on file. I came home feeling very disheartened, resigned to the fact that I would be spending an indefinite amount of time on the very uncomfortable sofa bed.

  To cheer myself up, I took in a bit of retail therapy by way of the sportswear store. I decided that if there was a chance that I might bump into Mr Hotbod at the gym, I definitely did not want to be dressed like a homeless person again. So I bought myself some cute and relatively sexy workout gear.

  That evening, Kelli had a romantic dinner planned at one of the expensive restaurants at the casino, so I helped her get ready and gave her free rein to choose one of my dresses.

  “Wow, Spock, you look awesome!” Cooper declared, as he looked at Kelli all dressed up in a figure-hugging black lace dress. He walked over to her and held out her hands, appraising her approvingly. “I may have to call you Kelli tonight.”

  The weekend went by far too quickly, and by Sunday night, Cooper was packing his bag and getting ready to head back to the airport. Kelli was stoic for the most part, helping Cooper get organised, but I could tell she was on the verge of tears a few times.

  It was nine forty-five by the time Kelli returned from dropping Cooper off. She looked deep in thought as she dropped her keys on the little table by the door, and flopped down on the couch beside me.

  “Are you okay?” I asked.

  Unable to read her expression, I couldn’t tell if she was fine or about to burst into tears, and I didn’t want to push her if tears were close.

  “He asked me again to move to Sydney,” she replied.

  “Well that’s great … isn’t it?” I asked, a little confused.

  “I said no. I’ve already told him that I’m not going to follow him all over the country until he’s ready to make an honest woman of me.” She attempted to smile. “I can’t keep stopping my life and starting again in a new city. I’ve already lived in Tasmania, Adelaide, and now Melbourne. He doesn’t get it; he can transfer and move up the chain of command, but I have to start over every time.”

  I didn’t know what to say. I could see her point but then I could also see how much she missed him when they weren’t together. She was a strong, independent woman with a stubborn streak, but at what price?

  Kelli had to go into work early the following Wednesday, so she skipped the gym. I seriously considered sleeping in, but decided that once you started making excuses it was too easy to get into the habit. I dragged my tired ass out of bed and dressed in some new workout gear, shorts and a crop top, then headed to Pump It.

  I scanned the cardio room. No one was in there, so I relaxed and jumped onto a treadmill for a twenty-minute jog. It felt good to be exercising, the endorphins were kicking in, and I was happy that I had come.

  Next I headed over to the weights room, and stuck my head tentatively around the corner to case the joint. No one there either. I breathed a sigh of relief. As much as I would love to see Mr Hotbod’s drool-worthy hot body again, I didn’t want him to see me.

  After my usual arm work, I thought I’d try the bench press. The bar was set on seventy five kilos and I smiled to myself. Someone had been pressing more than my entire body weight. I found another bar without any weights loaded and put on twenty kilos. I managed ten reps before my little arms shook so much, I wouldn’t have been able to lift a feather over my head.

  Last thing to do were some stretches. I sat down on the floor, legs straight and open wide to the sides. I stretched up and then bent over until my ear touched against my knee. I closed my eyes and held the stretch for twenty seconds, then opened my eyes.

  I looked straight at Mr Hotbod. He was sitting at the bench press with his elbows resting on his knees, hands clasped together, watching me intently. My face flushed, and a million scenarios went racing through my brain. He smiled the most ado
rable smile, a glimmer of mischief lighting up his emerald eyes, and I did the only thing I could do—I scurried out of there as quickly as possible.

  I showered and dressed, Kelli’s words of ‘Tara needs to get laid and Mr Hotbod is the prime candidate’ ringing anew in my mind. I took a deep, calming breath and left the change rooms. No one at reception, good. I could make it to the breakfast area unseen. I was just crossing reception as Mal walked out of his office, still talking to someone. I looked up. Oh holy crap, it was him again.

  Changing direction, I headed straight for the exit double doors.

  “Not having breakfast today, Tara?” Mal called, with a smile in his voice.

  I shook my head at him, my eyes diverting briefly to Mr Hotbod.

  “If you don’t want to eat alone, we can join you,” Mal said grinning.

  “No, that’s fine,” I said, waving them off casually.

  Grabbing the door on the right, I pushed. Unfortunately, I grabbed the wrong door, the one that was still locked. I grabbed hold of the door on the left and pushed, but again nothing happened. I pushed again a little harder. Still nothing. I could hear Mal and Mr Hotbod chuckling behind me.

  Finally, a huge arm came into view, tattooed in a tribal design, and pulled the door open.

  “Let me get that for you. Seems it’s been so long you’ve forgotten how to pull,” a deep, gravelly, sexy-as-hell voice said from over my shoulder.

  I mumbled a “thanks”, and unable to resist, looked him in the eye. His emerald-green eyes were boring into me, and my breath hitched in my throat. But something unexpected happened as our eyes met, I heard him draw a sharp breath too, through his full, totally kissable lips.

  “Anytime, Tara.”

  I was on my way home to Kelli’s that afternoon. I’d managed to avoid another half a dozen calls from Stephen, and had finally given in and listened to some of the messages. I had hoped he was telling me that all was fine and was wishing me well—as if—but that was not the case. Each message was more irate then the last, and it didn’t sound as if he were going to give up.