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She sed hard Then la watercress"

"So I see" He caht into the stream, boots and all As he neared, he drew a deep breath "You smell of it, too Green and peppery and fresh"

"I’ve missed you," she told him And she had, every hour of every day

"Nowhere near as much as I’ve aze, fro about her bare legs "I’oing to make love to you on the riverbank"

"That sounds lovely"

He reached for her basket of watercress and unthreaded it fro to place it safely on the riverbank Then his hands went to the ribbon ties of her straw hat He unknotted the bow beneath her chin and tossed the whole business aside

Then … at last … he reached for her

He touched one hand to her cheek and released a deep, full-body sigh "Lily"

A shiver swept her, all the way from the cool stream’s surface to her sun-warmed nape She treht years Most days, she felt she knew him better than she knew herself

Still, she trembled

They s their ti into the kiss Because by now, they both knew better than to rush It was drudgery, being apart for long weeks But it was lance was exciting The first brush of skin against skin was pure exhilaration The first taste of each other was an exquisite blend of the familiar and the wild

And wherever they were--be it London, or York, or the eshire--this first kiss meant they’d come home