Riverstone Ridge

by Mandy Magro

  ‘Of course I am – a leopard doesn’t change its spots.’ He shrugged and smirked. ‘Although, I have to admit, even with all the women I’ve had, I still dream about the times I had sex with you.’ His smirk widened. ‘Wanna do it again, for old times’ sake?’

  Nina was gobsmacked, but quickly found her nerve. ‘Go to hell, Josh.’

  Josh chuckled, his shady gaze not leaving hers. ‘Already have, a couple of times.’

  Her gaze turned steely. ‘What are you on about?’

  He laughed now. ‘Ahhh, nothing, just playing with ya.’ He raked his gaze over her, sickeningly slowly.

  Her weight on her heel, Nina’s instincts kicked into full force. She wished there was another option for an auto-electrician, but unless she wanted to drive an hour to the neighbouring township, which she didn’t, Josh was it. But maybe the long drive was going to be the better option, given the circumstances. Half turning, she grabbed the door handle, ready to make a dash for it.

  ‘Leaving so soon?’

  She paused, her back still to him, and sucked in a deep breath. ‘I was going to get you to check my air-conditioner, but you’ve got really crappy customer service, so I’ve changed my mind.’

  ‘Oh come on, Nina, cut me some slack, would you. You were always so bloody uptight.’ He huffed. ‘I’ll make sure I give you mates rates to make up for my lack of “customer service”.’

  She spun back to face him. ‘Righto, when can you have a look at it?’

  ‘Tomorrow.’ He shrugged, still smirking. ‘Maybe. If you’re lucky.’

  ‘For god’s sake, stop being a dick, Josh. I don’t have time for this crap.’

  ‘Righto, fine, no need to get so worked up.’ He scratched his balls. ‘It’ll be done by ten-ish tomorrow morning.’ His nostrils flared a little. ‘Happy with that?’

  ‘Yes, good, I’ll be here by eleven.’

  ‘You need a lift back home?’ He took another long drag on his smoke, this time blowing it back out his nose.

  ‘Thanks but no thanks. I’ll grab a taxi.’

  ‘Good luck with that, seeing there’s only one in town.’ Josh grinned as if he had one over her. ‘Normally a bit of a wait.’

  ‘I’ll take my chances. See you tomorrow.’ And out she stepped into the gloriously fresh air. She’d rather walk barefoot on hot cement all the way back to Riverstone Ridge than sit in a car with that godawful man. Far out, what the hell had she seen in him all those years ago? She just prayed to god her fears were never confirmed.

  CHAPTER

  12

  Sitting in silent absorption at his usual booth in the local cafe while taking a sip from his second cup of strong black coffee, Logan spotted Nina hightailing it out of the auto-electricians, her hair a little wild, her body curvy in all the right places, and her expression as gritty as hell. Her reunion with her ex-boyfriend clearly hadn’t gone well – maybe he should have warned her where Josh worked, but then again, it was the last thing he was thinking about the few times he’d popped over to Riverstone Ridge since she’d been back. There had been more pressing matters on his mind, including wanting to take her into his arms, just like he did all those years ago at the stables and in his swag. If only they were young and reckless, he’d have given in to his longing by now, taken a leap of faith, and scooped her into his arms, but something told him to tread very carefully with her – time and life had hardened Nina, and it was going to take more than just a kiss to win her over. And besides his lustful desire for a woman who already owned a piece of his heart, he’d promised Bea he’d follow through with her wishes as best he could and help find a way to make Nina stay, but of her own accord. Or maybe Bea already had that covered in her letters. It all depended on how Nina reacted to the news. Time would most certainly tell.

  As he watched her storm across the road like an approaching whirlwind, something zinged through his veins and his blood hummed – he’d always loved her gutsy spirit. He found it highly addictive, as if it were a drug. His curiosity increased as he watched her stomp past the cafe, her lips squeezed tightly together, and her hands shoved in the pockets of jeans snug around her hips. As much as he tried, he couldn’t help but admire the sassy sway in them, and the way Nina carried herself with such confidence. The bell over the door jangled as she stepped inside, and an air of displeasure followed her. She flittered her gaze over the packed cafe, clearly looking for a place to sit. He waved and her frown gave way to a wide smile, one that melted his steely heart.

  ‘Hey, Logan.’ She sighed as though relieved to see him, and then slid into the booth-style seat opposite him. ‘How’s it going?’

  ‘Yeah, can’t complain.’ He couldn’t help the smile spreading across his face. ‘Yourself?’

  ‘Hmm, had better days, but like you, I don’t really want to complain about it.’ Her lips curled ever so slightly, playfully even, as she regarded him a little longer than socially acceptable.

  He shrugged nonchalantly. ‘I’m all ears, if you want to talk.’ ‘Nope.’

  ‘Okay then.’ He stifled a smirk at her straightforwardness. ‘So what’s wrong with your Jeep?’

  ‘The air-conditioner needs re-gassing, I think.’ She grabbed the menu from the stand. ‘So, what’s good to eat here? I’m starving.’

  ‘The blueberry pancakes with maple syrup, candied walnuts and ice-cream.’

  Her eyes widened. ‘Oh my god, for breakfast?’

  He arched a brow, grinning. ‘Why not? You only live once.’

  ‘No way, José.’ She shook her head and tossed her wind-swept hair back over her shoulders. ‘There are way too many carbs in that for me this time of the day.’ She flipped the menu over, huffing. ‘Isn’t there something normal, like scrambled eggs or an omelette?’

  ‘Yeah, on the inside.’ He reached over and opened the menu.

  ‘Oh, stupid me.’ Her smile was a little lacklustre.

  ‘Nina, is something bothering you?’ His fingers drummed the table as he waited for her response.

  ‘Nope, I’m all fine and dandy.’ She kept her eyes glued to the list of options, her lashes blinking way too quickly, as though she were on the brink of tears.

  Feeling his heart tugging towards her, he evaluated her body language – the grip on the menu, the shallowness of her breath, the way she was now avoiding his eye – all pointing to the fact she was withholding the truth. He offered an exaggerated shrug of resignation. ‘Fair enough, but just know, if there is something on your mind, I’m a pretty good listener.’

  Finally looking up at him, she rested her chin on her palm, considered him for a few moments, sighed, and then huffed as though snowed under by overwhelming burdens. ‘Josh thought he’d rekindle old times and tried to cop a feel as he told me how much he still dreams about …’ She cleared her throat and grimaced. ‘Well, you know what I mean, I don’t think I need to spell it out.’ Her face flushed as she bit her lip. She glanced away momentarily, as though ashamed.

  A wave of rage swept over Logan, his desire to protect her from harm and any form of disrespect overpowering him. His jaw clenched tight, and he had to fight to unclench it so he could speak. ‘He did now, did he?’ Rubbing a hand over his dark stubble, he thought about all the things he’d like to do to Josh right now, to teach the bastard a lesson in respecting this mesmerising woman, like he had in the high-school locker room. He gripped the handle of his coffee mug tighter and took a swig to hide the sudden shallowness of his breath. ‘Once a sleazebag, always a sleazebag, huh?’

  ‘Damn right.’ She tried to smile, but he could see it was forced. ‘Anyway, no biggy – just caught me off guard, that’s all.’

  ‘It’s kind of a biggy, Nina.’ His hands rolling into fists beneath the table, he did his best to give her a deadpan expression when deep down all he wanted to do right now was stride across the road, grab Josh Harper by the throat, and pin him up against a wall. ‘You want me to go and have a talk to him?’

  ‘Nuh-uh.’ Rolling her eyes, she follow
ed it up by looking at him incredulously. An irritated frown creased her forehead. ‘I am a big girl with big-girl boots, you know. I don’t need you to ride in on your white horse and save me like some damsel in distress. I’m very capable of saving myself.’

  He inhaled a deep breath and then blew it out slowly. ‘Wow, okay, point taken.’ Knowing better than to rise to her bait, he shook his head and grinned. ‘And just for the record, you’re still irritatingly stubborn.’ He forked fingers through his hair, keeping his gaze locked onto hers.

  ‘Why, thank you.’ She grinned. ‘Don’t worry, Logan, I put him in his place, good and proper. I doubt he’ll try it again.’

  He arched a brow and his lips itched into a smirk. ‘Oh, trust me, I wouldn’t doubt that for a second.’ As much as he’d love to tell Josh to back the hell off, with little choice in the matter, he’d just have to allow Nina to do things her way. For now, that was. If Josh tried to pull a stunt like that again, Nina wouldn’t be able to stop him getting involved. ‘Well, if things change, let me know and I’ll put him into an even better place than you have.’

  She observed him over the top of her menu, a cheeky sparkle in her eyes. ‘And what place might that be?’

  ‘Oh don’t you worry about those details – that’s secret copper’s business.’

  She sat forwards a little, her lips curling into a slow and sexy smile. ‘Sergeant Steele, if I’m thinking what you’re thinking, that’s not very law-abiding of you.’

  ‘It doesn’t count right now.’ He sat up a little straighter and smoothed out his t-shirt. ‘I’m off duty.’ He motioned to the waitress for another coffee.

  Nina laughed, and the sound of it sent shivers deep down into his soul.

  The waitress paused at their table, pitcher of coffee in hand. ‘Good lord, that’ll be three coffees, Logan – you’ll be bouncing off the walls soon.’ She filled the cup and then looked to Nina. ‘And who’s this lovely lady?’

  ‘Oh, forgive my bad manners, this is Nina Jones, Bea’s daughter.’ Logan motioned to Nina with a sweep of his hand. ‘Nina, this is Mary.’ He gestured back to the waitress.

  ‘Oh, hello, Nina.’ Mary put her hand to her heart. ‘I’m so sorry for your loss.’

  ‘Thanks.’ Nina offered her a small smile.

  ‘Mary, can I order Nina a serve of your famous blueberry pancakes, please?’

  ‘Yes, of course.’

  Nina grabbed hold of his arm, and heat flooded him. ‘No, Logan, it’ll go straight to my hips.’

  Logan shrugged. ‘So?’

  Nina looked to the waitress and rolled her eyes. ‘Oh, okay then, go on.’

  Mary smiled. ‘You won’t be disappointed.’

  ‘So he says,’ Nina said with a grin.

  As Mary wandered off, Josh and Kimberley’s daughter, Isabella, suddenly appeared at the table, looking very cute in her girl guide’s uniform. ‘Would you like to buy some cookies, Officer Steele? They’re for a really good cause.’

  ‘Sure thing, sweetheart.’ Logan fished in his pocket for his wallet. ‘I’ll take two, how much do I owe you?’

  ‘Ummm …’ Isabella’s eyes lit up. She counted on her fingers, and then with an ear-to-ear smile, pronounced the total. ‘Eight dollars and fifty cents.’

  Logan’s brows shot up. ‘Wow, they must be good.’

  ‘They sure are, I baked them myself.’ Kimberley stepped in beside her daughter, her air of importance overpowering, her arm going around Isabella’s little shoulders.

  Logan groaned silently as he watched both Kimberley and Nina exchange cold glances – there was clearly still no love lost between the high-school frenemies. He couldn’t blame Nina for feeling animosity, but Kimberley should be begging for Nina’s forgiveness.

  ‘Hi, Nina, it’s been a long time.’ Although smiling, Kimberley’s voice was terse.

  ‘Hey, Kimberley, yes, it has been.’ Nina offered nothing more, but instead remained staring at Kimberley as though about to quick draw.

  A cold silence followed before Logan took charge and jumped in. ‘So, tell me, what flavour are the cookies, Isabella?’

  ‘Double chocolate chip.’ She dug into a bag and pulled out two cellophane-wrapped packets, pulled together with a pink ribbon, and then passed them over to him.

  Logan smiled wider. ‘Oh yum, my absolute favourite.’

  ‘Yes, we know,’ Kimberley said, territorially, looking at Logan and then throwing a take-that look in Nina’s general direction.

  Logan felt like a rock stuck in a very hard place – he wanted to tell Kimberley to pull her head in. He looked to Isabella. ‘Well, thanks for the cookies, sweetheart, I’ll be sure to enjoy every morsel of them.’

  ‘I hope you do,’ Kimberley butted in, before her daughter had a chance to respond. Her gaze suggestive, she leant in and kissed Logan on the cheek. ‘Call me, and we’ll catch up for that coffee,’ she said softly before straightening. Taking Isabella by the hand, she turned her back to Nina and headed over to another table.

  Logan waved Isabella off before turning his full attention back to a very amused-looking Nina.

  ‘Crush much?’ Nina said, with a mischievous grin, her brows wriggling.

  ‘Oh, yeah, you could say that.’ Logan wanted to crawl into a hole – small towns didn’t allow for any kind of privacy. ‘My best mate’s wife set us up on a blind date, and from the second I arrived and saw who I was coupled with, I couldn’t get away fast enough.’

  Nina appeared to take satisfaction in his awkwardness. ‘It went that well, huh?’

  ‘Uh-huh. Besides the fact, as you well know, Kimberley is a bit of a man-eater, all she wanted for dinner was a salad, she complained about Josh the entire time, and then, after one too many wines, very loudly announced she wasn’t wearing any underwear.’

  ‘Wow, that’s so charming.’ With both hands cradling her cheeks, and her elbows resting on the table, Nina looked to be enjoying the story. ‘Josh just told me about Isabella. He didn’t seem very keen on being a dad, though.’ She said it quietly, so nobody around them would hear.

  ‘Yes, well, Josh is one selfish bastard.’ Logan made sure to keep his voice low, too. ‘He’s never really been there for his child.’

  ‘Yeah, I got that vibe from him, loud and clear.’ She shook her head sadly. ‘It’s so horrible for a child to not feel loved by a parent.’ She sucked in a sharp breath and then cleared her throat. ‘So, he and Kimberley got real serious after I left?’

  ‘Yes and no, they were forever breaking up and getting back together.’

  ‘No surprises there, neither of them are really commitment material.’

  ‘Damn straight, but wait, I have to finish telling you about the date, because it gets even better.’ He glanced around, leaning further across the table.

  ‘It does?’ Nina leant in closer still. ‘Come on then, spill.’

  ‘Well, I was woken up the next morning by a phone call from my frantic mother, asking me why I didn’t tell her about this woman I was apparently going to marry.’

  ‘Oh get out, really?’ Nina breathed, her eyes as wide as saucers.

  ‘No word of a lie.’

  ‘Good god, she still moves fast, I’ll give her that.’ Logan nodded. ‘Uh-huh.’

  ‘So did you sleep with her?’

  Logan shook his head exaggeratedly. ‘Oh god no, give me some credit, would you?’ He said it playfully, but was deadly serious. He didn’t want Nina having the wrong opinion of him. Ever.

  ‘Phew, you missed a bullet there,’ Nina said, just as playfully.

  Logan nodded and blew air through his lips. Nina appeared mighty relieved, too relieved for someone who just looked at him as a mate. And he liked it a hell of a lot.

  As Logan and Nina sat in comfortable silence, two young women bustled past the table, both offering Logan a coy smile before seating themselves two tables over. One giggled and the other blushed, then they both shared a meaningful glance.

  Nina rolled her eyes and sat
back. ‘Bloody hell, talk about being the eligible bachelor around these parts.’

  Logan clasped his hands together on the table. ‘Yeah, well, that’s what happens when single blokes are as rare as hen’s teeth.’

  ‘So it has nothing to do with the fact you’re handsome, and charming, and you own a pair of handcuffs?’ The challenging look in Nina’s eyes made him want to take her right here, right now, after handcuffing her to the table.

  ‘You think I’m handsome and charming?’

  She blushed beneath his stare and squirmed a little in her seat. ‘Nope, just a general observation.’

  ‘Is that so?’ he said while seizing her gaze so tightly she didn’t dare look away from him.

  ‘Uh-huh,’ she breathed.

  Mary appeared back at the table, a pile of delicious-looking blueberry pancakes in hand. She plonked the plate down between them, along with two sets of knives and forks. ‘Enjoy, you pair.’

  ‘Oh, I’m sure we will,’ Nina said, licking her lips.

  They both tucked in, and Logan took great satisfaction from the oohs and ahhs as Nina devoured her share. The plate basically licked clean, they both wiped their mouths with paper napkins.

  ‘Was it worth committing carbo-side?’

  Nina grinned. ‘My bloody oath it was.’

  ‘See, I told you so.’

  ‘That you did.’ She paused for a few moments, and then sucked in a breath. ‘Hey, would you mind giving me a lift back home? That is, if you’re going back that way soonish? Josh has my car until tomorrow.’

  ‘Of course, not a problem.’

  ‘Great, thanks – I’ll owe you one.’

  ‘I’ll hold you to that.’ Logan stood and headed over to the counter to pay. Nina hurried up beside him, pulling her wallet out of her pocket too. He placed his hand over hers, stopping her from pulling out money. ‘Put that away, it’s my shout.’

  She tried to pluck the cash out, regardless. ‘I’m not making you pay.’