Riverstone Ridge

by Mandy Magro

  ‘Nina, please, let me help you. Trust me when I say this isn’t something you should try and do on your own. The loss of someone you love is one of the hardest things to go through.’ Gently, and without waiting for the response she was clearly having trouble articulating, he pulled her inside and drew her to him, wrapping her up in his arms like she was right where she was meant to be – now, and forever. She resisted at first, but then her body melted into his, and like a dam breaking its banks, she choked and then sobbed, her body shuddering and her arms tightening around his back.

  Logan allowed her time to grieve, to feel loved and protected, and when he felt her straightening, he lessened his hold and allowed her space to pull away if she wanted to.

  She took a small step back as she wiped tears from her freckle-dusted cheeks. ‘Thank you, Logan.’ Her eyes snagged on his chest, very briefly, before coming back to his. ‘I appreciate you being here for me.’ She smiled through her wretchedness. ‘I really do.’

  ‘Of course – I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.’ He threw a glance down the hallway. ‘How ’bout I go and get some clothes on, and then I’ll stoke the fire pit up out back and we can kick back and have a yarn over a glass of wine or two?’

  ‘Sounds like a damn good plan to me.’

  ‘Groovy as gravy, back in a sec.’ He pointed to the couch in the centre of the lounge room. ‘Make yourself at home.’

  An hour later, they were sitting side by side in camp chairs, gazing at the flickering flames while Nina told him all about her afternoon, as well as the shocking news about how her mother had died, and how she’d been the first one to find her facedown in the dam.

  ‘I’m so sorry, Nina.’ Logan momentarily closed his eyes and sighed. ‘At least now we understand why you’re so scared of stepping foot into a dam.’

  ‘Uh-huh, very true.’ Nina twirled her glass of red wine around. ‘I don’t remember her whatsoever, so I’m not really grieving, not like I am with Bea’s passing, but it is hard coming to terms with the fact my biological mother killed herself.’

  ‘Understandably so, Nina…’ He paused, held her gaze. ‘So, tell me, what did you find in the treasure box that’s got you so worried?’

  ‘Did you already know about Bea’s son being murdered?’

  Completely taken unawares, Logan shook his head, his eyes wide. Bea had a son? Bea had a son who was murdered? ‘No, I didn’t. How long ago did this happen?’

  ‘When Bea was in her late teens, or early twenties …’ Emotions welling, she cleared her throat. ‘Bert was the father.’

  ‘Oh my god, are you serious?’ Logan wasn’t too sure what else to say as he tried to let it all sink in while Nina filled him in on the details. He took a sip from his glass of wine and tried to piece things together. ‘So that’s why Bea was so happy when Bert showed up on her doorstep a few years back – old flames reunited.’

  ‘Seems that way.’ Nina smiled softly. ‘Now I know why Bea wanted him to stay on.’

  ‘Did the article say anything about finding who was responsible?’

  ‘No.’ Nina shook her head. ‘And from what limited information I’ve found online, I don’t think they ever did.’

  A rush of anger washed over him, and he gripped his beer tighter. ‘To think the bastard is out there somewhere, living his life, possibly hurting more children. It makes me sick to the stomach.’

  ‘Yeah, me too.’ She sucked in a shaky breath.

  Silence hung for a few moments, the crackle of the fire loud and crisp.

  ‘Do you remember that night when you saved me from that weirdo?’ Nina’s soft voice pulled Logan from his train of thought.

  ‘The night we …’ He stopped short of saying it.

  ‘Yup.’ She bit her bottom lip.

  ‘How did I save you?’ Logan eyed her inquisitively. ‘I thought you said he was just asking for directions?’

  ‘I lied. He tried to get me to hop into his car, and when I knocked back his offer, he got really weird about it. He kinda tried to drag me in there, but then you showed up.’

  ‘Jesus, Nina, why didn’t you say something at the time?’

  ‘I don’t know.’ She shrugged. ‘I suppose I didn’t want to make a huge fuss, especially when I wasn’t meant to be out in the first place.’

  ‘Well, I’m glad you’re telling me now, at least.’

  She nodded, and then continued on. ‘There was one particular photo in the treasure box – that guy, the creepy one from that night, was in a group shot.’

  Adrenaline shot through Logan’s veins. ‘Far out, Nina, are you sure?’

  She nodded. ‘Ninety-nine percent.’

  ‘Did you bring the photo with you?’

  ‘Yup.’ She pulled it from her pocket and passed it to him. ‘The tall bloke, at the back.’

  Logan leant towards the fire and turned the photo to the flickering light. The guy kind of looked familiar, but he wasn’t too sure why. ‘I didn’t get a good look at him that night, but I trust your judgement a hundred percent.’ His mind went into overdrive. ‘So he and Bea clearly knew each other?’

  ‘Appears so. Which explains how he knew my name that night.’

  Logan shot his gaze to her. ‘He knew your name?’

  ‘Uh-huh.’

  ‘Wow, Nina, this just keeps getting worse.’ He huffed. ‘But you’d never seen him before that night?’

  ‘Nope, never.’ She pointed to the pic. ‘As you can see, Bert is in it too.’

  ‘So he is.’ His mind going back twenty-odd years, Logan tapped the face of the man Nina was referring to. ‘I’m going to find out who this guy is and chase it up.’

  ‘Do you really think it’s worth looking into?’ Her tone was hesitant.

  ‘My bloody oath it is.’ Logan was determined.

  ‘Good.’ She heaved a heavy sigh, as if she’d been holding her breath for an eternity. ‘Because Bea, Bert and their baby boy deserve justice.’

  ‘They most certainly do, and I wish there was some way for me to give that to them.’ Logan knew that as much as she’d already told him, there were things Nina was selectively leaving out. ‘So what else is there?’

  ‘Is that not enough mystery for you for one day, Sergeant?’ She graced him with a bashful smile.

  ‘Nina, come on, I know you’re not telling me everything.’

  His ears twitching, Digger growled beside them, low and warningly. Nina shot to her feet, and Logan joined her, quickly making sure she was safely behind him. Glimpsing movement out of the corner of his eye, his gaze locked onto where Digger was staring at the dark bushlands, just shy of the property’s fence line.

  Nina stepped cautiously up beside him, and his arm went out to stop her going any further. ‘What is it, Logan?’

  He narrowed his gaze, listened intently, and then he exhaled and smiled. ‘Nothing to worry yourself with, probably just some roos or feral pigs.’ He observed Digger relax and knew whatever it was had gone. Placing his hand on Nina’s lower back, he directed her into her chair, and then slumped back down into his. Silently composed by the fire once more, they remained quiet for a few long moments. ‘You sure there’s nothing else bothering you, Nina?’

  ‘Everything’s bothering me.’ She laughed it off.

  ‘You know you can trust me with absolutely anything, right?’

  Nina stared into her almost empty glass of wine. Logan didn’t like the fact she was taking a long time to answer him, but he waited.

  * * *

  Nina knew she could trust him – it was more herself that she didn’t have much faith in right now. With a deep inhalation, she brought her gaze back to Logan’s. ‘Yes, I know I can.’

  ‘Glad to hear it,’ he said, his voice rough, husky.

  She offered him a small smile. His gaze hadn’t left her since he’d sat back down, and he continued to watch her. Thoughtfully. Inquisitively. Words on the tip of her tongue, she squirmed beneath his stare, almost afraid to say what was on her mind. As intense
as her fear had been the few times she’d felt as if she were being watched, now about to say it out loud, she felt ridiculous, a little crazy even. Had she just been imagining it all? Had her lack of sleep, and all the stress, made her see things, hear things, that weren’t real? She took a breath, quickly followed by another. This gorgeous hunk of man was so uncomfortably observant, and she wasn’t used to so much attention.

  ‘Oh, for Christ’s sake, will you stop looking at me like that, Logan?’ She half chuckled. ‘You and your incessant need to know everything, anyone would think you’re a copper,’ she teased, but then, when his expression of grave concern didn’t waver, her smile slipped and she looked down at her folded hands. ‘Okay, all right, I’ll tell you what it is. Sometimes, I feel like someone’s watching me.’ Just as she’d thought, she felt utterly stupid saying it out loud.

  Logan sat forwards. ‘You do?’

  ‘Mmhhmm.’

  ‘What’s making you feel like that?’

  ‘Just a feeling.’ He looked at her as if waiting for more information and she shrugged. ‘I’ve had a strange call, where nobody spoke when I answered, and the other night, the main switch of the power box was off, and a couple of times I’ve felt as if someone has been watching me from the scrub, and Maxwell has reacted the way Digger just did, but like you, I’ve just put it down to feral pigs.’

  ‘Feral pigs don’t make phone calls, or flick the main switches in power boxes off,’ he said a little gruffly. ‘Why haven’t you mentioned this until now?’

  ‘Because I wasn’t sure if I was imagining things, and to be honest, I’m still not sure.’

  ‘It’s always better to be safe than sorry, Nina.’ Logan reached out and took her by the hand, protectively, reassuringly. ‘If it happens again, you call me straight away, okay – no second guessing yourself.’

  His hand felt so comforting, so strong. ‘Yup, will do.’

  ‘You promise?’

  ‘Cross my heart.’ With Logan letting go of her fingers, she took the band from her hair and shook it loose – needing to do something, anything, other than stare into his amazingly blue eyes so deep with concern for her. She caught his gaze skating over her legs as she crossed them, and fleetingly cursed herself for not having shaved since last week.

  ‘You’ve got half the garden in your hair.’ He flashed her a devastatingly charming smile, one that made her heart skitter and scatter. She pulled it into line with a deep breath.

  ‘Pardon?’ she breathed.

  ‘Here, let me …’ He leant towards her and began tugging little golden buds from her hair, pausing to show them clasped within his fingertips. Holding her gaze, he tucked wayward strands behind her ears, his fingers feathering against her neck.

  His touch, light and lingering, sent tingles scattering throughout her. Nina felt as if a fire had been lit within her, one that had the potential to get way out of control. ‘Oh, I must have ridden the quad bike beneath the golden wattles at some point today.’ She gave her hair another shake.

  ‘Uh-huh, it looks like you have yellow confetti in your hair.’ His tender smile made her heart race even faster. ‘Just goes to show, you can take the cowgirl out of the country, but not the other way around, hey?’

  ‘I’m not too sure about that.’ Nina noticed her voice was quivering and she hoped Logan wasn’t picking up on it. The last thing she wanted to do was give him the wrong idea. Yes, she liked him, yes, she was extremely attracted to him, but that didn’t mean she had to act like some lovesick fool.

  ‘You’ve still got it in you, Nina, all of this.’ He opened his arms wide, gesturing towards the seemingly endless paddocks aglow beneath the moon. ‘Once the country gets into your blood, you can never get rid of it.’

  She looked to where a row of towering pine trees swayed in the evening breeze – the borderline between his life and hers. ‘As much as I don’t want to admit it, I do love this place, and I miss the slower pace that goes with living here.’

  ‘So why are you fighting it so much?’

  She turned her attention back to him. ‘Fighting what?’

  ‘The sense that you’re truly home here, right where you should be.’

  Her defences fired to life and she tried her best to rein them in. ‘Because my life is in Brisbane now, and that’s where I should be.’

  ‘It’s as simple as that for you?’

  ‘Yes.’ She nodded determinedly.

  ‘I don’t believe you.’

  ‘Excuse me?’ She shot him a narrow-eyed glance.

  ‘I said I don’t believe you.’ He’d raised his voice a few notches, his gaze challenging.

  ‘No need to yell, I heard you the first time,’ she snapped haughtily.

  ‘Hmm.’ He arched a brow. ‘I thought as much.’

  She huffed and shook her head. ‘I have my reasons, Logan, can we just leave it at that?’

  ‘I can try to, but I can’t promise I’ll be able to.’

  Although part of her wanted to break out in a smile, she managed a deadpan expression. ‘You’re a boofhead.’

  ‘So are you sometimes.’ His mouth lifted at one corner.

  ‘Watch it.’ She flashed him a lighthearted yet fierce stare.

  ‘Why, what are you going to do about it?’

  ‘I’ll get you when you least expect it.’

  A wicked grin claimed his oh-so-kissable lips as he leant into her ear. ‘I don’t doubt that for a second.’

  Her breath caught in her throat as her heart took off in a wild gallop. His close proximity heightened her senses and his body heat touched her in places that had long since gone cold. Endorphins flooded her veins and she had to fight off the urge to suck in a shuddering breath. How tempted she was to drop her defences and ravage this rugged, virile man, right here beside the mesmerising flicker of the campfire. She mustered up her resilient side and confidently graced him with a wayward grin. ‘You know me all too well.’

  He rested back into his chair and pointed his now empty glass at her. ‘That I most certainly do.’ He grabbed the bottle of red wine and poured himself another, motioning to fill her empty glass while he was at it.

  As he did, she looked at the lips she knew felt amazing, and imagined them sliding down her neck, towards where her nipples were now rock hard beneath her singlet. Heat swirled in her centre and spread like wildfire. Twenty years of denial was now proving mighty difficult to uphold.

  ‘Something else on your mind?’ he added, so assertively, so gallantly, she almost caved in to his animalistic magnetism. But, with every single bit of resolve, she instead jumped to her feet. She had to get out of here before she did something in the heat of the moment, something she knew she would regret later. ‘Right, I better be off.’

  Logan looked a little taken aback, but recovered quickly. ‘Righto, that was a snap decision. You okay?’

  Mentally fumbling as she continued to envision kissing him, wild and hungry, while she also firmly reminded herself of the magnitude of what she was keeping from him, she fought to respond. ‘Yeah, I um, forgot I have a casserole in the oven.’

  ‘You do?’

  ‘Uh-huh.’ Heat rose from her toes all the way to her cheeks.

  A slow, knowing smirk spread across Logan’s chiselled features. ‘What sort of casserole?’

  Damn him. ‘Beef … and potato,’ she choked out.

  ‘Sounds yummy.’

  ‘It should be,’ she said, as she imagined having baked beans on toast instead.

  ‘Okay then, you better go save it.’ Logan stood and walked her to her Jeep. She climbed in, and when she shut the door, he rested his forearms on it. ‘I keep forgetting to ask, you heading to the races tomorrow?’

  ‘Sure am. Cassie scored a babysitter and invited me to go with her.’

  He smiled broadly. ‘Oh, great, it will do you good to let your hair down a bit and catch up and talk about old times.’

  ‘Yeah, I’m really looking forward to it. Although, god only knows what I’m going
to wear.’

  ‘You’d look good in a hessian bag, Nina.’

  She rolled her eyes. ‘Pull the other one, Logan.’

  ‘Serious.’ He gave the door a tap and then stepped back. ‘Catch you there, then.’

  ‘No doubt you will.’ She flashed him a smile. ‘See you when I’m looking at you.’

  ‘Night, Nina, hope you get some sleep. Oh, and …’ He grinned wickedly. ‘… Enjoy your casserole, won’t you?’

  ‘I will,’ she said, before hitting the accelerator a little too hard, sending a spray of gravel out behind her.

  Looking in her rear-vision mirror, she watched him fade away, the entire time wishing she could turn right around and do everything she was thinking about, and more. Damn being an adult, with all her secrets and responsibilities – if only they could be seventeen again, with their whole lives ahead of them. Man, oh man, she would choose to do everything so very differently.

  CHAPTER

  16

  The excitement was palpable, with young and old kicking up their boots and stilettos and having a great hoedown of a time. It was the one and only day of the year where snazzily dressed people – the women adorned with fascinators and skyscraper heels that weren’t made for the rain-soaked ground, and the men with their going-to-town hats pulled down low – would descend upon the township of Huntingvale in droves for the annual Huntingvale Bushman Races, in turn boosting the economy and also the amount of births in nine months’ time. As much as Nina had been nervous about getting into the spirit of it all and dressing up, she was now glad she did; the aquamarine knee-length dress she’d bought from the local dress shop very last-minute was attracting many compliments from women, and even some of the blokes – it was nice to feel beautiful and elegant for a change.

  ‘Where in the heck did Logan wander off to?’ Cassie gave Nina a lopsided smile from the opposite side of the wine barrel they’d called home for the past two hours – the perfect spot to sit back and watch the goings-on at both the bar and the racetrack. She cast her gaze over the sea of faces. ‘I thought he was just nipping off to the little boys’ room? Maybe he’s had one too many and gone and fallen in.’ She grinned a lipstick-smudged smile.