by Tania Joyce
He scratched at his chin. He didn’t want her thinking he was an ogre. After the meeting tonight he would make the effort to find her here at Harrigan’s and apologize.
“Come on. We’d better get into this meeting and see what we can do to stop this project.” Troy slid off the bar stool, grabbed his glass of beer and headed down the short corridor to the large meeting room at the back of Harrigan’s. The hair on his arms stood on end as he walked past the hallway that led down to the guest rooms. Why was he so on edge? Surely not because of Kelleigh?
An uncomfortable niggle grew at the base of his neck when he entered the crowded room. Loud chatter bombarded his ears, but his attention was drawn to the desks at the front. His gaze darted around the milling people to see what the drawcard was. As he shuffled past some guests, the way cleared before him. Knots pulled tight like a winch in his stomach, stopping him in his tracks when he caught sight of her. As if sensing his presence, she looked up at him. Her green eyes pierced into his.
Kelleigh.
What was she doing here? He quickly scanned the room; he thought Toru was supposed to be here, not her.
Noting the time on the far wall, he had five minutes until the meeting commenced. This was his opportunity to apologize now rather than later. Get it over and done with. He forced his reluctant feet to carry him forward.
She dismissed his approach, leaning down to point to something on the paper in front of the man sitting at the table.
“Evening,” he said, stopping a short distance away. A few deep breaths didn’t help settle his stomach.
She slowly stood upright and straightened her shoulders. “Hello Mr. Smith. What are you doing here?”
“I always attend the council community meetings. More importantly, what are you doing here?” He raised a questioning eyebrow. “I thought Toru was attending tonight.”
“He had to go back to Melbourne for an urgent meeting with some investors, so I’m going to do the presentation tonight.”
Her voice shook with nerves and her forehead drew with furrows as her eyes darted around the room.
Troy watched her every move as she fumbled with the collar of her blouse. Maybe she hadn’t had a lot of experience talking in front of a crowd, and he could sympathize with that, but having her around to charm the locals wouldn’t sway things easily his way. It was going to make it even more difficult to rally the community behind him to stop the proposed development. There were many pro-development people in the area and Kelleigh, with her attractive looks and stunning smile, would quickly win over their shallow hearts.
“About yesterday.” Troy struggled to find the right words. “I want to apologize for my behavior after our meeting. It was uncalled for and believe it or not, very out of character for me. I’m truly sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you.”
“Thank you. Apology accepted.”
He put out his hand for her to shake, and as her hand slipped in to his a jolt of electricity coursed throughout his body. Heat, desire and want for her overwhelmed his senses. He wanted to drag her into his arms. Hug her. Kiss her. Feel her naked body next to his and breathe in her delicious scent. Images of them entwined together filled his mind bringing a smile to his face.
“Now, if you’ll excuse me. I have to get ready for the meeting.” Kelleigh said as he reluctantly let go of her hand.
A loud bang of a wooden hammer on the end of the table brought the room to attention and him back to reality. He was here to save Larry’s place, rally community support and find a way to stop JLR’s project from proceeding.
“Might see you after the meeting,” Kelleigh whispered to him while gathering up her documents. He was about to walk away but hesitated when he caught sight of a playful sparkle in her eyes, just like the one she had on the first night he met her in the pub. Baffled, he turned and walked to the back to the room to take a seat, struggling as the warm rush of blood through his veins made him falter in his steps. How could Kelleigh make him react this way when he opposed everything she and her company aimed to do?
While listening to the council’s meeting, he couldn’t draw his eyes away from Kelleigh. He barely took note of the speakers outlining new developments, infrastructure upgrades, and covered budgets before she presented to the group. Every word Kelleigh spoke had Troy clenching his fists in anger yet his groin niggling with desire. It was absurd. Absurd that he kept thinking about taking her down the hallway back to her room. Absurd that he wanted to make love to her again. Absurd that she affected him so. He hadn’t been full of foolish thoughts over a woman in such a long time and now was definitely not the right time. It had to stop.
On conclusion of her presentation, the response jittering around the room was as he predicted. There was much chatter and divided opinion; some heated voices, some of praise. Her gaze found his; she smiled, looking relieved that it was all over. But for him this was just the beginning. He leaned back in his chair and folded his arms. Kelleigh remained at the front of the room, looking every bit confident and in control. There were no sign of nerves at all. Oh yes, with him fighting against her company to stop the project and now also fighting off his attraction toward her, he was in for one hell of an interesting battle ahead.
***
After the meeting concluded, Troy mingled though the locals gathering support against the development and started a petition for people to sign. It wasn’t much, but it was something. At least one small step in the right direction.
All the while, he could sense Kelleigh and her movements wherever she was within the room. Like she was the eye of the cyclone and everything she did drew his attention toward her, dragging him closer and closer. Every time she looked his way. Every time she smiled. Every time she laughed. He ruffled his hands through his hair, frustrated. This floodgate of emotion had to be turned off because he would not get involved with someone who essentially was working for the enemy.
Everyone meandered out to the main bar for one last drink before heading home. After finishing his beer, he placed his empty glass on the counter and started to say his goodbyes when he heard angry voices splintering the air over in the far corner.
“You can take your bloody money and shove it where the sun don’t shine, lovey.” Brian’s voice boomed at Kelleigh. She flinched at every word as he pointed his finger close to her face. “We don’t need your stupid Japanese resort in this town. I never want to see you or any of your cronies near my land again. Do you hear me?”
Brian’s face was bright red and his voice spit with rage. Regardless of his disapproval and resentment at what JLR aimed to do in their region, this was no way for Brian to talk to Kelleigh. With several quick strides he pushed through the crowd and made his way over to stand beside her.
“Are you okay?” he asked. She nodded but trembled all over.
“We don’t need another damn golf course, Troy.” Brian now pointed in his direction. “Don’t you go defending this scum.”
“Brian, it’s okay. We’ll sort this out, but going off at Kelleigh is not going to help the situation.” God, he sounded like a hypocrite. He’d reacted in exactly the same manner. “How about I give you a lift home?” Troy held out his palm to guide Brian away from Kelleigh.
Brian rolled his shoulder, shrugging off Troy’s offer. “I don’t need your help, boy. I’m perfectly capable of looking after myself.” Brian took a step closer toward him and thrust his finger near his face again. “You do whatever it takes to get this woman and her shitty resort out of our Valley. You hear me?”
“You know I will, but you don’t need to talk to her like this. Have some respect.”
“Respect? People like this don’t deserve respect. She’s the devil in disguise, I tell you.” Brian’s bloodshot eyes flared, as did his nostrils.
“Enough, Brian. Get out of here now, or I’ll throw you out myself.”
Brian sucked air in to his lungs loudly and puffed out his chest. Somewhere in the madness of the man’s mind, sense took hold of him. He rais
ed his hands up in surrender, turned and stormed out of the pub.
Troy eased around to face Kelleigh. Her face was drained of color. “He was getting a bit feisty, wasn’t he?” Her voice trembled.
“Are you sure you’re all right?” Troy went to put his hand on her arm, but stopped halfway. The thought of touching her bare skin played havoc on his mind because she was no longer nobody. No longer a one-night encounter. She’d become somebody and he didn’t like the reason why she was in town. Her confrontation with Brian was a firm reminder. But regardless of their differences, he didn’t tolerate Brian’s bad behavior. Unlike Brian, Troy’s behavior had not been normal. “Seems like we’re both adamant about not selling. Like Larry, his place has been in his family for generations and I can’t see he’d ever give it up. Not even over his dead body.”
Kelleigh’s shoulders slumped. Color slowly returned to her cheeks. Troy’s skin still prickled from all the tension resonating in the air, even after Brian left. He quickly surveyed the remaining people in the room, all of them eyeing him and Kelleigh suspiciously. Were they waiting to have their own unfriendly word with her? He may be sitting on the opposite side of the fence to her on this project development, but people didn’t need to be hostile toward her. He knew there were proper channels to go through for this dispute, rather than vent their anger and disappointment directly at her.
Here he was trying to protect her from the masses when there had been no one around to ward off his verbal attack on her. Nothing could undo how bad he felt about his actions. Hopefully, tonight Kelleigh could see he wasn’t a brute and neither were these people. But for now, he had to get her out of here.
“Would you like to go for a walk outside? Get some fresh air and avoid this mob.” He jutted his chin in the direction of the front door.
“Um …” She mumbled as she rubbed her hand on her arm.
“It’s a warm evening and the gardens should be really nice at sunset.”
Kelleigh’s nose wrinkled. “What gardens? The ones outside the pub?”
“No, the Hunter Valley Gardens on the other side of the roadway here.” He pointed off to the side of Harrigan’s.
“I’ve been so cooped up in my room working I haven’t had a chance to see them yet.”
“Come on. I’ll show you.” He gestured to the door again.
Her eyes fell from his to stare down at some spot on the floor. There it was, that hesitation. That moment of doubt. She was going to turn him down. With everything that had gone on between the two of them, he would understand if she said no.
Deep down he knew she would be right. He should stay away from her. He didn’t trust her. Not one little bit. How could she not have known the full extent of the project her company envisaged for the area? He didn’t buy her story at all. Yet here he was asking her for a walk. Was he asking for more trouble for himself? But the compulsion to make sure she was okay after tonight’s hostilities was too overpowering to ignore.
“I might not be the best of company.” Kelleigh swept her hair back and tucked it behind her ear.
“A walk in the fresh air might do us both some good.” Yes, it would be good to put his mind at ease. “You got some better shoes than those?” He questioned, pointing to her high heels.
“Yes, I do. I need to get these damn things off my feet. They’re killing me.” She pointed her toe out in front of her and rolled her ankle around in tiny circles. “A walk sounds wonderful. I’ll drop my gear off back in my room and change my shoes. Give me a minute?”
Kelleigh hooked her laptop bag over her shoulder and gathered up a huge pile of folders, from the nearby table. Struggling with the load, she started to head for her room.
“Let me help you with that.” Troy eased her load and carried the folders for her.
The smile that played at the corner of her mouth made it all worthwhile. “This way,” she said, heading down the hallway.
“I think I remember the way.”
Chapter 12
In her room, Troy leaned against the doorjamb and watched her lace on her running shoes. He glanced at the wall mirror and then at the bed. His mind filled with the arousing images of taking off her clothes and all that went on here the other night.
To avoid his blood rushing south, he drew his gaze to elsewhere in the room. Kelleigh’s work boots, covered in mud, lay beside the door. Her hi-vis clothing was piled in a heap on the ground before the bathroom door. Paperwork and maps lay across her desk. He grinned, liking her casual, unkempt nature.
“I’m ready.” She stood up and tied her hair back with a band. She’d look stunning in anything, but clothed in dress pants, button-up blouse and running shoes was a sight to behold, making it hard for him to look away. Tucking his shirt into his jeans, checking his cell phone for emails and pulling up his socks offered little distraction from admiring her as he guided her outside the complex, up the roadway and onto the dirt pathway that led into the gardens.
“I can’t believe you haven’t been over here yet.” Troy chided. “The Hunter Valley Gardens are one of the biggest tourist attractions in the area.” He slowed his pace down so she could keep up. As they broke through the pocket of trees behind the row of nursery sheds, he heard Kelleigh gasp when she came in to view of the majestic gardens before them.
“They look spectacular.”
“You shouldn’t spend so much time in your bedroom. Not that I’d be complaining about that.”
She smiled, nudging him gently in the side with her elbow, and continued down the path toward the lake, the sandy chitters crunching under each step.
“Wow. This place is huge.” She looked around, taking in the manicured landscape before her.
“Yep. Over there is the Japanese Garden; that way is the Rose and Sunken Gardens. Up that way is the Storybook Garden, but let’s head down this way to the Lakes Walk.”
He placed her hand on the small of her back to direct her down the path, enjoying the moment of contact with her body. She glanced his way, causing his heartbeat to go up a notch. Why was he always attracted to the wrong type of woman? She seemed too much of a city girl, too mysterious and untrustworthy. And ultimately too temporary to consider anything else. So why did he find her more intriguing with each passing moment?
His palms started to go clammy and he struggled to withdraw his hand from touching her. He felt awkward and unsure of himself, just like on a first date. But his reality was he hadn’t dated anyone in years. A few women in the Napa Valley never went beyond a dinner or two. The brief encounters with harvest workers, festivalgoers or women he’d meet at the pub were all a bit of fun. Nothing serious. Nothing with any intent of longevity. Kelleigh, of course, fell into the one-night-only category and he needed to leave it at that. Dating wasn’t an option for him. Not with her, not with anyone. There was no room in his life at the moment and he didn’t have the time. Gumtrees was his focus.
“You were right, I needed some fresh air. I’ve had some pretty awful days since being here, it’s nice to get outside and clear my head.” Kelleigh tucked her hands into her pockets as she meandered along the track. “This project has certainly gone all crazy on me. I’ve only been with JLR for three months and I hate being dragged into all these meetings and presentations. It’s usually not my role; it’s all been rather stressful and I hate upsetting people.”
“You’ve done a fine job at putting half the community against you and your company with this proposed development.” He was definitely on the list.
“My problem is I take it personally.” Venting her frustrations, she started to count out points on her fingers. “I hate upsetting people that will be affected by projects. I’m no good in meetings because I get so nervous I feel ill. I hate spending so much time in front of a computer responding to corporate communications. And while I do enjoy the design and construction side of engineering, I’d rather be out on-site all the time getting my hands dirty, drilling and surveying. Being project leader here gives me that chance to sup
ervise all that, which is cool. Give me steel-caps and a pair of old jeans any day.”
Her response caught him off guard. He thought she handled herself brilliantly. Looks could be so deceiving. Maybe she wasn’t such a city girl after all.
With Kelleigh walking along beside him and staring at the ground, it made him think about his own path in life. From high school part-time work here in the Hunter Valley during harvest, to working in the US in Texas on a ranch, to the Napa Valley vineyards to Gumtrees. He’d never been the ambitious type. He was more the wherever-I-lay-my-hat-that’s-my-home type of guy. He’d never been one to chase high incomes or prestige. He was more about doing what he loved. It wasn’t until after Nicola’s death he listened to his heart and found his passion in viticulture. Going by the improvements he’d made at Gumtrees, he certainly had a knack for it.
“I can’t even contemplate a career change at the moment, “she continued, “because my ex left me with a debt and I need the income to pay it off. Maybe in a few years I might consider a change.” Her tone was a mix of anger, hurt, frustration and disappointment.
As they continued along the path past the rose beds, the sun started to set slowly in the west. Streaks of orange clouds glowed brightly on the distant horizon. It was Troy’s favorite time of the day as he took in the heavens above. In the serenity of the evening falling and the crickets chirping loudly, Troy wanted to forget everything that had happened in the past couple of days. Forget about his meeting with her and Toru, forget about the council community meeting and Brian and forget about why Kelleigh was in town.
He paused beside one of the flowerbeds and scanned through the rosebushes. “Ah-ha!” He found what he was looking for, stepped in among the scrubs and carefully snapped off the bloom. How lucky he was to find one so late in the season. Pleased with himself, he stepped over toward Kelleigh who had stopped to wait for him and handed it to her.
