The Outback Cattleman's Hired Wife

by Natalia Elder

Within five minutes, they were inside the barn and Kirra was surrounded by dozens of noisy, hungry heifers.

  Jared bent down and filled a bucket of mixed grain. He gently moved through the heifers to where Kirra stood.

  ‘The good shepherd, hmm?’ Kirra said lightly, laughter bubbling at the back of her throat.

  ‘Something like that.’ He grabbed a handful of grain and soon the heifers were eating out of it. ‘Here, take some. They won’t bite.’

  Kirra took some grain and she fed the heifer nearest to her, its tongue tickling her palm. The adorable young cows jostled for position and she patiently fed all her charges.

  ‘Oh my!’ she exclaimed. One of the calves sucked on her fingers. ‘Your tongue is so course. How you must hurt your mother.’

  Uncomprehending, the calf’s big brown eyes looked up at her in all innocence.

  ‘How long do they stay in the nursery?’ she found herself asking out aloud, infatuated by them.

  Jared drew up beside her, still feeding the others. ‘About six to eight months,’ he informed her. ‘At around eighteen months, they’re large enough to carry a calf of their own.’

  His hip brushed her elbow and her mind went blank as fire sizzled up her arm.

  She couldn’t believe that she wanted him again so soon. Their attraction was like a powerful electro-magnet and she stepped away a little to break the connection, lest she go silently mad with desire.

  ‘I’ll take you back to the homestead now, since you’re on holidays. I need to heal to some foot-rot. It’s not something offered as a treat on a Farm Stay!’ He pointed down to the far end of the barn, where a few cows were corralled. ‘With the ground so water-logged, even using the preventative treatment is failing sometimes.’

  ‘Is that the tray of liquid they walk through before they come into the dairy?’

  ‘Yes,’ he said and returned the empty feeding bucket to its hook on the side of the barn.

  ‘I’ll stay and help,’ she offered. ‘Two hands are quicker than one.’ Besides, it would take her mind off other things like working out how to get this hunk of a man back into her bed! Or on that nice bed of hay over there. What was she thinking?

  A transitional man is one thing, but if she couldn’t get enough of him, she mightn’t be able to leave him after her two holiday leave had expired.

  Then, where would she be? Bereft and heartbroken, that’s where. No, she couldn’t stand that. He’d never mentioned that he loved her during their love-making. Zac had always said it after he’d ejaculated, then shot out the door to make work calls in the lounge room. Jared was a different man altogether but still, how could she be sure?

  ‘You never cease to amaze me, Kirra!’ Jared’s deep voice broke into her thoughts. She instinctively met his eyes, giving him a bemused smile.

  She watched him stride over to her and take her hand in his. He brought it to his lips and kissed it. ‘You’re so willing to try anything.’

  Kirra glanced at the stirrups hung up on a nearby post. ‘What did you have in mind?’

  Jared laughed, as he walked with her slowly towards the cows. ‘Certainly not that!’

  When they neared the cows, he released her hand. Heading into the enclosure alone, he led out the first cow and closed the gate.

  ‘What would you like me to do?’ Kirra said enthusiastically.

  Jared grabbed a length of rope from a hook nearby. ’Keep her head steady, while I rope her down.

  Kirra did as she was asked and watched in awe of his expertise to effectively immobilise the cow.

  ‘Keep her calm as best as you can,’ he said and opened his black bag.

  Kirra patted the cow’s head and hummed to it, while Jared scooped away the infection between the claws with some sort of knife. He rolled up a swab soaked with antiseptic, then dressed the hoof to keep it clean.

  An hour or so later, the cows were all treated.

  ‘Thank you,’ Jared said simply, as he finished up and she knew he meant it. ‘It really helped you being here. It made the task so much easier.’

  It was lovely to be appreciated and she gave him a heart-warming smile. ‘I enjoyed watching you work. I saw many veterinary books in your study. Are you a vet as well?’

  ‘Yes, I imagine I’ll be getting more calls now that the bridge is clear.’

  They washed their hands at a nearby sink, then came out of the barn.

  The sun was setting over the green pastures in the distance. They stood together for a moment and Jared put his arm around her shoulder. Kirra tucked herself under his armpit and slipped her hand around his waist.

  The sunset was a vivid pink against the violet hue of the sky and Kirra sighed. ‘It’s so beautiful out here.’

  ‘Yes, I love it in the evenings. The sunset is different every night.’

  She noticed the cows were sauntering up to the dairy and Kirra’s heart welled with a warmth and serenity, she hadn’t experienced in a long time.

  ‘It’s milking time,’ she said happily.

  Jared shook his head. ‘Are you sure you’re not too tired?’

  ‘No. I had a nap before, remember?’ she said, ‘I’m fine. I’m loving the chance to do something physical.’

  Their eyes met then and she saw his grey-blue eyes darken to midnight as his face sobered.

  ‘Please don’t look at me like that,’ he said, groaning. ‘I want to make love to you again, but the cows can’t wait.’

  ‘You do?’ She couldn’t believe she had that effect on him.

  ‘You know I do,’ he said matter-of-factly. ‘You can feel it in the air between us. Our chemistry is electric.’

  ‘Mm,’ she said simply and she turned towards him.

  He kissed her forehead, before they walked hip-to-hip to the dairy.

  In a rhythmic team effort, they milked the cows in their fastest time yet.

  It wasn’t long, before they were back at the homestead and they hurriedly removed their muddy gumboots.

  ‘Thank you, Kirra,’ he said with an honesty that almost undid her. ‘Would you care to use the spa-tub?’

  ‘You have a spa-tub?’ she said incredulously, then laughed, remembering her dream.

  ‘Yes, I put it in for Heather,’ he explained, ‘but she never used it.’

  Glad that he’d freely told her something about his first wife, she brazenly said, ‘Will you join me?’

  His eyes darkened with desire. ‘I should be so lucky.’

  ‘I had a dream,’ she said, suddenly breathless. ‘We were making love in the spa-tub, when you woke me up earlier.’

  He grinned. ‘You were dreaming about me?’

  ‘Maybe, it was a premonition.’

  ‘There’s only one way to find out,’ he said in a playful tone. ‘Race you to the bathroom.’

  Without a second thought, she took off down the hallway. ‘Catch me if you can.’

  On a long stride, he quickly caught up to her and lifted her off her feet. He carried her on her hip into the bathroom, squealing and laughing. She’d never had so much fun in all her life.

  Jared set her down on her feet and drew her in, kissing her thoroughly. She stood there, desire fizzing through her veins, as she watched him put the plug in the oval-shaped tub and turn on the water. She found a bottle of bubble bath on a shelf and brought it over, giving it a generous squeeze. A fountain of blue liquid arced into the water and instantly, bubbles frothed like champagne.

  He glanced at her then. ‘I’ve never done this before.’

  Kirra tucked her hair behind one ear in a nervous gesture. ‘Neither have I. Fantasy is one thing. Reality, well -’

  His grey-blue eyes sparkled. ‘Shall we find out?’

  ‘Oh yes please.’ She didn’t want to sound like a sex-starved wanton, but she wanted him now! In her urgency, she tugged at the bottom of his t-shirt in an attempt to remove it, but to no avail.

  He gently batted her hand away and pulled it over his head, then he slid off her top.

  She
released the catch at the back of her bra and it joined the rest of the clothing on the floor.

  Within moments, they were divested of the bottom half of their clothing and they came together like magnets, before stepping in unison into the spa-tub.

  As the water continued to flow, Jared kissed her passionately and said, ‘What happens now in your dream?’

  Mindless, Kirra’s senses were on fire and she said with an excited huskiness in her voice, ‘Lie down.

  Chapter Six

  JARED DID AS instructed, taking her with him, his manhood fully aroused. He didn’t know how long he could hold out this time. Kirra’s passion affected him deeply. Intoxicatingly.

  She sought out his lips and fastened on, as the slippery sudsy water on the hard frame of his body washed, delicious and decadent, against her breasts. He lifted her up and impaled her slowly on his long length. She was ready for him and rode him fast and hard to an almighty, cataclysmic climax - crying out in unison.

  Sated, Kirra laid her head on his chest and listened to his accelerated heartbeat until it eased back to normal. Sighing with contentment, his large, weathered hand cupped back of her head, comforting and protective. ‘I like your fantasies, Kirra,’ he said after what seemed like an eternity. ‘Let me know if you have any more dreams.’ He slipped out of her then.

  ‘Mm,’ she said and though she was reluctant to do so, she sat back at the other end of the spa-tub, facing him.

  Jared reached over and turned off the taps. ‘Have you finished your rewrite, Kirra and emailed it through?’

  Kirra lowered her eyelashes instinctively, but she wanted everything to be honest between them. Looking up, a warm smile parted her lips. ‘The article only needed to be shortened to fit the page. My editor has done that already,’ she explained. ‘Elise was just curious about you, since she was the one who found the ad and insisted that I answered it.’

  One dark eyebrow rose. ‘So you weren’t really interested in meeting anyone, especially not a dairy farmer, I take it?’

  ‘I must admit, no. I was curious though to know why you couldn’t find a partner through normal social means. I thought you must have a flawed personality because the photos of you on the internet looked fine.’

  ‘No surprises that you’ve checked me out,’ he said harshly. His jaw set and his nostrils flared. ‘So do I fit the Sociopath type?’

  ‘Oh, no!’ she refuted, remembering a journalist had speculated he was in one of the earlier articles when his wife had initially drowned. But she didn’t want to hurt his feelings, so she added, ‘I can see why it’s hard meeting people if you’re milking twice a day, seven days a week.’

  Mirth caught in the back of his throat. ‘I don’t usually milk. The Miller brothers run the farm, while I run my vet practice and manage the farm’s books.’

  ‘I saw the ‘Surgery’ sign on a door in the study and wondered,’ she admitted, ‘but I didn’t take a peek.’

  ‘Thank you.’ He smiled that crooked smile of his and her heart melted. ‘You’re correct in one way though. I’m on call seven days a week, twenty-four hours a day. It would be difficult to keep a courtship going with someone in the city.’

  Her heart lurched then. Was he letting her know that this was only a holiday romance, that their love-making was nothing more than sex between two consenting adults? She put on a brave face. ‘Surely, there are single girls here in the country?’

  ‘Socially, there’s sport, barbecues and a bush dance once a month. Single girls don’t stay single for long out here.’

  ‘So was your wife one of these single country girls?’ The personal question was out before she realised, her journalistic mind kicking in to stop her heart from breaking. ‘I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have asked that.’

  He rubbed his chin as if weighing up whether to trust her. After a moment, he met her gaze levelly. ‘You’ll find out soon enough, so it may as well be the truth from me,’ he said, tension drawing his shoulders back. ‘Heather was a local. Her parents owned the property beside the Miller’s. After a long, dry summer, their house burnt to the ground. Her mother was trapped in the house. Her father charged in to save her. It was a fruitless gesture. Heather lost everything. Her family. Her life.’

  ‘Oh, how awful!’ Her hand covered her mouth in shock.

  ‘I was away at university and my parents took her in,’ he continued, as if committed to memory. ‘When I returned to the farm, after my own father died, I married her.’

  ‘Just like that!’ Kirra’s eyes widened incredulously.

  ‘Heather was a kind, gentle girl. Our parents were best of friends. We grew up together. Attended the same school. Rode the same bus. Danced at all the bush dances. It was a given that one day we would marry. That was the girl I thought I’d married.’

  ‘Did you love her?’ she asked softly.

  ‘Of course.’

  Kirra probed gently, as Jared had done when he’d allowed her to talk about Zac, merely giving his thoughts direction. ‘Did she change somehow?’

  ‘Losing her parents in the fire killed her inner-peace. She’d built a fortress around herself to block out the pain. I wasn’t aware of it at first. She seemed content to keep house and make handicrafts.’

  ‘Didn’t having a baby make her happy?’

  ‘No, she developed Baby Blues a couple of days after the birth which progressed into full-blown Post-Natal Depression. She rejected him in the end.’

  ‘Poor Heather. Poor Caleb. How devastating for your family,’ she murmured in sympathy.

  ‘Mother couldn’t look after him when he started walking, then running. Her knees weren’t the best, so she hired nannies.’ He cursed to himself then. ‘But it only made things worse.’

  ‘Didn’t you try to get her some psychiatric help?’

  ‘I tried.’ Air puffed up his cheeks and he released his breath on a frustrated sigh. ‘She’d act so normal when the doctor made home visits, that he thought I was making it up.’

  ‘I was right,’ she said quietly. ‘You haven’t told anyone about this, have you?’

  ‘Mother knows. She was here.’

  ‘That’s not the same as talking about it. That’s what you told me with Zac.’

  His blue eyes hardened to steel. ‘It’s not the same for men as it is for women. Society dictates that we keep a stiff upper lip.’

  ‘What rubbish! That went out generations ago and hopefully, won’t return. We all have human needs and emotions. They need to be expressed.’

  She wanted to ask him how Heather had drowned, but from the pained look on his face, she thought better of it. Intuition told her that this intriguing man before her had begun to regret opening up to her.

  With a hooded gaze, he said, ‘The water’s getting cold. We’d better get out.’ Abruptly, he stood, turning his back to her, as her heart squeezed with compassion for him. But she knew better than to touch him or apologise. He seemed immersed in his thoughts as he stepped out and briskly, towelled himself dry. Kirra chewed on her lower lip until she tasted blood. Helplessly, she watched him gather his clothes and without another word, walk out.

  Oh, why had she probed? Digging up all those painful memories. Maybe, Heather had taken her own life and Jared blamed himself. From her previous research, all reports led her to believe that there were suspicious circumstances around her death, even though Jared wasn’t charged.

  Kirra stood slowly, their impulsive love-making a distant memory. Pulling the plug was an effort. As the water disappeared down the plug-hole, all her energy seemed to drain from her. On shaky legs, she stepped out on the mat, a cold shiver skating down her spine.

  Where to from here? She wondered.

  Wrapping a fresh towel around her, she saw Jared in a new light now. It was as if his entire life had been one big arrangement filled with responsibility. No wonder he was annoyed when she’d first arrived. Just one more arrangement by someone on top of running his father’s farm, his vet practice and taking care of his son and m
other. He was even caring for her. She could see that now, but could he ever entrust his heart to someone again? She would never know.

  A lump caught in her throat and she let out a strangled sigh, when she heard the back door close and the Land Cruiser’s engine fire.

  Where was he going now? She had no right to feel that she had to be informed. She wasn’t his wife. She wasn’t anything except a holiday fling!

  Her heart squeezed in pain, as she gathered up her clothes and hurried into the sanctuary of the granny flat. Had she made a huge mistake? How could she think Jared could be a transitional sex partner to be enjoyed, then discarded? He was The One! She knew she’d been kidding herself. She loved him whole-heartedly. It was then she knew that she couldn’t leave the homestead, even though the urge to run away was strong. She had to stay so he could believe in her, even if he only lusted after her and didn’t feel love right now.

  Famished, she pulled on fresh underwear, jeans and a lime long-sleeved shirt and headed to the kitchen to make something for dinner.

  Beef strips and frozen stir-fry vegetables flavoured with garlic and ginger were an easy find in the freezer. She teamed them with steamed rice and within half an hour, the simple, tasty meal was ready, but there was no sign of Jared’s return.

  The phone rang in Jared’s study and Kirra ran to it in case he was calling her. Had something happened to him? She hoped not.

  It was Max Miller on the end of the line and Kirra relaxed a little. She scrawled down a message for Jared, then hung up. Perhaps, that would cheer him up to know that the Miller brothers would definitely be there to do the morning milking.

  She padded down the hallway and opened the back door. Jared’s Land Cruiser was parked outside the barn. There was a glow coming from somewhere inside it. He had to be there.

  Snatching up the car-keys to her Subaru, Kirra pulled on her borrowed gumboots.

  Without haste, lest she scare the cattle, she steered her car over to the barn.

  Stepping out onto the slippery, muddy ground, it was slow progress, but with a determined effort, she made it to the entrance of the barn. Taking a deep breath for courage, the smell of fresh hay, animals and burned kerosene was strong and comforting all at once. It was as if she belonged here on the farm and could never be abhorred by it.