by Juanita Kees
‘I meant rare, medium or well-done,’ he said.
‘I know what you meant, Travis.’ She put a hand on his arm and he tried hard not to flinch under her touch as it grazed and heated his skin. ‘Are you okay? You’re more skittish than a cat at the vet.’
He flipped the steaks on the grill and she pulled her hand away. He missed it and he shouldn’t. God help him, he wanted those hands all over him like he’d never wanted it before. No girl had ever fired him up the way Heather did. Maybe it was the result of the no sex rule he’d set for himself since he’d become the responsible guardian to a little girl and to an old man with a fading mind.
‘It’s all good.’ There, the Aussie male cop-out. Hopefully it would get her attention off his discomfort. ‘How’s the salad? These will only take a minute or two.’
If he was lucky, she’d put some distance between them and go and check on Casey’s attempts at putting the finishing touches on it. Because, God help him, he really wouldn’t mind kissing her right now and if she hung around much longer, he might just give in and do it.
‘It’s Harry, isn’t it?’
Damn it, he’d let the edginess show. He sighed. ‘A little Harry, a touch of annoyance and a whole lot of irritation. That’s life.’ He tried to smile, knowing it didn’t reach his eyes. He hoped it at least doused the burn in them a little. ‘Nothing a steak won’t fix.’
And a kiss or two from those sweet, rosy lips. What would they taste like? He studied them a moment until she shifted under his gaze.
When she spoke, her voice held a husky note. ‘I’ll go inside and check on that salad now.’
Who knew rabbit food could sound so damn sexy?
***
Heather eyed Travis across the table as discreetly as she could. Whatever had crawled up his bum before dinner time had dissipated with food as he’d promised.
Oh, she hadn’t missed that searing hot look he’d sent her across the barbecue tools—or his eyes on her when she’d sipped her apple juice from the tiny rose-patterned doll’s teacup so out of character in his big, working hands—but since nothing good could come of it, she’d ignored it. Ignored the look and the shot of hot, liquid desire that poured through her like a fine whiskey on a cold, wet and blustery winter’s night.
Casey chatted between them, oblivious to the apprehension that still hung in the air. No one could doubt for a moment that Travis adored his niece and she loved him right back. It was times like these she missed her mum terribly. Missed that connection and affection with someone you were close to.
Lining up his knife and fork on his empty plate, Travis wiped his lips on a paper napkin. Heather tried not to follow the movement but it seemed her mind had a will of its own. She looked away quickly before he could catch her staring at his mouth.
Harry, she reminded herself. She was here to inquire about Harry and as nice as this little tête-á-tête was, she couldn’t ignore the business at hand.
‘Okay, sweet pea, time for you to go shower and get ready for bed.’ Travis took Casey’s plate and placed it on top of his empty one.
‘Aw, Uncle Trav …’
‘Don’t pout those lips at me, young lady,’ he teased, giving her cheek a squeeze. ‘School tomorrow. It’s Friday, so I get to come into town to pick you up so we can go shoe shopping. I might bring Harry along for the ride. What do you think?’
‘Awesome! Can we go to Mama Bella’s for a milkshake?’
‘Of course we can. What will it be this week?’ he asked as he stood to clear the plates away.
‘I don’t know. What flavour do you like, Miss Penney?’
Right now? Apple juice from a teacup, steak and salad mixed with a little cowboy. There was something sexy about a man who cleared the dinner table with such ease. ‘Erm, chocolate … yes, chocolate with a touch of caramel.’
Travis arched an eyebrow at her. ‘Double thick?’
‘Oh goodness, yes. With a cherry on the top.’
He smiled, slow and sexy, in a way that heated her core temperature to a thousand degrees. ‘I like mine with an extra dash of ice cream, and maybe cream and chocolate sauce.’
Heather swallowed the sound that rose from somewhere deep inside her. Holy Mother Mary’s kittens, he even made a milkshake sound like a trip to heaven. It was the wink at the end of his statement that almost had her undone.
It would be so easy to fall in love with that boyish charm, to bask in the warmth of his smile, and laugh with him at his quick wit, but this girl had no right to fall for a country boy with a ready-made family. Not when she couldn’t guarantee forever.
She scraped her chair back and stood. ‘I’ll give you a hand with the dishes, and then I should make my way home. Dinner was lovely, thank you. I really only stopped by to see how Harry’s doing after today.’
In an instant the cheerful glint in his eyes disappeared. ‘I’ll just get Casey sorted. Make yourself comfortable on the veranda and I’ll bring us out a coffee in a minute.’
‘I’ll clean up in here while you finish up. It’s the least I can do. Sleep tight, Casey.’
The little girl rushed over and threw her arms around Heather’s waist, hugging her as hard as her arms could. ‘Thank you for the sing-along in your car today, Miss Penney. It was totally awesome.’
‘You’re welcome, sweetheart.’ Heather hugged her back, trying desperately to squash the surge of affection that rose in her heart. ‘Off you go now. Your uncle is waiting.’
She met Travis’ gaze across the room, found it filled with sadness that tugged at her soul. What was he thinking that brought him such pain?
Casey released her hold on Heather’s waist and skipped across the room to slip her hand into her uncle’s big, strong one. She turned with a little wave. ‘Night, Miss Penney. I hope you’ll come have dinner with us again soon.’
‘I’d like that.’ More than she professionally should.
Heather watched as they disappeared down the hallway then turned to the kitchen sink. Methodically, she scraped the residue of their meal from the plates into the trash, rinsed them under the warm running water then stacked them in the dishwasher, grateful she didn’t have to wash everything by hand. A domestic goddess she most definitely was not.
A quick search in the cupboard under the sink turned up the dishwasher detergent which she added to the dispenser, closed the door and set the program to turn the machine on. Then she filled the electric kettle and set it to boil. Not sure what else she could do or how she could keep her mind off how incredibly gorgeous he’d looked sipping apple juice from a toy teacup, she made her way out to the front veranda and settled on the old sofa.
The sky was a deep shade of midnight now the sun had set, and the stars were twinkling overhead. Heather loved the sound of the bush at night. With a sigh, she curled her legs up under her, rested her head on the back of the sofa and closed her eyes.
Out in the paddocks, the crickets were chirping and the occasional croak of frogs erupted from the creek. Somewhere, an owl hooted and in the nearby gumtree, a family of possums scurried about in search of a meal.
She’d almost dozed off when she heard Travis’ footfalls mix with the sounds of the night. She kept her eyes closed a moment. She felt the worn sofa dip under his weight. His warmth infiltrated her space as he leaned back and she inhaled the warm, spicy smell of Travis and aromatic coffee.
‘Gone to sleep on me?’
As if her heart wasn’t beating erratically enough at his nearness, the sound of his deep baritone made it beat a little faster. She really had to find a way to control that. With a sigh, she opened her eyes.
‘No, just listening to the night.’
‘Great, isn’t it? I love the stormy nights when lightning flashes across the sky and lights up the land. We don’t get many of those storms here in Western Australia, but when they do come, it’s quite a show. Coffee?’ He held out a steaming mug.
Heather uncurled her legs and straightened to take it. ‘Cheers, thanks. C
asey settled?’
His smile was so full of love and affection, it made her toes curl.
‘Almost. I think she’s still plotting how she’s going to stick it to Benji as to how she got to hear the soundtrack for The Prince and the Peasant before he did.’
‘Looks like I might have to take Benji for a ride in the car too. Wouldn’t want to ruin a good friendship,’ she teased.
‘I tell you what, wait another ten years and I’ll be cursing him for trying to woo Casey. That kid has a few smooth moves under his belt already.’
‘She’s a cute kid. I think you’ll have your hands full when she gets to dating age.’
‘Tell me about it. I’m already stocking up on ammo for the shotgun,’ he teased.
‘And targets for practice too, I bet. I might have to write that up in my report as something to watch. It could earn you a stern talking to.’ Heather sipped her coffee. At least the banter would chase that sadness from his eyes, she thought.
He leaned back with his hands wrapped around the coffee mug, stretched out his long legs and settled into his relaxed position with his feet up on the rail. ‘Miss Penney, you can scold me for being naughty any time.’
And because any comeback she could make would only lead the conversation somewhere it couldn’t go, she said, ‘That’s the first time in a while I’ve had apple juice out of a teacup. Pretty cool thing to do for a manly bloke like you.’
Travis grinned. ‘It makes the kidlet happy. It was a ritual she and her mum used to go through at least once a day. I’m just carrying on the tradition.’
Heather smiled back and ignored the flutter in her stomach at the upward slant of his mouth. Somewhere in the conversation he’d got lost in a memory. His eyes softened then saddened, and his lips pulled back into a grimace.
‘So how did you go with Harry today?’ she asked softly, hating that the question might make him even sadder.
He sighed. ‘Stubborn old bugger is insisting he stay on the farm, but we knew that would always be the challenge. When I got there today, Bannister’s lawyer was sitting in the kitchen like he already owned the place. He had the paperwork for an offer on Harry’s land, tapping his pen, ready to sign.’
‘Oh no!’
‘Yep. Luckily, Harry was in one of his more lucid moments but he’d been duped enough to let the man through the front door. Thought he was an inspector of some kind.’
‘Ah, Travis, that’s no good.’ She touched his arm gently. Under her fingers his skin was warm, the muscles hard as they twitched under her palm. She pulled her hand back to embrace her coffee mug instead. Touching Travis only set fire to a need she didn’t want. ‘What did Doc Benson say?’
‘We’ve worked out a plan and Harry’s agreed to it. He knows he’s not as mobile as he used to be, even if he doesn’t realise his memory is a problem. Harry will give me Enduring Power of Guardianship which means I can make decisions for his care and treatment but not his property and financial decisions.’
‘That makes perfect sense in his situation. That way there’s no conflict of interest over the property and it might lay some of those rumours to rest.’ Heather nodded.
‘Ah, there’ll always be rumours unfortunately.’ He lay his head back against the sofa and turned his green gaze on her. ‘Doc Benson will take on power of attorney since he’s the only other person Harry trusts, with the exception of Sergeant Riggs.’
‘You’ll want to get that all sorted soon if Bannister’s lawyers are knocking at the door.’
His eyes were so sad that Heather wanted to trace his face with her fingers, reassure him everything would work out fine, that Harry would be okay, but they both knew the struggle that lay ahead.
‘Yeah, another reason we’re going into town tomorrow. Doc Benson will have to write a report on Harry’s state of mind and then to avoid any issues with conflict of interest, we have to appoint an administrator. That way there’s no loopholes for Bannister to wiggle through.’ He drained the coffee from his mug and balanced it on the arm of the sofa. ‘All that’s left then is to convince Harry he can’t stay in the house alone anymore.’
Heather knew what a struggle that was going to be. Her mum hadn’t wanted to go into care either, even when she knew she had no choice. Heather reached over to squeeze the hand that rested on his flat stomach. He turned his hand palm up and entwined his fingers with hers.
‘Thanks for the support.’
‘I’ll help where I can, Travis. You only need to ask.’
He smiled and her heart tripped. The warmth of his hand on hers, the intimate touch of his thumb drawing a circle on her wrist made her want to touch her lips to his, taste the flavour of coffee and man. ‘I’d best be getting home. It’s a half hour drive into town and the roos are out.’
She tugged at her hand and he let it go, taking his time to free up his hold. He sat up and heaved himself off the sofa, holding out a hand to take her coffee mug. He placed it on the arm of the chair next to his own. ‘Call me when you get home, okay? Just so I know you’ve made it safely.’
Heather nodded. ‘Okay.’
She pushed off the sofa, fishing in her pocket for her car keys. With Travis’ hand warm in the curve of her back, she made her way down the stairs to her car. He opened the door and she slid inside.
‘Thanks for dinner.’
He stood, elbows resting on the top of the door frame. ‘Any time. Take care now, Heather. Drive carefully.’
She held that beautiful green gaze for a moment, long enough for it to make her body tighten. Travis Bailey was temptation on legs and those eyes the colour of emeralds could make a girl melt into a puddle of goo.
She tugged on the door handle and he obliged by lifting his arms and closing the door. Rolling down the window, she said, ‘Goodnight,’ and started the engine.
He lifted a hand in a wave and smiled that sexy smile of his. Heather put the car in gear and drove away before she was tempted to forget her vow not to get involved with this very hunky man from Wongan Creek.
Chapter 5
After dropping Casey at the bus stop the next morning and waiting for her to get on board, Travis took a drive up to Wongan Creek Mining in the hope of persuading John Bannister to back off and keep away from Harry. He much preferred face-to-face confrontation. People couldn’t hide behind lies that way.
He dragged a hand across his face. His night had alternated between dreams of holding Heather, and being chased by a mountain of legal paperwork wrapped up in red ribbon. He was only just beginning to understand the enormity of the task ahead to keep Harry’s mental integrity safe. Then there would be the months of legal red tape during which he’d have to keep Bannister off the old man’s back.
He cursed the day they’d found that additional vein of gold in Wongan Creek. Now they were looking at twenty-five years plus of mining operations that meant the farm land would be left to go to seed while people chased gold and money. In this town you were either a farmer or a miner, and the increased operations had changed some men into the latter.
Stark white four-wheel drives now replaced the old farm vehicles that once lined the road to the mine. The flashing lights and reflective yellow striping were a constant reminder of how much life had changed.
He frowned at the sight of the skeletons of trees that had fallen victim to dieback disease when the mine had first opened, spread when the land was cleared to prepare the site for excavation. The environmentalists had stepped in to put procedures in place to stop it, but not before it destroyed acres of precious vegetation.
To satisfy the protesters, mine management had put a re-vegetation program in place, but it would take years to restore what they’d lost. Travis couldn’t believe a man of the land like John Bannister would sell his soul to the devil for gold, but he had.
Sure, the industry had breathed new life into the town, although that was not always a good thing either. More people brought more problems, especially when it came to alcohol, and the once quiet countr
y pub had become a den of trouble.
The white corrugated steel building of the security checkpoint loomed ahead, an ugly scar on the once thriving bushland. Outside, contractors in high visibility yellow work shirts queued for a pass to sign in and enter the site.
Travis followed the example of the other visitors and reversed his ute into a vacant parking spot. Slipping on his hat and sunglasses, he joined the queue to the booth.
Twenty minutes later, with the sun burning down on his back and his irritation growing, he made it to the counter.
‘Name?’ barked the big guy dressed in a black security uniform, sweating heavily.
‘Travis Bailey.’
The big guy ran a finger up and down the sheet on his clipboard. ‘You’re not on the list.’
‘I’m not a contractor. I’m here to see John Bannister.’
The guy swapped clipboards and checked. ‘Still not on the list.’
‘I don’t have an appointment.’
‘Then you can’t come on site. Next!’
‘Mate, all I want is a quick word with John Bannister in his office.’ Travis bit down on his frustration. ‘When did they change the rules about administration activities needing appointments?’
‘When they appointed a safety committee. Have you done a site induction?’
‘No, I’m not here to work. I’m here for a chat.’
‘Got a hard hat, hi-vis vest, gloves and steel cap boots?’
Okay, now the guy was starting to piss him off. ‘No, but I’m sure you have some spare.’
The men who’d joined the queue behind him began to grumble and shove.
‘Not unless you’re a contractor. No appointment. No induction. You can’t come on site. Make a phone call. Next!’
The giant of a man behind Travis elbowed him aside. Damn it. He whipped off his hat and raked an impatient hand through his hair. He didn’t want to talk to John Bannister over the phone, but if he couldn’t get on site to see the man, he’d have to come up with another plan.
