Australia Outback Fantasies

by Margaret Way

  So why was he about to cut off his nose to spite his face and insist she leave in a week’s time? His dark thoughts scuttled to the front of his mind and took over. You know why, they insisted. Because you’d have to start dragging up the past, open the lid on your feelings and risk Maxi walking away from you again. And just why had she come anyway?

  It certainly wasn’t about a casual catching-up with him, as she’d said. That much he knew with certainty.

  Maxi’s nerves were shredding. She’d heard swish of tyres as Jake had driven his Land Rover along the car tracks at the side of the house and slid into the carport.

  He was home at last.

  The reality sent her heart swooping like a drunken butterfly, the sweet sting of anticipation tiptoeing up her spine.

  Almost mechanically, Jake hitched up his medical case from the passenger seat and swung out of the vehicle, wishing the insistent fantasies in his head would just butt out and leave him alone.

  Making his way across the gravel path towards the back steps, he brought his head up sharply, sniffing the air. It had to be a home-cooked meal and it smelt wonderful. Suddenly, he felt a lightness in his step, a twist of wild anticipation that almost choked him. Swallowing convulsively, he made his way up the steps and across the verandah towards the kitchen.

  ‘Maxi?’

  ‘In here.’ Maxi’s throat was so dry her voice came out like a croak.

  ‘Hi …’ Jake slid his case into a corner and looked around him. He blinked a bit. ‘Are we having a party?’

  ‘What this?’ Maxi’s laugh was edged with nerves as she flapped a hand at the elegantly set table. ‘It’s just dinner, Jacob. I said I’d cook.’

  Hell’s bells. Jake stared at the white cloth, the gleaming cutlery and long-stemmed glasses and drew in a sharp breath. Just what kind of statement was Maxi making? More to the point, what kind of response did she expect from him? Strands of emotion unravelled, knotting his gut. ‘You didn’t have to go to all this trouble.’

  She took up her stance beside the worktop. ‘You’d prefer I’d set out paper plates?’

  He ignored her question. Instead, he went to the fridge and took out a can of light beer. Pulling the ring-top, he gulped down several deep swallows. ‘How was your surgery this afternoon?’

  ‘Fine. How was your patient who’d tangled with the cranky bull?’

  ‘Not so fine.’ Jake’s dark brows kicked together in a frown. ‘The wound was a few days old so it was too late to stitch it. And he seems to have an infection brewing.’

  ‘Tsk!’ Maxi shook her head, the action sending highlights bouncing off her freshly washed hair. ‘So now, instead of being on the way to healing, he’s put himself out of action for longer. Why did he delay?’

  ‘It’s a sad fact but men in this country and rural men in particular are apt to set the state of their health at a very low priority.’ Jake took another swallow of his drink. ‘They keep putting off seeing a doctor until they can’t stand their wife’s nagging any longer.’

  ‘That’s a dreadful situation,’ Maxi said. ‘Have you tried running a specific gender-based health programme?’

  ‘Last year. Only one guy turned up.’

  Maxi’s mouth pursed into a thoughtful moue. ‘Perhaps it needs a fresh approach.’

  Jake jerked a shoulder self-deprecatingly. ‘Be my guest.’

  ‘You mean you’d let me run it?’ Maxi’s eyes flew wide in astonishment.

  He laughed shortly. ‘Why not? You seem to be achieving miracles everywhere else. With a bit of luck, you might pack the local hall.’

  Maxi could feel herself flushing. Was he being facetious? It was difficult to tell. She decided to take his words at face value. ‘How would I set about letting everyone know it was happening?’

  His brows rose slightly. ‘From what I’ve gathered after a couple of years here, the women are the best communicators. You could start with Liz Maynard. The news will be on the phone wires before you’ve left the shop.’

  ‘OK …’ Maxi nibbled her lower lip thoughtfully, ‘Then could we sit down and work out something at some stage? Like the most appropriate topics to cover and so on?’

  Jake met her gaze steadily. ‘This is your idea, Doctor. You run with it.’

  ‘You don’t want any involvement? Is that what you’re saying?’

  ‘That’s right. You’ve suggested men’s health issues require a fresh approach …’ Turning away dismissively, he crushed his empty can and sent it flying towards the recycling bin. ‘Do I have time to grab a shower before dinner?’

  Maxi waved away his question as if it was of no consequence. ‘Oh, by the way, Les Fielding came in for his check-up. I wasn’t happy about his BP reading so I’ve scheduled him to come back in a month.’

  ‘Fine,’ Jake said flatly. ‘I’ll put him through his paces then.’

  ‘Actually …’ Maxi felt her heart pick up its rhythm, her hand going automatically to her chest as if to still its beat. ‘Les indicated he’d like to stay with me—’ She broke off and swallowed dryly, expecting Jake to begin sounding off about her taking liberties with his patients and with attempting to strengthen her tenuous hold on her job.

  But he didn’t.

  Instead, he looked past her to the bright pots of cacti on the window ledge and then back to her face. ‘What are we having for dinner, then?’

  Maxi just resisted poking her tongue at him. Obviously, he wasn’t prepared to get into any discussion about her staying in Tangaretta. A new thought struck her. Perhaps after all, he was coming round to the idea—and perhaps not. She breathed in and told herself to stop trying to speculate. ‘We’re having lasagne and a salad.’

  Jake returned to the kitchen a little later, showered and dressed in cargos and a navy polo shirt.

  ‘You were quick.’ Maxi looked up from lighting the tall church candles on the dinner table, registering his questioning look. ‘I found these in the laundry cupboard.’ Her laugh was fractured, nerves gripping her insides like tentacles. ‘It’s OK to use them, isn’t it?’

  ‘It’s fine.’ Jake looked on in dark amusement. ‘We keep them in case there’s a power cut.’

  Maxi’s heart gave a little flutter. ‘Well, I think it’s … nice to have candles. Civilised.’

  ‘Mmm.’ Jake’s mouth pleated in a dry smile. ‘Did you find the wine?’

  ‘I actually bought some at the pub. I hope it’s all right.’ She flicked him an uncertain smile. ‘It’s a Chardonnay from the Hunter Valley.’

  ‘Good choice. They make some of the finest wines in the country.’

  ‘I haven’t eaten so well in yonks,’ Jake complimented her, as the tangy smoothness of a warm lemon pudding slid over his tongue.

  Maxi shrugged. ‘The kitchen here is so user-friendly. I quite enjoyed myself, preparing everything.’ And there was something very sensual about cooking for your lover, she reflected. Except Jake wasn’t her lover any more …

  ‘Why are you really here, Max?’ As if he’d defined the direction of her thoughts, Jake slowly lifted his gaze from the glass dessert bowl to her face.

  With fingers that shook, Maxi crushed her serviette and dropped it on the tablecloth in front of her and thought it was now or never. ‘I did want to travel a bit. And I thought, Why not Australia? Besides, I couldn’t stand not knowing any longer. How you felt about things. I … hated the way we parted.’

  ‘In was in your power to change that.’

  Her heart twisted painfully. Were they back to that? ‘It was all too quick. You expected too much, Jacob.’

  ‘You think a marriage proposal was too much?’ He lifted his chin, the action emphasising the stubborn set to his jaw. ‘I would have thought that proved my intentions were at least honest.’

  ‘The timing was wrong,’ Maxi responded thinly. ‘And I don’t want us to keep going on and on about it.’

  His gaze narrowed over her. ‘So what do you want now you’re here, Max—a casual tumble between the sheets?�
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  She winced at the rawness of his language, her response coming out in an almost husky undertone. ‘I’d like you to show some respect for what we had in England. Stop feeling so … intense about me being here.’

  He laughed harshly. ‘Know what, Max? Right now, I don’t think I’m feeling anything about you.’

  Then why was he so filled with barely concealed angst? she thought with sad perception. If he doesn’t feel anything about me? Her heart was hammering and she dragged in a shallow breath and tried to regroup. She’d made a huge leap of faith in coming here to find him. And she hadn’t used most of her savings and travelled twelve thousand miles just to cave in and run away because he was making things a bit tough for her.

  She had to give him space. She guessed he was still in shock mode at her sudden arrival. But if he’d only bend a little, give her a chance to explain … She looked down, shading her eyes with her hand, too churned up with emotion to look at him. A bleak kind of silence settled over them.

  When his mobile phone rang, it took several seconds for either of them to register the fact. Then Jake swung to his feet and picked up the phone from the countertop where he’d left it earlier. Without looking at her, he stepped outside to the verandah to answer the call.

  ‘That was Brian Forrester, the nurse manager at Lakeview, the retirement home,’ he said shortly, coming back into the kitchen and pocketing his phone. ‘A couple, Violet and Trevor Hawthorne, are presenting with symptoms of gastro.’

  Maxi pulled her ragged thoughts together, getting to her feet and automatically beginning to stack their used dishes. ‘When did it start?’

  ‘This afternoon. Came on very suddenly, apparently. Both are quite frail and Brian doesn’t want to hang around speculating. So I’ll go over and check them out now. I may have to admit them.’

  ‘Finding out what’s causing the illness will have to be a priority,’ Maxi said, her professional instincts overriding her personal unhappiness. ‘Could it be food contamination?’

  ‘Possibly,’ Jake agreed bluntly. ‘And if it is, we can expect a few more to go down.’

  ‘Perhaps investigating what they ate for lunch might be a good start,’ Maxi pointed out practically. ‘But on the other hand, bugs can be picked up anywhere.’

  ‘You’re right, of course,’ Jake replied brusquely, reaching down to collect his medical case. ‘Uh, will you be OK?’

  As if he cared. She watched as he shifted from one foot to the other, as if hesitating about leaving her. ‘About what?’

  ‘I don’t know how late I’ll be.’

  Maxi hardened her heart, dismissing his look of concern. ‘Just go on about your business, Jacob, and I’ll get on with mine.’ Deliberately, she turned her back on him and took the dishes across to the sink.

  With a jagged sigh, Jake slammed his vehicle into gear and took off on the one-kilometre drive to Lakeview. Dammit! He’d acted like a carping adolescent suffering from wounded pride.

  His circular thoughts tightened like knots. Instinctively, he pressed his fingertips to his temples and increased his speed. Dark thoughts of self-reproach invaded his mind. He’d trampled all over Maxi’s feelings.

  Again.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  NEXT morning.

  Jake rose early. His insides felt as though they were tied in a thousand knots. And he wished he could have crawled back into bed and shut the world out indefinitely. But there was one thing he had to do before the day got any older.

  He had to apologise to Maxi.

  He went through to the kitchen, hoping he’d find her there, as he’d done yesterday. But one glance told him that hope was spent before it could take flight.

  A strange unease settled on him. Suddenly, the house felt too quiet, eerily so. And the cold possibility struck him. Had his rant and blame-shoving driven Maxi away?

  Heart pounding, he pivoted on his heel and strode quickly along the hall to her bedroom. Raising his hand, he knuckled softly on her door. And again, louder. No response.

  Damn. He squeezed his eyes shut and leaned his head against the door. What the hell had he been thinking of? Whatever the truth of their past relationship, she was after all a visitor in his country. Alone. Her welfare should have been at the top of his priorities. Instead …

  He swore under his breath, stark visions of her driving along that lonely highway stabbing into his mind with the intensity of a horror film. Suddenly, he brought his head up. He took a deep breath and tried to collect his thoughts.

  In his panic, perhaps he was jumping to conclusions. That was always a possibility. He let out the breath he’d been holding and placed his hand on the doorknob. ‘Maxi?’ he called softly, pushing the door slightly open. ‘You awake?

  There was no answer and he pushed further into the room. The bed was neatly made. His stomach dropped to his boots. Had it even been slept in? His gaze spun wildly to each corner of the room and slowly, very slowly, his heart returned to its rightful place.

  Her things were still there.

  He felt the guilt and panic ease a little. But where was she? His throat felt dry as he swallowed.

  Had she gone across to the hospital? That must be it. Dammit, she could at least have left him a note. He surged out to the verandah, a truckload of mixed emotions threading through his mind. Shaking his head as if to clear it, he gripped the railings, staring down at the few hardy shrubs that were still standing despite the drought. And then he heard the click of the garden gate as it was opened, the relief he felt verbalising in accusation. ‘Where the hell have you been?’

  Slowly and deliberately, Maxi raised her gaze. ‘I took the dog for a walk,’ she informed him flatly, bending to release Chalky from his lead.

  ‘Where did you go?’ he demanded, the words slashing harshly between them.

  ‘The field next to the hospital. Chalky had the time of his life.’ Maxi watched indulgently as the dog ran in joyful circles around her and then took off towards the back yard. ‘Attaboy!’ she whooped, coiling the lead and placing it back on a hook next to the hosepipe where she’d found it. Mission accomplished, she ran lightly up the steps. ‘Why the face? All your chickens die?’ She directed the flippant comment to Jake as she slipped past him.

  He glowered, following her inside. ‘Why did you disappear like that?’

  She gave a click of exasperation. ‘Like what, Jacob? I was up early, earlier than you, obviously. I fancied a spot of exercise and some company.’

  ‘You chose the dog for company?’

  ‘Yes, I chose the dog.’

  ‘In preference to me?’

  She gave a hard laugh. ‘I figured my company would be the last thing you’d appreciate at the moment. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need a shower.’

  ‘Maxi, wait …’ Jake hovered awkwardly, his hands jammed into the back pockets of his jeans. ‘I was looking for you to apologise for last night. I was totally out of order. I acted like a clod.’

  More like a self-righteous adolescent, Maxi would have substituted, but held back. Instead, she gave a dismissive little shrug, reaching up to pull the sweat band from her hair.

  Watching her action, Jake felt tightness in his groin as her skinny little T-shirt rode up from her shorts, revealing the feminine curve of her tummy and a strip of skin as pale and delicate as porcelain. Memories of how they’d been together flooded his mind. He almost groaned out loud.

  Maxi felt hot suddenly and it wasn’t just from her run with Chalky. Her body was tingling and she felt the weight of Jake’s gaze all over her. It was all the fault of this stretch fabric in her T-shirt, she lamented silently. It showed everything underneath it. ‘Apology accepted,’ she said in a little rush.

  ‘Thanks.’ Jake felt as thought a ton weight had been lifted off him. ‘Have your shower.’ He shooed her away. ‘I’ll fix breakfast.’

  ‘Full English?’

  Cheeky monkey. He dipped his head to hide a relieved smile. ‘I’ll see what I can do.’

  �
��Afraid there weren’t any mushrooms.’ Jake set the cooked breakfast in front of Maxi.

  She eyed the heaped plate of bacon, egg, sausage and tomato hungrily. ‘No baked beans either?’

  ‘I don’t do baked beans.’

  She wrinkled her nose at him. ‘They’re very good for you.’ ‘Mmm.’

  She laughed softly. ‘I remember now.’

  ‘What?’ His brows peaked in question.

  ‘Your aversion to baked beans. It was after we’d had all those school kids in with—’

  Jake held up his hand. ‘Max, if you mention the V word, I swear I’ll send you out to eat with the dog.’

  She showed him the tip of her tongue. ‘Wuss.’

  ‘Eat,’ he said gruffly. ‘And then we’d better take time to sort out a few things, don’t you agree?’

  ‘That sounds good,’ she said softly, her mouth making a little pout like the shape of a kiss on the last word.

  A muscle pulled in Jake’s jaw, desire rocking him like an earthquake. He couldn’t take his eyes off her. She looked sexy and sweet all at once, fresh from the shower, her white cheesecloth shirt open all the way down and the snug little vest top underneath showing just a peep of cleavage—

  Maxi shivered as if he’d actually touched her. Her body ached for his. Ached for his touch and his heat, his breath on her skin. His whispered words, husky, deep, filling her mouth as they kissed.

  ‘Our food’s getting cold,’ she said around an edgy little laugh, dragging her thoughts back from the brink and picking up her cutlery.

  ‘Do you have any more on the seniors with the suspect gastro?’ Maxi asked. They’d finished breakfast and were now sitting over their second cup of tea.

  ‘It looks like we might escape an epidemic,’ Jake said. ‘Apparently, Violet and Trevor were the only ones at the retirement village for lunch yesterday. The rest of the folk had gone on a bus trip.’

  Maxi looked up expectantly. ‘So, if we can narrow down what they ate for lunch, we could find our source there?’

  ‘That’s what Brian thinks. No one else appears poorly.’