English Rose in the Outback

by Lucy Clark

  ‘Would you like to talk about it?’ he asked, hoping against hope that she would.

  ‘Talk about what? My father? My mother? My life in the army?’

  ‘Whatever it is you want to tell me. I’m interested in all aspects of your life,’ he stated and she looked at him with surprise. The fact that Oscar was interested in her, that he wanted to know more about her, was willing to listen to what she had to say, was such a nice thing that she found herself wanting to tell him.

  She bit her lip, then stood and walked over to the window, looking out through the lace curtains at the bustling city outside. So much was going on, cars speeding up and slowing down, traffic lights changing, seagulls squawking. She watched them all unseeingly as she spoke, her tone quiet.

  ‘If you think I talk all posh, then you’ll find my parents almost over the top.’ She was trying to inject a bit of humour into her words and he wondered whether that was because she was nervous at opening up to him. ‘My father rules the roost, controlling everyone and everything that happens in his house.’

  ‘What about your brother? Does he live close to your parents?’

  ‘John? Yes, he and his family live on the estate.’

  ‘You have an estate?’

  She shook her head and looked at him. ‘My father has an estate. John has an estate. John’s son has an estate. It’s inherited through the first-born male. My father is most definitely stuck in the past, not moving with the times and intent on upholding tradition.’

  ‘Tradition is clearly important to him.’

  ‘It’s how he was raised. At any rate, he was pleasantly surprised with my grades from medical school and seemed quite pleased his daughter was a doctor. It was an accomplishment.’

  ‘That’s a good thing.’

  ‘You’d think that.’ Daisy pursed her lips. ‘Once I’d completed my training and was qualified, he decided I should go into practice with an old friend of his who had been our family doctor since…well, since before I was born.’

  ‘That wasn’t what you wanted?’

  She spread her arms wide. ‘No, but did that matter to my father? Not in the slightest. I was to do as I was told.’

  ‘How old were you? Mid-twenties?’

  ‘Yes, but as far as my father’s concerned I’m a woman and so I couldn’t possibly make up my own mind or know what’s good for me. He’s a dictatorial control freak and I—’ She stopped and closed her eyes, forcing herself to take some calming breaths. ‘My mother encouraged me to leave home, to try working overseas.’

  ‘She was on your side?’

  Daisy looked at him and nodded. ‘She didn’t want me to end up living the same life she’d been forced into. Of course, after I left, my father blamed her for corrupting me.’

  ‘He doesn’t sound like a very nice man.’ Oscar held up his hands in apology. ‘Sorry. I know I don’t even know him, but—’

  ‘You’re right, though. He isn’t nice. He’s manipulative and exceedingly arrogant. If he can’t control your life, he’ll make it a living hell.’

  ‘But you’ve escaped?’

  ‘To a point. My mother isn’t…um…in the best of health.’ She was choosing her words carefully and he received the distinct impression that there was more to the situation, especially where her mother’s health was concerned, than she was letting on. ‘Because of that I have to keep going home to help her.’

  Oscar reflected on the conversation he’d overheard. ‘And your brother? Does he help your mother?’

  ‘More out of duty, rather than because he’s concerned about her.’ She laughed without humour. ‘Both he and my father always say I’m overreacting.’

  ‘But as a medical professional, you clearly have knowledge that they don’t.’

  ‘Exactly. Thank you. I’m not overreacting and my mother’s condition…I’ve tried to get her help and she’ll accept it, to a point but then—’ Daisy stopped and sighed as though she was exhausted from even thinking about it. She crossed to the bed and sat down, relaxing a little. ‘If I stay too long at home, my mother often tells me to leave. In the nicest way, of course. Besides, I can only take so much of my father and his autocratic behaviour.’

  ‘So you ran away and joined the army?’

  She grinned. ‘I didn’t exactly run away. Timothy was already in the army reserves but then when they were calling for full-time medical doctors to head into the combat zone, I figured that if I could handle my father, I could handle anything.’

  ‘Stubborn?’

  Her smile increased and she nodded. ‘I am.’

  ‘I know.’

  ‘Hey!’

  ‘Have you already forgotten that you were ill when you first arrived? You were stubborn to the point of annoyance.’

  ‘I was annoying? Ha. I think it was the other way around,’ she told him, her eyes twinkling with mirth as she pointed her finger at him. He moved to sit beside her on the bed and grabbed her finger.

  ‘Point that thing back at you.’

  She laughed, a sound he could most definitely become addicted to…if he wasn’t already. ‘I think we should agree to disagree on this point.’

  ‘Or agree that we’re both as stubborn as each other,’ he added, lacing his fingers with hers. The action caused her to tremble a little and she quickly looked into his eyes, nervousness mixed with excitement bubbling through her. They were sitting so close, his hypnotic scent filling her senses and causing butterflies to churn in her stomach.

  He was sitting so close. Smelling so good. Driving her crazy. They shouldn’t be looking at each other like this. They were colleagues. They were…friends? She certainly didn’t tell just anyone about her family. Oscar was someone she’d come to trust but she’d made the mistake of trusting the wrong person before and she couldn’t make it again. She swallowed as she continued to stare at him. How was it that he could set her insides on fire by just looking at her, by visually caressing her face? How was it that she wanted him to kiss her, to press sweet and tender kisses on her cheeks, her eyelids, her forehead? She couldn’t remember the last time she’d been so attracted to a man, as quickly as she’d become attracted to Oscar.

  She swallowed again, her lips parting to allow the pent-up air to escape. She glanced at the clock beside the bed and cleared her throat, trying to deny the senses he was awakening. ‘We…uh…should probably head over to the hospital.’

  ‘Daisy.’ Her name was a caress upon his lips and somehow he’d shifted even closer to her, or perhaps she was only now realising how easy it would be to lean over and press her mouth to his. Her breath hitched when he put his other hand beneath her chin, smoothing his thumb over her parted lips.

  ‘Daisy.’ How could he say her name in such a way that caused desire to rip through her, desire for him to want her, need her, kiss her? She wanted Oscar to kiss her. She’d dreamed about it and now the moment was here, the moment when she could find out how this wonderful man could make her feel. Instinctively she knew it was going to be good. It just had to be. Oscar was handsome and intelligent and delightful to spend time with.

  She closed her eyes, feeing his light breath fan in her face. He was going to kiss her. Oscar wanted to kiss her! Her lips opened a little further in anticipation, her heart pounding wildly against her chest, her senses on alert as she waited…waited…

  His lips brushed hers in an exceedingly light but delicious way and she all but melted towards him. ‘Mmm…’ Had that sound come from her or him? He didn’t try to deepen the kiss, didn’t try to rush, instead he seemed more than content to brush another small kiss across her lips, their breaths mingling and dissolving together.

  His hand at her chin slowly shifted around to rest just below her ear, cupping her cheek while his other hand tightened around hers, the actions showing her his restraint at not allowing himself to get carried away. It was as though he wanted to treasure her, wanted to let her know that this wasn’t something he did every day, that she was special.

  Whethe
r or not Daisy was reading too much into the way he was treating her, she had no idea, but just as he eased back, opening his mouth to hopefully deepen the kiss, to give them both what they appeared to want, his cell phone rang, piercing the air around them. Daisy instantly jumped with fright at the sound and pulled away from him.

  Oscar growled and removed his phone from his pocket, turning his back to her as he answered the call, saying a few clipped words here and there before hanging up. He tossed his phone onto the table and shoved both hands into his pockets. He looked her way but didn’t hold her gaze. What did that mean? Did he regret what had happened between them?

  ‘That was the Royal Flying Doctor Service. They have a plane heading to Meeraji Lake in thirty minutes with room for two passengers.’

  ‘That’s good news.’ Daisy needed to do something, needed to be busy, to find a way to distract her thoughts. She stood and started pulling the coverings off the bed they’d shared.

  ‘What are you doing?’

  ‘What does it look like I’m doing?’ Her words came out in that haughty way of hers even though she didn’t mean them in such a fashion. ‘I’m removing the sheets from the bed.’

  ‘But they have cleaners. They can do it,’ he stated, looking at her as though she was a little crazy.

  ‘And just think how that person is going to feel when they walk into this room and see one less job they have to do. It might just make their day and if that’s the case, then I’m happy to do it.’

  ‘Huh.’ Oscar nodded. ‘I hadn’t thought about it that way before,’ he said and immediately picked up a pillow and removed the pillow case.

  The truth of the matter was that being near him, having kissed him so tantalisingly, had made her more nervous than a long-tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs. Daisy had needed to do something to expel the nervous energy zipping through her and doing something practical had been the solution.

  ‘Where do we need to meet the plane?’ she asked, picking up the edge of the blanket and starting to fold it. Oscar immediately grabbed the other end and helped her.

  ‘We need to take a taxi to the airport and head to the RFDS airstrip.’

  ‘And we only have half an hour to do that?’ She folded the blanket with him, then automatically walked towards him to grasp the two ends together. It was a mistake. Their fingers touched and her body pulsed with a longing and need she’d had no idea she possessed. Her heart rate increased as they stood there, close once more with a neatly folded blanket between them. Daisy hugged the blanket to her as she watched him swallow, before meeting his gaze.

  ‘It will only take about ten minutes to get there.’ His voice was soft, deep, intimate, just as it had been before when they’d kissed. Daisy closed her eyes, unable to really understand what was happening to her. Why did he have to smell so good? Why did the pheromones exuding from both of them mingle perfectly together to make one highly potent concoction?

  ‘Ordinarily I can control my emotions.’ Her words were as soft as a whisper but she knew he could hear her. Their senses were overly attuned to each other, heightened, sensitised. ‘I was raised to quash all emotions and, between medical school and the army, I’ve learned to compartmentalise everything.’

  ‘Including what you want? What you need?’

  Daisy opened her eyes and looked at him. ‘Yes. Honour and duty come first. To the monarchy. To family. To the armed forces.’

  ‘You’re not in the UK now. Your family is not here either and you’re no longer in the army.’ Oscar reached out and brushed his fingers across her cheek before lifting her chin a little higher. Then, before she could say or do anything else, he lowered his head and brushed his lips across hers, this time with a little more pressure. It was as though he intended there to be absolutely no doubt that he wanted to kiss her, that he wanted to be near her, that he was attracted to her.

  Daisy started to shake, her breathing coming so fast she thought she might hyperventilate. Thankfully, Oscar made no further effort to deepen the contact between them, seemingly content to repeat the gentle, sensual action again and again. It was as though he was trying to memorise every contour, every nuance, every flavour she provided.

  Never before had any man treated her in such a way that made her feel precious and treasured and appreciated. That was what he was doing. He was appreciating her mouth, appreciating her.

  Daisy stepped back, her heart pounding wildly against her chest, her blood thrumming through her body so much, the sound was reverberating in her ears. She dropped the blanket but didn’t bother to bend down and pick it up. Instead, she stared at Oscar as though he was something too good to be true. It was always the way.

  In the past, when she’d been interested in a man, nine times out of ten he’d been more interested in her family money, or the prestige her family name might provide. However, if what she was feeling for Oscar, especially having only known him for such a short time, was this powerful, hungry desire, then something had seriously been lacking in her life. The question now remained, what did it all mean? What did it mean to him? Did he want money? Did he really find her attractive? What were his motives?

  Licking her dry lips, Daisy took a few deep breaths, trying to get her wayward breathing to settle into a more even rhythm. ‘We’d…’ She cleared her throat when her voice cracked. ‘We’d best get to the plane.’

  With that, she bent to pick up the blanket and continued to tidy the room. Oscar just stood there, watching her as though he really didn’t understand what was going on. When she was done, she walked to the door, not waiting for him. There was a taxi rank across the road outside the front of the hospital and, leaving him to gather his personal items and lock the door behind them, she continued across the road to flag down their transport.

  When he joined her in the taxi, sitting in the back seat while she sat in the front with the driver, Oscar seemed his usual jovial self, chatting and laughing with the driver as though they were old friends instead of two people who had just met.

  At the airport, he was the same with the RFDS staff, although, she discovered, he really was old friends with most of them. He introduced Daisy to everyone, ensured her seat belt was correctly fastened before take-off and showed her every courtesy as though nothing weird, crazy or sensual had happened between them.

  All it did was confuse her even more.

  CHAPTER NINE

  WHEN THEY RETURNED from Darwin, Oscar continued to be his usual polite self towards Daisy. He behaved this way because he had no idea what he was meant to do after kissing her. Should he kiss her again? Hold her hand in the taxi? Whisper in her ear during the plane ride back to Meeraji Lake?

  He’d been so unnerved by the way she’d responded to him, by the way she had smelled so sweet and delicious. Why had he kissed her? When he’d taken the breakfast tray back to the hospital cafeteria, he’d been so incredibly annoyed with her, wondering why she hadn’t been able to trust him, to open up and then…when she had, it had stirred all his protective instincts.

  It was then he’d realised that her reticence, her reluctance to discuss her life with him, was more attributed to her repressed upbringing than not wanting to confide in him. He also couldn’t deny he’d been pleased to hear that she wasn’t Timothy’s type and, while he had nothing against the brilliant surgeon, it had been a relief to know that Daisy wasn’t attached to him. None of this, however, explained why Oscar had finally given in to the urges he’d been fighting so successfully up to that point and kissed her!

  Because he hadn’t been able to stop himself. The woman had managed to get under his skin, to become a part of his dreams and after lying next to her all night long, and with their heightened emotions, when the moment had arisen he’d grabbed it with both hands. The only problem with his actions was now that he knew how wonderful she felt in his arms, now that he knew how perfectly her lips seemed to meld to his own, now that he’d tasted the delicious flavours of her mouth, he most definitely wanted more. Much more.
And that was indeed a major problem.

  Daisy would leave at the end of her contract and now he knew why. Looking after and supporting her mother was a noble cause. He could also understand why she’d previously said that she never wanted to have a family herself, because her own family life hadn’t been a happy one. His upbringing, although filled with sadness when his parents had passed away, had still been a happy one. He’d been encouraged, he’d been supported and he’d been loved.

  From what Daisy had said, she’d had very little of any of those things, and it pained him to think of what she might have been through in the past. All of this, however, meant that kissing her had been the absolute wrong thing to do. He knew he wanted to stay here in Meeraji Lake, to get married and raise a family. Yes, he was concerned about getting involved with a woman again, opening his heart up once more and risking it being broken, and with Daisy he was almost ninety-nine per cent sure that would happen. If he continued down his present path, of wanting to spend more time with her, of wanting to talk more about her past, of learning everything there was to know about Daisy Forsythe-York, then he would definitely end up with another broken heart.

  Surely it would be best for both of them if they forgot all about those kisses and went back to just being colleagues. Wouldn’t it?

  *

  A week later, Daisy still had no idea what was really going on in Oscar’s head, not where the attraction between the two of them was concerned. When they’d returned to Meeraji Lake, Oscar had been his usual kind and considerate self. He’d made her breakfast every morning for the next week, had helped her cook dinner in the evenings and had brought her a cup of tea just before she’d headed to bed. They would often sit and chat about movies they both liked as well as discussing different books, offering recommendations or lending each other the title.