“But you’ve got the children to take care of, and the house,” Kate pointed out.
“I still have time to lend Blue a hand when he needs me.” Ellen sounded proud and a little defensive.
Kate allowed herself to imagine living in such a place with Sean and she understood. When Ellen McAllister lay down beside her husband at night, she was probably bone weary, but she had the satisfaction of knowing that the work of her hands and heart and mind made a real difference.
Kate couldn’t remember when writing speeches and booking hotel reservations for her father had ever given her such a feeling. “You’re lucky,” she said.
Ellen relaxed. “I know,” she answered.
The two women walked for some time, while Ellen showed Kate the large patch of ground where she raised vegetables, the coops with the squawking hens that produced the McAllisters’ eggs and provided the occasional chicken dinner, the building where the hired hands would stay when it came time to shear the sheep.
“Don’t you ever get lonely, living way out here?” Kate ventured to ask as they entered the cool, spacious living room with sturdy, serviceable furniture and a fireplace that adjoined the one in the kitchen.
A large quilting frame was set up in the middle of the room, and a beautiful multicolored quilt was in progress. Ellen touched it with a fond hand as they passed. “I’ve got Blue and the kids and the people in those books Sean brings,” she replied, starting up a set of wooden stairs. The banister was made of rough wood with bits of bark clinging to it in places. “Most of the time they’re enough.”
Kate sighed. “I guess nobody likes their life all the time,” she said.
Ellen nodded as she looked back. They were on the upper floor when she asked, “What do you like best about your life, Kate?”
The question took Kate by surprise, and so did the realization that she hadn’t really had much of a life before she came to Australia. “Sean,” she answered, her eyes lowered, her cheeks warm.
“It’s nothing to be ashamed of, loving a man,” Ellen insisted. They had reached a doorway, and she led the way inside. “This is our room, Blue’s and mine.”
Kate saw a lovely hardwood bed covered with one of Ellen’s colorful handmade quilts. There were several comfortable chairs, and two hooked rugs brightened the wooden floor. An old-fashioned folding screen stood in one corner of the room, and a wisp of a nightgown was draped over its top.
With a soft smile, Ellen pulled down the nightgown, folded it and tucked it into a drawer.
As much as Kate liked this woman, she was filled with envy. It wasn’t hard to imagine the happiness Blue and Ellen shared within the intimacy of these four walls; it was a charge in the air, like lightning diffused in all directions.
They went through each of the children’s rooms, then Ellen opened a door at the end of the hall. It was a small room with a slanting roof, and contained an iron bedstead that was painted white. The spread was another of Ellen’s elaborate quilts, this one in a floral design, and the curtains matched. A ceramic pitcher and bowl set was on top of an old wooden nightstand.
Kate drew in her breath. “It’s charming,” she said a moment later.
Ellen smiled. “I’m glad you think so, because you’ll be sleeping here.”
Kate was embarrassed again. “Sean…?”
Ellen’s eyes sparkled with amusement and affection. “He can sleep downstairs in Blue’s study. There’s a chesterfield there that folds out into a bed.”
Kate bit her lower lip and nodded.
Ellen laughed. “I dare say he’ll have his due once you’re away from here, though.”
Kate had absolutely no doubt of that. She wouldn’t be able to resist Sean when he set his mind on seducing her, so she didn’t plan to waste her time trying. She looked toward the open window, where lace curtains danced on a rising wind.
“The sky looks angry,” Ellen fretted, crossing the room to lower the window sash. “A storm’s brewing, I think.”
Kate felt an elemental yearning to be alone in this room with Sean, to lie with him beneath the beautiful quilt and feel his arms tight and strong around her. “There must be things you need to do,” she said to distract herself. “How can I help?”
Ellen remembered with a start that her wash was hanging outside on the line, and the two women ran to reach it before the rain did.
“What about the sheep?” Kate shouted over the increasing howl of the wind as she and Ellen swiftly wrenched sheets and shirts and dish towels from the clothesline.
“They don’t mind a little rain,” Ellen called back.
Enormous drops began pummeling the ground, the roof and the windows only moments after Kate and Ellen were inside. They stood near the sputtering fire to fold the fresh-smelling laundry. The kids were back at the trestle table, working at their lessons.
About half an hour had gone by when Blue and Sean came in from looking after the sheep. They were both soaking wet, and Ellen rushed to peel away Blue’s jacket and hat. As she was leading him toward the fire, Kate’s eyes met Sean’s.
She longed to fuss over him in the same way, but she wasn’t certain she had the right. After all, this wasn’t her house and Sean wasn’t her husband.
Both mischief and appeal flickered in his eyes as he gazed back at Kate. Then, rather dramatically, he sneezed.
Kate went to him. “You’re wet,” she said helplessly.
“And cold,” he answered.
Kate shivered, although she was dry and warm. After a moment’s hesitation she took his hand and led him toward the hearth. There was something sweetly primitive in making a fuss over Sean while a storm raged at the windows, and she wished they were alone.
Sean smiled and kissed her forehead, then began stripping off his shirt. Drops of water shimmered in his hair, catching the firelight like diamonds. His chest glistened with moisture.
Using all the determination she possessed, Kate turned away. “I’ll get you some tea—”
“They’ll be needing more than tea,” Ellen said wisely. She took a bottle of brandy down from a cupboard, along with a jar of instant coffee.
Kate stood by and watched, since there was nothing else to do, while Ellen brewed two mugs of coffee and added healthy doses of sugar, milk and brandy. Kate’s hands trembled a little as she carried the nutritional disaster to Sean and held it out.
He accepted the offering with a little ceremony. His eyes, linked with Kate’s, seemed to strip away her dry clothes, until she felt naked in front of him. She’d lost all awareness of the others.
Sean lifted the brew to his lips and drank, and when he swallowed, Kate felt the brandy coursing through her own system, warming her, melting her muscles and bones.
“You need to lie down,” she heard Sean say. The words didn’t seem to go with the movements of his lips.
A moment later he set the mug aside and lifted Kate into his arms. She could feel the wetness of his skin seep through her lightweight flannel shirt.
He carried her to the room Ellen had showed her earlier and laid her gently on the bed.
“The children,” she whispered in sleepy despair.
Sean grinned as he unlaced her hiking boots and pulled them off. “It’s all right, Katie-did. I’m only putting you to bed.”
“I wish we could—make love,” Kate said with a long yawn.
Sean chuckled. “Believe me, sheila, so do I. But you’re right—we can’t with the nippers about.”
It felt so good to have her shoes off that Kate stretched and gave a little groan, curling her toes as she did so. Sean unsnapped her jeans and slid them down over her hips, thighs and legs. It was so different from the last time he’d removed them.
He stripped her to her undershirt and panties, then tucked her underneath the quilt and bent to kiss her forehead. “Sleep, love,” he said softly.
Kate snuggled down between the crisp, chilly covers, giving a little sigh. “It’s so—nice here…”
Sean kissed her ag
ain, this time on the lips. “All the comforts of home,” he agreed. “Except for one, of course.”
Kate opened her eyes, but they fell closed again. She hadn’t realized she was so tired. “I’m afraid of thunder,” she confessed after the sky was rent by a deafening roar.
Sean drew up a chair and sat down beside the bed, holding her hand in his. “I’ll never let anything hurt you,” he promised.
Kate couldn’t remember a time when she’d felt so safe and wanted. Her mouth seemed to be moving without permission from her brain. “I wish we lived in a place like this,” she said, punctuating her words with a yawn. “Just you and me and Gil and our babies…”
Sean’s chuckle was a rich, sweet sound. “Oh, love, you are making it hard for me to keep my hands to myself. Go to sleep, before I disgrace us both.”
Kate stretched and burrowed deeper into her pillow. Soon the rain and the wind and even Sean receded into nothingness, and she was dreaming dreams.
When she awakened hours later, the room was dark and cold and she was alone. For a reason she could never have explained, she turned onto her stomach, buried her head in her arms and wept with grief.
Chapter 8
At dinner Kate was puffy-eyed and quiet, wishing she’d never come to Australia. Maybe she wouldn’t be so deeply, hopelessly in love with Sean Harris if she’d stayed where she belonged.
Later, when the dishes were washed and dried and put away, Ellen sat down at her quilting frame and showed Kate how to work a simple stitch. While they sewed, Sean and Blue played a cutthroat game of chess. The children were sitting in front of a television set, watching a picture that intermittently faded and jiggled on the screen.
“Is that good for their eyes?” Kate asked, worried.
“They’ll soon tire of it,” Ellen answered with a contented sigh, and she was right. Minutes later, the TV was silent and the kids were getting out various books and toys.
Because they got up early and worked hard, the McAllisters liked to be in bed by eight. Kate, having had a long nap, was wide awake, but she didn’t want to disrupt the household, so she helped herself to one of Ellen’s romance novels, gave Sean an innocuous good-night kiss and went off to her room.
About a hundred pages into the book Kate realized she’d selected the wrong reading material for keeping her mind off Sean and all the sweet delights she’d known in his arms. She closed the paperback and turned out the light to stare up at the ceiling with unblinking eyes.
She tried counting sheep next, and was certain she got through the McAllisters’ entire flock without missing so much as a lamb. She was still sleepless, and her body was still wanting Sean.
She turned the light back on and started to read again. This time she didn’t stop until the happily-ever-after ending, and a glance at her watch told her that it was nearly dawn. Kate got out of bed and quietly got dressed.
Sean was in the kitchen, drinking instant coffee by the hearth, when she arrived there. He’d already built the fire to a crackling blaze.
“Where do they get wood?” Kate asked. She hadn’t stopped to wonder before, but the land was barren for miles around.
Sean set aside his coffee and drew her into the circle of his arms as though she’d asked some romantic question. “There’s an occasional stand of gum trees about,” he answered, his lips a fraction of an inch from Kate’s. “And they have some of it shipped in by rail, from a town about ninety-five kilometers south of here.”
Kate’s breasts were pressed into the hard wall of Sean’s chest. “Oh,” she said weakly. She was still holding the romance novel she’d read during the night in one hand, and it dropped to the floor.
Sean released her to retrieve it, and his eyes danced in the dim light of the fire as he looked at the cover and then at Kate. “Katie-did,” he teased, “I’m surprised at you.”
Kate was quietly defiant. “I liked it,” she said, sticking out her chin. “In fact, I can’t wait to buy a supply for myself.”
Sean tossed the book onto the table with a chuckle and then pulled her close again, his hand grasping the waistband of her jeans. His fingers were warm against the bare skin of her abdomen, and he seemed in no hurry to withdraw.
Kate gave a trembling sigh. She was helpless where this man was concerned. “A-are we leaving today?”
Sean nodded, bending his head to nibble at her lips. “Yes, sheila. Provided the runway isn’t knee-deep in mud, we’re taking off after breakfast.” He turned his hand to caress the nest of silk at the junction of Kate’s thighs. “If we stay,” he continued, answering the question Kate hadn’t the breath to voice, “I’ll have to take you somewhere private and have my way with you.”
At the sound of footsteps on the stairs, Sean stepped back, ending the intimate embrace. Kate swayed on her feet, and he gripped her shoulders, pressing her onto one of the benches beside the table. She was trying to catch her breath when Blue came into the kitchen, whistling softly.
“Good morning,” he said, his grin taking in both his guests in a single sweep. “Off to the blue sky, are you?”
“If the runway’s clear,” Sean answered, and he sounded as distracted as Kate felt.
Blue took the kettle from the stove and poured steaming water into a mug, adding instant coffee and sugar to that. He stooped slightly to look out the window and assess the sky. “Should be all right,” he said. “Then again, you could be here for weeks.”
“Now there was a conclusive statement,” Sean remarked.
Blue’s eyes were twinkling in the dim, cozy light of the warm kitchen. “Anxious to see the last of us, are you?” he teased. “I don’t mind telling you, I’m insulted.”
Sean laughed. “Who’s insulted?” he returned. “You and Ellen haven’t been to Sydney in six years.”
While the men went on arguing good-naturedly, Kate went to the cupboard for a cup, then to the stove for hot water and coffee crystals. She stood at a far window, looking out at the sky. As she watched, streaks of gray shot through the black velvet expanse, following by tinges of crimson and apricot. The spectacle was stunning.
Sean appeared beside her. “What do you see out there, sheila?” he asked softly.
“Magic,” Kate replied, glad to be next to him.
Soon the sky had performed all its tricks and the kitchen was full of noise and laughter. Kate set the table for breakfast, while Ellen prepared oatmeal, toasted bread, sausage and eggs.
When the meal was over, Blue put on his coat and hat. Ellen and the children gathered around him in a happy ritual of hugging and kissing. Kate’s throat felt thick as she watched.
After Blue had said a morning farewell to his wife and children, he shifted his eyes to Kate. “It was good to meet you, Kate Blake. Come back and see us again soon.”
Kate nodded and muttered her thanks as Sean put on his own hat and coat to follow his friend outside.
Ellen was busy clearing the table, her motions too swift and intense for the simple job. It was plain to see that she already missed her husband, even though he would be back in time for supper.
“Daddy forgot his tucker!” Sarah cried suddenly, running to fetch the canvas bag that contained a hearty homemade lunch and dashing for the door.
John and Margaret ran out behind her.
Kate felt a pang at the prospect of leaving this family. She’d never seen one quite like it before, and she hadn’t dreamed such simple, unadorned happiness really existed.
When Sean came back inside minutes later, he announced that the runway was dry enough for a takeoff. Kate went to gather her things, bringing her small leather suitcase downstairs with her.
The time with Ellen and Blue and their children had been precious to Kate. She hugged her new friend and said a soft goodbye.
There were bright tears in Ellen’s eyes. “Don’t be a stranger,” she said, before turning to embrace Sean.
Kate didn’t let her tears fall until she and Sean were inside the airplane and racing along the runway to me
et the blue sky.
“What’s wrong?” Sean asked with genuine concern in his voice as the small craft shot into the air. The landing gear made a ker-thump sound as it moved back into the belly of the plane.
Kate sniffled and dried her cheeks with the back of one hand. “They’re so happy,” she said.
“And that’s something to cry about?” Sean persisted, frowning in puzzlement.
“It is if you realize you’ve never even seen that kind of happiness before, let alone had it for yourself.”
Sean was quiet for a long time. When he finally spoke, they were flying at a level altitude. Far below, a small stream looked like a long mud puddle in the brown grass, and kangaroos paused to drink. “Abby thought Ellen ought to leave Blue and get herself a career in the city,” he said, and his voice was flat, emotionless.
Kate supposed it was hard for him, even now, to speak of Abby. “Ellen told me,” she answered. “Did Abby want a career?”
Sean made a raw sound in his throat that was probably meant to pass as a chuckle. “Definitely not. She made a life’s work out of telling other people what to do.”
Kate regretted bringing Abby’s name up in conversation, but she knew that she and Sean had to talk about her sister. If they didn’t, she would always hover over them like a ghost. “You sound as though you hated her,” she said.
“Toward the end,” Sean answered, “I did.”
The subject was too painful; Kate had to back away. “Where did you meet Blue McAllister?”
There was relief in Sean’s voice when he answered, “Flight school. He and I went to work for Austra-Air at the same time.”
“And Ellen?”
“She was a buyer for a chain of department stores. They met on one of Blue’s flights.”
Kate was surprised. She’d pictured Blue and Ellen growing up close to the land. “How on earth did they end up way out here on a sheep station?”
“The station was Blue’s dream. Ellen loved him enough to share it.”
Kate was quiet for a long time. She looked out at the raw panorama spread out below, trying to remember how it had felt to live and work in Seattle, to be mainly concerned with the course of her father’s career. The whole scenario had about as much reality for her as a rerun of a TV movie.
Just Kate: His Only Wife (Bestselling Author Collection) Page 10
