by Janet Gover
Then another barrier had dropped into place. The car. He drove a park service Land Rover. He couldn’t just take off in a vehicle that wasn’t technically his. He had to leave that for his replacement. A phone call to Justin and Carrie had solved that one. He explained his problem and, with Carrie cheering wildly in the background, Justin had offered to lend him a car.
Looking at the car now, Dan did not care how old or battered it was. If it took him to Quinn, that would be enough.
He opened the car door and tossed in a rucksack with some clothes and a few other necessities. He then carefully placed the book on the front seat. The book in which Quinn had written her name.
‘I don’t know how long this will take me,’ he said to Justin and Carrie as he opened the driver’s side door.
‘Keep it as long as you need it,’ Justin said. ‘We’ve still got the old ute.’
‘Just bring her back with you.’ Carrie planted a kiss on Dan’s cheek.
He nodded at both of them and got behind the wheel of the car. Without wasting another minute, he was heading for the park exit. Carrie and Justin kept him company for a short time, and then sent him on his way with a blast of their horn as they turned onto the gravel road that led back to their home.
Dan continued driving until he reached the intersection with the main highway, then he pulled over and turned the engine off. The road now led south to Coorah Creek, and then turned east towards the east coast and Brisbane. Quinn’s book lay on the seat beside him. Once before, that book had guided him to the place he needed to be. Now it was doing it again. He wasn’t sure exactly where he was going. But he was going to find Quinn.
Finding her might not be all that easy. She was a celebrity of sorts, one who protected her privacy. The book listed her agent, giving him an office address in Brisbane. Dan would start there. He had thought about phoning the agent, or e-mailing, but decided against it. He wouldn’t give the man a chance to refuse to tell him where Quinn was. He would simply go to the agent’s office and stay there if he had too – until he was told what he needed to know.
It wasn’t much of a plan, but it was the only one he had. He wouldn’t stop looking until he found her. He would ask nothing of her until she was ready. She needed to come to terms with her past, just as he had done. Quinn had helped him do that and if he could, he would help her too, even if that help was nothing more than letting her know he was there for her if she needed him.
He was not prepared to countenance the chance of failure. He needed Quinn in his life in the same way that he needed to breathe. He needed to wake in the mornings and watch her sleep beside him. He needed to hear her laugh. He needed her to be the home he still did not have. And he needed to fill the same role in her life.
He glanced at his watch. The drive from Coorah Creek to Brisbane would take him nearly twenty hours. He wouldn’t make it today, but that was all right. He’d find a motel somewhere for the night. He settled himself more comfortably in the unfamiliar seat, took a firm grip on his concentration and restarted the engine. As he pulled back onto the highway, he began trying to find the words he would say to Quinn. The words that would make her realise that they belonged together. The words that would make her change her mind.
He drove south to Coorah Creek. He didn’t stop in the town. He reached the intersection with the east-bound highway and turned. In a few minutes the town vanished into the haze behind him. He briefly wondered if Trish Warren knew what he was doing. Probably. And if she knew the whole town would know. Strangely enough, that didn’t bother him. Maybe their good wishes would help his cause.
It was early afternoon, and the sun was beating down mercilessly on the car. He’d only been driving for a little more than an hour, when he saw something emerge from the heat haze on the road ahead. At first he thought it was a mirage, brought on by the heat. But it wasn’t. His heart skipped a beat as he recognised the low boxy shape coming towards him. He’d seen too many Humvees emerge from the desert heat not to know one when he saw it. But this was not the vehicle of his nightmares. It held all his dreams.
Dan flashed his headlights twice, and then braked. He pulled the car over to the side of the road. He was getting out when the Hummer swept past him. A second later, he saw the glow of the red brake lights as it pulled up about fifty meters further down the road. Dan stood next to the car, his heart pounding, and waited. The Hummer began reversing back up the road. It angled onto the red dust verge opposite him and stopped.
It was dark inside the vehicle against the brightness of the sun. Behind the tinted windows, Dan could only see the outline of the driver. But he didn’t need to see her. His heart told him she was there.
The door opened and she got out. She was sweating in the heat. Her hair was a mess and her clothes rumpled from long hours of travelling. She was so beautiful, she took his breath away. All the carefully planned words vanished from his head.
She closed the car door behind her, and moved towards him. Dan took two steps into the middle of the road and she was in his arms.
Kissing her was like drinking ice-cold water under the heat of the desert sun. It was like coming home and it was a very long time before he could bring himself to stop.
‘I know there’s not a lot of traffic out here,’ Dan said roughly when he was finally able to speak again. ‘But at some point, perhaps we should move off the road.’
Quinn nodded. Keeping his arms around her, so that her body was close to him, Dan led the way back to the Hummer.
Quinn leaned back against her vehicle and looked across at Dan’s car.
‘I almost didn’t stop,’ she said. ‘I didn’t know it was you.’
‘I borrowed it from Carrie. I had to leave the Land Rover behind.’ Dan held her hand tightly. ‘You were coming back.’ The wonder of it was almost overwhelming.
She nodded. ‘Yes. And you were coming to find me, weren’t you?’
‘Yes. I had to tell you that I love you and when you are ready to share your life again, I want to be with you.’
Quinn didn’t hesitate. Her face was serious as she spoke. ‘I love you. I want to be with you. I am ready to move on with my life, but was too afraid to say that before.’
‘There’s no reason to be afraid,’ Dan said. ‘Ever.’
‘I know. I’ve realised something. All those dreams I had as a girl. Home and husband and family. I still want all those things.’
‘And you can have them. We can have them, together.’
‘I let my work get in the way once before. I won’t this time.’
‘Don’t say that.’ Dan took her by the shoulders and held her so he could see her face clearly. He spoke slowly, with utter surety. ‘Your work is important to you. You can’t give it up. I will never ask you to. In fact, I would never allow you too. It’s a part of who you are – part of what makes me love you.’
‘But it’ll take me away from you.’
‘That’s fine. Just as long as you come back to me. I’ll always be there for you, Quinn. Wherever and whenever you need me.’
He kissed her again.
Neither of them heard the roar of an approaching engine. With a long loud blast of an air horn, a huge truck roared past, breaking their embrace.
‘You were coming after me,’ Quinn said again, her voice dancing with joy. ‘Why? What made you decide to do that now?’
‘Missing you. Loving you and wanting to be with you,’ Dan said, and then his mouth spread into a wide smile. ‘And Jack and Ellen had their baby – a little girl.’
‘I’m really happy for them.’ This time there was no shadow in her eyes. No flash of pain.
‘Looking at the little girl made me realise something,’ Dan said. He lifted one of her hands and gently kissed the soft skin on her palm. ‘Love is a gift. A rare thing that is too precious to throw away. It’s wrong to turn your back on it. Even if it lasts for just a day, love is worth it.’
The tears he saw in her eyes were all the answer he needed. He kis
sed her again, because it was beyond his power to stop.
‘I suppose I should tell my agent not to take any bookings for me for a while,’ Quinn said a long time later. ‘I have a feeling I’m going to be busy.’
‘Take a job if you want to,’ Dan said. ‘Never say no to something you want to do because of me. It will always be your choice, Quinn. And besides,’ he chuckled, ‘you make a lot more money than I do, so your work is our retirement fund.’
‘Retirement fund? Retirement is a whole lifetime away.’
‘Which will be almost, but not quite enough time to spend together.’ He kissed her again, loving the taste of her lips and the softness of her body against his. And loving the joy he felt surrounding the two of them like an aura.
‘So,’ Dan said when they could both talk again, ‘are you ready? I’ve got a feeling the whole town is probably waiting to welcome you back.’
Quinn smiled and nodded.
Dan walked back across the road, and got behind the wheel of the car. He started the engine and did a U-turn. Quinn got into her Hummer. As she pulled back onto the highway, Dan slid his vehicle into place behind her. Driving the car that was no longer her only home, Quinn led them both back towards Coorah Creek.
About the Author
Janet lives in Surrey with her English husband but grew up in the Australian outback surrounded by books. She solved mysteries with Sherlock Holmes, explored jungles with Edgar Rice Burroughs and shot to the stars with Isaac Asimov and Ray Bradbury. After studying journalism at Queensland University she became a television journalist, first in Australia, then in Asia and Europe. During her career Janet saw and did a lot of unusual things. She met one Pope, at least three Prime Ministers, a few movie stars and a dolphin. Janet now works in television production and travels extensively with her job.
Janet’s first short story, The Last Dragon, was published in 2002. Since then she has published numerous short stories, one of which won the Elizabeth Goudge Award from the Romantic Novelists’ Association. She has previously published three novels with Little Black Dress. Her Choc Lit novels include Flight to Coorah Creek, The Wild One and Bring Me Sunshine. Flight to Coorah Creek is the first in the Coorah Creek series.
Follow Janet on
Twitter
Facebook
Blog
More Choc Lit
From Janet Gover
Flight to Coorah Creek
Book 1 in the Coorah Creek series
What happens when you can fly, but you just can’t hide?
Only Jessica Pearson knows the truth when the press portray her as the woman who betrayed her lover to escape prosecution. But will her new job flying an outback air ambulance help her sleep at night or atone for a lost life?
Doctor Adam Gilmore touches the lives of his patients, but his own scars mean he can never let a woman touch his heart.
Runaway Ellen Parkes wants to build a safe future for her two children. Without a man – not even one as gentle as Jack North.
In Coorah Creek, a town on the edge of nowhere, you’re judged by what you do, not what people say about you. But when the harshest judge is the one you see in the mirror, there’s nowhere left to hide.
Read a preview here ...
Purchase from your eBook provider or visit www.choc-lit.com for more details.
Bring Me Sunshine
Sometimes, you’ve just got to take the plunge …
When marine biologist, Jenny Payne, agrees to spend Christmas working on the Cape Adare cruise ship to escape a disastrous love affair, she envisions a few weeks of sunny climes, cocktails and bronzed men …
What she gets is an Antarctic expedition, extreme weather, and a couple of close shaves with death. And then there’s her fellow passengers; Vera, the eccentric, elderly crime writer and Lian, a young runaway in pursuit of forbidden love …
There’s also Kit Walker; the mysterious and handsome man who is renting the most luxurious cabin on the ship, but who nobody ever sees.
As the expedition progresses, Jenny finds herself becoming increasingly obsessed with the enigmatic Kit and the secrets he hides. Will she crack the code before the return journey or is she bound for another disappointment?
Purchase from your eBook provider or visit www.choc-lit.com for more details.
Introducing Choc Lit
We’re an independent publisher creating
a delicious selection of fiction.
Where heroes are like chocolate – irresistible!
Quality stories with a romance at the heart.
See our selection here:
www.choc-lit.com
We’d love to hear how you enjoyed The Wild One. Please visit www.choc-lit.com and give your feedback or leave a review where you purchased this eBook.
Choc Lit novels are selected by genuine readers like yourself. We only publish stories our Choc Lit Tasting Panel want to see in print. Our reviews and awards speak for themselves.
Could you be a Star Selector
and join our Tasting Panel?
Would you like to play a role in choosing which novels we decide to publish? Do you enjoy reading romance novels? Then you could be perfect for our Choc Lit Tasting Panel.
Visit here for more details
Keep in touch:
Sign up for our monthly newsletter Choc Lit Spread
for all the latest news and offers:
www.spread.choc-lit.com.
Follow us on Twitter: @ChocLituk and Facebook: Choc Lit.
Read a preview of Flight to Coorah Creek next ...
Preview
Flight to Coorah Creek
Janet Gover
Book 1 in the Coorah Creek series
Chapter One
‘It’s no big deal.’
The loud voice and angry tone suggested it was in fact a very big deal.
‘Honestly! She’s only a bridesmaid for goodness sake. It’s not her decision to make,’ the woman almost shouted into her mobile phone.
Jessica Pearson shifted uncomfortably in her seat, moving an inch or two further away from the woman sitting next to her. From all parts of the airport lounge, eyes began to turn in their direction. Jess felt the first small twinge of fear. What if someone recognised her? A man seated opposite sighed very loudly. He glared at the woman on the phone, who either didn’t see him or chose to ignore him. He caught Jessica’s eye and shook his head, his mouth fixed in a disapproving line. Jess avoided his gaze and ducked her head to stare at the page of the book she wasn’t reading.
‘I know she’s his sister, but this is my wedding … And before you ask, I will not talk to her.’
The woman was becoming even more strident. Was she totally unaware of the looks she was getting from her fellow passengers? Jess was tempted to move, but that would only draw some of those eyes her way – and the last thing she wanted to do was to attract any attention. Right now she was just an anonymous face in the crowd, another nameless passenger in Sydney’s busy airport. And that’s just what she needed to be.
‘Excuse me, miss?’
The voice caused Jessica’s heart to leap. Had she been recognised? Slowly she looked up into the face of a uniformed airline agent.
‘Is this yours?’ the agent asked, indicating a black bag on the carpet near Jessica’s feet.
‘No.’ She shook her head.
‘It’s mine,’ the woman next to her said, without removing the phone from her ear. ‘Is there a problem?’
Jess ducked her head, glad to be out of the spotlight – but she wasn’t that lucky. More eyes turned her way as the passenger snapped her phone closed and began to argue with the airline agent over whether her bag was carry-on size.
Oh, no! Jess thought. Please!
She risked another quick glance around the lounge. Two men sitting on the other side of the room were looking directly at her. One said something in a low tone to his companion.
Jess felt her heart clench. She couldn’t hear their voices and she wasn’t e
ven sure they were discussing her, but her mind filled in the words she’d heard so many times over the past few days.
Gave up her lover to escape jail. Turned him in to save her own skin. Just as guilty as the others. A drug runner who should be in prison.
She wasn’t a drug runner, but neither was she entirely innocent.
The speakers overhead crackled into life announcing that it was time to board the flight. Jess leaped to her feet. She was in no great hurry to board the plane, but she was eager to be out of the curious gaze of her fellow passengers.
The flight attendant smiled mechanically as he checked her boarding pass.
‘Welcome on board, Miss Pearson.’
He didn’t recognise her name. Jessica nodded briefly and quickly moved towards her seat at the back of the plane, hoping that her fellow passengers would be too busy settling into their seats to notice her. She reached up to touch the ends of the hair that feathered around her face. She still wasn’t used to this new super short haircut. She wasn’t hiding her identity as such, but all the press photos and the TV footage taken outside the courthouse during the trial showed her with long dark hair. Her new hair was simply a symbol of her new life. That life was starting today.
It felt so strange to be a passenger and not in the pilot’s seat. Not in control. But she hadn’t had much control over her life during the past few months. This flight was the first step in getting it back.
As she settled herself in the last row, Jessica sent a brief plea to whatever deities were responsible for travellers and people starting over: if she had to have a travelling companion in the seat next to her, could it please be someone willing to sit in silence. Above all, could it please not be the annoying bride-to-be from the lounge! The gods were kind and the seat beside her remained empty as the aircraft doors were finally closed, and the plane taxied for take-off.
