by Mandy Magro
Charlize was still fighting to regain her breath, and to keep her gaze off the burly chest hair that was teasingly poking out the collar of his shirt. ‘Oh, um, only as long as he’s not going to get in the way. And if it’s safe.’
Dallas’s deep chuckle made her insides flutter even more. ‘He’ll be safe. I’m only in the tractor today, catching up on some slashing.’ He pointed down at Bruce, who was running around in circles at his feet. ‘And look at the size of him. I doubt he’d ever get in the way. Levi always sits up behind me and with the size of Bruce I’m sure he’ll be able to squeeze in somewhere.’
Unable to return her breathing to normal with Dallas in the room, Charlize jumped up like she’d just discovered a poisonous spider on her chair. She needed to move before she turned into a jabbering mess. ‘Great, thanks.’ She flashed him a smile before heading over to the sink and washing her mug like it was the dirtiest thing on earth. ‘At least I won’t have to worry about him getting up to mischief if he’s with you.’
‘Right, cool. Catch you later then.’ Dallas leant over, scooped Bruce up and motioned with a tip of his head for Levi to head out the screen door. And then he was gone.
‘Bye.’ Her voice was a few notches higher than usual. She waited until she could no longer hear his boots crunching on the gravel path before she sighed softly. Feeling as though her legs were made of jelly, she leant against the kitchen bench for support. Holding up her left hand an inch from her face, she reminded herself she was still married, and that regardless of what Alistair had done to her, she had no right to do the same, as much as she was craving to.
She had no idea what had just happened, but the hunger inside her was overwhelming. Good lord, if she were a free woman, she would have torn Dallas’s clothes off right then and there and had her way with him on the dining room table.
CHAPTER
14
Dallas cursed under his breath as he headed towards his LandCruiser, which was parked beneath the shade of a ghost gum. What the hell had just happened in there? Tongue-tied just wasn’t something that happened to him. Ever. Even when he was standing in front of a microphone, no matter how nervous he got, he was never lost for words. But now it had happened twice, in less than twenty-four hours. How the hell was he supposed to be around Charlize for a whole week?
The first time he’d put it down to her audacity in lying to his mum. But now he couldn’t be sure. Had it been the smell of her sweet musky perfume, or the way she’d looked at him with that sexy lash-framed gaze, or that she’d licked her lips so subtly as she’d spoken to him—lips that were so very ripe for kissing? Or was it how she’d shyly turned away from his eyes and sucked in that breath?
Or could it just be how undeniably sexy she was with her voluptuous curves in all the right places? On top of all this, she also had a confidence that turned him on. He huffed, not knowing what to think. For Christ’s sake, even getting ready to ride a bull didn’t give him the jitters like Charlize Dawson just had.
Opening the driver’s door with Bruce still curled up in his arm, he motioned for Levi to jump in, and then followed. He placed Bruce down beside him before revving the old girl to life. Spinning the four-wheel drive around, he slowed to a stop as he passed his grandfather, who was tending to the garden.
‘Morning, Gramps. Nice day for it.’
Reg looked up from where he was weeding. ‘Morning, Dallas, it certainly is.’ He slowly eased himself to his feet and then wiped the sweat from his brow. ‘How’s Charlize settling in? Has she recovered from her accident last night? It must have been quite a shock.’
‘Yeah, she’s settling in good I think. She’s a lot less shaken about it all today. She and Mum are off to have a girls’ day in town.’ Dallas smirked. ‘And I get the feeling they might be returning with a few more bags of shopping than Mum usually would on her own.’
Reg’s eyes crinkled as he smiled. ‘Oh, that’ll be lovely for your mum. It’ll do her good to have some female company.’ His brows furrowed. ‘I’ve been really worried about her.’
‘Me too, Gramps.’
Reg sighed. ‘Losing the love of your life takes its toll.’
Dallas swallowed down the lump growing in his throat. Gramps could have been talking about himself as much as Katherine. He hated seeing those he loved in pain, physically or emotionally, especially when he felt so helpless to do anything for them.
Reg shook his head as though shaking the heartache away, and then smiled. ‘I think having Charlize around is going to be a blessing in disguise.’
Dallas chuckled as he thought about his week ahead. He wasn’t looking forward to being interviewed. ‘I don’t know about that.’
Reg gave him a knowing smile. ‘I do.’ He put his hands on his hips—a stance he always took when he was about to offer some firm advice. ‘Did you apologise to the poor girl for being so rude last night?’
Dallas rolled his eyes. ‘Yes, Gramps.’
‘Good lad.’
Dallas tapped the outside of his door. ‘Anyhoos, I better get out there before the day gets away from me. I’m in the middle of slashing the paddocks.’
‘Okay. Catch you later.’ Reg started to turn back to the garden but then stopped. ‘Would you mind if I joined you three for dinner tonight?’
‘Of course not. We’d love that. Although I think Mum’s concocting some pescetarian thingy seeing as it’s Charlize’s first meal. Lord only knows what that’ll be like.’
‘Is there going to be any kind of animal involved, or just vegetables?’
‘She did say something about stopping by the fish shop, so I’m gathering it’ll be some kind of crustacean we’ll be sacrificing tonight.’
Reg waved a hand. ‘I love seafood, so I’m fine with that.’
‘Right, good, I’ll text and let her know so she grabs enough of whatever she’s grabbing.’
Reg clapped his hands. ‘Good, that’s settled then.’ And then whistling, he crouched back down and got back to his weeding.
***
The trip to the greengrocer / deli had been delightful and Charlize had been astonished by the variety of fresh food. She’d been tempted to buy half the shop. It had gotten even better when they’d popped into the butcher, who doubled as the local fishmonger and stocked everything from green tiger prawns and oysters to fresh salmon and flathead—all delivered fresh from the Sydney Fish Markets. The fridge in the back of Katherine’s car was filled with her goodies, but now it was on to the more serious issue—dress shopping for the Rodeo Ball.
While looking through the cocktail dresses in a local boutique, Charlize was awestruck by the quality of the clothes—the textures and fabrics were top-notch and the designs very up-to-the-minute. They could easily have been sold at one of the upscale boutiques on Sydney’s Oxford Street. She’d never expected to encounter such excellence in a little country town, and as she looked through the racks, she made a mental note to ask the name of the designer.
‘This would look absolutely amazing on you,’ Charlize said, pulling out an electric blue A-line number. And before Katherine could say anything to the contrary she held it up against her. ‘It brings out your eyes.’ She grinned. ‘You just have to try it on.’
Katherine screwed her face up and shook her head.
‘Pretty please.’
Katherine fingered the silky fabric. ‘Oh, I don’t know.’ She squinted. ‘It’s a little too—what’s the word I’m looking for?—young for me. I’ll look like mutton dressed up as lamb.’
‘No way, it’s perfect for you.’ Charlize gently propelled her towards the change rooms. ‘Now come on, humour me. It’ll be fun to try it on.’
Before Katherine could resist, Charlize drew the curtain. Then she got herself comfortable on a nearby chaise lounge and occupied herself by replying to a few emails from work.
Deep in phone land, she almost jumped out of her skin when the shopkeeper appeared out of nowhere and spoke through the curtains to Katherine. ‘Just give
me a shout if you need any help with anything in there, Kath, okay?’
‘Yes, I will, Mary, thank you,’ Katherine called back. A few grumbles followed. ‘This damn zipper is giving me one hell of a hard time, but I’ll be right.’
‘Are you sure, darls? I don’t mind giving you a hand.’
‘Yes, I’m sure. If I can wrestle cattle I sure as hell can wrestle a zipper.’ Another grumble. ‘Thank you for the offer though.’
‘Not at all.’ Mary then turned to Charlize. ‘Good on you for getting her in here,’ she whispered. ‘It’ll do her good to feel like the beautiful woman she is.’
Charlize smiled as she tucked her phone back in her bag. ‘Oh, I love retail therapy.’ She cupped her hand over her mouth to avoid Katherine overhearing anything. ‘I haven’t told her yet, but I’ll be doing her hair and make-up for the Rodeo Ball too.’
‘Oh, how lovely. I can’t wait to see her all dolled up.’ Mary’s eyes watered. ‘She just hasn’t been the same since losing Mick. It breaks my heart to see her so down on life when she used to be so full of vitality.’
Charlize’s heart ached. She could feel Katherine was suffering from the loss of her husband, but she had no idea it was so bad. ‘I’ll make sure I take good care of her while I’m staying at Rollingstone.’
Mary smiled, her eyes conveying the warmth she held inside. ‘Thank you, that’s nice to know.’ She plopped down beside Charlize on the chaise. ‘So what brings you to our little town, love? Are you a relative of the Armstrongs?’
‘Oh, no, I’m a journalist. I’m here to interview Dallas about his rise to rodeo fame, and to report on the ball and the rodeo this weekend.’
Mary clapped her hands with delight. ‘Oh, how lovely. We’re all so very proud of what Dallas has achieved. He’s so much like his father.’ She looked down at Charlize’s hand. ‘I see you’re married.’ She chuckled. ‘I was going to say you might snap yourself up a country husband at the ball—we have plenty of eligible young chaps here in Grenfell that are very deserving of love—but it looks like someone’s already seen a good thing and grabbed it.’
Charlize felt a mixture of emotions—happiness at the compliment, but sadness that Alistair certainly didn’t know when he had a good thing. She swallowed down the growing lump in her throat, refusing to burst out crying in front of a stranger, no matter how kind and lovely she was. ‘Oh, yes, I’m married, so there’ll be no falling for any eligible country men for me—no matter how deserving.’
‘Oh well. The boys would have loved vying for your attention.’ She reached out and ran a hand over Charlize’s tailored skirt. ‘And I must say how lovely this is. Great cut.’
‘Thank you,’ Charlize said with a smile. She motioned to the rack of dresses she’d been looking through. ‘I was going to say the same thing about these dresses. They’re amazing. Who’s the designer?’
Mary smiled proudly. ‘Oh, that would be my beautiful daughter.’
Charlize sat forward. ‘Really? She’s extremely talented. What’s her name?’
‘Hollie Keller.’
Memories of Yummies Café came flooding back with the mention of the name. ‘You mean Hollie from the cafe down the road?’
‘The one and only.’ Mary smiled. ‘Do you know her?’
‘I met her last night when I popped in for some dinner. She mentioned she made clothes on the side, but she never let on how gifted she is.’
‘Oh that’s our Hollie. Too modest for her own good.’ A sigh stole Mary’s smile from her perfectly painted lips. ‘She has so much to give when it comes to fashion, but she’s just never had enough confidence in herself to give it a shot, and getting married so young didn’t help either.’ She shrugged. ‘I sell her clothing in here, to at least keep her at the sewing machine some of the time. But now she’s gone and bought the cafe I don’t know how long that will last. She’s going to find herself without enough hours in the day. Such a shame. Fashion has been her dream since she was little.’
‘She told me her dream was to do up the cafe.’
‘Well, yes and no. It’s just she believes that’s the only achievable dream, but I disagree, much to Hollie’s exasperation.’
Before Charlize could respond, Katherine emerged from the change room, eliciting a gasp from both the two women.
Charlize put her hands to her mouth. ‘Oh my God, what do you think?’
With a wary smile, Katherine smoothed the fabric over her hips. She spun around and turned from one side to the other while eyeing her reflection. ‘I’ve been standing in there for the past five minutes trying to figure out the answer to that, and you know what, I think I actually really like it.’
Charlize clapped excitedly. ‘Yay. I told you so.’
‘But …’ Katherine said, her smile diminishing as she spun back to face Charlize. ‘It’s way too expensive.’
Charlize reached out and took Katherine’s hands in hers, giving them a gentle squeeze. She noticed the calluses and the roughness of her fingers from working the land. And it was at this moment that she really took note of the fragility in Katherine’s eyes, and had to hold back the tears that had been threatening to fall while talking to Mary. This beautiful woman deserved happiness.
‘Dallas has given me some money for a dress, and I’m under strict orders to not let you leave until you have the perfect one. If that means locking you in this shop until you buy this gorgeous gown I won’t be afraid to do so.’ She folded her arms to convey her seriousness.
Katherine’s eyes watered, but she blinked the tears away before they fell. She looked back at her reflection wistfully. ‘He really can’t afford to be splashing out on me like this.’
Charlize gently placed her hand on Katherine’s shoulder. ‘He wants you to look and feel amazing at the ball, and I think he’ll be pretty upset if you don’t accept his offer.’
Katherine sniffed and squared her shoulders as she nodded towards Charlize’s reflection in the mirror. ‘Right then, I better do as I’m told.’ She rubbed her belly. ‘Because I’m suddenly ravenous and can’t wait to get that counter lunch we’ve been looking forward to.’
A little cheer came from behind them, and they turned to see Mary beaming. ‘I’m so happy you’re going to take it. You look gorgeous, Kath.’ She reached out and rubbed her arm. ‘And because you’re so special I’ll give you a little discount too, so you can have lunch on me.’
Katherine went to refuse, but Mary shushed her before bustling off towards a customer who’d just walked through the front door. Katherine shook her head, smiling, as she disappeared back into the change room. ‘Won’t be long, love,’ she called over her shoulder.
‘Okay, no rush,’ Charlize replied a little distractedly as she eyed the woman leafing through the sales rack beside Mary.
Please don’t let it be her.
But seconds later the woman spun around, and spotting Charlize, she made a beeline towards her as the phone rung from the front counter and Mary went to answer it. Charlize quickly took a few steps forward, not wanting whatever she had to say to be overheard.
‘We meet again,’ Vivien Hiller said with a thin smile.
‘So we do.’
‘Thought any more about my offer?’
‘I’ve not really had a chance to.’
‘Well, you’ll be kicking yourself if you don’t hear what I have to say.’ Vivien leant close. ‘It’s something very shocking.’
Charlize wanted her to back off out of her personal space. ‘Yes, well, okay. I’ll make sure to be in touch soon.’ She didn’t really mean this, but she was concerned about getting Vivien away from her before Katherine stepped back out.
‘Good. And make sure you have a good think about the monetary value too, before you do.’ She arched a sly brow. ‘Because I won’t be spilling any beans without sufficient compensation.’
Charlize watched from the corner of her eye as Mary hung up the phone. This conversation had to end. Now. ‘I’ll talk to my boss and be in touch.’<
br />
‘Excellent.’ Vivien said before turning on her heel and heading towards the front door. ‘There’s nothing that’s caught my interest today, thanks Mary.’ And she disappeared out onto the footpath with a whoosh of the door, not even bothering to wait for a response.
Mary turned to Charlize. ‘I hope Vivien wasn’t bothering you.’
‘No, not really.’
‘I’m not usually one for badmouthing people but let me just say she’s not one of the nicest Grenfell residents.’
Charlize nodded. ‘I’m kind of gathering that.’
A tap on Charlize’s shoulder sent her reeling around to face Katherine. Worry creased her brow. ‘Was Vivien Hiller making herself acquainted?’
‘Something like that. I met her and her son last night at the cafe, so she was just checking in on how I was going.’ Charlize wrinkled her nose. ‘Not sure I like her much—she gives off yucky vibes.’
Katherine nodded firmly. ‘I have to concur with you there. We’ve never seen eye to eye. She’s rude and abrasive, and she treats her stepson, Warren, terribly.’
Eager to change the subject, Charlize tugged the dress from Katherine’s arms. ‘Here, let’s go get you this exquisite dress.’
Katherine finally smiled. ‘Well, alrighty then.’
CHAPTER
15
The heavily pregnant barmaid poured the drinks and laid them on the counter. Katherine gratefully took her glass, and then asked ‘What are you doing behind the bar, Kristen? You should be resting up with only a few weeks to go.’
Kristen rolled her eyes. ‘Yeah, I know. One of the girls called in sick and Johnno has a doctor’s appointment he couldn’t cancel. So there was nobody else but me to fill in. He should be back in an hour or so.’
‘Well, make sure you put your feet up then, won’t you?’
‘I will. I feel like I could sleep for an eternity at the moment. I’m so bloody tired.’ She looked down and tenderly patted her belly. ‘I can’t wait for the little blighter to come out now, I’ve had enough of feeling like a beached whale.’