Obsession Down Under

by MACADAM, LAYNE

  “That’s not relevant.”

  “Of course it’s relevant. It’s proof she can’t be trusted. She’s lied to her parents, and she’s lied to you. What more do you want me to say?”

  “What happened to make Jessica so angry she threatened to paddle your arse?”

  “I guess she has a violent streak.”

  “Brenda.”

  “Look, when Jessica left the room I took her seat at the computer. She hadn’t logged out of her e-mail account, so of course it was open. When she came back to the room she went off her nut, okay? Is it my fault she didn’t sign out?”

  “You didn’t search through any of her folders or read any e-mails or discuss anything else?”

  Brenda shifted from one foot to the other. “Is that what she said?”

  “Jessica was reluctant to say anything much at all.”

  “I guess she was too embarrassed at being caught threatening me with physical violence in my own home. What a nerve.”

  “Jessica doesn’t strike me as the violent type or the type to overreact.”

  “Oh terrific, you heard her threaten me with your own ears and yet you’re taking her side?”

  “I’m not taking anybody’s side. I’m simply trying to get to the bottom of what caused such a blow up between you and her.”

  “I told you what happened, so stop grilling me.”

  “Now who’s overreacting?”

  “I’m sorry I came home and I’m sorry you’re little Internet girlfriend is a skank, but isn’t it better you found out now before you did something really stupid, like marry her?”

  The plates he was carrying hit the kitchen sink with a brittle thud. “Don’t ever let me hear you talk about Jessie Rose like that again. Ever. And who I choose to marry is my business, not yours.”

  Brenda pulled a face that made his hackles rise higher and caused him to bark, “Are we clear on both scores?”

  She flinched but didn’t speak, only acknowledging him with a slight inclination of her head and the protuberance of her bottom lip.

  He grabbed hold of his temper and tamped it down. This was getting nowhere. Brenda was on the defensive and feeling wounded, but he was in no mood to placate her. “I’ve got a mountain of paperwork that needs attention. If anyone wants me I’ll be in my office.” And without another word, he spun on his heel and bounded out of the kitchen.

  Chapter 15

  The next morning, Brenda’s bedroom mirror revealed a face that was long and drawn with panda eyes. She yawned, making no effort to stifle it or cover her mouth. Anxious, tired, and cranky, sleep had eluded her for most of the night, and it wasn’t until the small hours that she’d drifted into a half sleep. Normally at the homestead she slept like the dead, but normally her conscience was clear, unlike when she’d crawled into bed last night. It was also the first time she’d experienced guilt and shame at her behavior.

  Brenda blew out a breath and trounced down the stairs, her mood as gloomy as an overcast sky on a winter’s day. The house was eerily silent, making her think what it must have been like inside the burial chamber of Cheops like she’d been studying at school. Mark and Drew were still in their beds; it had been after three a.m. when they’d stumbled in from their night on the town.

  As for Whip, who knew when he’d turned in; he’d still been shut up in his office when she’d skulked off to bed at ten-thirty. The mood in the house had been tense. It wasn’t as if she’d lied when answering his questions, more that she’d been evasive and misrepresented the truth a teeny bit.

  Guilt crept up her spine and manifested as a throb in her temple. After her accusations yesterday, Whip had looked torn and Jessica crushed. Not that she owed the American any allegiance. Her loyalty was to her brothers and Annie, and if Whip sailed off to the States with the Internet ho, where would that leave the family? Up crap creek without a paddle, that’s where.

  She shuffled into the kitchen and filled the kettle. Her head ached; she massaged the crown and threw back a couple of Tylenol. Her fingers tousled her hair and then scraped across her furrowed brow. It was for Whip’s own good. For the good of all the McGregors.

  She took a teabag from the caddy, dropped it into her favorite mug and added the boiling water. When Travis married Annie, life as Brenda had known it, changed. But Annie was a local girl, and although Travis now spent all of his down time with her, they at least still lived on the property and she could visit at any time.

  She picked up the mug and wandered out onto the veranda just as the sun was creeping over the horizon. Jacko, their old blue heeler, was asleep by the door, snoring softly. Every now and then he’d whimper or growl, and one of his legs would twitch as if he was about to break into a run. Her heart softened at the sight of the old pooch. He’d been a working dog before she was born; nowadays though, he spent his twilight years between the porch and the barn, catnapping and dreaming of bygone days. Aged and half deaf, he didn’t stir as she went down the steps and headed toward the barn where Cyril was seated by the wide double doors on a bale of hay, watching the sunrise.

  “You’re up early, Princess,” the old man remarked, taking a piece of paper and a wad of tobacco from the tin in his breast pocket and handing them to her. As a little girl she’d pestered him to teach her how to roll his durries. He’d finally given in, and she had the maneuver down to a fine art now.

  “I couldn’t sleep,” she murmured, parking her butt beside him and placing her mug on the ground.

  “A troubled conscience will do that to a person.”

  He scratched his head and his rheumy eyes drifted to hers as he spoke. She almost choked but remained silent, lowering her lashes to avoid his steady gaze. It was silly. Of course he didn’t know, he couldn’t know — could he?

  “A little bird told me Jessica packed her bags and skedaddled into town last night.”

  “Ah-ha.” Brenda squirmed, but her dexterous fingers kept at the task.

  “Rather sudden.”

  “Good riddance I say.”

  “Too bad; she was good for your brother. Lord knows he needs a good woman in his life.”

  Good woman, yes; gold-digging ho, no. She refrained from voicing her thoughts, just kept her eyes downcast and concentrated on rolling the cigarette.

  “And if she doesn’t show up at tonight’s shindig, well, Whip will look like a right proper git, won’t he?”

  Her head snapped up and she almost dropped the cigarette. “What do you mean? What’s so special about tonight?”

  “Well first up, the barbeque was organized to introduce Jessica around. Then yesterday when those high-falooting Texan cattlemen announced they were flying in early, Whip said what with them being her countrymen and all, he’d invite ‘em along and kill two birds with one stone. Darn shame. It was important for Highland Glen’s breeding program that this went well. Guess that’s backfired on him.”

  She picked up her mug and took a long swallow of tea. Darn, this complicated things. Last time she’d been home, Whip had been crowing about the Texans’ interest in Highland Glen, claiming what a triumph it was. The family had to make a good impression to avoid Whip and the rest of them coming off as total tossers, and that meant Jessica had to make an appearance tonight. Double darn.

  “Speak of the devil.”

  Brenda glanced up to see Whip striding across the yard, body tense, face as cold and dark as the Antarctic at night. By all appearances his mood hadn’t improved any since last night.

  “Where are you off to in such a rush at this hour of the morning, son?” Cyril asked as Whip drew level.

  “To see Jessica.”

  The response was clipped and sharp, his voice flat and granite hard. He didn’t even acknowledge her, just kept on walking straight by and into the barn.

  “Good luck wit
h that boy,” Cyril called to his back.

  Her groan was masked by the engine’s roar as Whip fired up The Beast. The wheels spun as he drove out of the building. Both she and Cyril stared after the vehicle as it headed toward the first gate.

  “Like I said before, she’s a good woman, that one.” Cyril’s voice was muffled by the engine noise, but Brenda heard his words anyway.

  Good woman, ha! What a joke. Had Cyril lost his marbles too? Was she the only one that could see Jessica for the fake she was? But that wasn’t the immediate problem. Jessica had to attend the party tonight.

  Brenda pushed out her bottom lip. “You know you should give these up,” she said rising to her feet and passing Cyril, the hand rolled.

  “Time enough for that when I dance at your wedding, Princess.”

  She shook her head and said a hasty good-bye before rushing up to the house. She had to call Jessica, convince her to come to the barbeque tonight before her brother got there. The trusty e-mails, her mother’s ill health, and a dash of unfriendly persuasion, should just about be enough to do the trick. Her mouth pulled back, but the smile was halfhearted and gave her no joy.

  Once inside the house, she went into the kitchen to check no one was about. Gladys would be up, but she must’ve been out collecting the eggs, so the timing couldn’t be better. Brenda dashed to the phone book. There were only three decent motels in town, and she got lucky on the first try. Her toes tapped and her fingers drummed the table while she waited for the receptionist to transfer her to Jessica’s room.

  “Hello, this is Jessica.”

  Jessica’s voice was fuzzy and muffled as if she’d just been woken from a deep sleep. Tough. Brenda whooshed out a breath and shoved fingers through her hair. “It’s Brenda.”

  “Brenda. What’s happened, is Whip okay?”

  Jessica sounded sincere, but she wasn’t fooled. The only real concern Jessica had was she’d been found out for the little schemer she really was.

  “Whip’s fine, he’s on his way to see you.”

  “Why? He’s not supposed to be here until lunchtime.”

  “As it happens he’s got some businessmen he’s been working out a deal with for months, who are coming to this party tonight, and they expect to see you.”

  “Yes, I’m aware of that. Whip did tell me. What are you saying exactly?”

  “I’m saying you’d better be here.”

  “So now you want me there?”

  “No, I don’t want you here, but they expect to see you here, so you’d better show up and be nice unless you want Whip looking like a fool.”

  “Of course I don’t want that. How could you even ask?”

  “Oh please, don’t pretend like you care.”

  “You’re wrong Brenda, I do care. I care very much, not only for Whip, but also for the rest of your family.”

  “Whatever. Just so you know, this changes nothing. Tell Whip when he asks that you’ll come to the party, but you’ve booked the bus to Sydney for Sunday. You’d better be on it too, or believe me Jessica, I will send your folks those e-mails.”

  She didn’t wait for Jessica’s response. She dropped the phone with a thud and rubbed her temple, her head was beginning to throb again. The kitchen clock showed it was after seven, so little time had elapsed, yet so much had happened. Unbelievable. She swiveled on her heels, intending to go back to her room and lay down, but was shocked to a standstill. Gladys was standing by the back door. Brenda’s heart plummeted. There was nothing wrong with Gladys’ hearing.

  A lump thickened her throat, and she swallowed her anxiety with a gulp. “Gladys, you gave me a fright. I didn’t hear you come in.”

  “Just back from collecting the eggs, same as every morning. Who were you talking too, lass?”

  “Ah nobody, um just a girl from school.” This was turning into a nightmare. If Gladys learned what she’d done, the old lady, who was the closest thing to a mother she’d ever known, would go spare with disappointment. Brenda’s face warmed and she did a few rapid blinks. She was only trying to protect her family after all.

  “You okay girlie? You look a little flushed.”

  “I’ve got a headache. I was just going back up to bed when you startled me.”

  “No doubt a result of all that kerfuffle with Jessica last night. Pity, Whip sure did take a shine to that one. We all did.”

  “Am I the only one that can see her for what she is?” Her temper flared and she was mad enough to spit. Even Gladys, usually an astute judge of character, had been hoodwinked. Jessica sure had pulled the wool over everyone’s eyes, Brenda thought, as she stomped out of the kitchen and up the stairs to her room.

  Chapter 16

  Whip waited until he’d cleared the property and hit the open road before gunning the engine. The Beast shot forward with a roar like a lion. He shifted through the gears, and the speedometer climbed at a fast pace, reaching one hundred and ten clicks before he eased off.

  The sun was creeping higher with each kilometer of asphalt he left behind. The road was as familiar as the back of his hand. He’d travelled up and down this patch of highway a zillion times. Two kilometers up ahead the road crested before curving sharply to the right. Half a kilometer beyond that was the bridge over Charlotte’s Creek, named for one of the red-light ladies in the district over a century ago, if you believed local legend.

  He took the curve at speed. Sunlight refracted on the windscreen, almost blinding him. With quick reflexes he dropped back through the gears and backed off the accelerator. He was anxious to see Jessie Rose, but wanted to arrive in one piece, so willed himself to take it easy.

  He was still wound up about yesterday, and the more he’d thought about it during the night, the more he was convinced things just didn’t add up.

  When he’d emerged from his office at midnight, the house had been as silent as the grave. Brenda would have turned in hours ago and it was too early for the boys to be home. He’d had a stack of paperwork to wade through and it was supposed to keep his mind off Jessica and his sister. Wrong.

  Right after dinner, Mark and Drew split, leaving Brenda and him alone and creating the perfect opportunity to get to the bottom of the kerfuffle between the two girls.

  Brenda was a vivacious, uncomplicated, ‘what you see is what you get’ kind of teenager. Not normal for a fourteen-year-old perhaps, but normal for her. She was loquacious and bright, usually he couldn’t shut her up. But for some reason last night, dragging words out of her was like pulling teeth. When he’d questioned her, she’d been evasive and on the defensive. As a rule, on her first day home for the holidays, she had so much to tell that his brothers and he couldn’t get a word in edgewise and would threaten to gag her. All her thoughts came straight out her mouth. She never lied or concealed anything, but he had a sneaking suspicion she was doing both now.

  Lying awake in bed last night, he had to admit what he’d suspected for days, he was head over heels in love with Jessie Rose. Not having her beside him last night and knowing she was mere miles away was akin to torture. But on her insistence he’d spent the night at home with Brenda.

  As he turned off the main road and into the motel car park, he prayed Jessica felt the loss as well.

  No time was wasted getting to her door, and after a firm rap on the wood he glanced at his watch and waited.

  It was early, not quite eight, and perhaps she wanted a sleep-in, but tough. When the door opened right away, he was taken aback and cocked his head. She was fully dressed with not a hair out of place as if she’d been expecting company.

  “And here I was worrying I might wake you.”

  “No, I’ve been up for a while, I didn’t sleep well.”

  “Me neither, babe, I missed your hot bod next to mine.” He drew comfort from her words and followed her into the motel room
with a smile. “All packed, I see,” he said, finding that a little strange as he took her into his arms.

  “So what brings you by so early?”

  Her question threw him, but his answer was honest. “I wanted to see you and persuade you to come back with me. I know we can sort this out with Brenda. Don’t change our arrangements, stay at the homestead like we planned. I miss you, babe, and I’d really like you at the party tonight.”

  Jessica wanted to huddle in Whip’s arms, hold on tight and never leave, but leaving was inevitable. Brenda had made sure of that. Still, her heart leaped with joy at the desire reflected in his eyes, and at the fact he wanted her back in his home resuming their relationship. Heck, that’s what she wanted too, and maybe, just maybe, this was the opportunity to talk Brenda around, to make her see reason.