Return to Riversleigh

by Anne Ashby

  They discussed in detail the layout for a motor-cross track. She took the bike and burned around the area in question, determining the contours and possible positioning of each track. On her return to his side, he had altered and added to his drawings.

  “Right.” He pulled out a bag of stakes. “Let’s peg out this basic route. It won’t need much earthwork at all.” Away he strode, hammering in stakes every few meters.

  Hours later they relaxed on the grass, sharing the pie and Thermos of coffee, while looking over the revised drawings. “That looks great, Luke. A couple of tighter turns to test a rider’s nettle, and we could easily put in a few more dips and jumps.”

  “We have to keep these things tight,” Luke mused as he took another bite of bacon-and-egg pie, his gaze on the pegs. “I don’t want tracks spread all over the farm. Remind me to check out some precast concrete culverts and stock underpasses.”

  Shannon scribbled a reminder on the pad she had leaning on her knee.

  “We can interlace three graded motor-cross tracks on this same piece of ground by placing in a few underpasses.” He grabbed his blueprint and made additional amendments to his drawings.

  More pegs were soon in the ground. Luke paced around the area, tapping the rolled up blueprint against his leg as he walked. Excitement radiated from him with each step he took.

  Shannon took a hasty step back and turned her head aside. There were times when she noticed far too much about Luke. Her eyes narrowed. Things an employee shouldn’t be noticing about her boss. Blast Marcia and her talk. This is her fault. She drained the last few drops of coffee from the Thermos hoping it would be enough to moisten her dry mouth.

  Even as her gaze sneaked back to Luke pacing out something meters below her, she berated herself. They had an excellent working environment where they co-existed as equals. She wasn’t stupid. There had been few male/female nuances between them, and that’s the way it must stay.

  Chapter Ten

  Leaving the projected motor-cross tracks, they headed farther up into the tree line. Luke challenged Shannon as they picked their way through the bush. Once, he thought she might concede and admit defeat, but instead she gunned the bike and forged another track farther across the base of the incline before arriving at his side in a clearing.

  “Not bad.”

  Her grin acknowledged his appreciation. Hopefully she thought it was her ingenuity, not how enticing she looked wielding that bike across the uneven turf. He stood in his stirrups, easing his back and other stirring parts of his anatomy.

  “This stream runs down to the Murihiku River, right? Does it always have this much water in it?”

  It took Luke a moment to refocus. His gaze followed Shannon’s pointed finger. “Good question, I have no idea. I’m hoping so.”

  “You’re considering canyoning along here?”

  “I’d need a couple of kilometers before it turns into a trickle.”

  “Gorge walking is always an alternative.”

  He shook his head. “For pussies.”

  He heard a tsk under her breath.

  “What?”

  “Why are you against anything that isn’t extreme?”

  His whole body stiffened. His eyes narrowed as he glared down at her. “There are plenty of kids’ playgrounds around.”

  “For God’s sake, Luke.”

  She switched off the bike and jerked it onto its stand before stalking to the edge of the bluff they were on, careful to keep away from his horse, he noticed.

  “I’m not talking about a kids’ playground.” She swung around to face him. “You have an opportunity to develop something here that could appeal to ninety percent of the population. Why restrict your park to less than ten percent?”

  “I told you from the start I’m not interested in your dreams of building a disabled playground.”

  He swore as the color ebbed from her face. Quickly dismounting, he warily approached. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean that the way it sounded.”

  She shrugged one shoulder and turned aside, staring at the view down the waterway in front of them.

  “Look,” he explained, “I’ve never been involved in recreational activities. Extreme is what I know, where I’m comfortable.”

  His fists clenched at the unfairness of this argument. He didn’t want to lose Shannon’s support. Hell, he couldn’t afford to lose it, not with the input she’d already provided. But he wasn’t changing his plans.

  A hand on his arm drew his attention. “This isn’t one of those times when I have to worry you’re going to fire me, is it?”

  Warmth coursed through Luke. “No.” A reluctant chuckle escaped as he shook his head. She did have a way of defusing awkward situations.

  “Widening the appeal and attraction of this venture to a larger portion of the population would enhance the writing of my business plan,” she hinted. She kept a straight face, although her dark eyes twinkled.

  Even as he voiced his refusal to adapt, he suspected her arguments might become more compelling, especially if she presented solid data to support those arguments. As he expected she would.

  They continued farther into the bush. He didn’t note the roar of the bike destroying the silence.

  Instead of imagining tracks and obstacles to develop, his mind had taken another tack, enticed by the sight of Shannon slipping and sliding the bike around. He reined in his horse, thumping the saddle horn and cursed.

  Being attracted to Shannon would ruin everything. His head slumped. Not that I can help it. She’s amazing. Dragging in some deep breaths he straightened his back and flicked the horse forward. Concentrate on the job. Focus on what my park needs, and ignore this urge.

  Yeah, right.

  Concentrate, concentrate. His gaze darted back and forth as he repeated the mantra. He was searching for possible tracks. His upward gaze failed to find any suitable location for the tree-top walkways and zip lines he wanted to erect. There was still time. Somewhere there’ll be a grove of trees just begging for such an activity.

  “Luke, hey Luke.” Shannon had taken off in a different direction but her bike was suddenly silent.

  Has she fallen? Oh God, she’s come a sixer. I should have insisted we walk up here. At least she isn’t unconscious. Scenarios of how he’d transport an injured Shannon back down the mountain flashed through his mind as he urged his horse in the direction of her voice.

  Finding her trotting along an overrun track ripping at the undergrowth, his shoulders slumped. He sent a heartfelt “thank you” upward.

  “There’s tramlines along here.”

  Luke worked moisture back into his dry mouth. He swung down from the saddle, keeping a grasp on the horn and leaning against his mount until the wobble in his legs diminished. He sucked in a couple more deep breaths. Damn, she gave me a hell of a scare. He had to clear his throat for any sound to come out. “Oh yeah, they must have been part of the sawmill. There used to be sawmills all through the Longwoods.”

  Shannon’s voice rose. “Is this still on your land?” She looked around. “Or are we already into the conservation area?”

  “No, we’re still on our land. My great grandfather had a working sawmill up here while he cleared the hills for the farm. We must be close.”

  “Do you know where the sawmill was? Whether there is still anything left there?” The excitement in Shannon’s voice suggested she was sprinting ahead with ideas he hadn’t considered.

  Not wanting to curb her enthusiasm he gave a sheepish shrug. “Gordon and I found it a few times, but that’s a lot of years ago. I’m not exactly sure where it was. But I have to warn you, there wasn’t much left then. I doubt we’ll find anything worthwhile still existing.” History, even his own family history, hadn’t interested him.

  Shannon ripped at the vegetation to expose tramlines used to transport logs to the mill. “We can follow the lines.” She was already doing exactly that.

  “Are you sure you’re going in the right direction.”
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  She threw a scathing look over her shoulder. “Stop being a pain. Come on; let’s see what we can find.”

  Luke wandered along behind. He couldn’t focus on anything but his relief at finding her unhurt.

  Shannon now had a stick she poked at the ground at regular intervals. “What’s the matter with you? C’mon, hurry up.”

  Shannon waited for him to catch up with her. Something he was not in a hurry to do until he had himself more under control, and sauntering along behind her wasn’t helping. Each time she leaned over to poke around he was given a tantalizing view of her butt.

  “This could be so cool.”

  She hasn’t picked up on any of my vibes, thank goodness. Breath hissed through Luke’s clenched teeth.

  “I remember seeing a program on television a while ago. It was somewhere in Taranaki. They’d cleared some old tramlines and adapted golf carts to run along them. If these lines go a decent distance, wouldn’t it be cool to feature them in some way.” Her eyes gleamed when she looked at him, and her voice rose even further. “And if we find bits from the mill…”

  Despite his assertion he would concentrate on only extreme ventures, Luke became entangled in her fervor. It was enough to re-focus his wayward thoughts.

  His gaze ran from where they’d left the horse and bike to farther ahead of them. The track would take some clearing, but—he scratched his chin—if the lines were intact, they might provide an easy link between some of the adventures.

  He frowned, wondering if Rod had a better idea as to the sawmill’s exact location.

  He caught Shannon’s hand and dragged her on, not allowing her time to poke for the rails.

  “Let’s see how far they run before getting carried away. There wouldn’t be any point in considering using them unless they run for a decent distance.”

  Shannon made no attempt to remove her hand. Excitement meshed their hands together as they jogged. “We could always replace any decayed bits, couldn’t we?”

  For a change, Luke was being the pragmatic one. “Don’t get carried away, Shannon.”

  Her eyes were shining as her hand gripped his even tighter. “I can’t help it.” She laughed. “This could be something quite different than either of us imagined.”

  Luke allowed himself to be dragged along, occasionally holding Shannon upright when she stumbled on roots or bracken in the undergrowth.

  They’d traveled a couple of hundred meters when Luke pulled Shannon to an abrupt halt. He dropped her hand as his gaze fixed on the bush canopy above them. It swung around the stand of rimu trees as his pulse hiked up.

  “Yes.” He punched the air. Throaty laughter erupted as he yanked himself up the bank running beside the tram tracks for a closer view across the valley from the huge rimu tree standing as a sentinel on the edge.

  They might have to clear a bit of scrub to see right across the gorge. He could anchor a line on a tree anywhere along the hundred meters of bluff facing him.

  “You’ve found your long zip line, right?”

  He slid back down the bank, grinning. He pointed up to the canopy. “I’ll be able to rig a few rope courses between these trees, maybe some shorter zip lines, too. But I needed somewhere for a decent stretch of line, where a user can gather a little speed.” Rising excitement left common sense aside and he grasped Shannon around the waist. “We’ve both found something worthwhile today.” He swung her around and around, until his foot got trapped under a fern root and they thumped into the bank.

  “You idiot,” Shannon spluttered from underneath him.

  Hell, he’d landed right on top of her. Exactly where I want to be. Luke twisted his body until they lay propped up side by side. “Are you okay?” His hands slid over her, checking for possible injuries.

  His efforts were slapped away as a giggling Shannon struggled to regain her feet. “You’re crazy.”

  Luke stood and reached to help brush the dirt from Shannon’s posterior. His arm was caught before his hand made contact.

  Shannon’s don’t-even-think-about-it warning glare turned into something quite different as their gazes collided and locked.

  His arm dropped from her grip. Their breaths quickened, matching each other’s. Even the birds were silent as if they, too, were awaiting an outcome.

  Luke’s heart began thumping. He wanted to reach out, to run a finger down her cheek, across her lips. His gaze dropped when Shannon’s tongue escaped to run across those lips. What would she do if I touched her? Would she step forward into my arms or slap my face?

  Various scenarios hurtled through his mind at the speed of light. Dare I? The sound of the audible breath he sucked into his deflated lungs was enough to destroy what could have become an emotional rollercoaster ride.

  His gaze remained glued to Shannon as she swung around and stalked farther along the tram lines. He remained where he was, cursing silently, even when she disappeared around a curve. His chin sank to his chest as he swallowed his disappointment.

  It was some moments before reason returned. A physical liaison would muddy the waters. I have to leave well enough alone. But reason didn’t help ease the tightening in his chest or other parts of his body.

  ****

  Shannon dashed away from at best an embarrassing situation, at worse an appalling disaster. Her face burned but she refused to acknowledge the tremble of her hands, or the rest of her body. I am not attracted to Luke Prescott.

  Her gait became more agitated as constant repeats of this dictum didn’t help her head progress over a still-tingling body. A quick glance over her shoulder allowed her to groan aloud. At least he hadn’t followed her. Shoving her shoulders back, Shannon straightened her back. Could I have imagined the change in atmosphere?

  She groaned again. Don’t be silly. Only a moron would have missed the sizzle singeing our fingers moments ago.

  Oh bugger. She kicked a punga root so hard pain reverberated up to her thigh. They’d established such a great asexual working relationship. Their to-date exchanges had been filled with friendship, respect, and good humor.

  While they regularly disagreed, Shannon appreciated Luke’s willingness to listen to her point of view or suggestions before making a decision. It was a welcome change after years of following Eric’s dictates rather than risk the fallout of arguing with him.

  She grimaced as she stomped on. Have I just blown this terrific working relationship? She grabbed at a fern she’d just tripped over and yanking it right out of the ground she did an Olympic discus spin and threw it away into the trees.

  It wasn’t only me; he displayed signs of attraction, too.

  Why didn’t that knowledge help? Because facing him is much more difficult. She booted a stumpy rotten root, close to the lie of a tram rail. A flurry of dust rose to meet her.

  Relieved to have something to distract her, she bent, grabbing at the vegetation until she found the end of the tram lines. Backtracking a few meters she confirmed the tracks had petered out. She frowned as she looked around. The terrain didn’t lend to a sawmill having been here years ago. Perhaps Luke had been right to suggest she was heading in the wrong direction when she’d started along the tracks.

  If she set off back along the track, rejoining Luke with this news, could she pretend those moments with him had been of no significance? Even that she had been unaware of any emotional vibes clattering between them? She took a deep breath. That was the sensible way to get through an embarrassing moment. She had to try. But can I carry it off?

  Shannon jogged back along the way she’d come. She spied a splash of red amongst the rimu trees to the left of the track. Thank Heavens he’d found something to sidetrack him as well.

  “You were right,” she called, although she couldn’t identify exactly where he was. “These tracks peter out about a hundred meters along here.”

  By the time he appeared and slid down the bank to join her, Shannon had ripped the vegetation away to expose another ten meters of track.

  “Find
some locations up there?” she threw over her shoulder. Her eyes remained focused on her job in hand.

  “Yep. We may have to trim a few branches, but that’s where my rope course is going.”

  Some of the stiffness rolled out of Shannon’s shoulders. The pitch of Luke’s response relaxed her. Caught up with his plans, he was paying her no attention. Did I imagine the tension? Luke now acted as if nothing had happened.

  Well, nothing did, argued the little voice inside her head. Bowing her head, Shannon managed to swallow the shaky laugh trying to escape. Life would be a lot less complicated if they both just elected to ignore those earlier vibes. It appeared he’d decided to do just that. So would she.

  “Come on, let’s head back.”

  Shannon trotted along in his wake, miffed he strode on with no sign of interest in the tram tracks she’d discovered.

  “We need some help if we’re going to start developing some of these ideas.” He smiled over his shoulder. “I’m ready to get this show on the road.”

  A shot of excitement laced through Shannon.

  “We need some ready in three months.”

  “To take advantage of the summer months?”

  “Exactly.” He’d slowed a little so they now walked side by side. “As you’ve pointed out, this might not be a year-wide activity. We want some of it operational by Christmas, earlier if possible.”

  His wide grin relaxed her further. Maybe I read more into that moment than necessary? Maybe I did imagine it.

  Her head fell forward before she forced it straight again. She hadn’t imagined how she’d felt for those few seconds.

  Chapter Eleven

  Shannon had already discovered there was no stopping Luke once he’d set his mind on something. Leaving him on the phone for some time after they’d returned to the office, Shannon had gone for coffee and a chat with Marcia.

  When she returned she found him leaning back in his chair, hands linked behind his head, a satisfied smile on his face. Putting a steaming mug in front of him, she smiled back.