‘Why—’ she began, but her words were cut off as his head dipped towards her.
He kissed her skin just above her upper lip, softly, and with mesmerising tenderness, and then he kissed her again, moving his lips a fraction lower and increasing the pressure. Kate’s entire body dissolved into a mass of warm sensations as his mouth travelled lower again, taking both her lips together, returning again to boldly tease them apart.
The Valentine’s card slipped from her fingers and her hands rose to link behind his neck. He deepened the kiss. His hands came off the wall and they spanned her ribs, and her body began to burn with a painful, wonderful, hungry longing.
She knew she should stop this. Noah hadn’t answered her questions. But her willpower had vanished with his first touch.
At the point where she knew her legs would give way beneath her, he stopped kissing and smiled down at her. ‘That’s about number seven on my list of reasons I love you, Kate Brodie. You have the loveliest, most inviting mouth.’
She felt a bright blush bloom in her cheeks. ‘Number seven? You have six other reasons?’
‘More than six.’ He kissed her brow, her chin, her nose. He pressed warm kisses to her eyelids, her earlobes, her throat, and Kate thought she would actually swoon.
Noah’s eyes grew serious. ‘Do you remember our first kiss, when you were seventeen?’
‘Of course. It changed my life.’
‘Mine, too.’ He touched her throat with his fingertips. ‘You were so wonderfully, fearfully brave, Kate. So beautiful.’
‘But I shocked you,’ she said, pulling away from his touch. She couldn’t think when he touched her, and she needed to think. She couldn’t afford another mistake with this man.
‘I wanted you so much, Kate.’
‘You took off on your horse. You couldn’t get away fast enough, and you stayed away till I’d left for England.’
‘Because I was crazy about you, and I couldn’t keep my promise to Angus unless I stayed well away from you.’
‘What promise to Angus?’
‘He was so worried about the responsibility of his sister’s daughter from England. He made me swear that I wouldn’t lay a hand on you.’
‘Oh.’ She could easily imagine how it had been—Angus had been so estranged from her mother, and both of them had been influenced by their embittered parents.
‘Is that why you never replied when I sent the Valentine card?’
‘Yes. I know it was cruel to ignore you. I felt like a jerk, but I also knew I had to let you go, even though you would probably hate me for it. At least you could hate me, then forget me and move on.’
‘It didn’t work, Noah. I was still planning to come back to Australia, to find you and marry you. But you jumped the gun.’
He nodded, and his mouth twisted in a sad smile. ‘With disastrous results.’
‘While I’ve endured a string of unsatisfactory boyfriends.’
‘Kate.’ His fingers sifted her hair. ‘I thought I’d lost you, darling girl.’
‘I was sure I’d lost you.’
‘I saw that bracelet and knew you’d gone and I wanted to die.’
He cradled her head against his big, broad shoulder. ‘I kept seeing you crouched over a campfire with smoke in your eyes, or trying so hard to mount that damned horse. I remembered all the times you read a story to Liv when you were dead tired.’ He touched her lips. ‘I remembered your kisses, and I was terrified that I might never get to kiss you again.’
Against her ear, he said, ‘I would have swum oceans. I would have travelled the entire globe till I found you, Kate. I love you. I want to make you happy. I really love you. I know I love you.’
All the time he’d been talking, she’d made his shirt damp with her tears.
‘And, for the record, Liv loves you too. She’s waiting for us back at Radnor.’
‘So—so, are we talking long-term?’ She had to ask. She had to be sure.
‘Absolutely long-term.’ He gave a little laugh, bubbling with happiness. ‘You have no idea how good it feels to be able to say this with confidence. I love you. I’ll do everything in my power to keep you happy.’
‘You won’t have to do much at all, Noah. If I’m with you, I’ll be happy.’ She remembered her fear of being a lonely little old lady in a nursing home, with nothing but faded, sad memories, and she shivered against him.
‘You’re cold, Kate. This dress is wet.’
She laughed softly, and then, as exhilaration welled and bubbled inside her, she laughed again and shot him a coy look. ‘I suppose I should get out of it.’
‘I suppose you should.’ His smile was perfect. ‘Why don’t you let me help you?’
‘So thoughtful of you to offer, sir.’ Taking his hand, she led him into the adjoining room. She was walking on air, happier than she’d ever thought possible, but calm, too, buoyed by Noah’s reassuring certainty.
Eyes shining, she turned to him. ‘Do you think Uncle Angus knew this would happen to us when he changed his will?’
‘I reckon he was counting on it.’
For a wistful moment they were lost in fond memories of the old man who’d meant so much to both of them.
Then, playfully, Kate looked about her. ‘I’m afraid we have a minor problem. There’s only one bedroom.’
Noah simply smiled, and he kissed her again as he began to untie the straps of her sundress.
EPILOGUE
KATE CARMODY, in a chic black maternity dress—it had to be black and chic for London—clutched a glass of orange juice and tried to control her excited grin.
The boutique gallery in Knightsbridge was overflowing with journalists, editors from glossy magazines and even one or two television producers. Britain’s top photographers and graphic artists rubbed shoulders with her family and friends, and all of them had come for one reason—the opening of her London exhibition.
The gallery’s pristine white walls were lined with the glowing colours of the Australian Outback, and already an exciting number of red dots had been stuck beneath the prints.
The interest in Kate’s photography had happened rather miraculously. A tiny exhibition at the Jindabilla Show had attracted excited attention, and as a result Kate had been asked to exhibit at the Royal Easter Show in Sydney. Then a visiting critic from the UK had been sufficiently ecstatic to set things rolling in London.
‘But that must be an end to it,’ Kate had told Noah. ‘We’ll have the show in London, and then I want to stay put at Radnor and extend our family.’
‘More babies?’ he’d chuckled. ‘Aren’t our two rowdy little boys enough?’
‘I’d like two more.’
So the London exhibition had been carefully timed to be held after Noah and his team had mustered the Radnor cattle, and during Kate’s middle trimester, the safest time for travelling.
And it seemed, already, that this showing would be a success. Kate had received enough praise to make her head swell. And that was before her girlfriends had started gushing about Noah.
‘Cute’, ‘hot’ and ‘sexy’ were high favourites among the adjectives the girls had used to describe her husband.
Well, of course, it was only to be expected, wasn’t it? Noah looked extra gorgeous tonight in his formal evening clothes. The crisp white shirt highlighted his outdoorsy tan, and the lines of the suit showed off his lean, tough physique.
Kate felt a warm glow inside her as she watched him chatting politely to beaming strangers, charming them, no doubt, with his slow smile and quiet, laconic sense of humour.
Nearby was Liv, looking so grown up and tall now in an ankle-length white dress, and full of poise and self-importance as she offered trays of hors d’oeuvres to the guests.
Next year she would be leaving for boarding school and they would miss her terribly. But it was time for her to move on from the little school in Jindabilla, and she would do well. She was a bright student, and some of her friends were already at the same boarding school,
including Brad Jameson’s daughter, Meg.
‘Now that is really something. Oh Nigel, I really love it. Let’s buy it.’
Kate turned in surprise when she heard her mother’s voice. She moved closer and said in little more than a whisper, ‘You don’t have to buy anything here, Mum. Just tell me what you’d like and I’ll organise it.’
‘Oh, darling, I love this one. I don’t know why, there’s just something about it that draws me.’
Kate stared at her mother’s choice in surprise. She and Nigel had been to Radnor on several occasions now, and they’d enjoyed themselves tremendously each time. But this was a photo Kate had taken long ago, when she’d first arrived for Angus’s funeral.
It showed part of the front steps and a deep-pink frangipani tree glowing in the sunlight, and then a slice across the veranda past the timber-and-canvas chair to the open front door.
‘See that old hat and the bridle hanging beside the door?’ Kate said, pointing.
‘Yes. They’re part of the reason I like this picture. I expect someone to walk out that door, grab that hat and jump on a horse.’
‘It was Angus’s hat, Mum. That’s just how he left it.’
Her mother smiled, but her eyes sparkled too brightly, and Kate slipped an arm around her shoulders and hugged her.
‘If only he knew how well everything’s turned out,’ her mother said shakily. ‘If only he could see how happy you and Noah are. And he would have loved your dear little Angus and Fred.’
‘I’m sure he knew everything would be fine, Mum.’ Kate gave her mother’s shoulders another squeeze. ‘He knew when he changed his will.’
Kate looked across the room and saw Noah watching them. He smiled at her, a smile so full of warmth and love it started a slow meltdown inside her.
Noah excused himself and began to make his way through the crowd towards her. Watching him, Kate felt as fluttery and in love as she had all those years ago when she’d behaved so rashly at the age of seventeen.
Now she was in her thirties and sensible, a married woman, a mother, and an artist who’d attracted international respect. And this was an occasion that called for decorum, but, as she took two steps towards her husband, he opened his arms, and, throwing caution to the wind, she kissed him passionately in front of all these respectable people.
* * * * *
Dear Reader
The Australian Outback has an untamed beauty, a sense of loneliness, and more than a hint of danger. When my heroine Lily was stranded in the Outback, and her only hope of rescue was Daniel Renton, a scowling, unfriendly, reclusive cattleman, she was justifiably scared. Her terror might have shot off the scale if she’d known that Daniel was only recently out of prison.
I love it when my muse throws up a situation like that—a bubbly, warm-hearted, innocent heroine and a dark, powerful, dangerous man who has lost his ability to love. In this story I loved the promise of emotional risk and the knowledge that both Daniel and Lily had a difficult journey ahead before they reached a happy outcome.
Happy reading, and best wishes from Down Under!
Barbara
Daniel & Lily
CONTENTS
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Epilogue
CHAPTER ONE
DANIEL RENTON DIVED into the cool, glassy water of the Star River. His naked body slid down, down through the dark green silence till he reached the feathery grasses on the sandy river-bottom. Then with a short, swift kick he arced up again and saw, high above, the cloudless blue of the sky and the tapering trail of smoky green gum leaves.
He broke the surface and struck out for the opposite bank, revelling in the cool, clean water rushing over his skin, between his bare thighs, between his fingers and toes, washing every inch of him. Cleansing.
Cleansing.
If only…
Daniel swam powerfully, almost savagely, as he had every day since he’d returned a fortnight ago to Ironbark, his Outback Queensland cattle property. But he always demanded more from the sleepy river than it could possibly give him.
Oh, the water rid him of the sweat and the dust and grime he’d acquired during a hot morning’s work repairing fences, but it couldn’t rid him of the rottenness that lived inside him. He doubted anything could free him from that.
He might be out of jail at last, but the emotional taint of his shameful months of captivity clung to him with a tenacity that no amount of bathing could banish.
Flipping onto his back, Daniel floated. The river was slow and he hardly drifted at all. It was always so wonderfully quiet here.
The birds had retreated into midday silence and the treetops stood perfectly still. The river was as peaceful and silent as an empty church, and Daniel tried to relax, deliberately blanking out the heartbreak and anger and pain that hunkered deep inside him. If only the darkness could float away.
He loosened the muscles in his shoulders, in his arms and legs. He closed his eyes.
‘Hello! Excuse me!’
The voice, coming out of the silence, startled him. Splashing upright, Daniel trod water and looked back to the far bank. Against a backdrop of green and golden wattle, a figure in a floppy straw sunhat waved arms wildly, trying to catch his attention.
‘I’m sorry to bother you,’ a female voice called.
Daniel groaned. And glared at her. Who on earth could she be? Hardly anyone in the district knew he’d come home.
Still treading water, he shaded his eyes. The young woman was standing at the very edge of the water, leaning as far out as she dared and peering at him. Beneath her big floppy sunhat she wore a sleeveless white T-shirt that left her midriff bare and blue floral shorts and sandals. A woven straw bag hung from her shoulder.
A tourist. Not a local.
He didn’t welcome any intrusion, but at least a stranger would be easier to deal with than someone who knew him. A local would be suspicious or curious, and Daniel wasn’t ready to deal with either reaction.
‘What are you doing on my property?’ he growled.
‘Car trouble, I’m afraid.’
Great. A city chick with car trouble. He released a deep, weary sigh.
A million years ago he might have considered a young woman with a broken-down vehicle a pleasant diversion. But his days of trying to impress women were long gone. These days he just wanted—no, he needed—to be left alone.
A year and a half on a prison farm tended to do that to a man. It robbed him of do-good urges. It had almost robbed Daniel of the will to get out of bed in the morning. What was the point in trying?
‘I’m sorry, but can you help me?’
She was leaning so far out over the water she looked as if she was about to dive in and swim to him.
‘Hang on!’ It was a bark rather than a reply. This was a cattle property, not a bloody service station. But he struck out, swimming towards her in an easy freestyle. When he neared the shallows he stopped and stood in hip-deep water, his feet sinking into the weedy bottom.
The stranger on the riverbank was well disguised by her huge straw hat, but he caught a glimpse of light-coloured hair tied back or tucked up somehow. Apart from the snug fit of her blue floral shorts, she had a schoolmarmish air about her. Serious and anxious.
And yet… He could feel her studying him with frank interest. Her mouth flowered into an open pink O as she took in details of his bare torso.
‘What’s the problem?’ he asked.
She gulped, and said a little breathlessly, ‘I—I’m afraid I’ve r-run out of fuel.’
Immediately a bright blush flooded her neck and cheeks.
‘I know it was stupid of me, and I’m so sorry to trouble you, but I don’t know what to do.’ Her hands flapped in a gesture of helplessnes
s. ‘I tried to ring the only person I know around here, but there doesn’t seem to be anyone home, even though they were expecting me. I managed to coast down the side of the mountain, but then my car conked out at the bottom. I saw your gate and your mail box and so I turned in here, and your ute was on the track back there, and I—’
‘Whoa,’ cried Daniel. ‘I get the picture. You want enough fuel to get you into town.’
Her face broke into an amazing smile. ‘Yes.’ She beamed at him as if he’d offered to fly her straight to Sydney in a Lear jet. ‘If you could spare some fuel that would be wonderful.’ Her warm smile lingered as she stood there. ‘You’re—you’re—very—kind.’
Kind? A jaded half-laugh broke from him. It had been too long since anyone had called Daniel Renton kind—especially a young woman—and it had been even longer since a woman had stared at him with such obvious interest.
She continued to stand there, looking at him.
‘We’ll both be embarrassed if you don’t turn your back while I get out of the water,’ he said dryly.
‘Turn my back? Oh. Oh… You’re naked. Sorry.’
However, she didn’t sound especially sorry, and she took her time turning, holding the brim of her hat close to her head with both hands.
‘You’re safe enough now,’ she called, and her voice was warm with the hint of yet another smile. ‘My hat makes great blinkers, and I promise I won’t look till you say so.’
Mildly surprised that she’d stood her ground rather than make a nervous dash for the nearest patch of thick scrub, Daniel left the water quickly and hauled on his jeans without any attempt to dry himself.
‘All clear,’ he said gruffly.
She let go of the hat-brim and turned back to him, pink and smiling again—or perhaps still pink and smiling—and she watched with continued interest as he shook his head from side to side and flicked water droplets from his thick dark hair.
‘I’m sorry. I’m being a nuisance.’
He shrugged. ‘I was just taking a break. But I don’t have a lot of time.’
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