Leading Hand (The Dusty Rider Series Book 2)

by Stella Knights

“I’m sure it’s more often.” He shakes his head and stares up at the ceiling. “God, he knows how to irritate me.”

  “But he does his work, right?”

  “Yeah, but he’s a liability when he drinks. And I don’t need any trouble around here. If people are looking for him, trouble is what we’ll get.” Aiden runs his hand through his hair and heaves a heavy sigh. “I’ve worked too hard to get things going in the right direction. I can’t let him ruin it for me.”

  I stand behind Aiden and wrap my arms around his waist. “Try to not let it get to you so much.”

  He steeples his hands in front of his face, his muscles still stiff under my kneading hands. “Unfortunately, I know all too well the sorts of people Toddy may be involved with. They’re not the kind I want in my life anymore.”

  “Do you think those muddy footprints you found had anything to do with this?”

  Aiden scratches a bit of dirt off his jeans. “They might be.”

  “Why don’t you talk to him?”

  “Like I said, he’ll give me the same old bullshit. Tell me everything is fine even if it is far worse than we can imagine.”

  Nodding, I wonder how much trouble this may be.

  Aiden frowns. “Have you noticed anything out of the ordinary?”

  Hmm, the drunken comments, the suspicion around Aiden, the rucksack…

  “Not really. The other night I overheard him on the phone, but I honestly don’t know what it was about. He sounded anxious, and all I could hear him say was something like being ‘good for it’ and ‘don’t’. I asked him if he was okay, but he blew off my question and said...”

  Aiden’s body tenses and he slams his fist onto the benchtop.

  I stop massaging his shoulders.

  “It’s the same old shit with everyone lately.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I’ve worked hard to switch off the dark side of myself. And right now, it seems like everyone is trying to lure me back to that place.”

  “What do you mean by ‘everyone’?”

  He exhales and closes his eyes. “Toddy, my dad, the…” He trails off and slowly takes another breath. “…everyone.”

  Who else was he about to mention?

  I study his expression but stay silent and give him a moment to talk.

  “I just can’t get them to do what I need them to do, and it makes me want to explode sometimes.”

  “Stop trying to control them. Just manage what you can here and block out the rest.”

  He shakes his head. “They push a part of me back to the surface. A part I’ve had buried deep. You won’t understand.”

  “Then help me to understand, so I can be there for you.”

  His eyes meet mine. “I used control to get what I wanted. It’s how I got my business done. No one dared to go against me.”

  “Aiden, you can’t relate your drug business to your family business.”

  “I know, but it infuriates me that they won’t just do what I ask.” He looks down at his hand, “I don’t want to sound arrogant, but I wasn’t someone you messed with. When I barked an order, it was followed without fail.” He swallows. “If anyone strayed from what I wanted, well…” He hangs his head and stares at the benchtop. “I was mean and did some awful things. I’m not proud of it.”

  I put my hand on his back, hoping to stop him talking. “Aiden, that was who you were, not who you are now. You’ve changed, and this is a totally different situation.”

  He closes his eyes and shakes his head. “Holly, you have to realise I’ve done bad things.”

  “That doesn’t matter to me.”

  “But maybe it should. What if I can’t stay on the straight and narrow? What does that mean for you?” He stares into my eyes.

  “I think the fact that you asked that question shows that you don’t want to go down that path again.”

  “Maybe.”

  “Aiden, you need to take a step back and take care of yourself. Don’t let Toddy or your father influence you.”

  His fingers tighten into a fist. “I don’t know how to give up control.”

  “Just do what you need to do for this property. Like, if you have to, why don’t you considering replacing Toddy and find someone else to work as your Leading Hand. You can’t keep a liability around if you always have to watch your back.”

  He sighs. “I wish it were that simple.”

  “Don’t complicate it, Aiden.”

  He opens his mouth but stops himself from saying whatever he’s thinking.

  Normally, I would not push him, but something compels me this time. “What were you going to say?”

  He shakes his head. “It’s nothing.”

  I don’t believe him, but I choose to let it go.

  Loosening his fingers, he reaches to lift my chin. “How did I get so lucky to have you?”

  What is Aiden still hiding from me? Maybe the answer is in the rucksack Toddy mentioned.

  I WAIT FOR Aiden to leave for his parole appointment. Alone in the house, I go upstairs to look into Aiden’s closet. Entering the room, I stop and take a breath.

  Do I really want to snoop and find out what Aiden is hiding? Or should I wait and let him tell me whatever it is when he is ready? But what if he never tells me?

  I open the closet, unsure of what I might find.

  I rummage through the shelves and look in drawers, but nothing stands out.

  Maybe Toddy is just shit-stirring again, trying to manipulate me and make me paranoid?

  I go to close the door and accidentally knock a shirt off its hanger.

  As I bend to pick it up, I see some crumpled black canvas shoved behind a pair of boots. Grabbing it, I pull out a well-worn rucksack. My pulse races as I untie the top.

  Should I look? I have to know why Toddy mentioned this bag.

  I peer inside, but it’s too dark to see the contents. Swallowing the lump in my throat, I reach in and search around blindly.

  My hand bumps against something cold, hard and rectangular. Wrapping my trembling fingers around the object, I hesitate before deciding to pull it out. I gasp as I recognise the object.

  My phone!

  Slumping down to the floor, I can’t believe I’ve got my phone.

  Aiden’s had it this whole time!

  I’m not surprised when I push the power button and find the battery is flat.

  How do I charge it without Aiden finding out? Would he care after all we’ve been through?

  All I want to know is what messages might be on it and who cared to see where I was.

  Aiden will be gone for a few hours, so I go to find his phone charger.

  Luckily, we both have Android phones.

  Before I head downstairs, I put the rucksack back into the closet as close as possible to the way I found it.

  Once inside his office, I plug in my phone. While I wait for enough charge to switch it on, I notice a green folder to the side of his desk, underneath a neat stack of papers.

  Is that the same green folder I saw in his safe?

  Tracing the outside of the folder with my index finger, I wait for guilt to consume me, but it doesn’t.

  With unease, I pry open the cover.

  What the…?

  It’s a photo of me outside my old apartment in Brisbane. Picking it up, I discover a handful of photos underneath. I flip through them, seeing myself in snapshots of my past. One of me getting into my car on my way to work, latte in hand. Another of me with Tom in the city and one of me crying the last night I ever saw Tom.

  Where did these come from?

  Flipping to the next one, dizziness overcomes me, and I fall back into the leather desk chair.

  It’s Tom with Beth. They are kissing. His hand is on her backside. Tom smiles the same one I was so desperate to see the last few months we were together.

  When was this taken?

  I lift the photo closer to my face to examine it better. My fingers grasp it so tight that a bend forms across it. W
hen I flip to the next photo, tears build in my eyes.

  It’s one of Tom and Beth rolling around in the waves at some beach. The time stamp is when he was supposedly in Sydney for work.

  I knew it. That bastard!

  I’m looking at the life I desperately wanted to have with him, but he was too busy having it with someone else.

  Tom is such an asshole for stringing me along. I may never understand why he did that to me, but I don’t care anymore. I’ve grown so much in such a short time. I’m so lucky to have found this new life.

  As tears fall down my face, I don’t feel grief. Instead, I feel validated knowing I was not some neurotic, jealous wife. He really was a bastard dirt bag having an affair.

  Damn him! He made me think I was crazy! I deserved better than him, and somehow in this senseless world, I found someone that appreciates me and all my complexities.

  I wipe my tears and allow myself to smile at the thought that Tom will never own me again, never disappoint me again, never hurt me again.

  Tom is done and dusted.

  No longer needing to look at the photos, I stack them and put them back in the folder. I now feel as though I’ve closed that chapter of my life once and for all.

  Picking up my phone, I press the ‘power’ button and wait. The usual start-up music and cacophony of colours flash across the screen. I give it a moment to register with the network and retrieve messages.

  As each message and alert pours through the network, sound after sound chimes through the air, as if they are the ending credits to my old life.

  When it finally quiets, I begin to thumb through the countless unread text messages.

  There are many from Tom and even more from Lisa. Not surprisingly, my brother and parents also sent a handful of messages. They abruptly stop after about the second week. I’m guessing by that point Tom would have been in contact with them and any further messages would have felt futile.

  A number I don’t recognise has multiple unread texts and missed calls. Most of these are recent and not from the initial weeks after my disappearance.

  I open the first message from this strange number.

  It’s from Beth. She asks for me to contact her.

  How did she get my number? And does she honestly think I’d contact her after she stole my husband and destroyed my marriage? Actually, maybe I should be a little grateful because if it weren’t for the fact my marriage fell apart, I might not have found my way to Aiden and I may never have known true love.

  When I open the second message from Beth, I hear the dogs barking outside.

  Is someone out there? Crap, what if it’s Aiden? I can’t get caught in here.

  I yank the phone from the charger, shove it in my pocket before running to the window and checking outside.

  Aiden’s truck is there.

  That’s odd. He should have been gone for hours.

  I dash back into the office to make sure everything appears the way it did before I came in to snoop. I make it back into the kitchen right before Aiden walks inside.

  He takes off his soaked Akubra and raincoat.

  Uneasy, my voice cracks. “I didn’t think you’d be back for hours.”

  “The water’s over the main bridge so we can’t get anywhere.” He doesn’t sound alarmed, but I’m instantly concerned.

  “Oh, that’s not good. Will we be okay here?”

  Aiden walks over to me and kisses my cheek. “Don’t worry, my sweet. Floods happen, just like droughts. Australia’s always been that way.”

  “Are we up high enough? What about the cattle?”

  He smiles tight lipped. “Yes, we’re high enough, and the animals will follow their instincts to higher ground.”

  “Oh, okay.” I bite my lip from nervousness.

  “Honestly, honey, there’s no need to be concerned.”

  Trying to distract myself, I turn on the kettle to make some tea. “Want a cuppa?”

  “That’d be perfect. I better call my parole officer to let them know I can’t get in today.” He pulls his phone out of his pocket and begins to dial. “I’ll go tell Toddy what’s happened. We may need to go for a ride to check things over.”

  I motion to the tea. “Do you think Toddy will want a cuppa?”

  Aiden shrugs as someone answers on the other end. “Hi, yeah, this is Aiden, and I’ve…” He walks into his office.

  Making tea, my thoughts go to the flood that rages not too far from the property. I dip the tea bag into my mug and glance out the window, catching a flash of lightning as it streaks across the sky.

  An instantaneous crackle of thunder rumbles through the house as a figure emerges through the pouring rain.

  Is that…?

  As he moves closer, I realise it’s just Toddy running to the house.

  Seething, Toddy busts through the back door, practically taking it off its hinges. “Aiden, my fucking boat is gone!”

  With wide eyes, Aiden comes into the kitchen from his office. “What?”

  Toddy’s body shakes as he paces the room. “Someone’s stolen her. The tyre tracks have already washed away.”

  I look at Aiden. “Wouldn’t we have heard them?”

  “It was in a shed that’s out by the west fence. With these storms, they could have easily slipped in while we were asleep.” Aiden watches Toddy as he speaks.

  I touch his forearm. “Should we call the police?”

  Aiden stares at Toddy. “You want me to call them?”

  “Ah, fuck it. Yeah, call them.” Toddy exhales loudly.

  I don’t understand why Toddy seems hesitant to call them.

  Aiden dials the local police office. “It’s busy.” He hangs up and tries again. “It’s ringing.”

  Toddy fidgets and continues to pace the room.

  Aiden looks at me. “Yeah, I need to report a theft.” He pauses and rubs his chin. “No, it’s not urgent. I’ll give you my number. Just ring when you can.” He drums his fingers against the benchtop. “Thanks, Officer.” Aiden hangs up and looks towards Toddy. “They’re busy with the flooding problems, so they’ve asked if they can call us back since it’s not urgent.”

  “Okay, good.” Toddy bites at his fingernail.

  Aiden studies him. “You all right?”

  “Just can’t believe those fuckers took my boat.”

  Aiden’s eyes narrow. “Toddy, do you know who did this?”

  “Nah, mate. I have no fucking clue who would do this.” Toddy doesn’t make eye contact with either of us.

  He’s lying.

  I glance at Aiden, but he stares and studies Toddy’s every move as he continues to pace the room.

  Aiden moves closer to Toddy. “Why don’t you sit and have a cuppa with me?”

  “Nah, I’m too pissed off. I’m going back to work.” Toddy puts on his Akubra and rushes out the door.

  With my eyebrows raised, I rest my chin against my palm.

  Walking up behind me, Aiden wraps his arms around my chest and leans down to kiss the top of my head. “You’re thinking what I’m thinking, aren’t you?”

  “What’s that?”

  “He knows who stole his boat.”

  “Or maybe it wasn’t stolen?”

  “Exactly.” He kisses behind my ear and down my neck, sending an electric shock to my core.

  I reach behind and let my hand search for the opening of his shirt, daring to tease the bare, sinewy arcs of his muscled physique. Pushing my way inside, I trace lines around the warm flesh, while my tongue aches to replace them.

  My breath quickens as I indulge in the sensation of his lips against the nape of my neck. “Aiden, want to go upstairs?”

  As he murmurs through his kiss, his phone rings.

  Damn!

  Pulling it out of his pocket, he looks at the number before answering. “Hey, mate, what’s up?” He teases his finger along my forearm. “Where about?” He pauses, listening to the caller. “Thanks for letting me know. I’ll get out there right away.”
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  What’s happened?

  “I appreciate the call. I’ll have to shout you a beer soon.” He hangs up and turns to look at me. “That was a guy who lives on a neighbouring property. He called to say a tree has fallen on a section of fence and there are cattle around. I’ll have to get it patched straight away to keep from losing any.”

  “In this rain?”

  “Don’t have a choice. I don’t want to lose any stock. Besides, I’m not afraid of getting wet.” He winks at me.

  Whingeing, I give him my best pout. “I guess our plans will have to wait.”

  “Don’t you worry. I’ll make it up to you.” He wraps his arms around my waist and pulls me close once more. His full lips find mine while he entices my insides with the soft, honeyed moves of his tongue. Breaking our kiss, he pushes a stray curl behind my ear and holds my gaze.

  I groan and roll my eyes. “Always making me wait.”

  “Toddy and I should be able to patch it in no time.”

  I exhale and stare at the sight of his firm, backside while he slides on his boots.

  My fingers itch to caress his glutes, run straight around his waist and wrap around his cock. I want to make him forget about the broken fence, but I know he has a job to do and can’t lose any cattle.

  Opening the door, he puts on his Akubra. “Love you.”

  “I know.” I watch him leave as the room dims from dark clouds moving over the property.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

  THE STORM OUTSIDE continues to rage with heavy squall lines dumping inches upon inches of rain. Gusting wind causes the house to heave against its foundations while dark clouds make it almost impossible to tell if the sun has started to set. The hairs raise on the back of my neck as lightning creates unnerving flashes of light throughout the house.

  I wish Aiden were back from fixing the fence already.

  Waiting for his return, I retreat to the living room and turn on the television, hoping for a distraction. I flip through the channels to see what movies are playing. I come across the old Hollywood classic An Affair to Remember. I grab a blanket and wrap myself in its warmth before sitting on the couch.

  Scout parades and circles near my feet, then looks at me with those sweet amber eyes.

  “Hiya, girl. Want to keep me company?”