‘I’m so glad you’re coming with us.’
Fliss eased herself away. ‘Me too.’
It wasn’t only her control-freak side that had loosened up. Her anxiety at attending the crowded ball had subsided to a dull murmur. Lately she’d noticed that she had more days when her nerves didn’t blindside her than days where she felt overwhelmed. She’d even been able to explain diabetes to Wade without faltering and had answered his questions with confidence.
Heels clicked on the wooden floorboards before Ella and Taylor entered. The smell of perfume filled the room.
Ella wore a fitted rose-gold dress that skimmed her curves and emphasised her long legs. Taylor also wore a slimline dress but in a powder blue that matched her eyes and highlighted the pale sheen of her blonde hair.
She lifted her phone. ‘Come on, all you beautiful girls, gather round. I want to send Rory a photo.’
Everyone clustered close to the hairdresser.
‘Smile.’ Taylor’s phone clicked.
Fliss scooped her phone from the bed. ‘My turn. Best duck faces.’
It took two attempts to snap a photo between Cressy and Ella dissolving into laughter and Taylor doing dramatic dance poses.
Ella leaned over to check the time on Fliss’s screen. ‘How does leaving in ten minutes sound? Tanner texted and the boys have left but will save us a parking space.’
‘Sounds great,’ Fliss said. Taylor and Cressy nodded.
The women left to make final touches to their hair and makeup and Fliss was again alone. Laughter and chatter echoed through the house. All Fliss needed to do was transfer the contents of the plain black clutch she’d already filled to the one Cressy had given her.
Fliss opened the crystal-embedded clasp and her fingers stilled. Cressy had slipped a photograph inside. She slid out the picture. Knees unsteady, she sat on the edge of the bed.
The photo was of Hewitt feeding Reggie carrots. Not only did Hewitt look relaxed, Reggie’s eyes had that glazed expression he wore when Fliss or Cressy scratched his forehead.
Hewitt hadn’t only passed the Reggie test, he literally had Reggie eating out of the palm of his hand. She turned the picture over. Her sister had handwritten a single line.
Not just man enough for you, but a once in a lifetime man.
It wasn’t just Cressy’s words that caused Fliss’s chest to tighten but the realisation that she’d always known Hewitt was a man like no other. From the day he’d arrived she’d been flung out of her comfort zone. Hewitt made her feel and want things she’d never thought she’d be capable of. Love. A family. The question was whether she should heed Cressy’s message or keep playing it safe.
The line Hewitt had carefully drawn between them over the past few days would ensure their relationship didn’t progress any further. It insulated them both from potential hurt and heartache. He’d been upfront in saying he hadn’t come to Bundara to cause trouble. But she no longer wanted to colour between the lines. An unfamiliar recklessness flickered inside. She wanted to live in the moment and make the most of what life offered.
‘Five minutes,’ Ella called out.
Fliss came to her feet, knees now steady, and transferred the items between the two clutch bags. She slid the photo into the bag she’d emptied for safekeeping. She wasn’t letting fear control her anymore. She’d start by bridging the divide Hewitt had built between them.
The trip to the cotton gin passed with much laughter and high spirits. Cressy had given Fliss an intent look when Fliss had placed the sparkly black clutch on her lap. Fliss had mouthed the words ‘talk later’.
It didn’t seem long before the rolling hills of Woodlea gave way to the flat contours of land being readied for cotton. Come autumn, the channel-irrigated rows of bare earth would be white and the adjacent roadsides would be dusted with cotton lint.
When they reached the cotton gin a parking attendant wearing a fluoro vest guided them into the sea of cars. Cressy called Denham and he gave them directions to where they were parked.
‘The boys didn’t get here much before us,’ Fliss said, as Ella pulled up alongside Meredith’s four-wheel drive. Tanner was shrugging on a dinner jacket and Denham was slinging a black bow tie around his neck. Intent on looking for Hewitt, Fliss almost missed the blond man who approached to shake hands with Denham.
She turned to Taylor. ‘Rodger Galloway’s your mystery man? Does Edna know?’
‘Yes. She needs to move on.’
Cressy giggled. ‘Go Taylor.’
Fliss smiled. ‘I would have loved to have been a fly on the wall when Edna found out.’
‘I believe,’ Taylor said, with raised brows, ‘she was speechless.’
‘No way,’ Ella said, opening her car door. ‘Not possible.’
Taylor nodded. ‘Rodger’s girlfriend couldn’t make it so Edna sat him next to Harriet Knox as her fiancé wasn’t able to go either. So he was more than happy when I called.’
‘I bet he was,’ Fliss said as she caught sight of Hewitt. ‘Edna and Mrs Knox have long been plotting a family merger.’
Fliss barely heard everyone’s laughter as they manoeuvred themselves out of Ella’s four-wheel drive in their dresses and heels. Fliss stayed in her seat and took a moment to breathe. Hewitt in casual clothes made her stomach flutter, but Hewitt in formal black and white made her breath stall. His grey eyes met hers through the window and she forced herself to smile. Hewitt wasn’t the only one looking at her.
Cressy opened the car door. ‘Everything okay, Fliss?’
‘Yes.’ She held up a pair of black heels she was thankful she’d taken off for the drive. ‘I’m just strapping myself back in.’
Thankful for a distraction, she looked past Cressy at Rodger. She hadn’t seen him since moving back home to Woodlea. Like Bethany, he was tall and resembled their reserved father. ‘Hi, Rodger, great to see you. It’s been a while.’
‘It has. I’m looking forward to catching up over dinner.’
Fliss concentrated on securing her feet into her sky-high shoes. She left her seat, careful her heels didn’t catch in the long skirt of her dress.
Cressy and Denham led the way to where guests were congregating at the cotton gin entrance. Fliss waited, heart racing, conscious that Hewitt hadn’t moved. When it was just the two of them, he came to her side.
‘You look … stunning.’
In the waning light she wasn’t sure but she thought a muscle worked in his jaw. He offered her his arm and she breathed in the cedar notes of his aftershave.
‘Thanks. You don’t look too bad yourself.’ She slid her hand around the fine wool of his dinner jacket and gripped the hard strength of his muscles beneath. ‘Don’t tell Cressy, but I think I like her idea of wearing boots instead of heels. My power-dressing days are long gone.’
Hewitt laughed softly, the husky sound wrapping around her. She strengthened her hold on his arm. It wasn’t anxiety rendering her light-headed, but anticipation. Tonight there were no more ground rules. Tonight there was no more need to play it safe.
Cressy turned to look back to where they were and smiled.
Thankful that Fliss was happy to walk and not talk, Hewitt kept his pace slow so she wouldn’t struggle in her heels. He needed to collect himself and to reinstate his control.
Her swept-up hair exposed the elegant line of her neck and called for him to explore the smooth contours. Her perfume was a subtle floral scent that reminded him of the vases of summer flowers his mother displayed on the dining room table.
As for her mouth … He risked a glance sideways. Whatever the not-quite-pink-but-not-quite-red colour was called, it highlighted the full sweep of her lips and reminded his testosterone it’d been far too long since he’d kissed her. He looked forward and forced himself to focus on where they walked.
Their trip to Mayfield had changed everything. Seeing Fliss with his family, and how patient she’d been with his father, only cemented how generous and compassionate she was. The fact sh
e was whip-smart and knew her own mind only made him fall harder. His father had told him to look out for himself like he looked out for others, but the only way he could do that was if Fliss never left his side.
Tension dug across his shoulders. The reality was the person he had to look out for the most was Fliss. Tanner’s big-brother talk had driven home how vulnerable she’d been after the loss of her patient. She’d also had to come to terms with knowing she wasn’t connected by blood to the man she’d believed was her father. So over the past few days he’d made sure there had been no opportunity for things to develop further between them. He’d given his word he wasn’t there to hurt her. He couldn’t start something that would threaten the confidence she’d regained.
‘The hospital fundraising committee has done such a wonderful job, haven’t they?’ Fliss’s quiet words broke the silence between them. ‘From the amount of people here they must have reached their target?’
‘They have. Meredith took a call earlier and apparently the last-minute ticket sales exceeded the committee’s expectations.’
‘That’s wonderful.’
Hewitt nodded as they joined the queue entering the ball. Fliss’s hand stayed curled around his arm as the line moved. Every so often her body would brush against his and it took all of his strength to not put his hand around her waist and anchor her to his side. Ahead of them, the large cream steel shed that usually housed a working cotton gin had been transformed. A white marquee formed a stylish entrance in which fairy lights had been strung to form a graceful canopy. As dusk settled, the glow of the delicate lights intensified.
The white theme continued inside the main building. Rows of tables featured fragrant white candles surrounded by ivy wreaths. Each centrepiece rested on a round mirror that sat on a crisp white table runner. Thick white ribbons had been draped over the back of each chair.
Fliss stopped to touch an ivy centrepiece. ‘No wonder the ivy covering Meredith’s water tank looks like Taylor’s taken to it with her hair clippers.’
From over to Hewitt’s right, close to the makeshift dance floor, Cressy waved. The pathway between the tables narrowed and Fliss released his arm to weave her way over. Relief relaxed his jaw. As much as he missed her touch, he couldn’t afford to be so physically close to her again. He couldn’t trust that his control would hold.
They’d almost reached their seats when she came to an abrupt stop. His hands rested on her waist to prevent himself from running into her. His hard-won composure dissolved as she leaned back into his arms before moving away as the path in front of them cleared.
A figure dressed in fuchsia pink sailed towards him.
‘Hewitt, how wonderful you’re here.’ Edna crushed him in a firm and cloying embrace. ‘Don’t you look dashing in your suit.’
Edna released him. She gave Fliss a thorough once-over before air-kissing her cheeks. ‘So good of you to recycle a gown, Felicity. Now, Rodger has a steady girlfriend, even though he and Harriet would be so suited, so I’ve sat you on the opposite side of the table. I won’t let you ruin his life again.’
‘I wouldn’t dream of sitting anywhere else.’
Fliss’s dry tone appeared lost on Edna as she again zeroed in on Hewitt.
Behind Edna’s back, Cressy winked as she rearranged the name cards on the table.
‘Now, Hewitt,’ Edna said, taking his arm, ‘we must find Bethany. Even though you did go on the trail ride, I told her you mightn’t be quite up to dancing. She’s happy to keep you company. You had such a long chat when you first met.’
Edna glanced over Hewitt’s shoulder. ‘There she is. Even though Bethany’s here with Drew Macgregor—I’m so thrilled he listened to reason and left the farm to come tonight—she of course would love to sit next to you during dinner.’ Edna stiffened and her mouth fell open before she spoke through clenched teeth. ‘That’s not Drew Macgregor.’
Hewitt turned to see a dark-haired man accompanying Bethany. From the cut of his suit and his slick hairstyle he clearly wasn’t a country boy. Behind the couple had to be Noel, Edna’s husband. Bethany and Rodger shared the older man’s square jawline and straight-edged nose.
‘Excuse me.’ Edna released his arm and bustled over to intercept her husband and daughter.
‘Good on Bethany,’ Fliss said quietly.
‘Maybe.’ Hewitt watched as the dark-haired man took a step back so Bethany bore the brunt of her mother’s disapproval. ‘As much as I hate to say this, Edna might be on the money about Bethany’s city boy. She could do better.’
‘I think you’re right. If any man I dated used me as his first line of defence we wouldn’t even make it to the table to sit down.’
‘I’ll remember that.’
Fliss smiled and he lost the fight to look away from her mouth. ‘You don’t have to. We don’t need to go on any date. I already know I like what I see.’
The room closed in around him. Voices faded and lights dimmed. All he could focus on was the woman staring at him, her thick-lashed hazel eyes serious and her body angled towards his. With her heels, all it’d take was a dip of his head and her mouth would meet his. To think he’d once thought being out in public and being surrounded by people would guarantee nothing could happen between them. The kiss-me-now look she gave him would bring even the strongest man to his knees.
‘Fliss …’
He hadn’t realised he’d groaned her name until she blinked. Her chest rose and fell as she breathed deeply.
‘Sorry.’ She brushed the front of his jacket as if removing a piece of fluff. ‘I forgot where we were. Edna’s also right on another thing. You do look dashing in your dinner suit.’
She turned to find her seat. Hewitt followed and, avoiding both Denham’s and Tanner’s eyes, sat beside her. No one at the table would have missed what had just ignited between them. Cressy took the seat on his other side. Without saying a word, she passed him a beer.
To Hewitt’s relief, conversation continued around him and he was soon discussing the forecasted rain and storms. Bethany came to the table alone and sat in the seat beside Taylor. The turbulence in her eyes said the cold weather front wasn’t the only thing brewing trouble.
She reached for a bottle of red wine and poured a full glass. ‘Men and mothers.’
Taylor chinked her wine glass with Bethany’s. ‘Here’s to solidarity.’
Bethany’s pretty face broke into a smile as she looked at her brother seated between Taylor and Fliss. ‘Solidarity.’
Drinks flowed as they shared stories and laughter and soon the volunteer waitstaff delivered the first of the three courses. Once they’d finished their entrees of spiced lamb and pulled pork, a local dance troupe performed a sleek and glitzy dance routine. As the temperature within the cotton gin warmed up, Hewitt removed his jacket. Apart from small talk about the entree, Fliss spent her time reminiscing with Rodger, Taylor and Bethany. Hewitt didn’t mind. The less interaction he had with Fliss the more their attraction would cool. There couldn’t be any more intense and unguarded moments between them.
After the second course of pepper chicken and slow-cooked beef, Fliss excused herself and went to see a very pregnant Kellie who was sitting three tables over. Hewitt felt Cressy’s attention on him as he watched Fliss move on to talk to Meredith and Phil. Tonight Fliss didn’t wear her game face. Instead, quick with a natural smile, or a carefree laugh, she chatted with ease.
‘Watch out world,’ Cressy said, tone soft. ‘The old Fliss is back.’
Before he could reply the party band burst into life. Music vibrated through the venue, bringing people to their feet. Tables emptied and the dance floor filled with people.
‘Come on,’ Cressy said above the noise of a saxophone, tugging his shirtsleeve. ‘I’m sure Dr Fliss considers your shoulder healed enough to dance.’
Across the table Denham grinned in commiseration.
Cressy put her hands on her hips before marching around to drag him and Tanner to their feet. ‘No smirki
ng from you, Denham Rigby, or you, Tanner. One in, all in.’
Taylor came to her feet. ‘Exactly. I’ve been waiting all night to dance and I’m not dancing on my own.’ She flashed the boys a reassuring smile. ‘Don’t look so petrified. There can never be enough dad-dancing.’
Ella, Bethany and Rodger also stood. Bethany and Ella headed for the dance floor while Rodger made his way over to sit with his father.
‘Safety in numbers,’ Denham muttered to Hewitt as they headed after the girls.
The band’s energy proved infectious. Denham’s expression relaxed as he twirled a laughing Cressy before drawing her in for a kiss. The others danced as a group, with Taylor teaching them new dance moves. The whole time Hewitt kept track of where Fliss was. Her self-assurance may have appeared to have returned but he hadn’t forgotten how adept she was at masking her fears.
The music tempo slowed and couples cuddled up on the dance floor. Ella fanned her hands in front of her face. ‘I don’t know about anyone else but I’m melting. I need a drink.’
Hewitt went to follow everyone to their table when he felt a hand on his back. He knew it was Fliss even before he turned. No other woman’s touch fired his blood like hers did.
Her gaze held his in a silent question. He hesitated. Even with the time apart, he wasn’t confident he could hold her close and not seek her mouth.
She linked her fingers with his. ‘We’re mature adults, remember?’
He couldn’t reply, emotions pushed against his control, so he pulled her into his arms. He didn’t imagine her sigh as she moulded herself against him. He held her tight. As one they moved to the music, but it was the connection between them that beat the loudest.
All too soon the song ended. Fliss didn’t ease herself away. Instead she looked at him, her large amber eyes reflecting all the wants, needs and hopes that burned inside him. The moment had come to stop fighting what simmered between them. His hands tightened on her waist and he rested his forehead against hers. ‘Not here.’
She tilted her head so her breath brushed his mouth. ‘Where and when.’
The Red Dirt Road Page 23