An Outback Affair/Runaway Wife/Outback Bridegroom/Outback Surrender/Home To Eden (63 page)

“It's damned odd.” She swung her binoculars up to watch two brolgas dancing on the flats of a lagoon. “Slow up, would you?” she murmured. “There's a ballet in progress.”

Drake not only slowed, he cruised in gently to the shade of the blossoming orchid trees, the bauhinias.

It was a familiar vision but one that always enchanted her. A bush ballet. The long-legged cranes, their plumage pale gray, their heads swathed in a broad band of red almost like scarves tied around them for the dance were well into their fascinating ritual—lifting up and down excitedly, bowing, pirouetting. One of the great sights of the Outback.

They were both silent, watching. “How beautiful!” Nicole breathed. “I'm so glad I've seen that.” She lowered the binoculars, her expression soft.

“The small wonders around us,” Drake observed as he reversed the vehicle. The heat of the afternoon had built up swiftly. Far off in the distance, a mirage shimmered before them like swinging curtains of crystal beads, creating optical illusions of wondrous forms, misty-blue pinnacles and domes guarding phantom
lakes that had lured many an early explorer deeper into the desert with the promise of life-giving water.

It was Drake's keen eyes that first discerned the speck in the blue sky.

“A plane.” He peered through the windshield. “Unless I'm very much mistaken, the Stirlings' Cessna.”

“You're joking!” Nicole shook her head in mock surprise. Callista hadn't wasted a moment.

“I'm seriously considering it's Karen.”

Nicole made a little derisive sound. “It didn't take Callista long to call for help.”

“What the devil could she want?”

“Be your age. She wants you. Kooltar. Do you want me to go on? Callista has got her here for security and comfort. That bad girl, Nicole Cavanagh, is back on the scene.”

“It could be her father,” Drake said, not very hopefully. “He could have a cattle buyer with him. One's working the area.”

“Want to bet?” Nicole asked, thinking she wasn't going to get the chance to be alone with Drake for long.

“How much?” he grunted, his eyes still on the sky.

“Five hundred thousand? I'll take a check.”

He gave her a gleaming glance. “We can continue our trip.”

“Suit yourself.” She shrugged, not giving protest or encouragement. “She's
your
friend and, I guess, your sometime bed pal. Don't worry. I'm not jealous, even though Callista was thoughtful enough to point out that Karen's bedroom is close to yours. So easy to pop in.”

“Do you have a problem with that?” he asked lightly. “We're both single.”

“Anything that makes you happy. But is the affair incendiary enough for you? Why not pepper it up with a little competition?”

His voice sounded edgy. “I just hope Cally hasn't engineered this.”

Nicole looked off to the right to where a palisade of papyrus met the shining water of the river. “You think she'd ever admit to such a cunning plan?”

His eyes glittered. “I promise you I'll find out.”

T
HEY ARRIVED BACK
at the homestead toward sundown, having continued their leisurely exploration of the station. Neither had made any further effort to debate whether they should return to greet Karen. They had simply gone on their way, Nicole climbing out of the vehicle now and then to examine some feature more closely. Once she'd stopped to talk with an old friend, Judah, a full-blooded Aboriginal. Judah had once been Kooltar's finest tracker, but he was now old and physically diminished, the black liquid eyes not as good or as bright but as wise as ever. Judah had been part of the search party for her mother and David McClelland, coming upon her and her grandfather as they huddled on the sand in grief. Even through her shocking trauma, she'd been aware of how kind and sensitive Judah had been with her.

“We old spirits, missy,” he'd told her, his dark eyes tragic. “We survive. Your mama fly up to the sky. Understand? After longa while, you'll see her in the stars.”

So far she never had, but the idea still gave her comfort.

When they arrived back at the homestead, seated on the broad veranda were Callista, expression as inscrutable as ever, and a tall, good-looking brunette dressed
in a tight strawberry-red T-shirt—she had eye-catching full breasts—with knee-length navy shorts, a sparkling white smile on her face.

“Hi!” she called in a bright, friendly fashion, pushing out of the rattan armchair. She moved to the top of the steps. “I was in the area—over at Mount Myora actually, an errand for Dad—I just had to call in. Hope you don't mind?” She'd been addressing Drake, and now her golden-brown eyes shifted to Nicole. “Nicole, how lovely to see you again. It's been such a long time. How are you?”

“I'm fine, Karen.” Nicole walked up the steps, extending her hand. “You look wonderful.”

“So do you. Like a model on safari in one of those glossy magazines.” Her dark eyes swept appraisingly over Nicole's willowy figure. Nicole was dressed in a black T-shirt with khaki cargo pants. She'd woven her long hair into a thick braid. It hung between her shoulder blades, a carefree style that showed off the elegant column of her throat and the shape of her head. Her cheeks were flushed from the heat. Her eyes glowed an iridescent blue-green.

Inspection over, Karen linked her arm through Nicole's in friendly fashion. “You have to tell me all you've been up to. It's really good to see you. I was in Singapore when you were here for your grandmother's birthday. Callista very kindly invited me to stay to dinner and overnight.”

“You might as well spend the night with us as fly in the dark,” Callista said, giving Karen a fond smile. “I'm sure you two young women have lots to catch up on. How did the afternoon go?” Callista's glance
slid to her nephew, who was lounging against the wrought-iron balustrade.

“Fine,” he replied casually. “We managed to see a lot.”

“That's splendid. I thought you might have returned earlier.”

He shrugged. “The idea was to have Nic see as much of the station as she could.”

Callista appeared disconcerted by the nickname. She gave Nicole a glinting look. “Why don't you both sit down. What would you like, dear?” She addressed her nephew.

“A nice cold beer.” Drake held out a chair for Nicole, who slipped into it. He sat down beside her with Callista and Karen in their original positions on the opposite side of the glass-topped table. “What about you, Nic?”

“A gin and tonic would be lovely. I've thoroughly enjoyed our little sight-seeing trip, but it was thirsty work!”

“Not so little,” Callista cut in. “You've been gone for hours.” She said this as though she thought they'd been astoundingly rude.

Nicole barely stopped herself from laughing aloud. “The time passed so quickly. Kooltar is in remarkably good condition, given the drought.”

“Drake takes the trophy as a cattleman.” Karen beamed at him, reaching across Nicole's body to touch his hand. “Running a big operation takes very special skills. My dad says Drake is the best in the business.”

“One of the best,” Drake amended. “It'll be quite a while before I can touch Kyall McQueen, for one. He's a truly formidable businessman.”

“So are you,” Karen maintained loyally.

“I imagine nothing is the same for Kyall with his grandmother gone.” Nicole gave a tiny involuntary shudder. “I was terrified of Ruth McQueen when I was a child and I didn't scare easily. I remember once we were at a wedding getting overexcited and noisy. One look from her silenced the lot of us. She was positively awful to Christine, her own granddaughter. Christine was so sweet and beautiful. She tried so hard to please. Oh, I do want to see all of my old friends again. Shelley Logan was special—very brave! I understand she's marrying Brock Tyson. Kyall married his one true love, Sarah Dempsey, at long last.”

“Dr. Sarah McQueen, head of the Koomera Crossing Bush Hospital,” Karen said. “Sarah is much loved and respected. She's a fine doctor. The far-flung community is lucky to have her. She's expecting another baby, did you know? It's only just become official.”

“I'm quite sure Nicole hasn't heard Sarah's extraordinary story,” Callista said, more than a tinge of disapproval in her voice.

“Actually, my grandmother told me,” Nicole said quietly. “Gran has always had a soft spot for Sarah. Sarah was there for my grandfather. Gran will never forget that. When you think about it, Sarah's story is not so unexpected. She had a baby when she was fifteen. She's not the first and she's not the last. She and Kyall loved each other. The miracle is they found their daughter Fiona even though she'd been adopted.”

“You'd know Fiona anywhere, Nicole,” Karen said. “She's Sarah's mirror image, just as you're your
mother's. I expect you'll meet up with everyone at Shelley's wedding. We're all going.”

“Alas, I don't have an invitation.”

“That's easily attended to,” Drake said lightly. “Brock has already asked me to be best man. He has Philip of course, but they've never been close. Shelley will be delighted you're home, Nic. Every time I run into her in town, she asks after you.”

“As if you'd know.” Callista stood up as if at a signal. “I'll go attend to the drinks. Anything else for you, Karen dear?”

Karen leaned back comfortably in her armchair. “I'll join Drake in a long cold beer.”

 

N
ICOLE HAD BROUGHT
something pretty so she could dress up a little for dinner. She brushed her hair until it crackled, then allowed it to hang full and loose the way the men in her life had always liked it.

What men? They paled into insignificance beside Drake. She had all but broken away from this man, but look how effortlessly he had reeled her back in. Something inside her, some niggling little voice, suggested he could have been the real reason she'd found it difficult to make a lasting commitment to any other man.

Under the shower she'd felt herself reliving that kiss. The kiss she couldn't deal with. It was more like a revelation with the potential to disturb her life. All that long hot afternoon, they'd been acutely aware of each other, the hot air sexually charged, but he'd made no further move to touch her.

It could be his plan. His eyes watching her, like a big cat with its prey. Despite what Karen had said, she
still believed Callista had called the young woman to come, but Callista was the only one with claws. Karen's manner was friendly, her attractive smile at the ready, but Nicole knew there had to be a great deal of wondering going on behind the pleasant facade. Maybe their relationship hadn't arrived at the point of commitment, but Karen obviously held to her high hopes. Her golden-brown eyes were constantly on Drake, her expression a dead giveaway. She listened attentively when he spoke. She was obviously madly in love with Drake, but he chose in his male arrogance not to heed it.

Men!

It was nice to get out of slacks and a T-shirt and into a dress, this one silk, in an iridescent shade of blue, cut like a slip. Her only jewelery was a pair of silver and enamel art nouveau pendant earrings set with amethysts given to her by her grandmother. They were right back in fashion. A light spray of Chanel's Gardenia and she was ready to go. She couldn't allow herself to be upset by Callista's deeply ingrained hostility. Some things never changed. Callista had never been kind to her. Drake was the reason she was here.

She was ready to go downstairs, when someone tapped on the door. She knew it wasn't Drake from the light, rather hesitant tap. Not Callista, either, she thought.

Opening the door, she looked into Karen's glossy-lipped face. “Hi, Karen, have you come to get me?”

“I wondered if we might have a word.” Karen looked beyond Nicole into the large bedroom.

“Sure. Come in.”

“This is a beautiful room.” Karen advanced, staring around her. “Those paintings! Aren't they lovely?”

“Haven't you been in here before?”

Karen looked almost shocked. “Gosh, Nicole, Callista doesn't give me the run of the house.”

“How extraordinary! I thought you were good friends. Please, sit down.”

“Thanks.” Karen, looking very sexy in a black halter-necked number she would have to have begged, borrowed or stolen from Callista if her story of “popping in on her way home” was to be believed, sank into a comfortable armchair, crossing her long legs and staring down at her strappy sandals. The sandals, at least, couldn't have been borrowed from Callista. Callista's feet were so small they might have been a child's. Obviously the two conspirators were playing little games.

Surprisingly, Karen said, “I suppose you've cottoned on to the fact Callista got in touch with me.” She gave Nicole a rueful smile. “Anyone can see you're no fool.”

Nicole let her laugh ripple. “Not all the time, I hope. It wasn't difficult to figure out, unless you carry a little black dress with you at all times. Callista has always had a struggle liking me. Even before the old tragedy happened.”

“I wonder you plucked up the courage to come here,” Karen said, as though Callista, like Lucretia Borgia, had a reputation for poisoning troublesome guests. “I've never found her an easy person at the best of times. She's madly intense. She loves to control everyone and everything.”

“Fortunately she can't control Drake.”

“Oh, I know that. She knows it, too. Her whole life revolves around him. He's very kind to her. You can bet your bottom dollar lots of other nephews would have asked her to move out.” Karen grimaced thoughtfully. “I expect I would,” she confessed. “It's not as if she can't make a life for herself. She's still young. She's got plenty of money. What is there for her here? Everything points to Drake marrying soon.”

Nicole considered. “You sound very confident of that, Karen. How do you know?”

“Believe me, I know.” Karen nodded her head wisely several times.

“You're in love with him, right?” Nicole decided not to beat about the bush.

Karen started kneading her hands. “I can't remember a time when I wasn't. I've taken a big gamble on Drake even when I know I mightn't win. He has far too many concerns. He's just so ambitious! Excessive, in my opinion. It's not money. He's got enough money. It's not even power.”

Nicole held up her hand. “Karen, Drake has a hard-headed determination to accomplish as much as he can in his lifetime. If you don't understand that, you understand nothing about him. He wouldn't be happy if he didn't lead a highly constructive life. To him that means coming out top of the class. Making his mark. He was reared on the principle that hard work is greatly to be valued. The job comes first.”

“That's just the trouble,” Karen groaned. “The job is Kooltar around the clock, and don't let anyone forget it. I don't think any woman will mean as much to him as the job. He's a great businessman. A mover and shaker. Dad says he's an even better operator than
his father. It doesn't seem to occur to Drake to enjoy life. Travel. He wants to build on everything here.”

“And you think that's crazy?” For half a second Nicole wondered if Karen knew Drake at all.

“Life should be much more fun.”

“So what you're saying is you resent Drake's strong commitment to his obligations?” Nicole asked.

“I suppose I do.” Karen pursed her mouth. “I want him to have time for me. We could do lots of things together. Not always be looking for new fields to conquer. He's taken over Opal Springs in Central Queensland, did you know that? He might have his eye on Eden.”

“Did he tell you that?” Nicole couldn't keep the sharpness out of her tone.

“He may have.” Karen wrinkled her forehead as though trying hard to recall. “Is that important?”

“It is to me,” Nicole acknowledged bluntly. “I'd say it was far more likely you got that information from Callista.”

Karen shifted in her chair. “She could have said it. I can't be sure. But you must find holding on to Eden a burden now that your grandfather has passed on, don't you?”

Nicole felt slightly nonplussed. “Karen, you don't understand any of this. I come from a pioneering family who just happened to open up this country for the pastoral industry. Eden is my ancestral home. My inheritance. I would fight to the death to keep it. And incidentally, I'm not hurting for money, before you go thinking I might have to sell.”

“I had the impression you were going back to the States. Aren't you?” Karen asked, pink with fluster.

“Is this why you're here?” Nicole asked. “Your job is to sound me out?”

Karen slumped forward, revealing a spectacular cleavage. “Honestly, can you blame me? You're beautiful, Nicole, and sexy. You're an interesting person, too. I hear you paint. Well enough to give an exhibition in New York. You must surely want to return there. It must be a fabulous lifestyle, the hub of the world. We're so dreadfully isolated.”