Jilted (20 page)

Outside, he relished the cool afternoon air as he made his way down the steps. His gaze immediately located Ellie twenty or so metres away, sitting under an old gum. He hung back a moment, watching the way she gently ran her hand back and forth over Rodger’s back. From the dog’s stance, he was obviously enjoying the attention. Ellie looked peaceful too, like this was where she was meant to be. Then she raised a hand to her eyes and swiped at something.

Was she crying?
God! His heart clenched at the thought. She’d caused him more pain than anyone – more than his dad dying, or his grandfather before that – and yet he still couldn’t stand the thought of her upset. Without hesitation, he strode towards her, instantly annihilating the distance between them.

As he stopped in front of her, she looked up and blinked three times in quick succession. Obviously trying to cover up the fact she was near to tears.

‘What’s up, Els?’ He knelt and gave Rodg a quick tummy rub.

‘It’s …’ She trailed off.

‘Don’t say
nothing
. I know you better than that.’

‘I was going to say
stupid
, not nothing.’

‘Okay, then.’ He smirked at her feisty response. ‘What’s stupid?’

She paused, as if contemplating her response. ‘The way I feel
about your mother, I guess. She was nice as pie, but her request that I stay away from you hurt. We used to be such good friends.’

This time, friends referred to Karina. And it was true, they’d been close once. Anger bubbled in Flynn’s veins that his mum had to stick her nose in his business. He knew she was just looking out for him, but dammit, he wasn’t a child.

‘I’m sorry she confronted you, Ellie. She had no right.’

Ellie rubbed gentle circles around Rodger’s ears. ‘At least she gives a damn.’

Flynn tensed. He’d be stupid not to pick up Ellie’s bitter comparison to her own mother. ‘Did you ever see your mother again, I mean, after her no-show in Perth?’

She shook her head. ‘I didn’t want to. I still don’t. I just don’t care anymore.’

Her words were tough, but he saw past her bravado to the raw hurt inside. He didn’t blame her. ‘Fair enough.’

‘I don’t,’ she insisted.

Even as a teenager, Flynn had known what a selfish woman Ellie’s mother was, how different she was from Karina. He knew if his mum were in her position, she’d have acted totally different to Rhiannon. No way would she leave her child with a stranger because the new boyfriend didn’t want kids. He and Ellie had talked about this over and over in the past.

‘Mat’s been more a mum to me than she ever was. If I have kids some day, I hope I take after her. I just pray maternal instinct isn’t in one’s genes. If it is, they may as well tie my tubes now.’

‘Don’t be ridiculous,’ he scoffed. ‘You’ll be a wonderful mother. You were always good with Lucy, still are.’

‘Thanks,’ she smiled meekly. ‘But it’s a moot point. First I’d have to find a man to have kids with.’

As if that would be difficult
, he thought. Did she really have such a low opinion of herself? Without thinking, he reached out and
brushed his fingertips along her cheek, tucking an errant strand of hair behind her ear. She caught his hand against her cheek, holding it there as they gazed into each other’s eyes. His pulse thrummed hard and fast. He felt himself leaning forward, losing his balance and much, much more as he stared at her lips and imagined them playing erotically across his. One hand still pressed to her cheek, he reached the other up to steady himself against the tree and dipped his head.

Right before Lady Gaga’s latest hit started blaring from Ellie’s pocket.

Dammit
. Ellie cursed her phone as Flynn’s head snapped back. Her ringtone had broken the moment. It was set to loud, and wasn’t the kind you could easily ignore. She swallowed her disappointment and resisted the urge to lick her lips, which felt as if they’d been robbed of a vital liquid. He had been about to kiss her.
Flynn had been about to kiss her
.

‘My phone,’ she explained, her focus still on his lips.

‘I figured.’ He raised his eyebrows at the vibrating bulge in the pocket of Lucy’s track pants. ‘You going to answer it?’

‘It could be Mat. I think I’d better.’ Her heart sinking, she let his hand drop from her face. She dug about for the offending item and then glanced at the screen. She grimaced apologetically to Flynn. ‘It’s my agent.’

‘Take it.’ Flynn gestured to the phone before leaning back to rest on the palms of his hands. He looked totally at ease; a pretty good actor, she thought. An onlooker wouldn’t guess that, only seconds ago, they’d been that close to stepping across a line she’d drawn a decade ago.

‘Hi Dwayne,’ she answered, trying to inject some normality into her voice.

‘Babe,’ he drawled down the phone.

Ellie angled her head so the phone was as far from Flynn as possible. Not that it would do any good – her agent had the kind of voice that carried much further than the telephone. She could guess what Flynn would make of a guy like Dwayne. Even she could only take him in small doses and she’d had years to acclimatise. But while he had the most flamboyant personality of anyone she knew, and while he could rarely see past how anything affected himself, he was a good agent. ‘How you going?’ she asked.

‘Struggling without my best client.’

‘Always the sweet-talker.’ She shook her head and glanced across at Flynn, but he was engrossed in rubbing Rodger’s belly.

‘I’m serious, babe. How long till you’re back? The writers have done a great job writing you out these last weeks, but the boss is getting tetchy about your absence. Not getting any ideas about leaving for good, are you?’

‘No.’ Her reply wasn’t as determined as she’d meant it to sound. She wouldn’t admit it, but she was already contemplating the idea of extending her stay a little longer. ‘Why would you think that?’

‘Journos, why else? Haven’t you seen the articles I’m sending?’

She pursed her lips before replying. ‘I’ve been kinda busy. You know, looking after my godmother.’

‘So, it’s not because of that ex of yours?’

She looked across at said ex. Placing her hand over the mouthpiece, she stood up and said, ‘I’m just gonna finish this over here.’

Flynn nodded.

‘What exactly have they been saying about us?’ she demanded as soon as she was out of Flynn’s earshot. It had been remiss of her to not keep track of what was being written, but since she’d started
helping out with the play, she’d only given the occasional thought to her job.

‘That he’s a spunky, hunky monkey, and locals say you’re getting mighty close again.’

Grr
. She gritted her teeth. Somewhere there was a leak. That must be why the media knew about her break from the show so soon.
Lake Street
was filmed months in advance, an absence like hers usually didn’t make itself known for some time. But who?

‘One, Dwayne,’ she started, ‘you shouldn’t believe everything you read. Two, Flynn and I are on speaking terms again but that’s it.’ She refrained from telling him she’d been sitting under a gum tree with the accused only moments before. From saying how wonderful it felt to have him back in her life, and that they’d just almost kissed, and that, right then, she’d wanted it more than anything.

‘Ah, well, that’s a relief.’

‘Is there anything else?’

‘In a hurry to get away, are we?’ Dwayne joked.

‘No, it’s just …’ She glanced over her shoulder and realised Flynn had already gone back into the shed. Disappointment weighed heavily on her.

‘Never mind,’ Dwayne said. ‘I’ve got loads of work to do, just wanted to check in. How many more weeks do you think you’ll need?’

‘Matilda has a doctor’s appointment next week, to see how long until she’s off the crutches,’ Ellie replied. ‘I’ll give you a definite time then. Speak soon.’

‘Bye babe.’

Ellie turned off her phone and shoved it back in her pocket. She looked at the shearing shed. She wanted to go back inside, to talk to Flynn, to hang out with him, but she was scared as well. Terrified that the more time she spent in his splendid company, the less she’d want to leave.

One near kiss didn’t mean Flynn would get over what she’d done. She couldn’t go off on such foolish, fantastical tangents. Besides, as she’d told Karina, her life was in Sydney now – her job, her apartment, her friends. But despite all this, she had to acknowledge that Hope Junction was getting under her skin again. And it was becoming harder to deny it had almost everything to do with Flynn Quartermaine.

Flynn wanted to punch something, but dabbing the backdrop with globs of brown paint would have to do for now. Foolish should have been his middle name. Ignoring the jibber-jabber of Lucy and the boys, he threw himself into the task, but he sensed Ellie’s presence the minute she walked back into the shed. He didn’t even have to see her to know she was there, and he hated himself for it. She was getting under his skin. Again.

He acknowledged her with a nod as she sashayed up beside him and retrieved her brush. In his head, Flynn could still hear that sleaze’s voice asking her if she was staying in Hope. Of course her answer was no, without a moment’s hesitation. Flynn was foolish all right, foolish for thinking that Ellie might have been harbouring similar feelings for him as he was for her. Yeah right. He was pathetic. What could he offer her now that she hadn’t turned down years ago?

Everything he’d overheard of the phone conversation made him despise her career even more. He hated the thought that Lucy wanted to become a part of that world too. He tried to tell himself that just because the bloke she’d been chatting to –
babe
this and
babe
that – sounded like a total tool, it didn’t mean everyone in the industry was like that. Ellie certainly seemed grounded enough. Simply returning to care for Matilda proved that, but the extra
stuff with the play, with the cooking, and with painting Matilda’s house – all that showed Flynn that her celebrity status hadn’t gone to her head. It wasn’t her fault if he was having trouble remembering the boundaries.

Maybe instead of feeling bitter, he pondered, he should be thanking his lucky stars the call had interrupted what could have turned into a very big mess.

Chapter Seventeen

‘Nice evening?’ Mat’s voice floated down the hallway before Ellie had even shut the front door.

She tried to school her smile so it wasn’t a dead giveaway of what had gone down between her and Flynn. Not that, technically speaking, anything had actually gone down, but something had shifted between them today. A candle of hope had been lit in her heart – a candle she hadn’t known was there until the moment when he’d leaned intimately towards her.

‘Yes, thank you.’ She stopped in the doorway of the living room to find Matilda and Joyce surrounded by half-full boxes. ‘Looks like you two have been busy as well.’

‘Never mind these,’ said Mat, giving the box nearest to her a good shove with one of her crutches, as if to prove her point. ‘We want to hear about
your
night.’

Ellie glanced at Joyce. Nice lady, sure, but still not someone she wanted to spill her secrets to. She shrugged and perched on the
arm of the couch. ‘Well, I got bowled over by a dog and covered in mud; we painted, talked, and painted some more; and then we had Karina’s minestrone for dinner.’

‘That soup is definitely a meal,’ Joyce said, heaving herself up off the floor. ‘I’ve begged her for the recipe but she won’t budge. And speaking of food, I must be off. The cats will be wondering where I am with their dinner.’

Ellie saw Joyce out and locked the front door for the night. ‘Shall I make us some hot chocolate?’ she asked Matilda.

‘As if I need to answer that,’ came Mat’s reply.

Chuckling, Ellie headed for the kitchen. She whipped up two big mugs of cocoa, topped each with three marshmallows and then carried them into the living room, where Matilda already seemed to be nodding off. Ellie frowned as she put the drinks on the coffee table; it was a miracle she could find a spot amongst all the clutter. At the thunk of the mugs against the table, Mat startled and opened her eyes.

‘Thanks, m’dear.’

Ellie sat on the couch next to Matilda, biting her tongue. She stopped herself asking whether her godmother was overdoing it, and pushed aside the niggling worry that there was more going on here than a broken ankle. Mat didn’t like being fussed over. And despite Ellie thinking she deserved such fuss, she understood where the other woman was coming from. Matilda was the most independent woman she’d ever met. The person she admired most. A true inspiration to the female gender. Sticking around a bit longer would give Ellie the chance to make sure Matilda recovered properly, and if she was still tired once her ankle healed, Ellie could make the doctor find out if there was anything else going on.

‘Would you mind if I stayed a little longer?’ Ellie picked up her mug. ‘Say, another month or so?’

Matilda’s smile stretched from ear to ear, but she took a moment
to speak. When she did, Ellie noted her words were slightly choked. ‘I would absolutely love that.’ She scooped up Ellie’s hand and squeezed it gently. ‘What’s brought this on? Is it Flynn?’

A delightful warmth flooded Ellie at the mere mention of his name. She swallowed, trying to regulate her feelings. She didn’t want to go getting Mat’s hopes up, or her own. ‘He has something to do with it, yes, but it’s you and the theatrical society too. I’m enjoying myself.’

‘I knew it.’ Mat punched the air in triumph, ignoring the bit about herself and the play. ‘Something’s happened between you.’

‘Not exactly,’ Ellie replied. It was perilous to talk about this but she desperately wanted to share it with someone. And in Hope Junction, Matilda was the only someone she could trust.

‘Come on, girl, don’t be coy.’

‘Okay.’ She lowered her voice, even though the closest possible eavesdropper was old Mrs Willet next door, who had hearing aids in both ears. ‘We almost kissed.’

‘Ooh.’ Matilda pressed her hand against her heart and positively swooned. Ellie frowned, she’d never known Mat to be so gung-ho about romance. Or to say ooh so often. ‘Tell me more.’