The Wildwood Sisters (24 page)

‘Oh. My. God,' was all Renee could mutter in between her laughter as she drove a little further up the embankment and parked in a vacant spot, far enough away from the other vehicles to give her some privacy when she wanted to retire to her swag. She was looking forward to sleeping out under the stars, not having done it since she'd left Opals Ridge at seventeen—and she didn't want a group of larrikins taking away that privilege by yahooing into the early hours of the morning beside her. There wasn't really anywhere in Melbourne she could enjoy a night out under the stars, other than on the roof of her apartment block, and without the country night sky, it just hadn't been worth the effort.

After helping Mick from the passenger side—as much as he would let her help him—Renee grabbed her little rucksack, groaning as the bottom of her back pinched. After spending the entirety of the day cleaning the homestead from top to bottom, she wondered if she was going to need a wheelchair by the end of the night. A few bevvies would help her muscles relax.

‘I'll go for a wander and see if I can find Hayley. I got a text from her just before I left home saying she was on her way.' She looked out over the crowd. ‘Lord knows where she'll be—I reckon half the bloody town's here.' She pulled her mobile out from her rucksack. ‘Maybe I'll try and call her.'

‘Good luck with that, Reni, there's no phone service here. Knowing Hayley, though, my guess would be she's over at the bar near the stage.' Mick pointed to the hall. ‘I'll be holding the bar up in there, if you need me. And I'll pop out here every now and then to check up on you too—your pa will shoot me if you get yourself into any trouble tonight.' Mick motioned to his crutches. ‘Not that I'm any type of bodyguard with these bloody things—although I could wallop someone if the need arose,' Mick said with a wink.

‘I promise there'll be no need for walloping anyone,' Renee said with a grin as she and Mick hugged quickly then went off in different directions.

‘Not sure if I'll be needing it or not yet, but just leave my swag on the bonnet, Reni. You crash in the back,' Mick called after her.

She gave him a wave, letting him know she'd heard him.

Renee wandered through the gathering crowd, amazed at how many faces she didn't recognise and aware that a few of the blokes' eyes were on her, while some of the women eyed her warily, as if she was a threat to their marked territory. She understood. To most onlookers, she was a newbie, and anyone new to a country town always attracted plenty of attention—good and bad. It was different when she was a teenager here—back then, she knew everybody. Times had certainly changed as the picturesque township had increased tenfold in numbers.

With the attention making her a little uncomfortable, Renee desperately searched the sea of faces for a familiar one. A firm tap on her shoulder made her spin around. Expecting Hayley, she smiled broadly, her arms going out to pull her friend into a warm hug, her smile dissolving like quicksand and her arms quickly returning to her sides when she spotted who it really was. ‘Oh, it's you. Hi.'

‘Sorry to disappoint you,' Dylan said. ‘But yes, it's me. Hi back.' He grinned as though amused by her moodiness.

And that annoyed her even more.

Then they stood there, unspeaking, pretending the band was of more interest.

Why, of all people to run into first, did it have to be him? And why did he have to look so damn hot in his black wide-brimmed going-out hat, butt-hugging jeans and blue button-up shirt, the top of it open just enough to show a sneak peek of his muscular chest. What she'd give to place her lips against its lusciousness or lay her head upon it so she could listen to his heartbeat just like she used to. She bit her bottom lip, at a loss for words, her heart bashing against her chest half because she was still mad at him and half because she always felt like this when he was near her—and that pissed her off even more. She didn't want Dylan to have this effect on her any longer. She had to move on and find another man to fall in love with, as hard as that was going to be.

Muteness hung heavily between them, the familiar song the band was belting out a slight reprieve in the uncomfortable silence. Renee hummed it to herself, needing to do something, standing still right now harder than ever. There were so many things that needed saying, so many questions that needed answering, but now wasn't the right time—but would there ever be a right time?

Dylan gazed sideways at her, his blue eyes hinting at mischievousness, a beer raised to his wisp-of-a-smile lips. He looked her up and down very fleetingly, and although he tried to hide it, the expression in his eyes let her know he liked what he saw. After leaving her high and dry only two days ago, his chivalry surprised her. Maybe the beer was helping. Either way, it made her feel good that he was covertly checking her out.

When the band announced an interval, Dylan took a swig from his beer, and then acknowledged her with a broad grin. ‘Are you here alone? I thought you were coming with Mick?'

Renee grit her teeth as she returned his smile, mad at him for dragging her out onto a limb the other day, and then letting her fall flat on her face as he allowed it to snap. Wasn't any decent man supposed to catch you when you fell? ‘He's gone inside. Have you seen Hayley Gregory around, by any chance?'

‘I sure have, I was just yarning with her about half an hour ago. She's over thataway.' He motioned towards the bar. ‘You want me to walk you over there? I could do with another beer anyway.'

Renee recalled her pa's words about Dylan keeping an eye on her and she felt her hackles go up. ‘Why, because you want to, or because you feel you have to? I know Pa has asked you to keep an eye on me tonight, but believe you me, I really don't need to be babysat.'

Dylan threw both hands up in the air. ‘Whoa down there, Miss Tetchy. Talk about having sand in your underpants.' He smiled again, his dimples prominent. ‘I know you don't need to be babysat. Like I said, I just need another beer.'

Eyeing him cautiously for a few moments, Renee shrugged her shoulders. ‘Alright then, if you're heading that way anyway, you may as well show me where she is.'

Dylan headed off. ‘Righto then, follow me.'

Walking behind him, his bulky frame blocking her view ahead, Renee's eyes stayed glued to his jean-clad butt.

It. Was. Perfect.

Damn it!
Oh well, she thought, a girl can dream. Tearing her eyes away before Dylan busted her perving, she looked across the sea of happy faces, her excitement building. It had been way too long since she'd enjoyed a country night out. ‘Let the night begin,' she whispered to herself with a wicked grin.

A few fun-filled hours later, Renee was feeling carefree and footloose as she moved her body in time to the music, the five or so beers she'd had along with the four cock-sucking cowboy shooters she'd downed with Hayley at the bar giving her Dutch courage. She had met so many wonderful people, including a few hot blokes that had tickled her fancy—although none of them came anywhere close to Dylan. She hadn't felt this happy in ages.

Not normally being one to enjoy being a bit tanked, tonight her body felt like it was floating on air and in her mind she believed wholeheartedly that she was capable of anything. Maybe tonight she should apologise for what she said all those years ago and tell Dylan exactly what she thought of him—with no sugar coating, and see what he had to say. Or maybe she should just forget about him altogether and just enjoy the rest of her night?

The flash of a camera gripped her attention and blurred her vision for a few short moments, Hayley's laughter contagious as she encouraged Renee to pose for the camera still pointed at them.

Craig Campbell grinned back at the pair of them from behind the lens. ‘Smile, ladies.'

He looked somewhat older—mind you, didn't they all?—but Renee recognised him instantly. She gave him a wave. ‘Hey Craig, it's been years,' she called out over the music.

‘Yeah, too long,' Craig replied with a smile as the flash illuminated the girls once more.

‘We're gonna be in the local paper. Woohoo!' Hayley squealed, throwing her arms up in the air.

Renee flung her arms around Hayley, giggling, as the vivid flash owned the darkness for a split second. ‘I thought he was the town copper, not the paparazzi!'

‘Yeah, he is, but he does a bit of casual work for the paper too, has for years. So give him your best side, Reni.'

Renee struck a few lighthearted poses, making sure to pout in at least one of the shots—it was all the rage these days to have puffy lips in photos, not that she got the appeal. In her opinion it made most pouters look as though they'd been stung by a bee on the lips, several times. But tonight she didn't care if she looked ridiculous—it was all for a bit of fun.

The brief photo shoot over, Craig gave them the thumbs up as he went back through the shots on the camera. Renee and Hayley huddled around him, pointing and laughing at some of their poses.

‘There are certainly some beauties in there—and a few I definitely won't be able to put in the paper,' Craig said, laughing along with them.

Renee feigned disappointment while fully appreciating that a couple of the snapshots were a little unfit for the conservative local paper. ‘Oh bugger, really? Can I buy some of them off you, though?'

‘Oh, for sure.' Craig pulled a business card from his top pocket. ‘Here's my number. Just give me a call during the week and you can pop over to my place and pick which ones you'd like. I have my own studio and darkroom so I can print them once you know exactly which ones you want.'

‘A darkroom? Isn't everything digital now?' Renee asked as she popped the business card in her skirt pocket.

‘Most of it is, but I still like to delve a little into the old-fashioned way of doing things sometimes… Photos are amazing when you develop them yourself.'

‘Righto, sounds great. Thanks, Craig.' Renee gave him a quick hug. ‘Good to see you again, too, after all these years.'

‘You too, Renee, and my pleasure—catch you two a bit later,' Craig said as he disappeared into the throng of partygoers, his camera at the ready for more shots.

Peeking across the crowd, Renee searched for Dylan's familiar hat, spotting it almost instantly. With his height and solid build it was hard to miss him. Ralph was standing beside him, his trademark smile on his face. It had been good catching up with him as well. He didn't seem to have aged a day, in his looks or with his exuberant personality. She'd always enjoyed Ralph's company as a teenager—he could make her laugh until her sides ached. He'd mentioned he was single, and had asked her if she had any nice girlfriends from the city she could introduce him to. Tia had instantly come to mind—shame there were thousands of miles putting a stop to that introduction.

As much as she tried, Renee couldn't take her eyes off Dylan, or the chick beside him for that matter. He was chatting intently to a very hot blonde, the same girl that had served her and Mick at the bar the other day at lunch at the Opals Ridge Hotel, and although she tried to ignore the unwelcome sensation, jealousy engulfed her.

Why couldn't he give her that kind of attention? She hadn't seen much of him since he'd walked her over to the bar at the beginning of the night, other than the occasional stolen glance from him across the dance floor—Dylan gracing her with a charming grin each and every time their eyes met before turning his attention back to whoever he was yarning to.

Mick had popped out once to check on her, and Hayley told him she would take excellent care of her. Satisfied with this, he had told Renee he would catch her on the flip side. That was when she had figured he'd had his fair share of beers—Mick was never one to use lingo like that. It had cracked her and Hayley up as they'd watched him wobble back towards the hall on his crutches, Mick almost finding himself upended in the garden along the way. But he had made it inside, much to Renee's relief. She didn't like the thought of having to go home to tell Pa that Mick had broken his other leg.

The lead singer of the band announced their next song in his renowned husky country drawl, an all-time favourite. Renee squealed excitedly along with the equally passionate swarm of partiers. Allowing Hayley to drag her up onto one of the three timber tables that had been pulled into the middle of the dance floor by a group of guys dressed in women's clothing, she grooved in time to the music. Hayley threw her head back and laughed while she bootscooted on the table, making it wobble precariously beneath them. All around them the crowd wolf-whistled and cheered them on, the atmosphere electric. Renee threw her hands up in the air, singing the words out loud and feeling the highest on life than she'd been in years.

A few songs later the band changed pace, as they announced their number one hit from years ago, still just as popular today: ‘I Want You'. Not a song for dancing like billyo on the table, Renee and Hayley jumped off, Hayley being snapped up immediately by one of her male mates for a slow dance. Standing in the middle of the crowd of swaying lovers, Renee suddenly felt very out of place, until a pair of warm hands slid around her waist and she was spun around and pulled into Dylan's strong arms.

As much as she wanted to, she didn't resist, the magic of the moment taking her away with him. And how could she say no to the sexiest man in the entire place? She smiled coyly at him and he returned the gesture, the skin of his cheeks creasing as he flashed her his most inviting smile. Then, swaying her as though she were weightless in his arms, his lips mimed the words to the song, his eyes never leaving hers for a second.

I wanna touch, taste you, breathe you in.

I wanna see candlelight flickering over your sweet soft skin.

I wanna make slow sweet love to you until the sun comes up.

And then hold you close to me all day long…