Red Dust Dreaming (17 page)

“Ready?” he asked.

There was no answer she could possibly give. Lizzie could lie there for Eternity and still never be ready. She nodded focusing on the square of carpet she could see from her position. Her vision was quickly filled with Caden's bare feet as he chose to work on her shoulders. The touch of his fingers on her flesh, the first contact, caused her to jump. Not that she didn't expect it but rather because she had daydreamed so often about his hands on her body and now the moment had finally arrived. Even if the reality didn't match the fantasy. Gently he worked around her injured shoulder and across her upper back. Slowly she relaxed into each fluid stroke of his hands, rendered slick by oil.

All her sexual fantasies fled in the face of pain. Not the jump-out-of-your-skin kind, more the so-bad-its-good sort. Caden hadn't been joking when he said he was a professional. As he kneaded her knotted muscles she could visualize him in a locker room somewhere working out the kinks on some beefy football player. The bliss took the edge off the disappointment he didn't have designs upon her. She relaxed, lulled by the humming of the air conditioner and the hypnotic feel of Caden's hands upon her skin.

***

Caden tried to stay fixed on his work. Lizzie's back was a mess. Hard and lumpy with protesting muscles jarred by her fall. All compounded by her bed rest and lack of movement. He rubbed his hands together, warming them before pouring some oil into a cupped palm, rubbing his hands together again; his hands warmed he began work on the middle of her back starting with large butterfly strokes. He couldn't help but notice the way her waist tapered in towards hips hidden by the towel. His hands slid along her spine and he felt her yield to his touch. He truly hadn't meant to offer to help her. The way his body responded to her meant this was a very dangerous undertaking, yet the words had popped out of his mouth before his mind had caught up with the idea. Dumb, truly dumb. And what was even dumber was the fact he hadn't taken the offer back even when there'd been a chance. Some part of him kept driving on, keen to explore the landscape of her body. Right now he wished he was the kind of guy who went for one night stands, hot brief flings. Never been his style.

His fingers slipped under the towel ever so slightly. She made no protest so he folded the towel down a couple of inches to better work her lower back. He swore she purred as his thumbs found a particularly knotty patch. He kept working until he felt the muscles give beneath his fingers. “How's your hip?” he asked, trying to keep the desire out of his voice. She was perfect. He longed to slid the towel from her and feast his eyes. If she gave one indication, just one…

“Fine,” came the muffled reply. He couldn't tell anything by her tone.

He had to get a grip. “Roll over and I'll work on the front of your shoulder, see if we can increase the mobility in it.” Sounded reasonable.

She pushed up, trying to hold the towel which began to fall almost immediately. He grabbed it and held it against her trying to help her maintain her modesty. Somehow they ended up face to face, the towel covering her waist leaving her breasts bare. He took a sharp intake of breath at their perfection, longing to cup one and feel its weight nestled in the curve of his hand. He raised his eyes to hers. They were large and startled. He could see no alarm or fear reflected there. Her pulse fluttered at the base of her throat inviting the caress of his lips.

The reason Lizzie was at Kirrkalan disappeared in the face of his desire for her. She made no move to cover herself, keeping her eyes on his as if waiting for something. Slowly he ran his hands along her arms to cup her shoulders. Still she made no resistance. His thumbs made gentle circles against her skin. “Lizzie,” he breathed before pulling her to him, her lips opening willingly beneath his. Their kiss all fire and heat as she responded.

She felt it too! This all-consuming desire which possessed him. His blood sang with the thought as he slid his hands down the long sinuous line of her back, pressing her closer. Lizzie's fingers fumbled at the edge of his t-shirt pulling it upwards, her hands seeking contact with his skin. He let her go for just long enough to rip the t-shirt off, throwing it on the floor before revelling in the sensation of naked flesh on flesh. She groaned, arching upwards and wrapping her arms about his neck. She was his for the taking.

And then the phone began to ring.

The shrill insistence of the telephone shocked Lizzie out of the fog of her desire. Her eyes met Caden's and held. All the need unlocked from deep within was reflected in the smouldering look he gave her. He made no move to answer the phone. They remained frozen in a tableaux of lust. Lizzie willed the caller to give up, to go away. She prayed the magic shimmering between them would not shatter and be lost. And then the answer machine switched on.

"Caden Carlyle this is Gerald Langtree."

Lizzie's blood ran cold at the sound of her father's voice. Clearly Caden hadn't been expecting his call either by the surprised expression he now wore.

"Elizabeth has not returned any of my calls or text messages."

Caden cocked one eyebrow in query. Lizzie shrugged. Perhaps not getting in touch with her father more often had been a poor strategy. She'd admit that. She'd also admit she'd done it to prolong the time she could stay in this bubble of happiness, however much of an illusion it turned out to be.

"If I find out you're holding her against her will I assure you I will bring the full force of the law down on your head, do you understand me?"

Lizzie drew back with shock her hands falling from where they'd rested on Caden's chest. She groped for her lost towel.

"I know you're after Luke's money and I'm telling you now you'll never get your hands on it as long as I draw breath. Luke is a Langtree and he belongs to me,” Gerald hissed down the line. His malevolence obvious from the other side of the world.

"Do you know what he's talking about?" Caden asked in a low voice as if Gerald might hear him.

How to answer? If she revealed she knew then Caden may force her to confess to how she'd come by the information. Something held her back from revealing the existence of Angela's will. The timing didn't feel right. Not yet. But how did her father know about Luke's inheritance? How did he come by that information? He mentioned in their phone conversation but she hadn't thought anything of it at the time. What was really going on here?

"Dad never mentioned a thing to me," she whispered. Not exactly a lie. Gerald had never mentioned the possibility of an inheritance. He'd always given the impression his main concern was the wellbeing of his only grandchild. She pulled the towel around her hips trying to gather the shreds of her dignity together.

"I know your type. You seduced Angela and you've probably already seduced Elizabeth," Gerald's awful tirade continued.

Lizzie blushed and looked away. Caden had seduced her. How did her father know? Was he right about Caden seducing Angela too? Two sisters — every man's fantasy. Suddenly nausea swirled in her stomach. She'd been played for a fool.

"I'm coming to get what's mine, do you hear me? I arrive in Sydney in two days' time. I expect my daughter and grandson at the Marriot Hotel waiting for me. Try anything and you will be sorry. That's Langtree money you're messing with." Gerald rang off with a resounding click and a deafening silence swelled to fill all the spaces in the room.

Lizzie pushed Caden back so she could slide off the massage table. He didn't resist and stepped back to allow her down. She hiked the towel higher to cover her breasts. Despite the fact the towel reached from her armpits to her knees the sense of vulnerability and exposure took hold. Her knees shook and goose bumps stippled her skin. What she need was a hot shower to wash away the embarrassment and shame.

"He's wrong you know," Caden said evenly.

"About what?" She hadn't wanted to ask the question, hadn't wanted to give him the satisfaction. Curiosity was a hard habit to shake.

"About seducing Angela."

"Oh!" His statement wasn't what she'd expected to hear. Relief popped its head up amongst the rubble of her heart. So Caden and her sister had not been lovers. Good to know although what possible use was the information to her now? "But you were seducing me." Bitterness tainted her words.

"Yes," he said clearly. "I was but for my own selfish ends not ..."

"Isn't seducing me in the hope you can get your hands on Luke's inheritance the very definition of your own selfish ends?" Lizzie interrupted.

"I know nothing about Luke's so called inheritance." He spread his hands wide. "As far as I knew Angela died penniless so how could I seduce you to get what I didn't know existed."

He had a point she reluctantly conceded. If he didn't know about the money... "Then you seduced me because you could."

Caden frowned. "I seduced you because I wanted to and I believed you weren't entirely opposed to the idea."

She looked away confused by his frankness. Some part of her didn't want to believe he could actually want her for herself. No one ever had. There was always some modus operandi most often getting close to her father or one of his cronies. The promise of wealth, power and status always seductive. Caden was king of Kirrkalan. He held all the power and seemed to have little need for wealth. Could he really want her?

Lizzie screwed up her courage and looked into Caden's face. She could see no trace of guile, no hint of manipulation or the suggestion he might be hiding something. In fact his expression was one of complete openness and trust. He trusted her. She had no idea why. She was the one with the secret and the father from hell. "I wasn't," she said finally.

"I didn't think so." He smiled then and something melted a little inside her, gave way. "How about you go get dressed and I'll make us a drink. I think we need to discuss Gerald Langtree in more detail."

She nodded and turned towards the door. "I have something to tell you too." The words tumbled from her lips.

"I know," he said crossing his arms over his chest.

"Really?" She turned back in surprise.

"I get the feeling you Langtrees like intrigue and secrets so I figured there's got to be more to the story."

"There is," she nodded. "You'd better make mine a double."

***

Lizzie threw her towel on the bed. There was no doubt time was running out and she'd have to make a decision sooner rather than later. The whole situation looked like one tangled mess to her. Would it have been any better if she'd confessed about the will and her role in it much earlier? No, then her father would have placed untold pressure on her. He'd already placed enough. She picked up her discarded clothes and slowly put them back on.

As she buttoned up her shirt her eyes fell on a painting she'd done in those few precious days at Yuendumu. The swirling colours; pinks, purples with dashes of orange, spoke to her of the liberation she'd felt as she'd sat side by side with Aboriginal artists and rediscovered herself. Nellie had been incredibly generous, coaxing her artistic abilities out into the open. During that day it seemed as if there was a place for her in the red dust of the Outback, as if she belonged. She'd stopped being Elizabeth and become Lizzie.

She picked up the painting and placed it on the dresser where she could see it better. Next to it sat a photograph of Angela and Luke laughing at some private joke. Her sister looked so happy, happier than Lizzie could ever remember her being. While their childhood hadn't been cruel it had been lonely. No child should ever feel superfluous to their parents' lives, an inconvenience. Lizzie sighed and stepped backwards until the bed bumped up against her legs. She sat down and contemplated the situation.

Firstly there was her father to deal with. She absolutely must call him. If he'd been serious about coming to Sydney then he'd probably be in the air right now. Still she could leave a message, reassure him she wasn't being held against her will and she'd meet him in Sydney, with Luke in tow. His dramatics puzzled her, the behaviour not something she recognised in his character. Maybe he'd changed and really did want to play a significant part in Luke's life. She hoped so.

The next big question was how much to tell Caden. She was going to walk out of this room and straight into an interrogation, especially once she revealed the existence of Angela's will. And it was time she came clean. Maybe not about the role Angela had assigned her but certainly about the will itself. He'd have questions, naturally, and she'd do her best to answer them as honestly as possible while protecting the innocent, meaning Thelma.

Which brought her to the issue of how much to tell her father. He already knew an intriguing amount but her couldn't possibly know about the will itself or she'd have come under a great deal of pressure to deliver Luke into her parents care. Better to say nothing to him for now. He'd only demand to see the will and then she'd be rumbled and the fun would begin. Lizzie wanted to be surer of her decision before she exposed herself to that kind of pressure.

Fine. She'd made a decision about revealing the will. Good progress. Now what to do about Caden? Never before had a man moved her so much, captured her mind body and heart in such a short time. There was something about the intensity of this place, this Outback, which stripped away all the layers of conventional life. A person couldn't pretend to be anything other than they were out here. There was no room for delusions. Clearly Caden had feelings for her, of some nature. Was it just lust or something deeper? The only way to find out was to march right back out there and ask him!

A laugh escaped Lizzie. Who was she kidding? Her stomach was in knots, tangled with nerves. They had crossed a boundary today, Caden and her, and there was no going back. Instead of offering her comfort the thought merely added to her turmoil. Was there any possible future for the two of them? Did Caden even want a future with her? Her hands shook slightly as she stood and smoothed down her shorts. She couldn't sit in her room forever. Quickly she ran her hairbrush through her hair, not bothering with anything else. He'd see her in her natural state, he'd seen her sweaty and hot, dusty and dirty. There was no need to hide who she was from him. There was no need to hide anymore at all.