The Outback Cattleman's Hired Wife (9 page)

‘
No. I
’
ll manage. If
nothing else comes of this little adventure, at least I can write an article on
how to milk cows,
’
she joked dryly.

‘
Well, I
’
ll see you
when you get back. Don
’
t forget if you want to be rescued just give me a
call.
’

‘
I don
’
t think that will
be necessary. Jared is a gentleman, I
’
ll give him
that.
’

‘
Thank you,
’
his low,
amused voice cut in.

Kirra
’
s
face coloured crimson again. She said a quick her goodbye and put the receiver
down.

Her eyes narrowed to slits.
‘
Were you eavesdropping?
’

‘
No,
’
he said, giving
her a teasing smile.
‘
I came to ask how many slices of toast you
’
d like.
’

‘
Oh.
’
Embarrassed, her
eyes lowered to the newspapers and she her outrage re-flared from when she
first came into the room. She looked up and met his eyes with a piercing gaze.
‘
Why have you opened all these newspapers at my
articles?
’

Jared folded his arms and leaned against the door
frame.
‘
To be frank … curiosity. I also thought they may
assist you with your rewrite.
’

‘
Each story is different,
’
she pointed out stiffly.

‘
Yes, I see you mainly do human interest stories.
’

She detected a touch of cynicism in his tone.
‘
When I feel there has been an injustice done.
’

‘
You won
’
t find any
injustices here, Kirra.
’

‘
Really?
’
She
glanced up at the photograph on the bookshelf, then back at him.

His dark eyebrows crowded together.
‘
I see you don
’
t waste any time.
’

‘
Was she hired help too?
’

His grey-blue eyes hardened to steel.

‘
Well?
’
She folded her
arms across her breasts.

‘
Well, nothing. I see through your ruse. You
’
re a determined woman, Kirra, I
’
ll give you that,
’
he ground
out.
‘
But you
’
ll never
dig up any dirt on me to print in your precious newspaper.
’

‘
Is that so?
’
She
exhaled heavily in frustration.
‘
You accused
me of bottling up my grief before. What about you? You
’
re doing exactly the same thing. I bet you haven
’
t spoken to anyone about your marriage either.
’

‘
And nor do I want to. There is nothing to tell. I
’
ve accepted Heather
’
s death,
’
he said flatly.
‘
Now, come and
eat your breakfast before I change my mind about feeding you.
’

‘
You wouldn
’
t!
’

‘
Don
’
t try my patience,
Kirra.
’

‘
Fine.
’

He disappeared back into the kitchen and she followed
him in, chewing hungrily on her bottom lip.

She must have sounded like an ungrateful shrew. What right did she have
to jump to conclusions? To pry? It only drew her down to his level. She was
capable of more diplomacy than that
. Surely?
But why did she feel always
on the back foot with him?

With renewed purpose, as she headed back to the
kitchen, she drilled herself to stay away from any more questions of a personal
nature. He
’
d opened his home to her. If she had to stay with him
indefinitely, it made sense not to antagonise him.  

Taking a seat at the breakfast table, she watched him
hold up two slices of bread towards her. Absolutely famished, she nodded and he
dropped them in the toaster.

It was then she noticed that there were purple shadows
under his eyes. Was he also sleep-deprived? Could that be affecting his
demeanour?

‘
I … I’m sorry for assuming the worst where your wife
was concerned,
’
she found herself apologising.
‘
You
seemed to think my husband was having an
affair, but I had no right -
’

‘
Exactly,
’
he cut in,
as the toast popped. He pulled them out and buttered them on the plate.

She waited for an apology from him, but none was
forthcoming.

Couldn
’
t he at least meet her halfway?

She shoved her spoon into the bowl of cereal, then
poured milk from the jug onto the crispy flakes. Spooning some into her mouth,
she crunched noisily to release her frustration.

When he brought the hot meal to the table, she was
feeling more even-tempered.
‘
Thank you. This
smells wonderful.
’

His steel-blue eyes softened to grey, as he sat down
adjacent to her.
‘
You
’
re welcome.
’

He ate hungrily. As he forked bacon into his mouth,
Kirra
’
s eyes were drawn to his hands. They were large and
she remember how it felt to be caught by them in the milking shed. She found
herself wanting to be held in his arms again and she didn
’
t trust herself to speak.

‘
After breakfast, I
’
ll take
‘
Blinky
’
out for some
exercise to check the state of the bridge. That should give you some peace and
quiet to rewrite your article.
’

‘
Ah. . .
’
Kirra
paused for a moment. She couldn
’
t tell him that it
was all a ruse by Elise. He would only think less of them both, so instead she
asked,
‘
Whose
‘
Blinky
’
?
’

‘
My horse. Never ask a four year old to name your
animals.
’

‘
I don
’
t think so,’ she refuted. ‘It
’
s a cute name.
’

He grunted.
‘
Don
’
t let Caleb hear that.
’

Kirra swallowed some of the delicious egg.
‘
And why not? Children like to hear that their fathers
approve of their choices. It gives them self-worth.
’

‘
How come you know so much about children?
’
He forked more bacon into his mouth.

‘
My cousin has three little darlings under six. I used
to baby-sit them often to give Gabi and Kyle some couple time.
’

‘
On the weekends?
’

‘
Yes.
’

‘
How convenient? Sounds like an excuse to side-step
your martial problems to me.
’

‘
My marital problems?
’
Her temper flared.
’
I didn
’
t let Zac down or avoid him if that
’
s what you mean … No, yes I did! I didn
’
t try hard enough to fit in with his lifestyle.
’

‘
Now we
’
re getting
somewhere.
’

The back of her mouth dry all at once, Kirra swallowed
down a gulp of juice.
‘
That was an underhanded trick! You
’
re really determined to find out about Zac and me,
aren
’
t you? Yet you won
’
t tell me
anything about you and Heather.
’
She stood, tears
burning at the back of her eyes.
‘
If you must
know, I failed at marriage. Failed miserably. I drove Zac away because I wanted
a family straight away. I hope your curiosity is satisfied. Now, I
’
ve lost my appetite so it looks like you have an added
bonus, doesn
’
t it?
’

Kirra veered around the table, but wasn
’
t quick enough to dodge his large hand that gripped
hers, halting her in her tracks.

His touch set her pulses racing. She wanted to pull
away, but he gently rubbed the inside of her wrist with his thumb, as if trying
to calm her.

‘
I didn
’
t force you to tell
me, Kirra,
’
he said soothingly.
‘
Don
’
t be so hard on yourself. Marriage is a two-way
street. From what you
’
ve told me about Zac, he wasn
’
t putting much effort into the marriage. Maybe, you
were simply incompatible.
’

Kirra
’
s shoulder dropped
and she sighed. Elise had told her that. According to her, Virgo and Aries
weren
’
t the most compatible of astrological signs. A
mother-and-son type relationship.

Kirra cringed inwardly and somehow, she knew that
Jared sensed it. His chair scraped on the timber floor, as she watched him,
stunned in the headlights like a kangaroo at dusk on a country road. He stood
slowly and brought her hand up to his chest. The narrow gorge of air between
them intensified with the same electric chemistry she
’
d felt in the milking shed.

She looked up at him through lowered eyelashes.
‘
You must think me a hard, scheming woman.
’

He half-smiled.
‘
On the
outside.
’

‘
And on the inside?
’

‘
I think you
’
re very
strong and kind, but oh so sensitive.
’
He slid
his hand so their palms met squarely, then entwined his fingers comfortably in
hers.

The intimate gesture caused Kirra
’
s pulse to escalate alarmingly.

‘
I think you could have a very enjoyable stay with me
if you pulled down that superficial veil of yours.
’

‘
And be one of your harem of nannies that you bed, then
dismiss under the flimsy excuse of neglecting your son. No nanny would do that
while you
’
re away milking the cows for half the day.
’

The words said in haste battered hard against his
rugged face. His eyes hardened to steel.
‘
Why do you
persist in finding the same faults in me as in your husband? We are two very
different people. Do you group all men in the same basket?
’

‘
I don
’
t know. I haven
’
t known any other men closely beside Zac and my
father.
’

Jared dropped his hand, the intimacy lost again to her
jumping to conclusions.
‘
Why don
’
t you sit
back down and tell me about them?
’
His voice
softened with compassion, disarming her again.
‘
I know you
’
re still hungry.
’

‘
I am hungry,
’
she
admitted and sat back down.
’
But it doesn
’
t mean I
’
ll tell you
anymore.
’