An Outback Affair, page 4
“Or maybe … ” Both looked up at the sound of the front doorbell.
“It’s him! It’s my Uncle Joel from Oriole,” yelled Sam, jumping off her knee and running wildly to answer the door before she could stop him.
Cassie stood, nervously twisting the sleeve of her dress into a tight knot. This was the moment she’d been dreading. She’d been hoping for a miracle. That perhaps Joel might have had second thoughts about bringing them to Oriole, but deep down she knew she’d been grasping at straws.
The very idea of facing him again made her damn nervous — Joel was too sexy for her peace of mind. And there was that dire thought of Jane’s: that Joel wanted Sam permanently on Oriole.
Sam swung the door wide open. Man and boy stared at each other. At the sight of Joel, Cassie’s heart went into fast-forward. Okay, so he was sexy and a hunk of a man, but that’s as far as her interest went. The only thing between them was Sam, and that’s all folks.
“Hi, Sam,” Joel said.
Shy now, Sam said, “Hello.” He looked down at his feet, scuffing the carpet with the sole of one red and white sneaker.
Joel knelt down in front of Sam, and took his tiny hand gently inside his, rubbing his thumb over Sam’s knuckles.
• • •
Joel was unreasonably nervous. All night he’d been thinking, what if the boy didn’t like him? What if he refused to come to Oriole? What if Cassie had changed her mind?
Now he stared into eyes the same color as his own and a fierce love for this little boy gripped him. “Great to meet you, Sam.” He glanced at Cassie and gave her a small tight smile. “Did your aunt tell you who I am?”
“Yep,” Sam declared and briefly looked at his aunt. “I mean yes,” he corrected and Joel grinned.
She moved closer to Sam. “I wasn’t sure what you wanted Sam to call you.”
“Whatever he wants.” He looked down at the boy, and from behind his back, Joel drew forth a Buzz Lightyear doll. “Here’s someone who wants to get to know you, Sam, just like I do.”
Sam’s eyes rounded at the sight of one of his favorite cartoon character. “It’s Buzz.” He turned to Cassie. “Aunty C, look, it’s Buzz!” He punched his fist into the air. “To infinity … and beyond,” he yelled.
“That’s great, Sam,” Cassie agreed. “What do you say to your uncle?”
Sam jumped up and down on his toes, clutching the doll to him, then added shyly, “Thanks, Un … um … ”
“Uncle Joel,” Cassie prompted.
“Uncle Joel,” Sam repeated.
A thousand emotions zinged through Joel at the sound of Sam calling him Uncle Joel for the first time.
An intense determination to do everything possible for this little boy filled him. He’d be the perfect uncle, or as great an uncle as he could be. “You’re welcome.” Joel straightened as best he could while still holding Sam’s hand.
He glanced at Cassie. She was young. She needed to live life. Find a man and have her children of her own. She’d see in the end that what he intended to do was the right thing for all of them. A sluice of self-righteousness. As if he were making a sacrifice for this woman and she in return, would drop to her knees in gratitude.
“He’s been excited all morning.” Cassie’s tone was reprimanding and he mentally cringed.
She reminded Joel of his third grade school teacher, Miss Lemon, who evoked up your misdemeanors with one withering glare. Miss Lemon, Joel was sure, had a third eye — a see-all, know-all eye in the back of her head.
“He thought you weren’t coming.” She pressed her lips together.
He didn’t need a road map to read the signs. He’d mucked up well and good. “I had some last minute business to attend to.” Joel ran a hand around the back of his neck. “I’m sorry, I should have phoned and let you know I’d be late. Careless of me.”
She raised an eyebrow, and it surprised him that his apology had surprised her. It cemented the fact that Cassie didn’t think well of him. So what, he wasn’t out to win favors, nor did he give a hoot in hell what she thought of him. She was part and parcel of Sam and, at the moment, he’d go along with that.
“Did you explain to your mother about Sam and me?” Her voice was courteous but distant. She tilted her head slightly.
“Yes.”
“What did she say? How did she take the news?”
“A bit apprehensive but accepting.” Better than he’d expected, really.
Her expression stilled and grew serious. “Only natural, I suppose.”
“Don’t worry. It’ll be okay.”
She shrugged, and said offhandedly, “So you keep telling me.”
• • •
Cassie’s stomach still jangled with nerves, unsure of what to expect. Sure, Joel looked decidedly handsome in designer jeans and a blue-and-white checked cotton shirt. He had pheromones to squander.
He wore a loose jacket of dark blue. His blond hair was slicked back from his forehead and held with a soft gel. He looked as if he had just stepped out of a shower.
He moved nearer to her with his handsome face and brooding eyes, and the powdery smell of bath-soap mixed with the citrus odor of his cologne assailed her nostrils.
In one breathtaking moment she imagined his mouth crushed against hers. What he would taste like? Held safe in his arms, her body caressed by those strong, work-callused, sun-brown hands.
A woman would never forget him; he’d linger in her heart long after he’d left her. Once loved by Joel Caine, all other men would fade into insignificance as if they had never existed.
His lethal blue eyes connected with hers and she thought that her head might spin with dizziness if she held his gaze too long. Her heart slammed against her breast. Her cheeks and body heated in unison.
Wow, what was happening here? Sexual fantasies in the morning? Get a grip, girl. He’ll take you to his bed in a microsecond and leave you just as fast — the same as his brother had done to Claudia.
Love ’em and hurt ’em was the Caine brothers’ motto.
With the power of sheer will, she held his gaze, but her insides quivered like a bowl of jelly.
“Feeling all right about things?” he asked as if he were inquiring about her health and not their impossible arrangement.
“It’ll be okay.”
“I’ll try to make it as pleasant as possible.”
“Don’t worry about me. I’ll just blend in with the scenery. You won’t even know I’m there.”
He chuckled. “I doubt that. I think you’ll make your presence well and truly known.” He looked around. “Should I get in anything special for Sam?”
Her voice rose in surprise. “Special?”
“Food. What he likes to drink.” He shrugged and grinned. “Don’t know much about kids.”
“He has an allergic reaction to citric fruits, and I don’t allow him peanuts, not yet, not until he’s over seven. Otherwise he eats what everyone else does.”
“I ordered some toys this morning to be delivered to Oriole. Hope he likes them.”
“You shouldn’t have troubled.”
That irritating smug look on his face made her palm itch. “Nothing much. A tricycle. Paints, books, planes, and cars. Boy toys. No biggie.”
Sam tugged his uncle’s jeans. “Are you really my uncle?”
Joel scooped the boy into his arms, holding Sam away from him, studying the boy’s face as eagerly as Sam was studying his. “Yes, I am.”
Cassie noticed a muscle clench in Joel’s jaw. He’s nervous. A faint flutter of compassion for him.
“My daddy’s in heaven with my mummy,” he said so solemnly that her heart broke.
Joel nodded. “I’m your daddy’s brother.”
The boy chewed his bottom lip. “Did you live with my daddy when you were little?”
“Sure did. And when we get to Oriole there’s a lot of things of your dad’s I can give you. And your grandmother will tell you stories about him, too.” He drew the child into his body. Sam looked so tiny, or was it because Joel was so big? “Is that okay with you, Sam?”
Time stood still. Cassie’s heartbeat had been placed temporarily in storage as she waited for Sam’s response. If he didn’t like it, Sam would say so. In all his life, the boy had never told a lie. Even when caught out in a mischievous act, Sam told the truth, and she’d encouraged him in his truth telling.
The silence was suffocating.
“Did you go away to the outback and forget you had me?” Sam asked.
“I was sad for a long time and didn’t want to see anyone, but now I want to be your uncle.”
Sam titled his head. “Why are you sad?”
“Because I couldn’t be with you.”
Sam nodded, as if in understanding. “And now you’re gonna be with me.”
Joel touched Sam’s cheek with his fingertips. “For the rest of your life, if you’ll let me.”
Sam threw his arms around Joel’s neck, and planted a wet sloppy kiss on his cheek. “Yep, that’s fine with me, Uncle Joel.”
“Me too, Sam.” Joel’s voice was husky, and his eyes became the deepest blue.
Cassie’s breath exhaled in a gush. She felt relief at the rapport between Joel and Sam. Although with the powerful aura of natural charm that surrounded Joel, it was difficult not to respond to him.
“Sam’s never been out of Victoria,” she said. “He’s never been on a plane, so all this is a big first for him.”
“Then I’ll have to make it as exciting as possible,” Joel said, holding the boy closer to him. “So he’ll remember his first trip to Oriole for the rest of his life.”
She gave a soft laugh. “I don’t think it’s something he’ll easily forget.”
She had wanted to say, “It’s you he’ll never forget. You are his uncle and in the space of a few minutes, you have become vitally important to Sam and his life.”
“Aunty C said kangaroos live at Oriole,” Sam said, vying for his uncle’s attention.
“Sure are, Sam. There are lots of animals roaming free in the outback. Are you pleased to be coming?”
Sam nodded his head, his curls tumbling over his forehead. Joel placed a kiss on his rosy cheek. “Then let’s get going, Tiger.”
“I’ll get his coat and hat,” Cassie said walking over to the chair. She picked up a pale blue parka and a blue and white beanie. She returned, reaching out to take Sam from Joel’s arms.
Joel shook his head and took the clothing from her. “I’ll do it.”
Standing the boy on the edge of the table, Joel rather awkwardly helped Sam into his coat. Sam never stopped chattering while Joel dressed him. Joel arranged the hat in place.
“It’s back to front.” She spoke quietly.
He threw her an inquiring glance. “What?”
She pointed. “His hat. You’re putting it on back to front.”
He grinned and her mouth responded automatically. “Hey, Tiger, I’ve got a lot to learn.” He turned back to Cassie. “Is he okay now?”
She smiled shyly. “He’s perfect.”
“That’s something we’ll always agree on,” he assured her. “Got everything you need?”
“Yes, I think so.”
“Everything locked and secure?”
“Yes, everything.”
Hoisting Sam high on his shoulders, Joel marched him toward the door.
“Uncle Joel,” he cried.
Joel stopped dead in his tracks. “What’s wrong, Tiger?”
“I forgot Buzz.”
“Can’t go without Buzz Lightyear.”
“He’d be sad, wouldn’t he, Uncle Joel?”
“Too right, Sam.”
Joel marched them backwards, bent down, and flipped the doll upward into Sam’s eager hands, and again strode purposely toward the front door. Stooping, he hoisted up the larger of the suitcases, glanced over one shoulder, and said, “Manage the other one?”
She nodded.
“Duck your head, Tiger,” Joel said, and left.
Cassie couldn’t explain the feeling that was now engulfing her. Trepidation fluttered in her throat and she swallowed harshly, waylaying the emotion before it took hold of her and she reneged on her pact to go with Joel.
It’s all for the love of Sam.
It was more now than her fear of the unknown and what may be waiting for her at Oriole. It was Joel and the conflicting emotions he was wringing from her. It was all so illogical, and yet somehow so right.
Confusion mingled with fear.
All she had to do was to remain remote from him. Keep on her side of the fence.
I can do this.
Yet as she looked at his fast retreating back, Cassie despaired, found she couldn’t move.
Joel called, “Come on, Cassie.”
“Come on, Aunty C,” Sam’s voice echoed.
She picked up the suitcase and grabbed her coat and handbag from the back of a chair and made her way out of the apartment to the waiting taxi, Joel, and whatever waited for her at Oriole.
CHAPTER FOUR
They boarded the plane at Tullamarine. Cassie, thinking Sam would enjoy sitting with his uncle, sat in the seat behind them, but was nearby if Sam needed her.
Joel hadn’t spoken more than five words to her since they had left her apartment and on the long drive to the airport. Sam had clung to his Uncle Joel refusing to leave his side.
Why was she beginning to feel like an alien from the planet Zora?
Everything had happened too fast. She’d had no time to think things through carefully enough.
Joel lifted Sam from his seat and on to his knee pointing to something interesting outside.
Sighing deeply, she studied the interior of the plane with commendable interest, but it was only outwardly that she appeared rational and unruffled; inside she was a screaming nut case.
She stared at the back of his head. Joel really had gorgeous hair. The special way it curled around his collar, and with those blue eyes and tanned skin, he looked like an advertisement for a health magazine.
Eat Zippy Beans and you too can end up with a body like mine.
Although you’d need more than Zippy Beans to create a body like Joel’s. His had come from working outdoors — sheer manual labor.
Images of Joel branding cattle, bending horseshoes with his bare hands, riding bareback through thick bushland on a wild brumby flashed into her mind. A Man from Snowy River image.
She squirmed. Damn, he’s not that great. She’d known sexier men, more virile men, hadn’t she? She strained her brain — it had been a long time between men. Concentrate. Yes, got him. Steve Branshaw, a hunk of a man … except he was gay, she sighed. Okay, okay, let’s think. Got it, Paul. Paul Sheffield, the perfect lover, except she’d discovered he’d had a harem of women planted around Melbourne. Bugger.
Maybe if she appraised Joel more dispassionately. Heck, he wasn’t that handsome, his nose was slightly crooked, and his hair far too long. Okay, his eyes were an impossible shade of blue. Many men had blue eyes, but his were different somehow — much more vivid, much more intense. They reminded Cassie of a painting by an Old Master where the eyes fixed on you and followed you around. No matter where you were in the room, you couldn’t get away from the disturbing gaze.
She tugged the high collar of her dress. She’d noticed the way women stared at him at the airport, as if he was the best thing since sliced bread. Not that she cared in the least, let them stare as long as they wanted. Let them have him if they dared.
A voice penetrated Cassie’s thought. She glanced up, stared vacantly at a flight attendant, then realized she was speaking to her. Blinking Cassie said, “Excuse me?”
“Is there anything I can get you? A drink perhaps. Coffee, tea?”
“No. No thanks.”
Cassie looked out of the window, wishing she had bought a mystery novel at the airport — anything to take her mind off Joel.
The calm voice of the pilot came over the intercom. “We’ll be landing at Perth Airport in a few minutes. We hope you’ve enjoyed your flight with Qantas.”
At the flash of the fasten-your-seat-belt sign, she buckled up and prepared for landing.
CHAPTER FIVE
Joel had booked them into a five-star motel not far from the airport. It would be too long a trip for Sam and her to do in one hit, he’d explained. Best they stay the night here in the motel and get an early start in the morning.
Joel unlocked the door with the magnetic key, and the porter hoisted their luggage inside the suite. Cassie ushered Sam inside the room. Joel tipped the young man and closed the door after he’d left.
“Where should I put your bags?” he asked Cassie.
“Next to the bed, thanks.”
He did as she bid, handing her the key. Cassie smiled her thanks.
“Anything else you need?”
“No, everything’s — ” she was going to say perfect, but changed her mind and said, “here that I need.”
“Order anything you want from room service.”
“Sure.”
“I want Sam — ” he hesitated as if she were an afterthought and said, “and you to have everything you need and want.”
She bit back the word “peachy.” “Thanks.”
“Well, I better get going.”
“Yeah, you’d better.”
He nodded and chuckled. “Want to do a bit of sightseeing while we’re here?”
“Thanks, but no. I’m bushed.” She glanced down at Sam. “And so is Sam.”
“Okay, have a few hours rest, and I’ll take you and Sam to dinner.”
