Breakaway Creek. Heather GarsideЧитать онлайн книгу.
his eyebrows.
'The bright lights, eh? What do you do in Brisbane?'
'I work in administration. I'm on leave at the moment.'
'Then you must be good with computers. Mine's playing up this morning. Keeps freezing on me.'
'I can have a look at it if you like. It must be hard to get a technician out here.'
He grinned and sipped his coffee.
'We can't. We have to take it to them. The joys of living in the bush.'
'It's so quiet. Don't you find it lonely?' Apart from the faint hum of the refrigerator and the twittering of a willy-wagtail in a tree outside the window, the silence was absolute. It was a far cry from the hustle and roar of Brisbane.
'You city girls,' he smiled, shaking his head. Then his grin faded. 'That's what my wife used to say.'
That answered one question. Luke was the one with the broken marriage.
****
You must be crazy, Shelley Blake, she told herself later while sitting at his cluttered desk. Here she was, in the back of beyond, with a cowboy-type hanging over her shoulder as she ran through the settings on his computer. At least he smelled clean, which only proved he hadn't been working outside today. She just wished he wouldn't stand so close.
She glanced for the umpteenth time at a framed photograph on the desk. It was obvious that the laughing, younger guy in the picture was the same man who now stood behind her. Luke had one arm around a pretty blonde woman, who cradled a baby in her arms, and the other held a small boy of about two against his hip.
Shelley set the anti-spyware to scan and turned to look up at her companion. From this angle his stubbled jaw looked squarely determined in contrast to his wide mouth and full, well-shaped lips. His eyes looked tired.
'This could take a while,' she said. She pointed at the photo and took a calculated risk. 'Is this your family?'
Pain flickered in his eyes.
'Those are my boys. The photo was taken about three years ago.' He took a deep breath. 'I don't see much of them now. Their mother took off recently.'
'Oh, I'm sorry.' His obvious distress made her wish she hadn't asked. 'Where are they living?'
'In Brisbane. Back where she came from.'
Ouch. His derisive tone indicated he didn't think much of Brisbane.
'How old are they?'
'Ben's five and Jack's three. They're real little bushies. They must hate it down there.' The corners of his mouth tugged down in dejected lines.
A rush of warmth, or empathy, had her sharing more than she'd ever intended.
'I've just been through a break-up, too. Luckily there were no kids involved.'
'Were you married?'
'No, living together. Jason didn't want to get married, and I'm glad of that now.' She abruptly pushed out her chair. No more talk about Jason - he wasn't worth it. 'Well, I'd better leave you to it. It looks like the mystery of Alexander Baxter isn't going to be easily solved.'
He stepped back, giving her room to rise.
'It was a long way to come for nothing. Are you in a hurry to leave? I need to feed the weaners now, but I could take you to look over the old house later.' He hesitated. 'If you'd care to stay a couple of days, my parents usually ring on a Friday night. Mum might know something.'
'Oh, I couldn't impose on you like that.'
For the first time he grinned with real humour. It made him look almost as young as he did in the photograph.
'Did you know we're looking for a housekeeper?'
Shelley stood up and gave him a level stare. His grin was hopeful, boyishly charming - but no, she wasn't falling for it. She glanced around her at the untidy, dusty furniture.
'Nice try, buster. Do I look like the domestic goddess type?"
He shrugged.
'Do they still exist?'
It would be disappointing to leave without any of the information she'd come for. It would also be nice to spend a few days on a working cattle property - something she hadn't experienced before. The stock and station agent had given the brothers a character reference and there was a family connection.
'If I stay, I'll pull my weight, but I'm not going to be your slave. Does your brother live here too?'
'Yeah. He used to live in the cottage, but when Miranda left we decided he might as well move back in. He's got a girlfriend in town though, so he stays there a bit.'
'Okay. I'll stay for a few days. Thanks. And I'd love to see something of the property.'
'Of course.' He flashed that quick grin which transformed his face. 'I suppose you want to see kangaroos and koalas, that sort of thing.'
His mildly patronising tone made Shelley's neck prickle. She tilted her chin and looked him in the eye.
'I don't expect to see koalas. I know there aren't many left around here.'
He shook his head.
'True. We have a few roos, though.'
'I've seen the odd kangaroo or two. I did grow up in Rockhampton, remember.'
'I'm glad to hear it. So I suppose you know all about horses and cattle, too?'
She knew he was taking the micky out of her.
'Not much about cattle, no. But I learned to ride as a kid - I went to Pony Club for a few years.'
His grin widened.
'Sounds like you'll fit right in, Shelley.'
Chapter Two
Half an hour later Shelley was bumping up a dirt track in the passenger seat of a Toyota Land Cruiser while Luke drove. She'd changed out of her good clothes after Luke had shown her into a spare bedroom. It was a functional space with two single beds, an old-fashioned wardrobe and not much else. She hoped her old denim shorts, joggers and a short-sleeved polo shirt were suitable attire for a working girl.
The track took them past a dilapidated house of greyed weatherboards.
'There's the old house.' Luke took his hand from the steering wheel and waved it vaguely in that direction. 'It's a bit of a wreck now.'
The branches of a giant bottle tree hung over the house and creepers sprawled on the neglected, tumbledown fence. Broken windows gaped like unseeing eyes, caught in a memory of better times.
Shelley stared at it, imagining it as it had been a century earlier, perhaps with a horse and buggy standing outside and a group of children in pinafores and short trousers playing in the yard.
'I don't suppose there's anything inside? Any old papers, or such like?'
His brow furrowed.
'We'll have a look later. Mitch and I used to play there when we were kids. There used to be some stuff in the roof space. It's probably still there, if the mice and rats haven't got to it.'
'That sounds interesting. I can take myself if you're too busy.'
'Better not.' He glanced sideways at her. 'The place is pretty rickety. I don't want you falling through the floor.'
'Whatever you think.' Noticing one of her shoelaces had come undone, she propped her foot on the dash to re-tie it. Something made her look up and her face flamed as she followed his gaze. Her shorts had ridden up, exposing a lot of bare thigh. She dropped her leg hastily, smoothed down her shorts and brought her knees together to sit so primly her grandmother would have been proud. 'Hey, aren't you supposed to be watching the road?'
He corrected a slight wobble in the steering and grinned.
'Sorry.