Outback Affair: An Affair Novel (Entangled Indulgence) (4 page)

“No need for you to get out. I’ll just unload the crates and pick up Bowser, hook up the boat, and then we’ll be on the way.” He looked at her steadily in the dimly lit cabin, and his expression dared her to comment on his dog’s name.

“The boat? We have to take a boat to get there?” Jess tried to keep her voice calm, but it came out as an undignified squawk.

Alex climbed out of the truck and turned to her before he shut the door.

“No, I need the boat to check my crab traps in the rivers on the way to Cockatoo Springs.” Jess let out a breath and sat for a few minutes wondering what the day ahead was going to bring. Once boredom set in, she pulled her phone out, pleased to see the service bars were strong again. Once her email downloaded, she checked messages and sent off a quick text to Mon.

Almost there. Will call when we arrive.
Then she deleted
we
and replaced it with
I
before she pressed send. Her phone buzzed almost instantly as the reply came in.

Are u staying out of trouble?

No way was she going to tell Monica what she was doing. She would hear the screech across the ocean.

Always. Call you tonight. Ciao
.

She leaned back, yawned, and closed her eyes. The crashing and banging from the back of the truck overlaid the muffled conversation and the occasional laughter drifting though her window.

She would kill for a coffee.

A few minutes later, her wish was fulfilled when the aroma of coffee drifted through the cabin of the truck. She rubbed her eyes with the heels of her hands and reached out for the huge travel mug Alex passed through the open window.

“White, no sugar. Same as last night,” he said, passing her a coffee and a brown paper bag. “Muffins, not bush tucker, I’m afraid, but just as good. My mate Wally’s missus just made a batch, and they’re still warm. I called her last night, and she’s packed our tucker for the trip.”

“I must have drifted off,” Jess said sleepily. “Thank you.” She sat up and peeked into the paper bag, and the aroma made her mouth water even more. “Tucker? Do you mean bush tucker?”

“No. Tucker is food.”

“This will do me till we get there,” she said. “I’m still getting over that glorious meal last night.”

“I doubt it will last you that long” Alex shook his head. “We’ll probably get there late tomorrow, but if we strike any problems, we may have to camp out for two nights.”

“What?” Jess’s stomach plummeted and she stiffened in the seat. “Camp out? What do you mean camp out?”

“Do you ever listen?” Alex asked patiently. “I said last night the river is up and we’re probably going to have to go the long way.”

He opened the truck door and whistled. A quick scratching noise was the only warning Jess got before a brindle staffy jumped onto the seat and pushed his nose into her lap.

“Jess, meet Bowser.” With a soft groan, she held her coffee high out of the dog’s reach it as he sniffed around her arms and legs.

Oh, fuck, I’ve really messed up this time.

Chapter Four

Finishing the last of her coffee, Jess placed the empty travel cup next to Alex’s in the square console between the two seats. The dawn sky was light by the time Alex had jumped back into the pickup and swung it out on the main road. She turned around and peered through the back window to see what was rattling behind them, but a sheet of khaki-colored canvas blocked her view. Moving closer to the window, she stared outside at the flat, boring landscape as the sun cleared the horizon, ignoring the little dog whose serious gaze was fixed unblinkingly on her face.

Not one word had passed between them since Alex placed the dog on her lap. Morning had broken, and the sun began its climb into the vast outback sky. The landscape was monotonous, and there was nothing to look at apart from high tussock grass and termite mounds that edged the road. The red dusty road stretched ahead in a straight line as far as she could see. In the far distance, plumes of white and dark brown smoke rose in the brilliant blue sky, and she glanced across at Alex, who was intent on the road ahead. His long hair hung untidily over his collar, and he’d rolled up his sleeves a few miles back. His tanned forearms arms were bare, and his right elbow rested casually on the open window frame.

“That’s not a bushfire ahead, is it?” She pointed to the south…no…it would be the north; she was in a different hemisphere now and her sense of direction had gone completely AWOL.

“Ah, she speaks.” The amused tone in his voice fired up Jess’s temper, and she bit down the smart retort that sprang to her lips. After all, he was doing her a favor and it was his truck.

“I was drinking my coffee. It was very nice.” She injected a sweetness into her voice she was not feeling. “Thank you.”

“No, don’t stress, it’s not a bushfire. The savannah woodlands are burned off in the dry season every year,” he said. “We’re just coming into the wet now, so that should be the last of the fires once the rains come and stay.”

She nodded and turned back to stare out the window, fighting the queasy feeling in her stomach. The truck bounced over the corrugations in the unpaved road, and the noise of the motor roared through the open window on his side of the truck. Diesel fumes wafted in, occasionally overlaid by the smell of fish.

“Are you traveling okay?” Alex asked as the truck hit a dip in the road and bounced hard.

She could have sworn he was getting amusement from her situation. His voice was full of mirth, but when she glanced across at him, his expression was serious, and he was looking at the road ahead. Looking down, she tried to relax her hands, which were in a death grip in her lap, and straightened her legs out in the confined space on the floor.

“Yes, I’m fine, thank you,” she said.

Hours and hours to go.
She was blocking the thought of the journey ahead from her mind and focusing on each moment, and there were a lot of moments ahead if this was going to take a day or, God forbid, more.
Plan the article in your head, store the description of the landscape, and think about the luxurious resort waiting for you at the end.

Two days to go. How the hell did she get herself in this situation?

And a night camping in the outback?
Maybe two?

There was no way she was going to tell anyone how badly she’d messed things up this time. No one besides the fisherman and Janet from the trailer park would ever know how irresponsible she’d been. Last time she’d forgotten to book a room, she’d been in Sri Lanka with Mon and her boyfriend, Gareth, and they’d shared their hotel room with her. She grinned to herself. It sure had cramped their style having her on the sofa in their luxurious bedroom.

I can do it.

Why in hell did she decide to drive to this place? If she’d known there was a helicopter out there from Darwin, she would have caught that, and would be by now sitting around a pool, soaking up the sun, and planning how to get her interview. It probably left from the same airport she’d flown into. And then there was the problem of getting back to Daly River to sort out the rental car. As soon as she was settled at Cockatoo Springs, she’d ring the rental company and arrange for a pick up. It might cost a fortune, but it would be less bother than trying to get back to Daly River to collect it. Next time, she’d listen to Monica and get herself organized.

The truck hit another rut in the road, and her laptop case pressed into her legs. It was jammed between the backs of her knees and the floor, and she leaned forward to push it to the side.

“Put it behind the seat to give yourself some more leg room.” The laconic drawl was followed quickly by a curse. “Oh shit, hang on.”

A loud bang echoed through the truck just as Jess leaned down to reach for the laptop. The truck bounced hard and slewed to the right as Alex swung the wheel hard and hit the brakes at the same time. Her head banged against the window, and when the vehicle bounced over the rocks on the side of the road, the top of her head hit the back of the seat so hard it jarred her neck. Without thinking, she grabbed for the little dog that had landed on the floor at her feet and held him tightly on her lap. The truck came to an abrupt halt. Red dust rose in a cloud around the cabin, and she waved her hand and coughed.

“Sorry about that. That hole was filled with bull dust, and I didn’t see it coming.” Alex opened his door and looked across at her with a frown. “Is your head okay? You hit the seat with a fair thump.”

“I’m fine, thank you. It’s the dust that’s the worst.”

Alex reached into the side of the door and passed her a bottle of water.

“Hang on to Bowser, will you? I don’t want him taking off here.”

“What are you doing?” The dog began to whimper when Alex got out of the car and tried to make a break for it. She held on to him tightly, terrified he would turn around and bite her. She so didn’t do dogs.

“I’m going to check the truck. I want to make sure we didn’t do any damage to the wheel when we hit that hole.” He slammed the door, and Jess put her head back and closed her eyes as the dog’s whimpering turned into a full-blown howl. The truck swayed from side to side, and a few bangs and crashes spurred the dog onto even louder howls.

“Bowser, shut up!” The dog stopped howling and took up the high-pitched whimper again. At the same time, a stench wafted from his nether regions. Jess shoved the dog away and held it at arm’s length, turning her head toward the window as the truck began to sway. She opened her eyes and craned forward as it rocked from side to side. Alex was gripping the big bar at the front of the pickup, and as Jess watched he pushed at it again until the car rocked even harder. His shirt molded to his chest and his muscles flexed as he strained against the weight of the car.

“Can I help?” she called out. For some reason her breath caught in her throat. It was the dust, not the eye candy at the front of the car causing the flutter in her chest.

“Nah, it’s fine, thanks.” With one final push, the car stopped rocking, and he stepped back and looked down with a grin. “No major damage.”

Alex reached in through the window across Jess. As he retrieved a dog leash from behind her seat, his forearm brushed across her breasts, and she jumped as a tingle shot through to her nipples. He called the dog over to the window. “Come on, little fella. Wee break.” He clipped the leash onto Bowser’s collar and lifted the small dog through the open window.

“Do you need one yet?”

“One what?”

“A washroom break. Been a while since you finished that coffee.”

“No, thank you,” she said primly. “I’ll wait for the next roadhouse.”

Alex put his head back and laughed. The blasted dog joined in and barked until she put her hands over her ears.

His long sleeved button-through shirt was open at the neck and the corded muscles of his tanned throat stood out as he clutched the dog to his chest. He stopped laughing and grinned at her.

“Sorry, sweetheart. None of them on this road.”

“None of what?”

“Roadhouses.”

“Well, how long till we get back to a main highway?” Jess folded her arms as uncertainty curled through her chest.

“This
is
the main road. We turn off onto the back road in about another hundred kilometers.”

The sick feeling was firmly back in her stomach, and this time it had nothing to do with the odors in the truck.

…

Alex tried to keep the grin off his face. Teaching little Miss America a lesson in honesty was going to be so much easier than he’d thought. And she’d almost jumped a mile when he’d accidentally brushed against her before. He’d been peeved with himself when the blood kicked to his groin as her nipples had peaked through the silk shirt. Why not? A bit of fun wouldn’t hurt.

He shook his head and put Bowser onto the ground, pointing to the other side of the vehicle.

“If you change your mind, there’s a grove of melaleucas over there, just through the spear grass. The trees with the papery bark. And there’s a roll of toilet tissue in the glove compartment.”

She shook her head and leaned back on the seat, closing her eyes.

“Watch out for snakes, if you do change your mind.”

He walked to the back of the truck and checked the boat was secure on the trailer before he headed off into the long grass with Bowser. He picked his way carefully through the cracked and dry ground between the termite mounds across to a clump of boulders. To his surprise, the ground was dry. The way the Daly River had come up last night he’d thought the rain had been more widespread. They’d only traveled forty kilometers to the west, and it appeared there’d been no rain here at all. The weather was in their favor if that was the case. If the road stayed this dry all the way to Peppinmenarti, he’d be able to double back on the Port Keats road and save them some time. It all depended on how long the rains stayed away.

After waiting for the dog to lift his leg on every boulder in sight, Alex headed back to the truck.

Jess was leaning forward and looking into the distance.

“It’s a long way, and the road’s corrugated, but if it stays dry, we’ll take the short cut.” Alex opened the door and lifted Bowser into the truck. The dog scurried across the seat and jumped straight onto Jess’s lap, trailing red dusty footprints across her pants. She scowled.

Miss America was in a fine mood this morning.

“There’s a packet of dog snacks in the glove compartment.” When Jess didn’t move, Alex reached across in front of her, deliberately brushing his arm against her knees before he opened the compartment. Bowser’s ears pricked up as the packet of liver treats rustled. A dollop of slobber hung from his jaw as he sniffed the air.

“Ew.” Jess pushed him off her lap, but she wasn’t quick enough. The slobber dropped onto her forearm, and she wiped it on her white pants.

“Oh, how disgusting.” She crossed her arms, and the silk strained across her generous breasts.

Alex laughed. “Sorry, he does have some bad habits. He’s old enough to know better, but he’s never learned.”

The look she gave him showed she had begun to place him on a similar social scale as the dog. He was getting under her skin already, and he hadn’t even tried.

Good.

Jess didn’t reply as she scrubbed her arm, smearing a wet patch onto the fabric of her pants. Finally, she heaved a big breath and turned to him.

“So how long will that take? Will we get there today if we go the short way?” She pushed the dog away and brushed at the marks on her legs.

“No, we’ll still have one night under the stars.”

She pursed her lips. “There’s no need to make it sound like a holiday. I’ll do that when we get to the resort. So tell me about it. Why is it so far from everywhere?”

Alex looked across at her, considering how much to tell her. He could tell her a little about the resort, and she could do her article, if that was what she was really here for. But no interview with him. She wouldn’t ever know who he was. When they stopped for lunch, he’d call Mitch on the satellite phone and see whether the first of the rains had hit Cockatoo Springs last night and prime him about keeping the Alessandro Ricardo bit quiet when they arrived. One night should be enough to teach Miss America her lesson about survival in the outback and deceiving people to get what she wanted.

“It’s on the edge of what they call the Kimberley region, one of the last remaining remote areas in Australia. It’s a base for seeing lakes, diamond mines, and exploring the aboriginal culture. The bush tucker school started up a couple of years ago.”

“I heard they’ve snaffled one of the top London chefs to run the school.”

“Yes, Clayton Bardi is an Aboriginal who was raised in the Kimberley region, and he trained as a chef in Darwin before moving to Europe and taking the restaurant world by storm.” He grinned at her. “Alessandro pulled a real coup getting him for the school.”

“So tell me about Alessandro. Is he as elusive as they say? And why, when he’s built up such a great school? Is he a chef, too or just the owner?”

“Look.” Alex leaned across and pointed out her window. “Emus.” He started the truck and diesel fumes entered through his window in a puff of black smoke.

“You might be used to this.” She waved her arm and pointed a red manicured finger to the large birds running across the bare red dirt. “But it’s a very different experience for me.”

“Hmm, your trip from Broadway to LA wasn’t quite as rough as this?”