Roberta wiped down the last of the tables in the dining room as the trading day neared its end, the sun sparkling over the lake on its western side.
Hannah was wiping down the chairs and pushing them in. “We’re heading to the Yungaburra Pub later tonight for their usual Friday band night if you want to come along,” Hannah called from the other side of the room.
Oh, to be eighteen again. While eighteen was a lifetime ago for her, it might do her good, and she could drag Sally along too. Roberta chuckled. “We’ll see. If I don’t get there tonight, I’ll try next week.”
Hannah accepted her response and continued working, humming a tune Roberta didn’t recognise. She’d never felt her full twenty-seven years before. With Hannah showing all the exuberance and confidence of someone so young, Roberta could learn a lot from this driven young woman.
The only thing holding her back from joining Hannah and her young friends was the hope Nate would agree to dig up the box that night. They hadn’t discussed a time or day, but tonight suited her. Anything to get the hell away from Lake Barrine before she dug up more than she planned. Pun not intended.
“Bye, Roberta. See you tomorrow,” Hannah called, skipping down the timber staircase out of sight.
“Bye,” she replied to Hannah’s retreating back.
With it only just ticking over to three o’clock, buying groceries and having a proper shower were next on her list. She’d forgotten to set her alarm the night before and awoke fully clothed, smelling rank. It left her rushing to get to the teahouse in time for her shift. Their day was so busy she’d only spotted Nate twice from a distance. Word from Hannah was that Saturday and Sunday got busier again.
Closing the French doors of the teahouse and doing a last glance around to check everything was in order, Roberta made her way past the kitchen to the exit leading outside to the grass lawn. She spotted Natasha in her office and waved goodbye as she walked out.
She would give Nate no choice about digging tonight. Either he came with her, or she’d start the job alone. Not doing it behind his back but fully disclosing her intentions. She chuckled as she slipped next door to the cottage and made for her room. Grabbing her handbag and car keys, a fissure of energy zapped along her arms as she made her way up the uneven concrete steps that led to the top car parks. It would be worth it to see how ugly Nate promised he could get. God help her, she loved irritating the heck out of people who annoyed her, and Nate was presently right up there. Pity because the man had an amazingly muscular body verging on perfect. Downright sad to waste such a gorgeous-looking body.
It was his passion that really excited her, even if she didn’t fully understand it. Here was a man who put everything before his own life for the safety of the environment. She’d witnessed the fire in his eyes and his protectiveness over those damn trees she wanted to dig around. Could he display the same caring for a woman? Did he have a woman in his life?
Roberta drove out of the lake’s public car park, gnawing at her lip. None of your business, girlfriend, and don’t go there. Remember your mission. Find the box, get the hell out.
* * *
“What else did you have planned?” Nate asked, back turned as he snapped closed padlocks on toolboxes.
“Is that a ‘yes’?”
Nate sighed as he shooed her out, closing the door to the maintenance shed. Roberta allowed a small smile to hover at the corners of her mouth. One that Nate didn’t see, even though his irritation was obvious.
She’d returned from the local supermarket in Malanda with enough groceries to fill her half of the fridge. Now showered and with washed hair, she was feeling clean and more human. Going in search of Nate to pop the question, the noise of soft banging had steered her towards the maintenance shed. It was hard to ignore the overpowering fragrances of sanded forest timbers heavily clogging the air the closer she neared the shed. There, she found Nate finishing his day amongst tools and dust. The sight of him shirtless left her drooling.
“Yes, Roberta, it’s a yes to digging up this box.” Nate walked off, making for the cottage.
“Tonight?”
“Unless you’re too busy doing something else,” he called over his shoulder.
Roberta gulped, doing her best to ignore how the afternoon sun winked over his toned muscles. What a waste to be gone from Lake Barrine without touching them at least once. “Well, ah … Hannah did invite me to the pub. Some band night or something.”
“They’re usually pretty good. You might want to reconsider.”
“No, no. I’m all up for digging. Actually, I could fit both in if we hurry up.”
Nate stopped and turned around, and she collided with his chest. He grabbed her arm as they stumbled, leaving their faces millimetres apart. Close enough for his warm breath to fan along her skin. It only lasted a split second. Enough time for his eyes to drop to her mouth before he stepped back.
Enough time for Roberta to change her mind and throw all caution to the wind, given the opportunity. Heck! Something happened in that moment, and it wasn’t one sided. She dropped her gaze to Nate’s neck, licking suddenly dry lips.
“Er … sorry, but we can’t do anything until it’s dark when no one is about.” Nate was back to the business of digging again.
“Are you sure? I was probably close to reaching it?” She was back on track too, cursing her stupid mind for going anywhere near what her body preferred.
“Yes, Roberta, I’m sure. How about a swim?”
“But—” She touched her shampooed hair.
“What?” Nate scowled, deepening a frown.
“I just washed it.”
Nate tipped his head to the side, assessing her. “Would you really say no to a swim”—he pointed towards the calm waters of Lake Barrine where the afternoon sun shimmered and danced along its surface, waves gently lapping towards the bank—“on a hot day? To avoid washing your hair again?”
Roberta groaned. Impatient as she was to start digging, she half expected they would need to wait until darkness encroached. “Okay, we’ll do it your way. I’ll come for a swim.”
Nate backed off, palms facing out in defence. “The Roberta Mintello agreeing to do something my way.”
“Stop it!” Roberta chuckled before sobering up. “It’s only a swim and … and you know my surname?”
“I know the surname of all my staff.”
“Why? I bet you cyber-stalk, too.”
“Clearly I didn’t check you out enough.”
“That’s not fair.”
“What’s not fair? That you’re a pain in the arse and proving to be a serious problem?”
“Hey, I was going to offer to cook dinner tonight, to … thank you for the steak last night and for giving up your Friday night. I can’t be all that bad.”
Nate sauntered off towards the cottage, talking back to her. “Depends. What’s on the menu?”
“Pasta,” Roberta replied to his back, following him.
“Do I have to make the salad?”
“Sorry, you won’t have the skills.”
At the cottage front door, Nate casually turned around, leaning his hips against a huge terracotta pot, where red, white and magenta impatiens blazed their glorious colours against the stark white cottage entrance. Then he laughed. Really laughed. His face transformed into a beauty of such magnitude that Roberta struggled to close her mouth when her jaw dropped at the sight. “What’s so funny?” She didn’t think she’d said anything too way out.
Nate did a quick job of curbing his laughter and opened the front door. “Sorry, nothing. Go get your swimmers on before the sun dips too low and it gets cold.”
Nate held the door open, allowing her to enter first. She glanced warily at him, his smile dipping for a second when her shoulder brushed against his chest, and a deeper look of something passed over his face.
Only when she reached her bedroom did she expel the air she’d been holding. Holy shite. Nothing is happening here, okay?
Her hands shook as she scrambled for her swim tote bag inside the built-in cupboard. Yanking out her swimmers, she flung off her soft yellow cotton dress, followed by her bra and knickers. A delightful shiver passed over her skin, and a warmth trickled down to below her bellybutton. She put on her black one-piece before returning to her dress again, quietly swearing when her arms tangled in the spaghetti sleeves, making the task much longer to accomplish.
Calm down, girl. What was wrong with her? Anyone would think she’d never been in the presence of a good-looking man before. She found a towel and her sunnies and kicked off her shoes.
She spotted Nate waiting outside amongst the profusion of colour. Taking a closer look, she noticed that there were several terracotta pots, not just a huge one. They were all in a neat row along the front of the cottage; the explosion of vibrant colours tugged at her. Their bright mix calmed her, their beauty adding something special to the day. A memory that would be hard to forget.
She closed the front door and accepted the second inflated waterbed Nate offered her.
“Last one in’s a rotten egg.”
“Really?” She frowned. Was he turning this into a game?
Nate quirked an eyebrow, and a beaming smile stretched across his face before he strode purposefully towards the water’s edge. “Really,” he called back.
With his back to her, Roberta struggled to keep a smile off her face as she followed him. His childish manoeuvrer, in any other circumstance with any other man, would’ve had her shaking her head.
On second thoughts, she wanted to retract that. She was doing just that, but more because she was finding him such a contradiction. In the short few days she’d known him, how many sides to this man were there? Defining him using one word was an impossible task. Getting a handful of water thrown over her as she took one step into the lake ended any chance of it happening.
“Don’t!” she wailed, her body shivering to the refreshingly chilly water.
“Take a few more steps, then dive in. It gets deep quickly.”
Roberta stood at the edge as Nate flung the inflatable mattress out and dived in.
“Bugger,” she uttered, immediately apologising to the family with small kids swimming near the bank only a couple of metres to her right.
The dad chuckled while the mum assured her the water was perfect. Roberta removed her dress, leaving it on top of her towel and sunnies on the grass. Following Nate’s example, she flung the mattress as far as she could before she walked the few steps while the water was shallow and dived deep beneath its surface.
As she plunged, what she’d read about the lake came to mind. How many moons ago it formed and of its unimaginable depths. She wasn’t about to hit her head on the bottom, but she levelled out, powerfully kicking her feet towards the surface.
Filling her lungs again when she broke through the surface, she took a moment to orientate herself. Nate lay afloat on his mattress only a couple of metres away, beaming, holding onto her mattress by the tow rope. She freestyle-crawled towards him.
“How was that?” Nate asked.
She chuckled. “Enough to forgive you for forcing me to wet my hair.”
Nate chuckled, his laughter doing something to her. Hard to explain because they’d started off so badly on that blustery day barely a week ago, but it was a positive something.
“Here, I’ll hold your mattress while you climb on, and then we’ll paddle away from the bank.”
Easier said than done, but with a lot of laughter and some swearing, she was lying on top of the mattress and following Nate as they paddled away.
Roberta was content to lie on her stomach, whereas Nate slipped off, diving and resurfacing a couple of times. Gradual exhaustion from the hectic day took over, her lethargic limbs refusing to move as the sun slowly set.
She closed her eyes, allowing her body to immerse in the splendour of the surroundings. If she wasn’t careful, she’d fall asleep. Not such a bad idea until a slight breeze picked up and gently eddied over her back, causing goosebumps to rise on her skin. A reminder that a warm bed would probably trump this.
Her eyes jerked open when chilly water trickled over her arms. Almost lulled to sleep, she hadn’t noticed Nate sidle up beside her. Caught in the trap of his azure-blue eyes, she never saw something else coming either. When the warmth of Nate’s mouth touched her gently on the cheek, it burnt a hole on that spot. He drew back immediately when all she wanted to do was pull him back.
Breathlessly staring at each other, it was Nate who broke the spell with a barely audible whisper. “That was the wrong thing to do, wasn’t it?”
Roberta stupidly nodded. “Very, very wrong.”
“Oh, well, we all do something stupid at least once in our lives.” With that parting comment and the mother of all serious faces, he flipped her mattress, and she landed in the water with a splash.
Spluttering back to the surface, Roberta fumed for reasons she didn’t understand. “Nate Surrey, damn you to hell.”
“What? It’s only a bit of water. Surely getting wet again isn’t a problem?”
“No, it’s not. It’s why you did it.”
“So why did I do it?” Nate grabbed hold of her mattress to stabilise it. “No, don’t bother answering; let’s swim back. Pity, though, better to be damned to hell than heaven. We could have some fun down there together.”
“Except I’m going to heaven, just so you know.” Furiously kicking to stay upright, she grappled for the air mattress, making another effort to climb back on.
“Hah, you think?” were Nate’s parting words as he grabbed hold of the tow rope on her inflatable and tugged both mattresses towards the bank with his powerful kicks.
Oh, boy. She would end up in hell, she was sure. Lying on her stomach, Nate did all the hard work of towing them back to shore while she enjoyed every single moment.