“What a complete arsehole. Fuck, nothing’s changed about the old bastard. I hope he rots in hell.”
It was no surprise Bob fumed the entire way back to his place. Nate said little, allowing Bob to vent on the short drive between properties. He was still going strong when Nate stopped outside the tiny farmhouse on the outskirts of the property where Bob lived alone.
“Thanks, mate, and sorry about all that. It just makes me so mad.” Bob unfastened his seatbelt and opened the car door.
“That’s okay. I fully understand.”
Bob turned to Roberta in the back seat. “I’m not moving another inch until you give me your mother’s phone number. She’s got a hide sending you here alone to confront that bastard.”
Roberta hadn’t spoken a word since they left her grandparent’s house. Granted, it was only a few minutes’ drive between farms, but Nate clutched the steering wheel tighter, concerned about her.
“I was supposed to find the rock and go back home so she could explain everything. It’s my own stupid fault. I can’t blame Mum.”
“Don’t care. The number, Roberta.” Bob wasn’t giving up.
The light of Roberta’s phone lit up the dark interior. “What’s your number?”
Bob rattled it off. A few seconds later, a ping signalled the message received on his phone.
Nate was surprised Roberta gave in so easily. At the very least, he expected some fight from her. From the start, she’d been obstinate and determined not to let her mother know she had the rock until she found out everything she could. Maybe she’d reached that point.
“Thanks, Roberta. I’ll let you know what happens. Now, get a good night’s sleep; you’re going to need it. How about dinner one night with my crowd? The oldies would love to meet you, and Mum will overfeed you as usual. You come too, Nate. The more the merrier.”
Roberta didn’t reply, so Nate did. “Just give her a couple of days. I’d love to come.”
“I’m sorry this happened.” Bob sounded genuine in his remorse, but it was still cold comfort. “I should’ve insisted we wait when she first suggested coming here. I knew I was hesitant for a reason. Should’ve had more sense than to expect the old bastard to change. Take care of her, will you?”
“I will, and don’t keep beating yourself up over it. When they get over the shock, they’ll come around.”
After shaking hands, Bob got out of the compact car with a weary wave and a shake of the head. “I doubt it.”
A pang stabbed Nate in the chest at how the night had gone. It was impossible to imagine life without his grandfather. He’d played such a significant role in his childhood that for anyone else to miss out on it, was unfathomable.
He put the car back into gear and drove off. Nate looked up at the rear-view mirror, stealing a glance at Roberta’s silent form. She stared out the window with wide eyes, but he hazarded a guess she wasn’t seeing anything.
Back at the lake, she got out and made for the cottage. Nate locked the car before catching up with her. The steps leading down to the teahouse were uneven in spots, and he didn’t need an accident at this time of night. He took hold of her arm, exerting light pressure, enough that she could lean on him if she stumbled. She turned large, luminous eyes in his direction. From behind wispy clouds, there was sufficient light from the moon to see she was still in shock.
After fumbling with his keys, he unlocked the front door and switched on the light. “How about you get ready for bed? I’ll make you a warm drink. One I make myself whenever I’m stressed.”
“Like, when someone pulls a weed out of your rainforest?”
Damn this woman! The barb cut, not that he would admit it to her. Couldn’t she just accept it when someone was trying to help?
He wanted to shake her until she came to her senses. Sometimes, she was so funny and comical that it made him laugh like he hadn’t for a long time. But other times, like now, she made him so angry he could scratch her eyes out. “Maybe you don’t need it. You seem to be back to normal. I guess you can take care of yourself from here.”
Nate stalked off. The niggle of the promise made to Bob would eat at him, but he’d be damned if he took one more insult from her. Shutting himself in his room, he flung off his clothes and flopped onto his bed. Having showered earlier, all that was left to do was brush his teeth. But he couldn’t move to do so. Her waspish tongue infuriated him, and he was damned as to why he cared.
One of his miracle herbal drinks would help him calm down, but his stupid mind kept seeing her beautiful curves. Her sparkling dark European eyes and how they danced whenever she laughed. He hadn’t heard her voice in song for a few days, but he brought it back to mind, recalling the few times he had or the remembered moments over the past week when he’d been close enough to the teahouse to catch Roberta and Hannah singing in tandem.
Just as he was slowly nodding off, there was a soft knock on his door. Not bothering for a reply, his eyes flicked wide open when the door handle turned and Roberta strolled in.
Splashes of moonlight struck her distraught face. “I’m so sorry, Nate. That was so rude of me and—”
She burst into tears. Nate was up and over to her in seconds. Sucker that he was for this woman, and getting worse by the minute, he put his arms around her and led her to his bed. Holding her close, she rained tears all over his bare chest, soaking into his skin and warming the spot around his heart. Odd he should feel this way. Had any woman ever driven him to be so caring in one moment and then want to tear his hair out the next?
As this dictated the caring Nate take over, he tightened his hold and kissed the top of her head. Repeatedly. Tucked beneath his chin, he felt every vibration. From the racking sobs of earlier to the small whimpers and sniffles of her nose against his chest hairs. He didn’t need a soothing drink. His eyes closed of their own accord as his body began shutting down for the night.
“Oh my God!” Roberta pushed away, putting space between them. “You’re naked!”
The curtains lifted with the breeze above his head. A chillness slid across his bare skin, raising goosebumps and another part of his body.
“You’re the one who barged into my room,” he whispered, suddenly wide awake.
Her eyes shone from her recent crying, but the paltry moonlight sneaking in from the open window showed more than just shock.
“And you sleep like this?” she whisper-hissed as though it was necessary to lower her voice in the dead of night because others might hear even though no one was around.
“Sometimes, and yes, none of your business how I sleep.” His traitorous finger led a dangerous trail from her brow, down her cheek, to her mouth, which was still gaping. Why were they such a good fit when they could be so snarky to each other? Weirdly, he enjoyed it.
“Can I?” There was a hint of mischief in Roberta’s voice, a slight quirk on her lips.
“What?”
“Touch you like this?”
He swallowed when she reached down between them—touching his arousal, causing him to choke on his next words. “If you stay fully clothed, or you need to leave. Now!”
“Scaredy-cat,” she taunted, enough to break the tension between them as she broke into a fit of giggles.
He laughed with her, his once-hard cock losing its hardness as they held onto each other. But it didn’t matter. No way was he taking advantage of a woman who was upset. There were other means to calm her down. Finding her mouth, he sealed it with his own, allowing the delicious ride to go on.
They must’ve eventually fallen asleep because Nate remembered pulling up the doona and cocooning them beneath its warmth while a fire burnt deeply where any patches of bare skin touched.
He awoke once during the night, got up to brush his teeth and dressed in his pyjamas. When he returned to bed and the warmth of Roberta in his arms, it came as a shock that he’d never slept with a woman where sex wasn’t involved. Was this even possible when presented with such a sensual woman? Why was Roberta different in every single way?
Was there a smile on his face when he thought this? Scrub that, there was definitely a smile on his face, and only Roberta had the power to instantly transform it into a frown or a scowl at a moment’s notice.
He was okay with that. They clashed on so many topics. Next week would be interesting. The state’s premier was arriving in Cairns for a cabinet meeting. They were organising a protest at the airport first and then later at the council chambers where the meetings would be held. They were desperate for a meeting with the premier, and it was Nate’s task to do everything possible to make it happen. Should he invite Roberta to come along?
With his eyes already closed and his nose nuzzling the top of her hair, he breathed in the heady scents of her warm skin, deciding to leave tomorrow’s problems for another day.