BRODY DROPPED the phone into the cradle, then pushed back in Callum’s desk chair, linking his hands behind his head. He hadn’t bothered to pick up his messages on his mobile phone since reception in Bilbarra and at the station was nonexistent. But remotely checking the voice mail of his home phone at his apartment in Fremantle had brought an interesting development.
Cursing softly, he closed his eyes, a tightly held breath escaping his chest. When he’d left Fremantle, the team doctors had assured him there was no chance he would ever play football again. But now, a doctor in Los Angeles had developed a surgery that offered a way to reconstruct his bum knee.
Why now, why after he’d resigned himself to his fate? Why even tempt him with the possibility of regaining everything he’d lost? Brody knew it would be a long shot at best. And even if the surgery was successful, there’d be months, maybe a year or two, of rehab. Was he really willing to put in the time, just for another chance to play?
He didn’t really have a choice. Brody had never been cut out for station life. The problem was he didn’t have any options beyond football and stockman’s work. He could invest in a business before he retired, but he wasn’t sure what he wanted to buy. Or he could go to university and learn something new, but he was too old to go back to being a student.
“You never were one to plan ahead,” he muttered to himself.
“Hey, dinner is on the table,” Callum said, poking his head in the door. “Best be quick or Davey’ll snag the seat next to your girl.”
“She isn’t my girl,” Brody said, running his hand through his hair.
Callum shrugged. “I’m sure the boys will be happy to hear that. They’ve been carrying on like pork chops since she and Gemma arrived.”
“All right, she is my girl. For now. And I expect that pretty Irish thing won’t be spending much time with the boys, either. I see the way you stare at her. Explain to me again what she’s doing here?”
“Research,” Callum said. “She’s working for some distant relative of ours on a family history. I guess one branch of the family left Ireland for the States and another branch came here. She’s been going over all the old records for the station.”
“What does that have to do with family history?” Brody asked.
“I don’t know.” He drew a deep breath. “I don’t really care. As long as it keeps her here.”
“Maybe she really fancies Teague. He’s always been the looker in the family.”
“Teague’s got something else going,” Callum murmured. “I was up early this morning and I saw him come in just before sunrise. There’s not an available woman, besides Gemma, Payton and Mary, within fifty kilometers of this station, but he sure looked well satisfied.”
“Maybe he’s clearing the cobwebs at the brothel, or with a married lady,” Brody said.
Callum shook his head. “Teague wouldn’t do that. He’s too bloody honorable. And why would he when he can usually have any woman he wants?” Callum paused. “I’m just worried he—”
“What?” Brody asked.
“I heard Hayley Fraser’s back on her grandfather’s station. Teague’s always been a bit jelly kneed when it comes to her. First love and all that.”
“Marrying Teague off to Hayley would solve all your problems.” Brody teased. “The Frasers would be family, and family don’t sue family.” He pushed away from the desk. “If that’s who he’s messing with, he should be encouraged, don’t you think?”
Callum cursed softly. “And maybe Fraser is using his granddaughter to mess with us,” he shot back. “Did you ever consider that? Maybe he thinks if he can’t get the land in court, he’ll get it another way.”
“How?”
“I don’t know. Blackmail. Extortion. Fraser will go after that land any way he can. I just hope Teague doesn’t get caught in the crossfire.”
“Come on, Cal, you’re talking crazy now. This feud has gone on for so long that nobody can see straight.”
“I’m not going to surrender to Harry Fraser,” Cal said. “That land belongs to the Quinns and we’re not going to lose it while I’m in charge.” He nodded his head. “Come on, dinner is ready. Mary won’t wait.”
Brody stared after him, then slowly stood. There were times when Brody wondered how Cal handled all the pressures of running the station. So many people depended on him. His parents took a share of the station income. Then there were the stockmen who expected to be paid. Teague’s practice wouldn’t make decent money for a few years, so he traded vet services for room and board. And now Brody was sponging off Callum. From now on, he’d make a better effort to pull his own weight.
The kitchen was already noisy when Brody walked in, filled with the usual dinner guests—the stockmen, Teague and Mary, and now Gemma and Payton.
With women at the table, the conversation had become much more civilized. Brody dislodged one of the jackaroos from the chair next to Payton, then sat down beside her. Unlike the majority of the men, Brody unfolded his serviette and placed it on his lap instead of stuffing it down the front of his shirt.
“What exactly is a B and S?” Gemma asked.
“Bachelors and Spinsters Ball,” Teague explained as he grabbed a piece of bread and slathered it with butter. “All the unmarried people get together for a weekend of silliness. If you’re not an Aussie, I don’t think I’d recommend it. Foreigners might not have the fortitude to survive the weekend.”
“But it sounds like fun,” Payton said, leaning forward and bracing her elbows on the table. “I always loved balls and dances and cotill—” She stopped short, as if she’d suddenly revealed too much. Forcing a smile, she continued, “Is it formal or semiformal?”
“Tell her, Teague,” Brody insisted, chuckling to himself. Though Payton hadn’t said much, she had revealed something of value this time out. She’d either enjoyed a high-class upbringing or she was a professional princess. He’d never known a single person who’d been to a real ball.
“It’s not really a ball, the way you’re thinking,” Teague explained. “And by silliness, I mean debauchery.”
“It’s more like a big outdoor party,” Callum explained.
Teague nodded. “There’s music and drinking and…well, the whole idea is to get pissed, have a good time and hopefully enjoy a shag at the end of the night.”
Gemma and Payton looked at each other, shocked expressions on their faces. “Have sex?” Payton asked.
Teague nodded. “Yeah, I guess that’s the point. Lots of blokes bring their swag along for just that purpose. Life gets real lonely in the outback.”
“What is swag?” Gemma asked. “Money? Do you pay for sex?”
“It’s a sleeping roll,” Brody explained. “Camping gear. Believe me, you don’t want to go to the B and S. It gets feral.”
“Filthy is a better word for it,” Mary said as she set a bowl of peas next to Brody. She took her spot at the far end of the table. “If you don’t want to get dirty or pawed, I wouldn’t recommend it. And the loos are disgusting.”
“I heard they’re going to do something about that,” Callum commented. “The organizers reckon they’ll get a better class of sheilas if they guarantee clean toilets. They’re going to hire someone to keep them tidy.”
“I remember last year, Jack made his own loo with a milk crate and a dunny seat,” Teague said. “All the girls were wild for it. He’d let ’em use it, then try to charm them out of their grundies. Such a player, our Jack.”
The lanky stockman shook his head, his long hair falling into his eyes. “I won’t be able to compete with trailer toilets,” Jack said glumly.
“It might be fun,” Payton said. She turned to Gemma. “What do you think? When in Australia, do as the Aussies do?”
Gemma laughed. “We’d have to get something nice to wear.”
“I have dresses,” Payton said. “I need work clothes. I can’t wear Davey’s castoffs forever. Not that I don’t appreciate the loan,” she said, giving the kid a warm smile.
“I have to fly to Brisbane in a few days. I could take you shopping,” Teague offered.
“Hang on there,” Callum interrupted. “Gemma and Payton are not going to Bachelors and Spinsters.”
“We won’t participate,” Gemma said. “We’ll just go to…observe. Think of it as sightseeing. Or anthropological research.”
“If you want to see the real sights of Australia, I’ll take you,” Teague said. “Queensland is beautiful from the air.”
“There’s an idea,” Callum said. “You’d be much safer in a plane piloted by our brother than at Bachelors and Spinsters.”
Brody slipped his hand beneath the table and smoothed his palm along Payton’s thigh. “We could always send Mary to the ball. It’s about time she got off this station and had a bit of fun. There are plenty of blokes who’d fancy a dance with our Mary.”
The older woman’s cheeks turned bright red and she hushed the laughter around the table. “Maybe I will,” she said, giving them all a haughty expression. “I’d venture to say I could outdance all you boys.”
The rest of the dinner conversation focused on the sights that every visitor in Australia needed to see, the Bachelors and Spinsters forgotten. Everyone at the table had an opinion about the finest tourist sights, both in and outside of Queensland. By the time they’d finished dessert, Teague had a long list, starting with a trip to Brisbane.
As Mary began to clear the table, Brody pushed back, then slid Payton’s chair out for her. The rest of the hands looked at him in disbelief. “What are you all gawking at? Some of us here have good manners,” Brody said.
The men quickly scrambled to their feet and rushed to Gemma’s chair, but Callum waved them off. In truth, Brody’s actions had nothing to do with manners. He wanted Payton all to himself and the faster that happened the better. But she seemed determined to keep him waiting.
“I’m going to help Mary clean up,” she said, taking his plate and hers.
“Go along with you now. I have all the help I can handle,” Mary said. “Davey promised to lend a hand.”
Brody squeezed her elbow and pulled her along, out the backdoor to the porch that ran the width of the house. He found a dark corner and pushed her back against the house, then kissed her long and hard, his hands trapping her arms on either side of her head, his hips pressing into hers.
“I’ve been wanting to do that since I sat down next to you.” He groaned.
Payton clutched the front of his shirt, then pushed up onto her toes and kissed him back. “Me, too,” she said breathlessly. “I know where we can go. Someplace private.”
This time, she pulled him along. They headed toward the stables, now dark and silent. When they got inside, Payton fumbled around in the gloom. “There’s a flashlight here somewhere.”
Brody grabbed it from a shelf above her head and flipped it on, holding it under his chin. “It’s called a torch,” he said.
Payton held out her hand and he gave it to her. They made their way down the length of the stable to an empty stall. She slid the door open and stepped inside. To Brody’s surprise, she’d laid blankets over a mound of straw and arranged a few bales for seating.
“You did this?”
Payton nodded. “When you left to take the phone call. I figured we wouldn’t have any privacy in the bunkhouse with Gemma there.”
“And what do you plan to do with me once you’ve lured me inside?” he teased.
“I think we should get to know each other a little better,” she said. She caught the front of his shirt and pulled him toward her. “There’s so much I don’t know about you. So many questions I have to ask.”
“You want to talk?”
She nodded.
“I don’t know anything about you,” he said, smiling down at her. “Tell me something. Anything”
“My birthday is August tenth,” she said. “I’m going to be twenty-six.”
“Something more interesting,” he demanded, his breath warm against her mouth.
“I broke my arm when I fell off my horse. I was seventeen. I had to have surgery.” She pointed to her elbow. “I have a scar.”
He ran his fingers through her hair and she closed her eyes and tipped her head back. “Something more intimate,” he urged, pressing his lips to her throat.
“I lost my virginity in a stable. The Grand Prix in 2001. A month before I broke my arm. I was seduced by a Brazilian stable hand with the most beautiful blue eyes.”
“Funny,” Brody replied. “I lost mine in the back of my mother’s car after footy practice. I was fifteen and she was older. Eighteen, if I recall.”
Payton worked at the buttons of his shirt and when they were all undone, she looked up at him. “What else?”
Brody chuckled. “I think we can leave the questions until later.”
“So you know what you’re doing?” she whispered.
Somehow, he found her question incredibly intriguing. “Yes,” he replied as she slid his shirt over his shoulders. “I know exactly what I’m doing. Do you?”
She nodded. “Close the door.”
Brody moved to do as she asked, then froze. Hell, he didn’t know what he was doing. He hadn’t even bothered to bring along protection. “Sorry,” he said, turning to face her. “Wait here. I’ll be right back.”
He tugged his shirt back on, then took the torch from her hand. He jogged back to the house and when he got to the kitchen, he found Mary sitting alone at the table, reading a magazine and sipping a cup of coffee.
“Back so soon?” she asked.
“It’s a little chilly out. I need to get a jacket for Payton. Wouldn’t want her to catch a cold.”
“You’re a gentleman,” she said, glancing up. “And I hope you’ll use a condom. Safe sex and all.”
Brody stopped short. Mary had slipped into the role of mother to Callum and Teague after their own mother had moved off the station. And now that Brody had returned, she’d welcomed him as a surrogate son and was equally as protective. “Yes, I won’t forget that. Not that it’s any of your business.”
After retrieving the condoms and a jacket from his room, Brody jogged back out to the stables. He found Payton standing at the stable door waiting.
“What was so impor—” She stopped when he held up the string of three condoms. “Oh. Well, that’s probably a good idea.”
He drew her into his arms and they stumbled toward the stall. After they stepped inside, Payton pulled the door closed. The light from the torch, when reflected off the walls of the stable, was just enough to see by. Suddenly, he felt nervous, just as he had the first time he’d been with a girl.
This was silly. There had been plenty of women in his life since then. But none of them had ever affected him the way Payton did. Was it because she was still a stranger? That couldn’t be it. Or was it because she seemed more exotic, different from the women he usually took to his bed?
She was well educated, he knew that much about her. Though she chose to work in a stable, Brody suspected that she’d probably never done a hard day’s work in her life before arriving at the station. And there was the sense that Payton Harwell was the kind of woman who wouldn’t give a guy like him a second glance out in the real world. She was seriously out of his league.
So why was she here, trying to seduce him? What did she really want from him beyond having a shag? Brody stood in front of her and cupped her cheek in his hand. Was it just an undeniable sexual attraction they shared? Or was it more?
He’d find some of his answers in her touch, in the feel of her body. And the rest, he’d leave for later. Spanning her waist with his hands, he pulled her body against his, then reached down and drew her leg up along his hip.
Her breath caught in her throat as he stared down into her eyes. Burying her fingers in his hair, she fixed her gaze on his mouth. “Well, then,” she murmured, “I guess we’re both ready now.”
PAYTON ARCHED against the stable wall, reveling in the feel of Brody’s hands on her body. It was so simple to want him. She didn’t even think before falling into his arms. Maybe there was something in the water here in Australia. Or maybe it was just the man, Payton mused.
Something had changed inside her. For such a long time, she’d tiptoed through life, afraid to make a mistake, fearful that she might disappoint her parents. She’d been their only child, her difficult birth the cause of her mother’s inability to have another baby. So there’d been a lot of pressure for her to be perfect.
But from the moment she’d hopped on that flight in Fiji, she’d felt a burden lift from her shoulders. Her parents would never forgive her, so there was no use trying to appease them. She could be whoever she wanted to be now. And she wanted to be wild and passionate, a woman who took chances and lived life.
She looked up into Brody’s eyes. This was what she wanted, and not just his gorgeous face or his beautiful body, his penetrating gaze or his playful smile. He was what a real man was supposed to be—strong, confident and just a little bit dangerous. His muscles were hard and his hands rough.
Was that what she’d been looking for? Payton wondered. A man who had the power to possess her completely? Except for that very first time, she’d never made love outside the confines of a bedroom. But here she was, in a stable again, anxious to shed her clothes and feel him move inside her.
Here, everything seemed so much more real, more intense. She didn’t feel sheltered and protected anymore. Instead, she’d become wild and uninhibited, like this land and the people around her, taking pleasure in the simplicity of everyday life—and everyday desires. This was her chance to start again. The ties to her past were gradually fraying.
Drawing a deep breath, Payton kissed him, this time making certain he understood her need. She slowly let her leg drop down along his hip, until she stood squarely in front of him. Then she tore at the buttons of his shirt.
He was as anxious as she was to get rid of the garment and a moment later, it lay on the straw at their feet. Payton ran her trembling hands from his shoulders to his belly and back up again. Then, she leaned forward and pressed a kiss to his warm skin, just below his shoulder.
What began gently gradually turned desperate. With every kiss, every caress, Payton wanted him more. He found the hem of her shirt and tugged it up, the fabric bunched in his fists as his hips pinned hers against the side of the stall. Slowly, Brody sank lower until his mouth was on her bare belly.
Payton’s fingers furrowed through his hair and his lips trailed higher. He pulled at the lacy bra she wore and when his mouth captured her nipple, Payton cried out in surprise. A wave of sensation washed over her and for a moment, she wasn’t sure she could stand.
Holding her tight, Brody tumbled them onto the blankets, pulling her on top of him. His fingers worked at the elastic that held her hair in check, freeing it to fall like a curtain around them both, and then he yanked her shirt over her head.
Payton sat up, straddling his hips, and ran her hand through her hair. Reaching behind her, she unhooked her bra and shrugged out of it. A tiny smile played at the corners of her mouth as she saw his expression shift.
“God, you are beautiful,” he murmured, smoothing a hand over her shoulder to cup her breast. He rubbed her nipple to a hard peak and Payton closed her eyes. She didn’t want to wait any longer. He could seduce her slowly some other time. Right now, she needed to satisfy a craving deep inside of her.
Payton pushed to her feet, standing over him, her gaze fixed on his. She kicked off her shoes, then slowly shimmied out of her jeans. There wasn’t any hesitation or any insecurity. She knew exactly the effect she had on him.
She reached out for him and pulled him up beside her. Her fingers worked at his belt and then his zipper and when he was standing in just his boxers, Payton let out a soft sigh. “That’s better,” she said.
He reached out and wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her against his body. Brody’s mouth came down on hers, his kiss deep and demanding. His hands skimmed over her. He knew exactly where to touch to make her ache with desire.
They fell back onto the blankets, Brody rolling her beneath him until his body was stretched out over hers, his hips cradled between her thighs. The delicious sensation of his weight sent a shiver through her limbs.
There were a lot of things Brody said that Payton didn’t quite understand. They came from different worlds, and yet their desire for each other needed no translation. Her pulse racing, his hands searching, the anticipation growing between them until it was almost too much to bear.
As he moved above her, his shaft hard between them, Payton remembered her first time and the strange mix of fear and desire and excitement she’d felt. It was like that now with Brody, as if she were just a teenager, still in possession of her virginity.
She sensed this experience wouldn’t be like anything she’d ever had before. He was different. But even more important, she was different. Something inside her had changed the moment she’d run away from her wedding. And it was time to see exactly what it was.
However, Brody seemed intent on taking his time. He smoothed his hands over her bare skin, sending shivers of sensation coursing through her body. His lips drifted lower until he drew her nipple into his mouth again.
Payton couldn’t take it anymore. Holding him close, she rolled on top of him. Then she straddled his hips, feeling the hard ridge of his cock between them.
“We can do it that way, too.” He grinned.
She reached for the condoms lying on the blanket next to them. His erection pressed out against the cotton fabric of his boxers, but she didn’t take the time to pull them off. The need to feel him inside her had overwhelmed any thought of seduction.
After tugging the waistband down, she sheathed him, then drew her panties aside. A moment later, Payton slowly sank down on top of him, closing her eyes and holding her breath until he’d buried himself completely. She’d never taken control like this, but she knew exactly what she wanted and how it would feel.
Liberated, she thought as she slowly released her breath. Sex had always been an obligation with Sam, but now it was a basic need, a desire so strong that she’d lost any sense of propriety.
When she opened her eyes again, he was staring at her, passion burning in his gaze. “Don’t move,” he warned.
“I have to move,” she replied with a slow smile. “That’s the way it works. At least where I come from.” She rose on her knees, then slowly lowered herself again.
“Oh, God, this is not going to last long if you can’t follow directions.”
Payton leaned forward and kissed him softly. “What is it they say? Just lie back and think of queen and country?”
Brody grabbed her hips and held her still. “Australia is a constitutional democracy,” he said.
“I don’t care,” Payton replied as she rocked forward, ignoring his plea. “We can discuss politics later.”
What began slowly and purposefully soon dissolved into a frantic need to satisfy. Brody wasn’t as close as he claimed and drove into her again and again, their bodies straining.
Payton felt the beginnings of her release grow inside her, the urge to surrender more intense than she’d ever experienced in the past. She closed her eyes and focused on the feel of him, the wonderful sensations that their coupling created in her body.
His hand touched her face and he drew her down again until their lips and tongues met. It was the kiss that sent her spiraling over the edge. The orgasm came as a complete surprise at first and then Payton was forced to let go, to surrender to the powerful shudders and spasms. She collapsed on top of him, and a moment later Brody found his own release, driving deep inside her, his body tense and then trembling.
They lay together for a long time, gasping for breath, neither one of them speaking. Payton wasn’t sure what to say. Thanks were probably in order, considering she’d never experienced an orgasm so powerful. But then, this was only their first attempt. What would subsequent seductions bring?
“That’s never happened before.”
He gently pushed against her shoulders until their eyes could meet. “You’re kidding, right?”
She felt a warm blush creep up her cheeks. If she was liberated enough to make love to a man she barely knew, then she should be able to express her desires. “I mean, it’s happened, but not in that way.”
He stared at her, a perplexed expression on his face. “Well, that’s good, then.”
“Yes,” she said, smiling. “Maybe we could do it again?”
Brody chuckled. “I think we might have to wait just a bit.”
“A bit? What is that in Australian? Because in American that means a minute at the most.” She reached down and ran her fingers along his still-rigid shaft, pulling the condom off along the way.
Brody groaned as he clenched his teeth. “A minute. Maybe two.” His breath caught in his throat. “Maybe less, if you’re very gentle.”
BRODY WASN’T SURE of the time. It was late. After midnight. He and Payton had chosen conversation over sex and she was curled up against him, her leg thrown over his hips and her cheek resting on his outstretched arm.
The batteries on the first torch had faded, but Brody had run out and gotten another. For now, they relaxed in complete darkness. Though he loved to look at her, he was just as content to communicate through touch. Her body was made for his hands, her skin so soft and her curves like a landscape to explore.
“We’d probably be more comfortable in my bed,” he said, smoothing his hand over her tangled hair.
“We can’t,” she said.
“Why? There’s nothing wrong with what we’re doing.”
“I know. I’m not ashamed. It’s just…”
“What?”
“I’m an employee here and I should probably try to behave myself.” She pushed up and grabbed the torch, then shined it on his face. “Besides, this is much more exciting, don’t you think?”
“Exciting, maybe.” Brody chuckled, holding up his hand. “But not nearly as comfortable.” He rolled to his side and pulled a piece of straw from the blanket beneath him.
She sat up beside him and brushed her hair over her shoulder. With a lazy caress, she smoothed her hand over his belly. “When I saw you in the cell next to me, I thought about what you’d look like without your clothes.”
Brody gasped, a laugh slipping from his lips. “Really?”
She nodded. “You look different than what I imagined.”
“Different bad or different good?”
“Good,” she said. Her fingers drifted lower, running along the length of his thigh. He watched, surprised at how such an innocent action could so easily stir his desire. He loved the feel of her hands on his body. As far as he was concerned, she could take whatever she wanted from him. He was willing and quite able to satisfy whatever need might arise.
Her fingers paused when she reached his knee and Brody sucked in a sharp breath. He knew it was ugly. The scars were still sharply defined, to the eye and to the touch. “What happened?” she asked.
He didn’t want to tell the story again, especially not to her. It had been a foolish mistake that had changed the entire course of his life. But then, that course had led to her, hadn’t it?
“I tore up my knee in a motorcycle accident,” he said. “It’s not nearly as bad as it looks. It happened a long time ago. I barely even think about it anymore.” At least that was the truth, he mused.
She bent over him, her hair tickling his thigh, then pressed her lips to the scar. “There. All better.”
Brody chuckled softly. “Yes. That does make things feel much better.”
She pushed up on her hands and knees and crawled on top of him. In the soft light from the torch, Payton looked like some ancient goddess, her perfect skin gleaming like marble. He could imagine how a woman like her could drive men into battle for her favors. He was already lost and he’d only known her a few days.
“Any other interesting scars?”
“What exactly are you looking for? Defects?”
She picked up the torch again and shined the light on the tattoo on his right biceps. “What is this?” She rubbed her fingers over the inked skin.
“Nothing, really. Just something tribal.”
“I have a tattoo,” she said.
Brody pushed up on his elbow, stunned by the admission. “Where?”
She pointed to her ankle and he took the torch from her and held it there. “I don’t see anything.”
“There. It’s that red dot right there.”
“That’s not a tattoo, that’s a freckle.”
“No, it was supposed to be a tattoo. But I chickened out after just a few seconds.”
“Because it hurt?”
“No. Because I was afraid of what my parents might say. And my—” She smiled. “My boyfriend.” She shook her head. “There were a lot of things I thought about doing and then never followed through on. Spontaneity was not something that was encouraged by my family.”
“Tell me about this boyfriend,” he said.
“That was a long time ago.”
“What would they think of you now, lying here naked in a stable with me?”
“They’d probably have me committed.”
Brody reached out and picked up her hand, then pressed it to his lips. “I wouldn’t let them take you,” he said. “You’d be safe with me.”
A winsome smiled touched her lips. “I’m not sure safe is the right word.”
Brody leaned forward and pulled her into a long, lingering kiss. “Will you spend the night with me?” he whispered.
“Here?”
“Wherever you want. Here is good.”
“Gemma is probably going to wonder where I am.”
“I think Callum is keeping her occupied,” Brody assured her.
“The same way you’re keeping me occupied?”
He shook his head. “I expect my brother has his own talents. He’s—” Brody stopped short when a sound from outside the stall caught his attention. He reached over and switched off the torch, then pressed a finger to Payton’s lips.
“What is it?” she whispered.
“Someone is out there.”
The sound of horse’s hooves on concrete echoed through the silence and Brody got to his feet and moved to the door of the stall. A moment later a light flicked on in the tack room, illuminating the interior of the stable enough to see who had intruded.
Payton stepped to his side, wrapped in one of the wool blankets, and peered out through the bars on the top edge of the stable door. “Who is it?”
“Teague,” Brody whispered.
“What’s he doing?”
“I think he’s saddling his horse.”
“Where is he going to ride in the dark?”
“Hell if I know,” Brody said. He might guess where his brother was going. Hayley Fraser was back on Wallaroo Station. One plus one equaled two.
Brody thought about what Callum had said earlier. Family loyalty aside, whatever Teague was up to was his business and no one else’s. Just like what went on between Payton and him didn’t involve his brothers. They were adults now, and they made their own choices. “He’s probably riding out to check on the herd,” Brody said.
“Alone?”
“Yeah. Why not?”
They listened until the stable was once again silent, the light from the tack room left burning by his brother. Then Brody turned and tugged the blanket off of her. She squirmed playfully as he ran his free hand from her belly to her breast. “We’re alone again,” he said.
“We should get some sleep,” Payton murmured.
Brody groaned as he kissed his way to her nipple. Teasing it to a peak with his tongue, he tried to convince her that sleep was the last thing on his mind. But when she ran her fingers through his hair and pulled his gaze up to hers, he realized just how tired she was. Her eyelids fluttered and she bit back a yawn.
“You’re right,” he said. “We both have to work tomorrow.” Why the hell had he decided to bring her here? Brody wondered. If she hadn’t taken this job, then they’d be free to do exactly what they wanted with their time. He should have bought them both a ticket to Fremantle and they could have spent a week in his apartment. Or he could have found some private getaway where they’d be waited on hand and foot.
Instead, he’d brought her to the station, where they had to sneak around and hide in a horse stall to find some privacy. “You know, the weekend is coming up. You don’t have to work on the weekend.”
“What? Do you send the horses off to a spa on Saturday and Sunday?” she inquired with a raised brow. “They still need to be fed and groomed.”
“But someone else can do that,” Brody said.
“It’s my job,” she replied.
He drew a deep breath and sighed. “There has to be some benefit to sleeping with the owner’s brother, don’t you think?”
She slipped from his embrace and began to collect her clothes, scattered over the straw-covered floor. “There are a lot of benefits. But I’m not sure unlimited vacation time is one of them.”
Brody wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her back against him. “But aren’t you interested in seeing some of Australia while you’re here? Isn’t that why you came? I’m sure Callum can get one of the jackaroos to take your job for a while.”
She shook her head. “Not now. Maybe after I’ve worked here longer.”
Brody understood her worry. After all, when he met her, she’d been reduced to petty crime just to survive. Here, she had a place to sleep, three meals a day and a paycheck at the end of each week. Security trumped great sex, at least for now.
“All right.” He took Payton’s clothes from her hands and grudgingly helped her dress. Though she’d removed her clothes as quickly as possible, Brody didn’t rush putting them back on, taking the chance to touch her one last time. When he finished, he pulled his jeans on, before slipping his bare feet into his boots. He didn’t want to bother with the rest, tossing the remaining clothes over his arm.
“Come on, I’ll walk you back to the bunkhouse.”
Payton shook her head. “No. Wait here for a few minutes. I can walk back on my own.” She pushed up onto her toes and gave him a sweet, lingering kiss. “I’ll see you tomorrow,” she whispered.
“Abso-bloody-lutely.” He captured her mouth again with a deep and possessive kiss of his own.
“All right,” she said, running her hands over his bare chest. “Tomorrow.”
She turned and hurried out of the stable. Brody watched her as she disappeared into the dark. They’d only known each other for a few days, but he’d already twisted his life around hers. Living on the station had become almost tolerable and working the stock just a way to mark time until he could be with her again.
Brody knew the fascination would probably fade. It always had in the past with other women. There was something about Payton, though, that made him believe it might be different this time.
But was it her with her sweet smile and gentle touch? Or was it him? Had he finally let go of his former life and begun to look forward to what the future held?