‘SIX?’ Rose felt herself start to tremble a bit. Kids made her uncomfortable. She wasn’t good with them. She was just like her mother—hopeless with children. She pushed the thoughts aside roughly. ‘But I thought you’d been divorced for—’ She cut herself off. ‘I’m sorry, Dave. It’s really none of my business.’
‘I think it is, Rosie. I like you. I want to pursue a relationship with you. I don’t know where it will lead but there it is, nevertheless. So let’s get the past out into the open so we can move forward.’ She was silent again. ‘Rosie? I didn’t mean to dump all of this on you straight away but isn’t it better that we find things out now, rather than later? After you thinking I was involved with Penny, I don’t want any other misunderstandings to surface.’
Rose listened to what he said, agreeing with him. ‘Is this what you wanted to talk about tomorrow night?’
‘Something like that.’
‘Melody,’ she said softly. ‘Nice name.’
‘She’s a nice girl.’
She could tell Dave was smiling. He obviously thought the world of his daughter and it improved her opinion of him.
‘Mags chose the name. She’s the type of woman who has to have control over everything and thought a child would fit nicely into her new life. After all, a few of her friends had babies and they made it sound so special and unique. It was like a red flag to a bull and she couldn’t resist.
‘The conception happened during our last attempt to reconcile our marriage. Little did I know that she’d planned the entire thing.’ Dave shook his head as he remembered the way Mags had used him. ‘I woke up one morning and she was gone. No note. No phone call. No nothing. I contacted the solicitor, as that was the only number I had to track her down, and he informed me that Margaret saw no further need to remain in the relationship and that divorce proceedings would commence once the proper procedures had been satisfied.’
‘But what about the baby?’
‘She told me I was the father—after Melody’s birth. I didn’t even see my daughter until she was eight weeks old. By then Mags had realised that motherhood wasn’t all it was cracked up to be. She hired a nanny, fought and won custody and that was that.’
‘Can you be sure…? What I mean is…Is she—?’
‘Is she mine? Yes. I had tests done to prove it and she’s mine all right.’
Rose didn’t miss the vehemence in his words. ‘How often do you see her?’
‘Quite a lot. I miss her like crazy but a broken marriage is just a part of our lives.’
‘Must be rough, being so far away from her.’
‘It is.’
‘I presume they’re in Sydney?’
‘That’s right.’
‘So do you go there or does your daughter come here?’
‘Both. It all depends. In fact…’ Dave paused for a moment and took a deep breath ‘…she’s coming on Thursday.’
‘Thursday? This Thursday?’
‘Yes.’
‘But that’s in two days’ time.’ Rose couldn’t believe what she was hearing. She pulled the receiver away from her ear and stared at it. Who was this man? It brought back the reality that she really knew nothing about him—except for the uncharacteristic physical attraction that had flared up between them.
‘I know. I was going to fly to Sydney and get her but Mags is sending her here with the current nanny.’
Rose had no idea what to say. He was divorced. He had a daughter—a daughter who was coming to town. She opened and closed her mouth like a goldfish—completely stunned by what he was saying.
‘Rosie?’ he said when she didn’t respond. ‘I know this is a lot but, as I said, I want it all out in the open.’
‘How…how long will she be here for?’
He cleared his throat. ‘For ever—hopefully.’
‘What?’
‘That is if Mags doesn’t change her mind.’
‘Dave, this is a lot for me to deal with.’
‘I know and, fair dinkum, Rosie, I’m sorry,’ he said softly, knowing he was only causing her more confusion. ‘I know this is a lot for you to handle, especially as we’ve only just started…whatever this is that’s sprung up between us. The best advice I could probably give you is to keep well away from me, but that’s not what I want.’
‘Why?’
‘Because you’re the first woman I’ve been remotely interested in for the last six years.’
Rose didn’t know what to say. This time, though, her silence was due to overwhelming surprise. He liked her. He really liked her. Rose felt her insides turn to mush. He’d seen her when she’d been tired and rude, sick, gripped with fear and he still liked her.
‘Rosie?’
‘Hmm? Uh…thank you. That’s really nice of you to say that but, um…that’s not what I meant when I asked why.’
‘What did you mean, then?’
‘Why will your daughter be staying for good?’
‘Because Mags is getting married again. Her wedding is this Saturday and she can’t be bothered having Mel around any longer.’
‘That’s horrible.’ Rose wasn’t overly confident with children but she knew this was a terrible thing to do to a child. ‘So you offered to take her, naturally.’
‘Actually, Mags was planning to put her into boarding school.’
‘What? She’s six years old.’
Dave smiled. Rosie really was on his wavelength. ‘My sentiments exactly.’
‘So you’re going to apply for full custody?’
‘Yes. When I told Mags I wanted custody of Mel, she told me she’d already started proceedings. The papers have been drawn up. They were supposed to have arrived tonight but obviously the courier got lost. Hopefully, I’ll get them tomorrow but the waiting is starting to tear me apart. I wasn’t planning on doing anything until Melody arrived but it appears Mags had other plans. Still, she has been known to change her mind in the past so until I get those papers it isn’t going to be an easy ride.’
‘How long are they planning to honeymoon?’
‘Julian—her new husband-to-be—is in the computer business and has plans to work overseas. This is all according to Mags, so who knows how much of it is true?’
Rose almost fell off her chair. Her dinner was completely forgotten as Dave’s words almost paralysed her. ‘Did…did you say Julian?’ Her voice was barely audible. She bit her lower lip, realising belatedly that it was trembling.
‘That’s right.’ He heard her gasp and the tone of her voice made him sit up straighter—aware that something wasn’t right. ‘What’s wrong? Rosie?’
‘Julian Moncrief?’ she whispered.
‘You know him?’
‘I was engaged to him three months ago.’
That certainly explained a lot. Dave replaced the receiver in the cradle after Rosie had quickly said she’d better go. Her tone had been full of distraught emotion and when he’d offered to come back around, she’d been adamant in her refusal. He didn’t blame her. No one wanted to have their soul bared to a relative stranger like himself.
No. He and Rosie weren’t strangers. Sure, there were things they didn’t know about each other but he refused to say they were strangers. Tonight had changed that for good.
Dave stalked over to the fridge and grabbed a beer, taking it out onto the verandah. He leaned against the rail. Knowing that Julian had been a part of Rosie’s past explained a lot about the woman herself. He wouldn’t blame her if she avoided him simply because he was divorced. Julian had been divorced—twice.
Dave raised the beer to his lips. Knowing the type of person Julian was, he could guess how that man had behaved towards Rosie, but he knew how to fix it. He needed to show her that he wasn’t like that two-timing swine. He might be divorced—just like Julian was. He might have one child—Julian had three. But, unlike Julian, he was trustworthy and wanted to be a part of his daughter’s life. Julian had written off his children years ago.
There was also the problem that Rosie felt uncomfortable around children. He frowned, unsure whether he should be concerned about that. There was obviously a reason why Rosie was like this.
How could Reg have let his daughter grow up without playing with other kids? And what had happened to her mother? All he knew about Reg was that he had been divorced, never spoke about his ex-wife and had one child. Perhaps Rose’s parents’ divorce had emotionally scarred her in some way.
There were too many unanswered questions and it intrigued him more. A primitive protective urge came over him when he thought about Rosie. He’d helped her through food poisoning—and she’d let him. He’d helped her with her mild claustrophobia—and she’d let him. He’d helped her with the possum—and she’d let him. Yet for all that, she was still a woman who could stand on her own two feet and she’d proved that by the way she’d come through each of those situations. Everyone needed help at some point in their lives and it was refreshing to find that Rosie wasn’t adverse to allowing others to help her.
Would she let him help her relax around children?
Rose finally threw back the bedcovers in disgust and headed to the shower as the clock ticked over to six a.m. What was the point of lying in bed any longer when she’d only been pretending to sleep?
She sighed as she stepped into the shower stall and turned her face up to the spray, hoping the soothing warm water would do something to relax her. ‘Not good, waking up this agitated,’ she mumbled to herself. She’d thought that after those wonderful kisses from Dave she might have managed a better night’s sleep. ‘And then he phoned.’ Rose shook her head.
She had mixed emotions about the news of Julian’s wedding. It was just so typical of him. He’d been married and divorced twice when she’d met him. Within two months of them starting to date, he’d proposed and, like a complete idiot, she’d been swept away by his sophistication and charm and had instantly accepted.
Then she’d discovered the truth about him. He’d started criticising the way she’d dressed and the long hours she’d spent at the hospital. He’d also told her that once they were married, he expected her to give up her career and move if he needed to move.
Being in the computer business, he needed to be mobile, he’d told her. It was important to him to have a wife who’d make a good hostess, and with her classic looks and poise, he’d decided she fitted the bill.
‘He won’t be faithful to you,’ his first wife had told her and the second wife had confirmed. When Julian had made excuses about working late and cancelling their dinner reservations, she’d begun to suspect. Her suspicions had been confirmed when she’d followed him one evening and found he’d been meeting another woman—a woman she’d discovered was called Margaret.
When Rose had next spoken to his first wife, she’d confirmed that Margaret was a long-standing favourite of Julian’s and that, regardless of who he’d been married to, Margaret had always been in the wings.
Now Rose discovered that this Margaret woman was Dave’s ex-wife! He’d implied that she’d cheated on him—obviously with Julian. She shook her head, snapping herself out of the thoughts that had been spinning around all night long, and reached for the shampoo.
‘Work. Concentrate on work. Julian is out of your life. You’ve moved on. Dave is nice. Dave likes you and Dave appears to be honest.’ Rose washed her hair vigorously, speaking her thoughts out loud. ‘Dave is also divorced and the father of one. You shouldn’t get involved with him. He’s all wrong for you. Then again, what man is really honest? Do they even exist?’ She only knew one man who was honest and he’d been duped himself by a dishonest woman. ‘Seems to work both ways, Dad,’ she told the shower wall, and sighed heavily.
Dave had a child. This was something Rose hadn’t counted on. She’d always wondered whether she was like her mother deep down inside—her mother who’d abandoned her father and herself. Rose had been just over three years old when her mother had left and when she’d questioned her father about it later, he’d said that her mother’s excuse had been that she ‘wasn’t the maternal type’.
Her father had wanted children and her mother had obliged but had hated every minute of it. One day, she’d upped and left and Rose had never seen or heard from her again. A part of her had always been curious and her father, bless him, had answered all her questions lovingly and honestly, showing her photographs of the woman she now looked almost identical to.
Was she identical in behaviour as well? Rose had never had much to do with children in the past and she’d tried never to think about if she’d ever be a mother herself. Having grown up without one, she had no idea how they were supposed to behave. Her mother’s behaviour had been appalling—according to her father—and he’d blamed himself for the way Rosie had been treated.
‘Agh! Stop it,’ she told herself as she switched off the taps.
After her shower, Rose decided she needed a good breakfast. ‘Surely that will help improve my mood.’
The phone rang as she was in the middle of sautéing some onions for the frittata she was planning to make. She glanced at the clock as she snatched it up. At six-thirty, it could only be the hospital.
‘Dr Partridge.’
‘Good morning, my sweet Rosie. I just needed to hear your voice,’ Dave said. His rich, deep voice washed over her and she momentarily closed her eyes, savouring the feeling.
‘There you go. You’ve heard it. What are you doing up so early?’
‘Early? I’m always up at six, sometimes earlier if Mick needs help with things. Besides,’ he added in a softer tone, ‘I couldn’t sleep. I was worried about you.’
Rose smiled. ‘Well, thank you for worrying about me, but I’m fine. Hang on a minute.’ She stretched the phone cord over towards the stove. ‘Don’t want the onions to burn.’
‘What are you cooking? Are you as good as your father?’
‘I’m making breakfast frittata and, no, I’m not as good as my father…but he taught me everything I know,’ she added.
‘Right. Breakfast at your house. See you soon.’
Rose laughed, loving the way a few minutes talking to him had put her in a better mood. ‘Dave, you can’t come around for breakfast. What will the neighbours think?’ It was then she heard the ‘disconnected’ signal. ‘Dave?’
He’d hung up on her. What a cheek! ‘Oh, no,’ she said as she replaced the receiver. ‘He’s coming around!’
Rose wasn’t sure what to do first. She was thankful that she’d showered and was presentably dressed, although, with Dave’s easygoing nature, she doubted whether that would be of any importance to him. He was so different from Julian. He might be divorced, he might have a child, but he was still very different. At times like these, she had no idea how to behave.
Should she be the cool, calm sophisticate who was used to men popping in for breakfast? Should she be hard and unyielding, refusing to let him in when he arrived? ‘Just concentrate on the cooking or all he’s going to be turning up for is burnt offerings,’ she told herself firmly.
By the time she heard his vehicle, breakfast was ready but she was nowhere near the same. What if one of the neighbours saw him? What if they thought his ute had been parked out front all night long?
What was going to happen when they saw each other again? Was it going to be awkward? No. Not with Dave. He wouldn’t let it be awkward. She’d only ever had polite, predictable relationships, she realised with a start. The men she’d dated before Julian had all been professionals. Polished. Seemingly perfect. Perhaps that’s what had been missing from her life? A bit of spontaneity. With Dave, she had no idea whether she was coming or going. It was a strange but not unpleasant feeling and right now, although her stomach was alive with butterflies at the thought of seeing him again, she was looking forward to it at the same time.
His coming would bring the gossips out in force but she knew there really wasn’t anything she could do about the rumour mill of Broken Hill. Right now, she had a hungry man knocking loudly at her front door.
‘I’m coming,’ she called a little impatiently when his knocking didn’t stop. She wrenched open the door and gasped with surprise as he burst through, swept her into his arms and kicked the door shut in one swift motion. Before she could say anything else, his lips were on hers, devouring them hungrily.
Rose wasn’t complaining. The same urge had built within her from the moment he’d left yesterday evening and she moaned with delight as his arms tightened around her back, moulding her body to his.
Her breathing was ragged, matching his. Her body was on fire, liquid heat spreading throughout her body. How did he manage to fuel such an uncharacteristic response in her with a few simple kisses? They weren’t simple, she corrected. They were the most passionate kisses she’d ever received in her life—and she loved them.
Finally, his mouth broke free from hers. ‘You taste and smell delicious.’
Rose smiled shyly up at him. ‘That’s the food, silly.’
‘No.’ Dave was serious as he looked down into her upturned face. ‘You are one very beautiful woman, Rosie Partridge, and don’t let anyone tell you differently.’ He kissed her again before letting her go and taking two big steps away. ‘If I don’t put some distance between us, breakfast will be the last thing we’ll be concentrating on this morning.’
Rose felt herself blushing and looked way. ‘Is that so?’ She worked hard to inject a haughty note into her tone but wasn’t sure she’d succeeded. ‘How do you know I’d let you do anything other than kiss me or eat the food I’ve cooked?’ She turned away from him and headed into the kitchen.
‘I should hope you wouldn’t.’ He chuckled as he followed her. ‘I just love it when you come across all prim and proper like that.’ He grabbed her from behind and held her back against his chest. He bent and nibbled at her earlobe, which sent a wave of goose bumps spreading down one side of her body. ‘All I meant,’ he whispered seductively, ‘is that you’re so…addictive, I doubt I’ll ever be able to get enough of you.’
‘I knew what you meant,’ she told him, not entirely sure she wanted to pull away. Even if she did, would her own legs support her? ‘Let’s eat. I don’t want you to be late for ward round. Then people will really start asking questions.’
‘So nice to be with a woman who understands my job.’ Dave reluctantly let her go and sat down on a stool.
‘Your ex-wife didn’t?’ Rose concentrated on making sure everything was ready and pulled the frittata from beneath the grill.
‘No. Mags resented my work as a doctor.’
‘Then why did she marry you?’
‘Good question. Apparently, it was considered fashionable to be a doctor’s wife.’
‘How did you meet?’ She served the food up and put a plate in front of him.
‘Looks and smells delicious,’ he said, and took one of her hands in his. Slowly, he raised it to his lips and pressed a light kiss on her knuckles. Rose smiled, a little confused but flattered all the same. ‘Thanks for letting me in.’
‘How could I not?’ She laughed. ‘If I hadn’t, I’m sure you would have knocked the door down.’
Dave laughed, before taking a bite. ‘Probably. Mmm, this is great! What’s in it?’
She wondered whether he was trying to avoid answering the question and decided she’d let him—for the moment. If he wanted to pursue a relationship with her, then she had the right to ask him personal questions. ‘Potato, bacon, eggs, onion and sun-dried tomato—oh, and some herbs.’
‘It’s delicious. You are as good a cook as your father.’
‘Thank you for saying so, even if I don’t agree. I’ve had a lifetime of eating his cooking and somehow it always tastes better than anything I ever make. Still, he would always encourage me.’
‘And that’s the point. To try new things.’ Dave swallowed his mouthful and looked at her, his gaze tearing a path directly to her soul.
‘Is that what you’re doing with me?’ she asked softly. ‘Trying something new?’
His fork clattered to his plate and he reached for her hand again. ‘Rosie, I would never intentionally hurt you but, yes, I guess I am trying to try something new—if that makes sense. As I said, I haven’t been involved with a woman since Mags so, in essence, I am trying something new. I’m trying to see whether this natural chemistry that exists between us is just physical or something more.’
‘And if it is just physical?’
‘We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.’
She retrieved her hand. ‘That’s not good enough, Dave.’ Rose took a bite of her breakfast. She forced herself to chew calmly and swallow, before elaborating. ‘It’s only been three months since Julian broke off the engagement. You’ve had six years to recover from your busted relationship.’
Dave nodded. ‘The situation with Julian has made you question your own judgement.’
‘Yes.’
‘That never goes away, Rosie. I’m still questioning my judgement. We should all question our judgement. It’s the only way we learn. In our profession, we’ve learned what we need to do to save people’s lives. It’s our experience that helps us through in difficult times but we still question things. If we didn’t and the patient wasn’t a textbook case, they’d probably die. It’s part of life, it’s part of any relationship. I think the real problem is that for a while there we stopped questioning our judgement.’
He started eating again. ‘You want to know how I met Mags?’
Rose didn’t reply, she just forked in another mouthful and waited. If he wanted to tell her, she would listen, but she wouldn’t have initially asked the question if she didn’t want to know.
‘She was a patient of mine. She had a badly busted appendix which perforated on the table. She was extremely ill for a while but thankfully she recovered. Once she was discharged from my care, she kept stopping by the hospital to see me. The rest, as they say, is history. How about you and Julian?’
Rose took a sip of her orange juice. ‘He was supplying the hospital with new computers and devising a special program for the secretaries to use. We kept bumping into each other in the staff cafeteria and one day we sat together and had lunch. The next day, he took me out to lunch and the next thing I knew he was proposing and I’d accepted.’
‘Fast.’ He nodded again. ‘That’s the way Julian works.’
‘So I gather.’
‘Are you hurt that he’s found someone else so soon?’
‘No. His previous wives told me all about Margaret. Apparently he’s been seeing her on and off for years.’
‘You know his ex-wives?’
‘Yes. They started calling me after our engagement was announced. At first I thought they were being vindictive—at least that’s what Julian had said when I told him they’d been calling. Then I realised they were just trying to save me from what they’d been through.’
‘He was at my wedding. A friend of Mags’s. He was married to his first wife then. She seemed nice but I didn’t see her again. Julian’s the type of man who needs a pretty woman at his side who’ll put up with his many indiscretions. She’ll be the apple of his eye so long as she does what he wants.’
‘You think Margaret fits the bill?’
He shrugged. ‘They’re too much alike. Both like to play the field. Both are manipulative. Good luck to them. I truly don’t care. So long as I get custody of Mel, I’ll be happy.’
At the mention of his daughter, Rose swallowed suddenly and started coughing. Dave patted her on the back. ‘OK?’
She had a quick drink and nodded.
‘I mention my daughter and you start to choke. Is Melody going to be a problem between us?’ His tone was quiet yet firm.
‘She could be. I’ve told you, Dave. I’m just not comfortable around children.’
‘Why?’
‘Because that’s the way I am,’ she replied forcefully.
‘What happened?’ He gazed into her eyes and she felt as though he were touching her soul. She shivered and crossed her arms in front. ‘Tell me, Rosie.’
‘I…I can’t,’ she whispered. ‘It will upset me for the rest of the day and I…I can’t afford to have that happen.’
He exhaled deeply and raked his fingers through his hair. ‘I see.’ He looked at his now empty plate. ‘That was delicious. Thank you for allowing me to come over for breakfast.’ He stood and carried his plate and utensils to the dishwasher and stacked them inside.
‘You’re leaving?’
He groaned softly. ‘I don’t know what to do, Rosie. I think perhaps it’s best if I did leave, for the moment.’
‘Why? Are you going to say something you might regret?’
‘No. It’s not that. In fact, I don’t know what it is. That’s the truth. We seem to be going around in circles. I want to be with you and I think you want to be with me—and I don’t mean that in a physical sense.’
‘Ah, so you don’t think what’s happening between us is just physical,’ she stated.
‘I’ve never met anyone like you before, Rosie.’ He came to stand behind her and placed his hands on her shoulders, kneading gently. ‘You’re direct, straightforward, yet you can be as cool as an ice queen when it suits you.’
‘Protection,’ she murmured as she closed her eyes, not only enjoying the massage but his closeness as well.
‘I know. We all have our barriers. Just like the echidna. We put up our spikes whenever we’re being attacked.’
‘What are your barriers, Dave? Am I going to be able to break through them?’
‘Do you want to break through them?’ he countered quietly.
‘I…I don’t know.’ He stopped massaging but didn’t remove his hands so the warmth was still spreading down her shoulders and flooding deep within her. Her blood pumped faster around her body; her pulse mimicked the pace. ‘Things have just been happening too fast but, try as I might, I just can’t seem to slow them down.’
He chuckled. ‘Especially when I’m barging in here, inviting myself to breakfast.’
‘Did you hear me strenuously objecting?’
‘Did I give you time?’ He bent his head and nuzzled her neck. ‘You smell incredible.’ He placed light kisses on her skin and Rose closed her eyes, letting her head rest back against him. She parted her lips as her breathing increased, savouring the sensations he was evoking deep within her. ‘I’m having such a hard time keeping my hands off you, Rosie. Now, that’s definitely physical.’
Rose swallowed. ‘I know what you mean.’ She turned in his arms to face him and, placing her hands on either side of his face, brought his lips down to meet her own. She sighed with longing as he moved his mouth over hers. This was the only time she felt complete. When she was with Dave and he was kissing her. Reality seemed suspended and she wished she could live in the moment for ever.
‘Sweetheart,’ he groaned a few minutes later as he eased back but didn’t let her go. ‘It’s almost half past seven and I’m due at the hospital for ward round soon.’
Rose nodded. ‘So where do we go from here, Dave?’
‘I’m not sure, Rosie. We’ll just have to figure it out as we go along.’ He bent his head and kissed her quickly. ‘Do you need help cleaning up here?’
‘No. I’ll put it all in the dishwasher with the dishes from last night and switch it on before I go.’
‘When are you leaving?’
‘In about two minutes. It’s Wednesday—baby day.’
‘How many C-sections are there this morning?’ He took a few steps away and put his hands in his shorts pockets as though he was having a hard time keeping his hands off her.
‘I think there’s two.’
‘All right. Well, you have fun. Are we still on for dinner tonight?’
‘Sure.’
‘We’ll talk more then.’ Still keeping his hands where they were, he leaned forward again and kissed her once more. ‘Sorry,’ he said with that lopsided grin that always melted her heart. ‘I told you I find you irresistible.’
Rose laughed. ‘Thanks for stopping by.’
‘I’ll see myself out.’
Rose turned her attention to the sink, determined to get to the hospital as soon as possible. The sooner she got this day under way, the sooner it would be time for dinner. Dinner with Dave.