MONDAY MORNING AND already the barbecue felt like a lifetime ago.
‘Thanks for your input, Darcie.’ Jack relaxed back in his chair, legs stretched out under his desk. They’d officially completed handover.
‘If that’s it, I’ll do a ward round.’ Darcie half rose.
‘Hang on a minute.’ He flicked a hand in a delaying motion. ‘I’ve arranged for the theatre to be thoroughly cleaned and made sterile. I’m aware it’s small but everything’s there. If we can keep it ready for emergencies, it will save having to call out the flying doctors, which will in turn save them time and money.’
A beat of silence.
‘You’re the surgeon and the boss.’ Darcie’s gaze fluttered down and then up to meet his piercing blue eyes. ‘It’s obviously your call.’
‘But?’ Jack’s dark brows rose interrogatively.
‘We don’t have much backup for major trauma.’
Jack all but rolled his eyes. Did she think he was a complete novice at this? He tapped his pen end to end on the desk. ‘I’m talking relatively straightforward emergency procedures, Darcie, not heart transplants.’
Stung by his air of arrogance, Darcie said coolly, ‘What about anaesthetics? I have a little knowledge but I’m not qualified.’
‘I can guide you.’
Well, he obviously thought he had the answer to everything. But far from reassuring her, it only added to Darcie’s uncertainty. ‘I...just don’t want us to start playing God every time there’s an emergency and think we can automatically sort it here.’
‘You don’t like me taking over,’ Jack interpreted flatly.
Darcie brushed a fingertip between her brows. That wasn’t it at all. She wasn’t making herself clear. But she’d woken with a headache that morning, her thoughts muddled, her concentration shot to pieces. And all because she couldn’t seem to get a grip on her feelings about Jack. She felt very out of her depth but the last thing she needed was her personal feelings spilling over into their professional involvement.
A soft breath gusted from her mouth. Had it been only yesterday they’d been in cahoots like kids, licking frosting from a bowl?
‘Didn’t you sleep well?’ Jack tilted his head, his eyes narrowing. The faint shadows were still there. Her light olive complexion was a dead giveaway.
She lifted her chin. Whether she slept well or not was none of his business.
For a second tension crackled between them, as brittle as spun sugar.
‘Could we get back to the point?’ Darcie said stiffly. ‘I’m more than accepting of your appointment here, Dr Cassidy. The place needs a senior doctor. You’re it. Obviously my protocols don’t work for you, so change them!’
Jack clicked his tongue. ‘It’s about trying to get the hospital up and running to its full potential, Darcie. So work with me here, please.’
He scrubbed a hand roughly across his cheekbones, reminding himself to get some eye drops. His eyes felt as though a ton of shell grit had been dumped there. He hadn’t slept well. His thoughts had spun endlessly and always centred on this waif of a girl sitting opposite him.
But she wasn’t a waif at all. That was just his protectiveness coming into play. And she wouldn’t thank him for that. She was capable of taking care of herself. More than. OK. He’d better smarten up. ‘Darcie, I need you on board with all these changes, otherwise nothing’s going to work for us in any direction, is it?’
His plea came out low and persuasive and Darcie felt relief sweep through her. What he said made sense. They couldn’t afford to be offside with one another. Professionally, they were doctors in isolation. It was simply down to her and Jack to make things work. Otherwise she’d have to leave. And she definitely didn’t want that.
Where would she go?
‘I guess we’re both on a bit of a learning curve right now,’ she admitted throatily.
‘And medically it’s been a draining couple of days.’ Jack was more than willing to be conciliatory.
Darcie looked at him warily, meshing her teeth against her bottom lip. ‘You’ll have my support, Jack.’
He let out a long breath. ‘Thank you.’
Darcie blinked a bit as he sent her a fence-mending kind of smile. We’ll be OK, it seemed to imply. Well, she could live with that.
Rolling back his chair, he went to stand with his back against the window. ‘The board will be here at eleven for a meeting.’
‘Oh—OK.’ Darcie rose. She flicked him a wide-eyed query. ‘Do you want me there?’
‘Silly question.’ He paused deliberately, his eyes capturing hers, darkened by the slanting light from the window. ‘Of course I want you.’
* * *
Darcie was still feeling the weight of Jack’s parting words knocking against her chest as she finished her ward round.
She’d purposefully left Jessica until last.
‘How are you feeling?’
Jess lifted her head from the glossy magazine she’d been reading. ‘Much better, thanks.’
Darcie smiled. ‘I can see that.’ Jess was sitting in the easy chair beside her bed. The hospital gown was gone and she was dressed in a very cute pair of hot pink pyjamas.
‘Are you going to release me, Dr Drummond?’
‘Let’s see what Dr Cassidy has to say, shall we?’ Darcie plucked the chart from the end of the bed. She read Jack’s notes swiftly. After an initial dose early yesterday afternoon, Jess had needed no further pain relief. Her neuro responses were normal and she’d slept well without a sedative. ‘You’ve bounced back remarkably well, Jess.’ Darcie replaced the chart. ‘I guess I’m going to have to let you go.’
‘Now?’ Grinning, Jess threw her magazine aside. ‘Cool.’
‘Got time for a quick chat first?’ Darcie propped herself on the edge of the bed. ‘You’re quite sure you don’t want to go back to your job?’
‘Quite sure.’ Jess gave a small grimace. ‘Too late anyway. I’ve already resigned and had a friend collect my stuff and bring it in.’
‘No problem with contracts and things?’
‘It was open-ended,’ Jess explained. ‘A get-out clause for both parties. They could get rid of me or vice versa.’
‘It doesn’t sound very secure.’
Jess flapped a hand. ‘That’s the business I’m in. It doesn’t worry me.’
I must be getting old, then, Darcie decided. Because it would worry me. A lot. ‘So, what are your plans?’
‘Maggie checked to see if there were any flights out of Sunday Creek today. Apparently, one of the local graziers is flying his own plane to a conference in Brisbane this afternoon. He’s kindly offered me a seat. I’ll go and visit Lachy at the Royal. Then I’ll head home to Sydney and start looking for a new job. There are a couple of films happening soon. I’ll shoot my CV out. I’ll be offered something,’ she added with youthful confidence.
‘So—obviously, you weren’t happy with the film company at Pelican Springs?’
‘They took short cuts with safety.’ Jess was unequivocal. ‘That doesn’t work for me.’
Darcie looked thoughtful. So Jack had been right. But, of course, to make charges stick, you had to have people to back up your convictions. And if those same people needed their jobs...?
‘I’m OK to go, then?’
Her patient’s slightly anxious query jolted Darcie back to her role as Jessica’s doctor. ‘Just a couple of loose ends to tie up. I’ll give you a note for your GP in Sydney and a script for some antibiotics just to be on the safe side. You’ll probably be able to have the stitches out in a week or so. And I’ll give you a leaflet explaining what’s necessary for the care of your wound. This will be an essential part of its healing,’ Darcie emphasised. ‘Don’t neglect it, Jess, all right?’
‘I won’t,’ Jessica promised. ‘Mum’ll be on my case anyway. But that’s what mums do, isn’t it?’ she added with a philosophical little shrug of her shoulders.
‘Yes, I suppose they do.’ Darcie’s eyes were faintly wistful. She blew out a controlled breath. ‘Now, I’ll leave your paperwork at the nurses’ station. See Maggie before you go. And, Jess, good luck with everything.’
‘Oh, thanks, Dr Drummond.’ Jess got to her feet, obviously keen to gather her things and get going. ‘And thanks for looking after me,’ she added with a very sweet smile.
‘You’re welcome and it’s Darcie. We went through a lot together, didn’t we?’
Jess nodded. ‘I was never so pleased to see anyone as I was to see you at the bottom of that well...’ The youngster suppressed a shiver. ‘But we did good.’
Darcie smiled. ‘Well, make sure you keep doing good when you leave here.’ She went to the door. Pausing, as if a thought had just occurred to her, she turned back. ‘Just to put your mind at ease, Jess, there should be minimal scarring on your arm. Well, nothing the camera will pick up.’
‘I’m not a bit worried.’ Happy, back in charge of her life, Jess grinned. ‘Dr Cassidy said you did a brilliant job.’
* * *
Sunday morning, two weeks later, Darcie rose earlier than usual but it was obvious Jack had risen earlier still. She found him in the kitchen, his hands wrapped round a mug of tea. ‘Morning,’ she said, helping herself from the pot he’d made.
‘Louise Alderton called last night,’ Jack said. ‘She invited us out to Willow Bend today. I accepted for both of us. I hope that’s all right.’
A dimple appeared briefly as Darcie smiled. ‘We’re taking the day off, then?’
‘We’ve earned it, don’t you agree?’
‘Well, you certainly have,’ Darcie apportioned fairly. ‘You’ve hardly drawn breath since you arrived.’ But she wasn’t about to question Jack’s motives or his workload. He was the boss. He could do what he liked. ‘A day out at Willow Bend sounds wonderful,’ she said instead. ‘What time do they want us?’
‘As soon as we’d like. Max will yard a couple of horses for us. Fancy a ride with me?’ His gaze lifted, straying momentarily to the sweet curve of her mouth.
‘Should be fun,’ she said lightly, but if she’d looked in the mirror at that moment she would have seen her flushed image reflecting a wide-eyed vulnerability.
* * *
They left for Willow Bend just after nine. As they drove, Darcie said, ‘The colours are really something special out here, aren’t they? The landscape seems so pure and clean and everything seems so incredibly still. The vastness takes my breath away.’
‘You’re not alone there,’ Jack responded quietly, wondering whether this time away from the hospital confines would allow him to get to know her better. He wanted to. So much. But he couldn’t rush her. He knew that as well. Perhaps they were destined never to be more than medical colleagues.
Perhaps today would be the day he’d find out.
* * *
‘I’ve saddled the horses for you,’ Max Alderton said. ‘I hope you’ll be happy with Hot Shot, Jack. He’s fairly spirited.’ They were sitting on the homestead veranda in comfortable wicker chairs, enjoying the morning tea Louise had prepared.
‘Can’t wait.’ Jack’s look was keen. ‘Although it’s been a while since I actually did any riding.’
‘Hot Shot is a former racehorse,’ Louise joined in. ‘Nice mouth. Let him stretch out on the flats. Darcie will show you the trails we use.’
‘I’ll be riding Jewel as usual?’ Darcie helped herself to a scone topped with jam and cream.
‘Of course.’ Louise smiled. ‘I think she’s missed you. You haven’t been out for a while.’
Darcie lifted a shoulder. ‘Busy at the hospital. Not that Jack’s a slave-driver or anything.’ She looked across at him and her breath caught in her throat. Those blue eyes were far too knowing. And suddenly she was afraid. Afraid of what seemed to be happening between them, and whether she wanted it or not.
* * *
After morning tea, Jack and Darcie made their way across to the horses. It was a beautiful day, not too hot, with a slight breeze.
A good day just to be alive, Jack thought a bit later, admiration flickering in his eyes as he watched Darcie swing lightly to her mare’s saddle, her Akubra tipped rakishly forward and her hair cascading from under it to her shoulders. ‘Where are we aiming for?’ he asked, deftly circling his own mount to steady the frisky stallion.
Darcie flicked a hand towards a line of lacy willows. ‘Louise and I usually cross the creek and head on up to the plateau. The view’s amazing from there.’
They took off at a leisurely pace.
‘Enjoying it?’ Darcie asked after they’d been riding for a while.
‘Fantastic.’ Jack couldn’t believe the sheer exhilaration he felt.
‘Oh, Jack, look!’ Darcie pointed to a mob of grey wallabies. Alerted to the presence of humans, the quaint little animals were suddenly all flying legs and tails, almost colliding with each other in their haste to leap away to the safety of the scrub.
‘Silly beggars.’ Jack laughed. Spurred on by the lightness of his mood, he gathered up the reins. ‘Fancy a gallop?’
‘You’re on!’ Darcie gave a whoop of delight and took up the challenge.
In perfect rhythm they took off across the paddock, their horses’ hooves churning a wake of green through the tall grasses.
Leaving the flat country behind, they climbed higher and higher, until Darcie signalled she was about to stop and wheeled Jewel to a halt halfway up the slope. Her eyes alight with pleasure, she looked down. ‘Isn’t that something?’ she said softly.
Jack reined in Hot Shot beside her, his gaze following hers to the expanse of the valley below, across the faint shimmer of the creek and beyond to the homestead nestling far away on the natural rise of the land.
‘Yes, it is...’ He closed his eyes, breathing in the woodsy tang of the morning air, tasting it, almost hearing it.
Watching him, Darcie took a long breath, loath to disturb what she perceived as a very private moment. She felt so in tune with him. So, what had happened? Had some fundamental change taken place within herself? And why suddenly today did everything about him seem to call to her? As if to clear her thoughts, she raised her gaze to the eastern rim of the cloudless sky. ‘Should we head back now?’
‘Uh...OK.’ Jack blinked a bit, as if reconnecting with the world around him. ‘Perhaps we could stop at the creek, spell the horses for a bit?’
The horses were surefooted, picking their way carefully down the track to the creek. Dismounting, Jack looped the reins around Hot Shot’s neck, setting him free to graze.
Somewhat guardedly, Darcie followed his example. ‘Are you sure they won’t take off and leave us stranded?’ she asked.
‘Not when they have one another for company.’ Bending down to the stream, he scooped up a handful of water and drank it thirstily.
‘Is that safe?’ Darcie bobbed down beside him, her head very close to his.
Jack scoffed a laugh. ‘Of course it’s safe, Darcie. It’s running water! And see over there...’ He pointed to where the creek trickled over some rocks. ‘That’s watercress. And it’s lush and green, a sure sign there’s no pollution.’
‘If you say so, Dr Cassidy.’
Jack chuckled. ‘Go on, try it,’ he urged, and watched as she dipped her hand into the water and gingerly tasted it.
‘It’s quite nice.’ She gave qualified approval.
‘Quite nice?’ Jack imitated her crisp little accent to a T. ‘It’s beautiful.’
She made a face. ‘And you’re the ultimate authority, I suppose. Jack—’ She broke off, laughing. ‘What do you think you’re doing?’
‘Nothing.’ He grinned innocently, in the same instant showering her with a spray of water he’d scooped up from the creek.
Darcie shrieked. ‘You are such rubbish!’ Recklessly, she showered him back until it was a free-for-all battle between them.
‘Enough!’ Jack finally called a halt, the last of his ammunition slipping between his fingers in a silver rainbow of trickles.
‘I’m drenched,’ Darcie wailed, peeling her wet shirt away from the waistband of her jeans. ‘And cold.’
‘Poor baby.’ Jack grinned, quite unabashed. ‘Want me to warm you up?’ He wasn’t waiting for her answer. Instead, he reached out and gently drew her towards him, his intent obvious.
‘Jack...?’
‘Darcie...? Jack looked down at her. A stiff breeze had whipped up, separating tendrils of her hair from around her face and fluffing them out. She looked so vulnerable. And so desirable.
‘Should we be doing this...?’ Her voice faded to a whisper.
He made a dismissive sound in his throat. ‘I’ve given up trying to find reasons why we shouldn’t.’
Darcie swallowed; her heart tripped. He was bending towards her, the deep blue of his eyes capturing hers with an almost magnetic pull. And the sun felt intoxicatingly warm against her back. There was no urgency in the air.
Just a languid kind of sweetness.
Jack was so close to her now she could see the faint shadow across his jaw, the slight smudges under his eyes. Yet his face reflected a toughness, a strength.
‘Sweet...’ Jack took her face in his hands, his need materialising in the softest sigh before his mouth found hers. The kiss rolled through his blood and raw need slammed into him like nothing he had ever known. Her lips parted and her own longing seemed to match his, overwhelming him like the heady aroma of some dark heated wine.
Applying a barely-there pressure through his hands, he whispered the tips of his fingers down the sides of her throat, then in a sweep across her breastbone to her shoulders, gathering her in.
Darcie clung to him. And the kiss deepened, turned wrenching and wild. She felt a need inside her, an overwhelming need to be touched like this, held like this.
And stroked to the point of ecstasy by this man.
But it wasn’t going to go that far. At least, not today. She felt Jack pulling back, breaking the kiss slowly, gently, his lips leaving a shivering sweetness like trails of insubstantial gossamer.
A long beat of silence while they collected themselves.
‘Oh, help...’ Darcie turned away, sinking onto the ground and pulling her knees up to her chin. ‘What was that all about, do you suppose?’
Jack settled beside her. ‘Does there have to be a reason?’ His voice was muted, slightly gravelly. ‘We kissed. It’s been waiting to happen almost since we met.’
Darcie inhaled a ragged little breath. ‘I suppose...’
‘I could say you were irresistible, if that will help.’
In a quick, protective movement, Darcie put her hand to her mouth, feeling his kiss return in a wash of quivering nerve-ends. OK, they’d kissed, she owned. But as a result had they opened another set of problems? And where was any of it leading?
‘Hey...’ Jack turned her head a fraction, tipping her chin up with a finger. ‘Don’t tell me you didn’t enjoy it, Darcie. Because I won’t believe you.’
She breathed in and out, a soft little breath through her slightly parted lips. ‘It’s not that.’
‘What is it, then? Surely you know you can trust me.’
‘I know...’
‘Well, then...’
As if in a dream, she went with him as he gently lowered them to the grassy bank of the creek.
‘Darcie...you’re beautiful...’ Jack buried his face in her throat, his hand sliding beneath her shirt to roam restlessly along her back and then to her midriff, half circling her ribcage, driving upwards until his thumbs, let free, began stroking the underswell of her breast.
With a passion she hardly knew she possessed, Darcie took the initiative, opening her mouth on his, tasting him all over again. And again.
How long they stayed wrapped in their own world she had no idea, but when he drew back and they moved apart to lie side by side, she could tell the sun had shifted, shedding light on the face of the river gums. Her chest lifted in a long steadying sigh. ‘How long have we been here?’
Jack shook his head. He felt poleaxed, set adrift without a lifeline. ‘Does it matter?’ When she didn’t answer, he turned to look at her. ‘Are you OK?’
What was OK any more? Darcie wondered, pulling herself into a sitting position.
Jack half rose, leaning back on his elbows and surveying her. He didn’t like what he saw. Her shoulders looked tightly held, almost shutting him out. ‘Talk to me, Darcie.’
For answer, she plucked off a blade of grass and began shredding it. ‘I don’t know what to say...’
‘About what?’
‘This—us.’
Jack wrenched himself forward and sat next to her. He held up his hand as if to study it. ‘Well, I’m real and as far as I know you’re real. We’re without ties and single. So where’s the problem?’ His dark brows hitched briefly. ‘You are single, aren’t you?’
‘Yes!’ There was a weight of feeling in her voice.
‘So I’ll ask again. What’s the problem?’
She shook her head.
In the silence that followed, Jack reached across and took her hands, brought them to his mouth and kissed each palm. Then, while his eyes said, Trust me, he flattened them on his chest. The action brought Darcie very near the edge. Suddenly, without warning, she felt surrounded by him, his masculine strength and the wild pull he exerted on every one of her senses.
‘Darcie...?’
‘I was engaged, Jack.’ Her voice was fainter than air.
‘And?’
She swallowed dryly. ‘I ran away and came to Australia.’
‘So you broke it off. There’s no shame in that. I’m sure you had your reasons.’
She pulled in a slow, painful breath. ‘Oh, I did.’
Looping out an arm, he gathered her in. ‘Going to tell me?’ he pressed gently.
Darcie felt the weight of indecision weigh heavily. But if ever there was a time for honesty between them, then it was now. ‘His name was Aaron,’ she began slowly. ‘He was a doctor where I worked at St Faith’s in London. A bit older than I. We seemed well suited. We got along. He looked out for me. When he asked me to marry him, I didn’t hesitate.’
‘But later you began to second-guess your engagement,’ Jack suggested quietly.
‘Once he’d put the ring on my finger, he changed. Small ways at first so that I thought I’d been mistaken. But then...his caring turned into...control. Control in all kinds of bizarre ways...like how I wore my hair and make-up. He began choosing my clothes, insisting I wear what he’d bought...and that was just the beginning.’
Jack felt the tiny shudder go through her and swore under his breath. ‘He wasn’t physically abusive, was he?’
‘Oh, no.’ She shook her head decisively. ‘I’d have been gone in two minutes. But, no...his behaviour was the problem. So...manipulative.’
‘You did the right thing to get out.’
‘You think so?’
‘And fast.’ Jack frowned a bit. ‘What about your parents? Couldn’t you have gone to them?’
She shook her head. ‘My relationship with them is a bit complex. Sometimes I feel as though I don’t know them at all. And they don’t know me,’ she added in a kind of quiet resignation.
Jack thought long and hard. Something was eating away at her. Whatever else, they couldn’t leave things like this. ‘Do you want to talk about it?’ he offered. ‘It goes without saying anything you tell me will be confidential.’
Darcie felt her mouth dry, her breathing become tight. ‘Are you being my doctor here, Jack?’
‘No, Darcie.’ His voice was soft, intense. ‘I’m trying to be your friend.’ When she didn’t respond, he took the initiative. Carefully. ‘At what part of your growing up did you begin to feel alienated from your parents?’
‘From when I was about twelve,’ she faltered, after the longest pause.
‘You mentioned a housekeeper so I’m guessing you weren’t sent away to school?’
‘No, but perhaps it would have been better. At least I’d have had company of my own age. I was lonely a lot of the time.’
Jack heard the pain in her voice and a silent oath lodged in his throat. ‘Go on,’ he encouraged gently, touching her lightly on the shoulder.
Darcie turned to look at him. It had been a feather touch of reassurance, and why it had the capacity to make her reassured she had no idea. But, unaccountably, it did. Words began to tumble out.
‘My parents had reached the peak in their careers. They had invitations to speak all over the UK. In between speaking engagements they’d swoop home and gather me up like I was the most important thing in their lives. But in a few days they’d be gone again.’
‘Pretty erratic parenting, then,’ he said.
She tried a half-laugh. ‘I guess you’d say so. And maybe...’ she added, as if the thought had suddenly occurred to her, ‘that’s why I took Aaron at face value. He was always there for me. Something my parents hadn’t been.’
‘So, gravitating towards Aaron was a fairly natural reaction on your part,’ Jack said. Cautious.
Darcie released her breath on a shuddering sigh. ‘I think I was extremely gullible. So easily duped...’
‘Hey, don’t beat up on yourself. Foresight is a bit scarce on the ground when you really need it.’ Concern showed in his gaze as it locked with hers. ‘Did your parents ever get to meet Aaron?’
‘Of course. We were engaged, planning a wedding. They liked him. If I’d tried telling them what I suspected about him, they’d have thought I was overreacting.’
‘But they know where you are now? And reasons why you left England?’
‘Yes.’
It seemed a long time until she continued. ‘When I began to realise what my life would be like if I married Aaron, I knew I had to get away. I didn’t trust myself to confront him because I knew how persuasive he could be. He’d have tried to talk me round.’
Jack rubbed a hand across his cheekbones. He couldn’t bear the thought of her being the brunt of such subtle, despicable behaviour. ‘Survival is an instinct,’ he said quietly. ‘So what did you do to survive?’
‘I’d become friends with a doctor who’d come over to St Faith’s on an exchange, an Aussie girl. When she left to continue her travels she told me if ever I found myself in Australia to let her know, and if I wanted a job she’d see if there was anything going in her old hospital in Brisbane. I called her and explained my difficulty. Within twenty-four hours I was on a flight. I left a note for Aaron, making sure he wouldn’t get it until I was airborne.’ She paused and then continued, ‘I worked in Brisbane for a couple of months but it wasn’t the right fit for me.’
‘You were still looking over your shoulder.’
She hesitated. ‘Perhaps.’
Jack held her more closely. He could imagine her desperation. Her fear...
She turned up her face to his. ‘I decided to do a bit of a job search on line. I saw the Sunday Creek vacancy...’
‘And one year later, here you are.’
‘Yes.’ She took one slow breath and then a deeper one, feeling her lungs fill and stretch. It had been such a relief to tell Jack and have him believe in her.
He searched her face for an endless moment. ‘Sometimes you look a bit...haunted for want of a better word. Do you worry that cretin will find you?’
‘Not so much now. It’s been ages and he’d never think I’d do something as bold as this.’
Jack snorted. ‘He didn’t know you very well, then, did he? You are one gutsy lady.’
‘Me?’
His eyes caressed her tenderly. ‘Yes, you, Darcie Drummond. Thank you for telling me. For trusting me with your confidence.’
* * *
Was what they’d done going to change things between them? Darcie wondered as they rode leisurely back to the homestead. It didn’t have to, the sensible part of her reasoned. They could still be professional colleagues. But out of hours—what? Best friends? Friends with chemistry? Lovers? At the thought, butterflies rose and somersaulted in her stomach. Now, that was a bridge too far. Should she talk to Jack about how they’d handle things? Or not...?
Not, she decided, but her thoughts kept spinning this way and that.
Back at the stables, they unsaddled the horses and gave them a quick rub-down. ‘Thank you for a lovely ride, sweetheart.’ Darcie looped her arms around Jewel’s neck and held her cheek to the mare’s smooth coat.
‘Are you talking to me?’ Jack’s mouth quirked into a crooked grin.
‘Perhaps I was,’ she said, and saw his eyes darken. ‘Indirectly,’ she added, and laughingly dodged the handful of chaff he threw at her.