Page 7 of Outback Secrets

‘I’m more damn local than you,’ she retorted, slapping a twenty-dollar note down on the bar and taking a sip of her drink. ‘Ah, that’s better.’ She sighed and gazed at the glass as if it had just given her the best sex of her life.

Then before he could ask her name, she tucked the change into her pocket and sashayed into the dining room, her tight, skinny jeans giving him the perfect view of her pert behind. For such a tiny package there was certainly a lot to like about her. She weaved her way through the tables, pausing occasionally to exchange a few brief words with people she passed, before settling at the large table where Ryan and Grant now sat with their friends. The sexy Guinness-drinker was the odd one out in the group—the only one who didn’t appear to have a partner.

Not that that meant anything. Her boyfriend or girlfriend might be otherwise occupied tonight, but whether she was in a relationship didn’t matter because whoever she was, she clearly had connections in Bunyip Bay, which meant she was off limits. When it came to romantic liaisons, Liam kept a strictly no-strings policy. In the past, he’d enjoyed a bit of fun with the backpackers who worked in the pub—people who were in town for a good time not a long time—but these days most of them were far too young for him, which meant his liaisons were few and far between.

‘I wouldn’t go getting any ideas about that one if I were you,’ said Rex, downing the last dregs of his beer.

‘Huh?’ Liam tore his gaze from the dining room to the scruffy man.

‘Firecracker, she is. Reckon she’d be way more trouble than she’s worth.’

‘Really? Who exactly is she?’

‘Henrietta Forward, although call her Henrietta and I hear she’ll deck you. Goes by the name of Henri. She’s Fred and Fiona’s youngest. Was always getting into scrapes as a young’un.’

Liam racked his mind trying to recall what he knew about her family. The Forwards owned one of the largest farms in the region. Fred Forward had died a few years ago from a heart attack. There were two brothers—both farmers—and a sister, Tilley … now he recalled Fiona Forward sometimes talking about a younger daughter with a mixture of pride and frustration. Hadn’t she once told him her youngest was the only reason she was such a regular church-goer? That if she kept on God’s good side, hopefully he’d take care of her daughter.

‘She’s a pilot or something, isn’t she?’

Rex nodded and pushed his empty pint glass across the counter. Liam refilled it with Carlton Draught. Looking at Henrietta, you’d never have guessed she flew planes for a living—she didn’t look big enough to see over the controls in the cockpit.

‘So, she doesn’t live in Bunyip Bay?’ he asked.

‘Nah. I don’t think she lives anywhere. Like most in her field, she follows the work—all over Australia, probably all over the world.’

‘I bet Fiona’s happy to have her home for a bit.’

Rex snorted. ‘From what I’ve heard, Fiona will only be happy when she gets her home for good.’