Page 15

When Carter walked into the old shearing shed the following night, the smell of the wool, the creaks of the iron settling in the night air and the old tree trunk posts were like a comforting hug.

He’d enjoyed last night with Indy, getting to know her and being in her presence. Probably enjoyed it too much.

She’d been waiting for him on the verandah of her cabin tonight.

They’d stashed the dirt bike beneath it in the early hours of the morning and Carter had skirted around the dining hall to get to his room after bidding her goodnight.

They’d had to ride out the long way to get back to the shed, but travelling double with Indy on a dirt bike built for one was fast becoming his favourite mode of transport.

Carter shook his head. Thoughts like that were going to get him in trouble, and he couldn’t get into any more of that.

He’d had a shit of a time concentrating today.

Jonathan kept looking at him with an I-told-you-so raise of his brow, no doubt thinking the harassment by Carter’s teammates was the cause.

If only he knew the real reason. But progress had been made.

When the jeering had started, Hall and Burgess hadn’t joined in much, to Beau’s disgust. Ethan had even stood a little closer to him.

They were small things, probably unnoticed by the training staff, but they hit him deeply.

Indy entered the same pen they’d used last night and put a new bottle of Solvol on the rail.

‘How’d you manage to get that?’ he asked.

‘Theresa forgot to order the sauce for tomorrow night’s stir-fry, so I offered to go into town for her.’

He chuckled, grabbing the buckets. ‘Resourceful.’

Heading out to the tap, he stretched the muscles in his calves as the bucket filled with water.

They’d had a strong focus on ball skills and technique in their training clinics today.

A relatively tame day physically, which made Carter dread what tomorrow would bring.

There was no evening session, instead the Twenty20 cricket grand final was on in the meeting room.

Ethan was ready with an excuse if anyone questioned where Carter was.

The earlier start was worth the risk. Indy was yawning more tonight, which fit the excuse he’d heard her provide Mara to say about going to bed early.

‘Eight sheep to go,’ she said as he walked back in, balanced by the buckets. ‘Should be done by ten and in bed by eleven.’

He grinned. ‘Cheers to that. You hold, I’ll scrub.’

They got to work, the conversation flowing as easily as it had the previous night.

Getting to know Indy was … interesting. Every time he unearthed something that hit too close or asked the wrong questions, she’d hesitate, giving time for her walls to auto-slam, he guessed, and then she’d snap and try to insult him.

Luckily, he wasn’t easily offended. Indy had a lot to learn if she thought the differences she kept pointing out in their worlds were going to get to him.

She could make all the assumptions she wanted about his upbringing and current lifestyle, but he knew his truth. When she was ready, she would too.

‘Off you go,’ Carter said a couple of hours later, pushing the ewe into the larger pen that took up most of the shearing shed and held all of its clean mob mates. ‘Ewe number nineteen done!’

He held his hand up and Indy met it in a high five, grinning widely enough to cover the bottom half of her face. ‘Final one!’

They turned and faced the last sheep in the pen that, when they’d started, had been full.

‘Plenty of soap?’ he asked.

‘A quart—’

Indy was cut off by the crackling static of the radio she’d left on the overturned milk crate near the door.

‘Indy? Come in, Indy. You there?’ Mara’s voice was strained and ice ran through Carter’s veins.

Indy made a dash for the two-way quicker than any winger he’d ever seen. ‘Mara, what’s going on?’

‘Nova’s headed your way in the ute. Someone called to say there were wild dogs sighted on the mountain and she wanted to check the stock.’

‘Shit!’ Indy shouted towards the roof of the shed before her fingers squeezed the button on the radio and she raised it to her mouth again. ‘We’ll radio after, going silent.’

Carter went quickly to Indy’s side as she turned a knob on the radio and the little green light went out. ‘What do we do?’ he asked.

Her fist smashed against the light switch and his hand found hers as they were pitched into darkness.

‘Hide,’ she whispered. ‘Behind the wool press.’

‘What the hell’s a wool press?’

She ignored him and took off across the shed to the tall machine in the corner.

It’d been green in the light, and he recalled thinking it looked like a giant bin with levers that was, thankfully, taller than him.

Indy pushed him into the gap behind it and he pressed up into the brick corner of the wall to make room for her.

It was tight and he was engulfed by the smell of coconut and Indy.

Fuck. If Nova decided to check the shearing sheds for wild dogs, they were screwed.

If only they’d finished the last ewe! Surely Indy could’ve come up with an excuse for twenty sheep to be in here if there wasn’t one still with discoloured wool, along with a couple of scourers and a bottle of heavy grade handwash next to empty buckets.

All he could hope for was that Nova didn’t see them hiding behind the machine.

Carter closed his eyes and tried to picture the shed.

If she didn’t come inside, she mightn’t see the sheep thanks to the wood panelling around the shearers’ stations.

But would she hear them over the ute’s engine?

Maybe not, if it was a diesel. Just keep driving, just keep driving .

He registered the arm pressed against his was shaking. Opening his eyes and letting them adjust to the darkness, he made out the outline of Indy’s head and shoulders. Her eyes were scrunched closed and her arms folded tightly across her chest. Her breath was coming in short puffs.

‘Indy? What’s wrong?’

‘Nothing.’ The rattle of her next breath filled the space between them. It was deeper, as though she was trying to calm herself down. It didn’t work and her lips crumpled together tighter than her eyelids.

‘You don’t have to pretend with me. What’s the matter?’

She didn’t answer, just resumed a fast tempo with her breathing.

Worry wrapped its long cords around his chest and he slid his arm carefully between her back and the wall.

Shit, her whole body, while rigid as a board, was trembling.

She leant away from him and he held his breath, ready for her to fight him on it.

Slowly, he eased his other arm around her as well and she moved into him.

His surprise faded as the grumbling of a motor grew louder outside.

Tucked into his arms, Indy rested her head against his chest. Her body lost some of its rigidness, but the shaking continued.

‘Indy? Please, tell me what’s going on. Are you worried about Nova? She’ll keep driving. It’ll be okay.’

He ducked his head closer to hers, waiting for a reply as the ute grew closer.

‘I hate the dark.’

It was barely a whisper. His heart clenched and he tightened his arms around her, resting his cheek on the top of her head.

‘I’m right here. Can you hear my heartbeat?’

She nodded against him.

‘It’s steady and sure. Real. It’s here, just like I am. I’m not going to let anything happen to you.’

Her fingers gripped his shirt and her breathing turned uneven as he sensed her fighting for calm.

A fierce beast inside him banged on its chest and he mu?ed the King Kong roar it wanted to unleash as she pressed closer.

He was ready to take on all the nightmares of her past so she had nothing left to fear.

Headlights flashed over the windows as the ute rounded the corner of the shed, but the revs didn’t slow.

Carter lifted his head as Indy tilted her face up to him.

She was so close. If the lights were on, he could’ve counted the freckles across her nose.

His tongue darted out, moistening his lips.

Her grip tightened and he slid his hand up from her back to cup the side of her face.

She didn’t move away. They were closer than when she’d helped him perfect his posture at the pool table.

She lifted her head further. He swallowed hard.

He wanted nothing more than to take her mouth with his.

To seal what was growing so quickly between them with what was bound to be an earth-shattering kiss.

She was right there with a wanting look in her eye.

But she was still trembling, still vulnerable to the fear the dark held for her.

She pushed forwards to close the gap between them as he pulled his head back.

An awkwardness consumed them. What had he done? Indy released his shirt and pushed off his chest, creating a chasm between them. Carter registered the disappearance of the diesel engine, the bleating and shu?ing feet of the ewes echoing around the tin structure.

Indy peered around the corner of the machine. ‘Coast is clear,’ she said. ‘We need to get this last sheep done so we can get out of here before she comes back. I’ll move the sheep with Scout first thing in the morning.’

Carter caught her hand in his. ‘We should talk about what—’

She yanked her hand back and he released it immediately. ‘I need to turn the lights on.’

She moved quickly to flick the switch before hovering at the open door. Dread tugged at his heart. He longed to go to her, sweep her into his arms and kiss her senseless, but he kept his distance. Where the hell was her head at? Why was she so quiet?

‘I can only imagine what you must think of my pathetic fear. Only small kids are afraid of the dark.’

‘I don’t think you’re pathetic at all. Fears don’t have to be rational. Me and that non-venomous snake are Exhibit A.’

‘Just stop, Carter. Stop being so understanding and nice.’

‘Indy …’ He took a couple of steps towards her.

‘It’s not what you think.’

That stopped him. ‘What’s not?’

She whirled around, her wide blue eyes a mix of fear, defiance and, above all, vulnerability.

‘I just got caught up in the moment of you comforting me. Swept away, thinking, for only the briefest of moments, that we could be something that we so clearly are not. We lead completely different lives, and we have since the moment each of us was born! You have parents who love and care for you, who wanted you. A stable upbringing with so many opportunities and you made the most of them. Mara said you’re the best halfback in the entire league and you get paid more for a single game than I can hope to earn in a year.

I’m the girl from the wrong side of town.

The one your mum will welcome through the front door to be polite and kick out through the back one, so the neighbours don’t judge.

I have nothing and no one except a hell of a lot of baggage that would end your career if it ever got out that I …

that we … And besides, I’ve got to be at least six years older than you. ’

‘Six years is a stretch. I’m twenty-four.’

‘Three then.’

He scoffed. ‘Based on the age you gave me and how long you said you’d been here, I’d say two and a half at most.’

She let out a single, ‘Ha.’ The sound bounced around the pitched roof. ‘That’s what you got from all of that?’

Carter took another step towards her but she held up her hands to stop him.

‘Before you start whatever line you have about women throwing themselves at you all the time, save it. I’m not one of those women and that’s not what tonight was. I get that you’re not interested in me like that.’

He rubbed the back of his neck, really wishing she’d put the barbs away, but he got it. She was scared. ‘Indy, that’s really not—’

‘Please, just leave it.’

Hearing the pleading in her voice stilled him. He resigned himself to the fact he wasn’t going to convince her of anything tonight. Instead, he changed course and grabbed the empty buckets.

‘Let’s just get this ewe clean.’

Her shoulders dropped from where they’d been wedged under her ears, and she nodded. ‘We clean this sheep then you go back to your footy camp, and I focus on my work. Like none of this ever happened. And we steer clear of each other.’

He headed out the door without answering, because there’s no way she wanted to hear the words on his lips. With the tap spurting out what would hopefully be the last load, he tipped his head back and searched the abundance of stars that exploded across the inky sky.

‘There’s no way I’m forgetting tonight,’ he whispered. ‘And I can’t just walk away.’