Page 32

‘I’m calling it a night,’ Emery announced, sticking her cue in the rack along the back wall.

‘Finally,’ Mara murmured, leaping from the couch. She’d been lounging around, half-watching their game all night.

‘You could’ve gone to bed ages ago,’ Indy told her, abandoning her own cue and pulling a set of darts from the board. ‘No one was stopping you.’

And it would’ve done her a huge favour. She could’ve unloaded all of her Carter issues onto Emery instead of leaving them to swirl in her head. Bloody Mara. Indy had a new appreciation for the young girl after her near-death experience, but she still annoyed the hell out of her, especially tonight.

‘I know,’ Mara said, staring at her shoes. ‘I just don’t like walking alone in the dark.’

Indy did a double take, surprised that Mara had admitted it. Any sarcastic retort fell from her lips. Who was she to pay someone out for their fears when hers were even more pathetic?

Emery slung an arm over Mara’s shoulders and steered her towards the door. ‘Are you coming, Indy?’

‘Nope.’ She turned to the dartboard, taking aim for the bullseye but when she sent the dart spiralling forwards, the tip sank into the cork several inches away from the outer circle.

Luckily, she’d never claimed to be good at darts.

The others bid her goodnight and she waved them off.

She could always follow and invite herself into Emery’s cabin, but it was late and her friend wasn’t the night owl Indy was, and got all weird when she was out of routine.

Indy should probably head for bed as well, but she didn’t like the idea of being in her house, waiting for Carter to come, knowing that he wouldn’t.

She threw a second dart, still way off target.

Obviously, she could use the practice. It’d only been a few nights that they’d spent together.

It was meant to take longer than that to form a habit, but Carter was a habit she didn’t think she wanted to quit just yet.

Only it wasn’t up to her. Besides, she didn’t need another bed warmer—she had a couple of hot water bottles stored in the cupboard.

God, she’d trusted him. Dropped her guard and told him about Bonnie, her mum and her fucked-up childhood. How could she be so stupid?

Irritation stirred in her when the third dart landed just outside the number.

She was terrible. And pushy. And pathetic.

And alone. And there was no one to blame but herself.

That twenty must’ve lasted her mother longer than usual because not even she had called asking for more.

Indy was a disappointment to everyone. And spiralling.

Yanking the darts out of the cork, she took a step back to try again.

She sighed. It was probably over, whatever it was she thought she had with Carter.

She’d probably been more on the money last night than even she cared to admit.

It wasn’t the first time someone had only wanted her for a good time and probably wouldn’t be the last. But it was the first time the reality of that hurt so much.

She threw another dart, but tears blurred her vision.

‘Fuck this,’ she muttered when the dart fell to the floor. She threw the remaining two in quick succession, not caring where they landed and barely registering that there was no clatter of them falling to the floor.

Blinking back the tears that had welled because she wasn’t going to cry over someone who didn’t want her, Indy flicked off the lights and slid open the door.

A tall, dark figure loomed in front of her.

She gasped loudly and her hands shot up to push the intruder away.

She needed to get outside. Couldn’t risk being locked in with him.

‘Indy! It’s me.’

Her body sagged at Carter’s voice and only his grip on her arms kept her standing.

‘What is wrong with you? Sneaking up on me like that in the fucking dark!’

‘I’m sorry, I wasn’t thinking.’ He sounded sheepish.

Indy squinted at his face but couldn’t make out any features in the dark. ‘What do you want, Carter? There’s no bed in there.’

He blew out a rush of air and she drew her bottom lip between her teeth. He was here to call it quits. She stepped out of his reach.

‘Beau Randall blames me for losing the grand final last year.’

Indy’s brows rose. She looked around, conscious of the potential eyes the night could be hiding. ‘Do you want to come inside?’

He nodded and she moved aside to let him in.

The air was still cool from having the air conditioning on earlier.

Indy slid the glass door shut and flicked the lock.

It was the first time she’d ever locked a door on Windale, but she couldn’t risk anyone walking in on them and she knew she was safe with Carter.

She found the light switch before sliding the curtains across.

He was already sitting on the couch and Indy hesitantly sank down beside him. He grabbed her hand, holding it with both of his. In the light, he looked more tired than yesterday. His eye was a darker shade around the cut, but he was as handsome as always.

‘I’m sorry I couldn’t tell you about Beau last night. There’s so much to it and yesterday was just one of those shit days that I’ve had since it all went down but worse. I thought I had it handled but I don’t. And I just didn’t want it to taint what we have going on.’

Her guard dropped a little. ‘I’m sorry I pushed.’

‘No.’ He shook his head, gripping her hand tighter. ‘You had every right to push and I’m sorry that me not telling you made you think that I just wanted you for the sex. I mean, don’t get me wrong, sex with you is incredible, but it’s not the reason I come down here every night.’

‘That’s good to hear.’ She smiled at him, but it was brief. ‘Why does Beau blame you for losing the game?’

His chest expanded with a deep breath. ‘Last season, we had a guy named Aaron on the team. He was a really superb lock, best in the league—’

‘What’s a lock?’

A corner of his mouth lifted. ‘Ah, the lock wears the number thirteen on his jersey. A mix between a tackling machine and an additional play maker, kinda what you’d call an all-rounder.’

Indy nodded despite her confusion remaining. She probably needed to watch more football to understand but didn’t want to get hung up on it.

Carter continued. ‘Anyway, the week before the grand final, the league hosts its awards night and Aaron was nominated for lock of the year. After the ceremony, I walked in on Aaron strangling his partner because he didn’t win.

I pulled him off, someone called the police, and he was arrested.

I gave a statement about what I saw and what I’d done, but his partner Nyssa’s injuries spoke for themselves. ’

Indy’s eyes widened but she remained silent.

‘Aaron was charged and, due to the moral clause in his contract, he was dropped from the team immediately. He’d brought the game into disrepute and wasn’t allowed to play in the grand final nor in any game since.

It stayed out of the media until the court mention.

He pled not guilty and said I’d made it all up. ’

Her mouth dropped open. ‘Surely they didn’t believe that?’

Carter shrugged. ‘We lost the grand final. People needed someone to blame and Aaron offered me up as sacrifice to excuse him for not being there.’

‘That’s bullshit. All you did was give the truth. You didn’t strangle anyone.’

‘I know,’ Carter said.

‘How can you be so calm? Have you tried telling Beau?’

He sighed. ‘Beau and Aaron were really good friends. They probably still are. I think he knows I told the truth that night, but he firmly believes in the brotherhood and that we should always have each other’s backs, no matter what.

He calls me a snake and warns people away from me because he believes I ruined Aaron’s life by making that statement.

’ Carter shook his head. ‘I’m not lying for a man who thinks it’s okay to take his anger and shame out on his partner. ’

A burst of warmth from her heart startled Indy as she stared at the man in front of her.

She felt as if she were seeing him for the first time.

The real him. The values that made him who he was and the strength it took to hold onto them in a world that said, ‘Boys will be boys and look the other way if you don’t like it.

’ She was … proud. Proud of the way he stood up to his teammate, proud of the way he defended someone more vulnerable than him and proud to be someone that he cared about.

For the second time that night, tears sprang to her eyes.

‘What’s wrong?’ Carter asked. ‘Indy? What’s the matter?’

She couldn’t speak. Instead, she climbed into his lap, straddling his legs, and wrapped her arms around his neck.

His arms enfolded her waist just as tightly and securely as her grip on him.

Holding him close to her, she let the tears fall.

Just a couple. If they never had to move again, she’d be happy.

‘Are you okay?’ he asked, the worry still evident in his voice.

She pulled back, his unrelenting hold dictating how far, and looked into his eyes. ‘You’re amazing. And for some crazy reason, you’re here with me.’

Before he could answer, she cupped both sides of his face and kissed him.

He responded immediately, his lips moulding to hers, his tongue nudging until she opened her mouth, slanting it over his as she got her fill of his taste.

The slow heat of the kiss spread through her entire body, setting it on fire.

She pulled back and rested her forehead against his, their breaths mingling together.

‘There’s nowhere else I’d rather be than here with you.’

Oh, man, he was going to make her cry again.

She pressed her lips back to his, moving her fingers through his hair and down to his shoulders.

The material of his T-shirt was soft but she preferred the touch of his skin.

She pulled his tee up and he sat forwards to help.

They broke apart to lift it over his head and when they reconnected, a thrill ran through her at the warmth of his skin and the hardness of his muscles beneath her hands.

His hands were on either side of her hips, his thumbs beneath her shirt, stroking the skin there and sending goosebumps up her spine.

He lowered her to the plush rug on the floor and hovered over her. ‘Indy, are you sure you want this? After everything that’s happened over the last twenty-four hours.’

And there it was again. Him putting her and her needs before his. The only person she’d ever met who’d done that.

‘I want you.’ She placed her hand on his chest, right where his heart was. ‘I want this man that you’ve shown me tonight.’

His lips found hers as more clothes came off. It wasn’t frantic or hurried—they’d done that. This was more.