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CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
DALE FELT LIKE he’d been punched in the gut. Steve’s news had taken them all by surprise. Steve was exhausted. He’d spent the day talking to lawyers, as well as on the phone to Wazza’s family. At first, the police hadn’t been very forthcoming with any details. But after the lawyer Steve hired—who’d agreed to drive straight to Dimbulah from Cairns, a one-and-a-half-hour trip—presented himself at the police station, they found out more.
The most shocking part of Steve’s news was that Karri had been pregnant. Dale could make terrible sense of the reason the police had requested DNA samples from all the men. Worst of all, it turned out that Wazza was the father. Fairly damning evidence. The police were accusing him of murdering Karri because he didn’t want her to have the baby, and she refused to abort the child.
Of course, Wazza strenuously denied the charges. Steve said the poor man was a complete mess. By the time the lawyer had arrived, Wazza had already confessed to the senior sergeant he had indeed been sleeping with Karri. But he said their affair ended a month ago, when she started seeing someone else. He never even knew she was pregnant.
Dale couldn’t get his head around it. After Steve relayed the details to them all, he’d told Julie he’d catch up with her in the morning and went straight to bed, saying he’d had a shit of a day, and tomorrow wasn’t looking any better. Sally took off in the direction of the staff quarters as soon as Steve disappeared through the door, a frown marring her normally perfect features. Daniella, Skylar, Julie, and Bindi all huddled together, consoling each other and trying to work out how Wazza and Karri had conducted their secret affair. It was wonderful to re-connect with Julie again; he’d forgotten how much fun she could be. She’d buoyed the mood over dinner with her stories and laughter, and even though he hadn’t felt like laughing, it was nice to have something else to think about for a while. Skylar looked up from their heated discussion after a few moments, inviting Dale to join them with a quirk of her eyebrow. But Daisy stirred on the stool beside him, and he declined Skylar’s offer, saying he’d wanted to make sure Daisy made it safely to her quarters. That statement caused Skylar’s other eyebrow to crawl up her forehead, but he ignored it. He led them toward the side entrance out to the staff quarters, but Daisy halted halfway down the hallway. “This is all so fucked up. Don’t you think?”
She was staring at him, like she was about to cry. She was right, this was all totally fucked up. He took her in his arms, pulling her close, needing to feel her body warm and alive next to his. It sounded corny and desperate, but he was so grateful that it wasn’t him locked up in that cell tonight. One thing Wazza’s arrest showed him, was how quickly life could turn on a dime. One minute, you were as free as a bird, the next your life could be turned upside down. He wanted to hold Daisy. Be with her. Feel every minute. She stood on tiptoe and kissed him. For a moment he forgot where he was, and what was going on around them.
“Stay with me tonight,” he whispered in her ear. “I need you. I need to feel your body next to mine.” She didn’t pull away or shake her head, which he took as a positive sign. Maybe she was feeling the same way. She didn’t want to be alone tonight, either. Then she kissed him again, and he had his answer.
Taking her by the hand, they turned and went deeper into the lodge, as he led her toward the family wing. Hopefully, Steve had actually gone to bed, as he’d said. Dale slowed as they approached the door to the family living room. He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw the room was empty, and they tiptoed past. His bedroom was at the far end of the building, while his mother and Steve’s room, and Skylar’s rooms, were this side of the living room, closest to the lodge, which meant they could talk normally and wouldn’t be overheard.
Instead of turning on a light, he drew back the curtains on the large, picture window, revealing a night view of the corner of the billabong with the escarpment rising behind it. The stars were just as bright as they’d been last night, like a painter had scattered glow-in-the-dark paint all over the fabric of the sky.
He swung around, ready to gather Daisy up in his arms, to consume her with his mouth and body. To let himself loose for a few moments from these terrible feelings of guilt and hopelessness.
She backed away. “Actually, I’m not sure, perhaps I should go to my dorm room.” Why was she acting so indecisive all of a sudden? After what they’d done last night, he’d seen all she had to offer, and more.
“I’ll take you back if you want,” he said, approaching her slowly. “But first of all…” He scooped her up and kissed her, letting his lips explore hers. Tamping down on his sudden urge to rip all of her clothes off, he controlled his desire; he didn’t want to scare her off. Instead, he let her know by the pressure of his mouth, the way he clung to her, how much he wanted her. After a second’s hesitation, she returned his passionate kiss.
Tonight would be different. They could take their time and explore each other’s bodies. There was still a burning urgency running through his veins, but this didn’t have to be a quick, one-off thing. They had the luxury of a soft bed and all night to spend in it. He was hard already, just thinking about it.
Much like yesterday, Daisy was wearing those tight little shorts that he loved because of the way they showed off her pert bottom to great advantage. When she’d arrived for dinner, however, she’d exchanged her dirty T-shirt for a soft, linen tank top that revealed her bronze shoulders nicely. And she’d changed her sneakers for a pair of tan leather sandals, which she now kicked off, leaving her feet bare.
He tugged on her hair tie, and strands unfurled from the braid, falling down her shoulders. Then he lifted her arms above her head, trapping her wrists together with one of his hands, and sliding the hem of her top up, exposing the taut muscles of her belly. Ever so slowly, he drew the fabric over her arms and then dropped the piece of clothing on the floor at their feet. Releasing her wrists, he dropped to his knees and kissed her belly.
He spent his time exploring the soft skin of her stomach, which twitched and flickered beneath his touch. Ticklish, was she? That was good to know. He undid the top button of her shorts and slowly slid the zipper down, revealing plain, white-cotton underwear. She was a no-frills kind of girl. But he found it sexy as hell. His lips wandered to the waistband of her panties and he kissed his way across the hem. Her hands tangled in his hair and she let out a groan.
These shorts needed to come off, they were hindering his access to the places he wanted to kiss the most. He tugged, and they slipped easily over her hips, pooling in a crumpled heap at her feet. Which left the underwear. Hooking a finger through the waistband, he leisurely drew them down to reveal a perfect triangle of dark hair. Now this was better. Tugging the panties down with both hands, he buried his face in between her thighs.
“Dale,” she gasped. But her hands in his hair urged him on, directing his mouth exactly where she wanted it to be. His tongue flicked in and out, tasting her, enjoying the small sounds of pleasure she made as he did so.
“Oh, God,” she groaned, and he looked up to see her head thrown backward. He reached one hand up her belly to the dip between her breasts. As if taking his cue, she unhooked her bra, so she was standing naked in front of him. He stopped what he was doing, staring up at her. She was so beautiful in the starlight. Then her hands dragged his head up, and she leaned down to meet his lips.
“Bed. Now,” she mumbled into his mouth.
He could do that. In one fluid move, he picked her up in his arms and carried her to his king-size bed, placing her gently down.
“Clothes off,” she demanded, holding up a hand as he climbed onto the bed with her. He had no trouble doing what he was told by a woman who knew what she wanted. His boots and socks came off first, flung into the far corner of the room. Then came his shirt. Why were there so many buttons on these things? It seemed to take an eternity to undo them all. But at last, he peeled it off, while Daisy watched him with hungry eyes.
Finally, he dropped his jeans to the floor, only remembering at the last second to retrieve the condom from his pocket and place it on the nightstand. She stared at him; her gaze tracing down his body, from his shoulders all the way to his hips, lingering on his pulsing erection for a few seconds, before continuing all the way down his legs. He liked the way she devoured his body with her eyes.
“You sure are a good-looking cowboy,” she said, voice heavy and husky.
“Why thank you, ma’am.” He bowed before her, adding a flourish of his wrist. Her laughter died as he crawled onto the bed and covered her mouth with his.
She turned to face him, and they lay side-by-side, staring into each other’s eyes. Running a hand up her thigh, he followed the contours of her body. Long-limbed and perfectly proportioned, her darker skin blending in with the night, while his paler skin glowed faintly in the starlight.
He was falling hard for this woman with so many secrets. What was he going to do?
Before he quite knew what was happening, Daisy was on her knees, pushing him down so he was flat against the bed. “My turn,” she said. His belly clenched in anticipation.
Using her fingertips, she explored the muscles of his pecs, running a circle around each nipple, and then tracing over each bump of his ribs, until she found his abs. Then she lowered her mouth and followed the same route with her lips, as her hands drifted lower, to find his erection. Stroking it with precise care, she torturously trailed her lips down to meet her hands. Her tongue flicked the tip of his erection and he nearly jumped out of his skin. She was going to drive him crazy. After only a few more moments of her ministrations, he could take no more. He needed to be inside her, or he was going to explode. As if reading his mind, Daisy stopped what she was doing and climbed her way up his body, laying full-length along him so they were connected by skin all the way up.
She’d taken control last night; it was his turn now. He reached for the condom and had it on in a second, rolling her over, using his elbows to hover above her. She arched her body up to meet his, and at the same time dragged his head down so she could latch onto his mouth. He nestled beneath her legs, savoring the anticipation, holding on as long as he could, before he finally plunged inside her.
