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CHAPTER FIVE
WAZZA CLENCHED HIS jaw until his teeth ached in an attempt to keep a blank face. Why on earth would she refuse this? He was offering her sanctuary, a place to hide for a few days. “Why don’t you want to stay?” he asked, trying to keep his exasperation under wraps.
“This is someone else’s house. I’m a stranger. If it were my place, I wouldn’t want someone I didn’t know staying here.”
Why were women so hard to figure out sometimes? She was on the run, desperate to protect her little daughter. Had admitted that her ex-husband’s brother was looking for her. And she was worried about upsetting a woman she’d never met? He wanted to throw his hands in the air.
Instead, he sat down on the couch next to Benni and removed his hat. Benni stared up at him with wide, dark eyes. The cool air conditioning felt nice on his feverish head. Daniella hated it when he wore his hat inside the lodge, she was constantly berating him for forgetting he had it on. Like most men out here, his Akubra was an extension of himself, part of the image he projected, as well as an important piece of safety equipment. But he was trying to do better. Trying to follow Daniella’s rules.
“Sit down,” he said, pointing to one of the wing chairs.
But Kee refused, standing near the doorway, tapping her sandaled foot in agitation. From this angle he could see the curve of her hips beneath her shorts, her T-shirt stretched taut against her breasts. Mocha skin, warm and inviting. Just to look at her made him want to lick his lips. He couldn’t say that she wasn’t his type. He’d dated all sorts of women. Karri had been indigenous. He’d also dated a Malaysian backpacker when he’d still worked on the family stone-fruit orchard in Goulburn, and a German student studying agriculture with him for over a year while he’d attended Uni. There had been others as well, one or two of the jillaroos he’d worked with on the first station that’d employed him up in the Northern Territory, and a local lady in Dimbulah for a while, but they were all as different to each other as could be. None of the women he’d ever dated had had a child, however. That made everything so much more complicated. Impossible, really. So why was he even looking at her?
Because he couldn’t keep his eyes off her, that’s why.
“Look,” he said, as patiently as he could. “I know Daisy. She’s a wonderful woman. Very determined, very strong willed, but also sweet and generous. She’s got an…interesting past and has had a lot of hurdles to overcome. When she first arrived at Stormcloud, she was also running from something. It took a lot for her to finally trust Dale, but in the end, he helped her overcome her problems.” He shook his head. This wasn’t coming out properly. He didn’t want Kee to think he was her savior, nothing like that. All he wanted was for her to accept his help and move on. “What I’m trying to say is that Daisy knows what it’s like to need help. She perhaps understands what you’re going through better than most. And I know she’d want to help another woman in need.” This was all true, but Wazza didn’t want to say too much, because the story wasn’t his to tell. He hoped it was enough to convince Kee that she’d be safe here for a few days. To take the time to regroup and, perhaps, with his help—although he kept that thought to himself—time to come up with a better plan.
Her foot stopped tapping as she listened to him. Dark eyes roamed over the inside of the small house. What was she thinking?
At last, she said, “What do you want to do, Benni Bunny? Stay here? Only for a little while, mind you.”
“Yes, please.” Benni moved closer to Wazza and lay a soft hand on his arm. “Mr. Cowboy says we should.” Her serious gaze almost had Wazza smiling, but he held it in. Such solemn earnestness from one so young. She really was a sweet little thing.
“Okay, then, we’ll stay.”
“Great.” Wazza jumped up and took two strides toward the small kitchenette. “I’m pretty sure Daisy keeps this place well stocked. We all do out here; it’s a necessity when you live in such isolation.”
“I want to repay her everything that we use,” Kee said, nearly as earnestly as her daughter. “We don’t steal,” she said, tilting her chin until she could look him in the eye.
He held in a sigh. He clearly wasn’t going to convince her it wasn’t stealing; it was just what you did in the bush. Help a friend in need. “Sure thing,” he replied. “Why don’t you keep a list of everything you eat, and I’ll restock it next time I’m in town.”
Kee eyed him suspiciously but nodded her agreement.
Wazza got down on his knees and searched through one of the low cupboards. He’d been out to Daisy’s a few times over the past year. Usually, to join a few of the Stormcloud staff for a drink with Dale and Daisy. But he knew his way around the place enough to find the food. “Ah-ha.” He held up a tin of spaghetti. “Will this do?”
“Yummy,” Benni squealed, bouncing on the couch.
“That couch is not a trampoline.” Kee frowned at her daughter until she sat down again, but the radiant smile remained on her face.
Wazza took another quick look into the pantry. Tins of beans and corn and vegetables filled the shelves, next to cartons of long-life milk, and plenty of dry ingredients like flour, sugar, oats, and rice.
“Perhaps you could find a saucepan to heat this?” he directed Kee over his shoulder. There should be bread in the freezer, if he wasn’t mistaken. Yep, a full loaf of white bread was tucked into the small freezer at the bottom of the fridge, along with half a dozen packages of frozen meat and poultry. There was plenty of food here to keep Kee and her daughter going for the next few days, at least.
“Sorry, there won’t be much fresh stuff. Daisy wouldn’t have left anything perishable.” He opened the fridge to make sure he was correct. Nothing in there but a few cans of beer, a jug of cold water, and jars of condiments, pickles, jam, olives, and a block of chocolate. Daisy hadn’t been sure how long she’d been gone. Dale had said probably a month. It’d been only two weeks since she left, so Wazza was hoping he had at least another week to let Kee stay here. If she wanted to, of course.
Kee had found a pan and put the spaghetti on to heat on the stove, while Wazza put two pieces of bread into the toaster. They both leaned against the small counter and watched the spaghetti begin to bubble. The scene felt altogether domestic, and Wazza suddenly had to clear his throat.
“Hey, Benni,” he called out. “Want to help me set the table?”
“Yes.” She jumped off the couch and took out two plates from the low cupboard where he was pointing.
“Careful, now,” Kee warned.
“I am.” Benni pouted but concentrated on carrying the plates to the table as carefully as possible.
“Are you not eating with us?” Kee asked, noticing the number of plates her daughter was putting out.
“No, I’ll eat when I get back to the lodge.” His stomach grumbled to itself because he hadn’t eaten anything since an early breakfast this morning. But he wasn’t about to eat their precious supplies. Going hungry for a while never killed anyone.
