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The man commanded attention in too many ways to count. It was that air of confidence that both thrilled and frightened the life out of her. His eyes lifted to hers and a ripple of spine-tingling excitement flashed through her. This was not the time to overthink things. She needed to pull herself together and start to take control of the situation.
She stepped closer to him, so close she caught the briefest scent of his citrusy aftershave. “Josh, I’ll take you to my office. I’ve got a first-aid kit there and the door is right behind you.”
She could almost feel, rather than hear, the sighs of disappointment from the girls.
“Do you need a hand?” asked Cherie.
Josh’s face broke out into a smile. “I can still walk.”
Kristy led him to her office. She switched on the air-con and the lights. Right behind him were the girls. She waved him in and with her biggest smile she playfully shooed them away before she closed the door.
“Kristy, I’m sure it’s nothing more than a small cut.”
She hoped that’s all it was, but those horse shoes were rusty and the blood under his shirt was spreading. She ushered him to a small desk at the back of her office and Josh sat on it.
Kristy had known him for over ten years and this was the first time they’d been in a room alone together.
With that thought she busied herself clearing her collection of horse and country magazines that were stacked high against the wall next to Josh. On top of her bookshelf sat her first aid kit. She glanced across at him.
“Josh, I’ll be back in a minute. I’ll get a dish of water to clean your wound.”
His blue-grey eyes shot to her in a simple acknowledgement as his hand reached up to the top button of his shirt, then he undid the top three buttons.
Kristy stood at the door and tried her best to ignore him, but her heart beat faster at each button.
Get a grip.
She swung open the door and strode out, all the while her mind grappling with the knowledge he was only in town for Christmas, he was Amanda’s husband and that made him out of bounds.
But, she liked his kind of distraction. Problem was, it both scared and frustrated her in equal measure.
CHAPTER6
Josh pulled back his shirt and looked at his wound, a long jagged cut about three inches long. He wasn’t too concerned. Outside, he could hear the girls berating Rex. He smiled, imagining Rex doing all he could to run away.
The cool air from the air-con above the office door helped clear his head. It struck him how neat and tidy Kristy kept her desk. It almost looked unused, but he could tell she spent a lot of time in her office. To the right of her desk were a set of folders marked “Deliveries – Grimmers transport costs”, “Receipts – current year”, “Marketing $$”, “Costs – Christmas”, “Costs – feed”, “Costs – maintenance”. He stretched but couldn’t read the last two folders. He bet at any moment she could tell him the exact state of her financial affairs.
On the wall to the left of her office was a small bookcase. He jumped off the desk and strolled across and ran a hand across titles:Business Success,The Next Level – Steps to Take,Charting Your Business Progress. Most had yellow Post-its sticking out at the top. He pulled outHow to Create a Business Plan – One that Works!and opened it. Kristy had yellow highlighter marks across certain paragraphs on every page. He read some of the notes she’d written down the side. On a hunch he flipped to the back pages and saw Kristy’s dot point plan.
He looked about and saw that the wall behind the desk he’d sat on had a collage of various photos of horses in action. He could remember Amanda telling him about each stage of Kristy’s business. Shame swept over him. He should have taken more interest. Why didn’t Kristy just come out and ask for any business tips? Or, run her plan by him?
His eye caught site of an aerial shot of Kristy’s property. He studied the map and could see her driveway, the cottage, the carpark and the stables. There were also a few other buildings dotted out to show plans for the future.
His work days were spent solving the business problems of some seriously smart people. His clients were well educated, with MBAs and access to some serious family money. He found it humbling to study Kristy’s dream, knowing the risks involved and the effort it took to make it work.
Josh cursed himself. He knew why she’d never approached him. Why would she? He’d done everything he could over the years to avoid her, which discouraged any form of conversation, let alone a discussion of something as serious as a business plan. He’d never even shown his face on any of her visits to Amanda in Sydney.
The creak of the office door opening drew his attention. Josh looked over his shoulder, meeting the switched-on, challenging eyes of a practical dreamer. Kristy shouldered her way into the room carrying a small tray with plastic bag of cotton wool, a handtowel and a dish of water. His appetite was whetted by a sudden blast of music and the sweet scent of onions cooking wafted into the room.
Her eyes widened when she saw the book he was holding.
Not feeling the slightest bit guilty, he held it up. “It’s a good book.”
Josh saw the colour rise to her cheeks and his heart went out to her. It can’t have been easy – not any of it.
Her expression turned business-like as she walked into the room and put down the tray. “We’re here to deal with your injury.”
Josh hesitated. He really fancied an in-depth discussion with her, not some superficial chit-chat. He complied, put the book in its rightful home and jumped onto the desk.
