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‘How far away is it?’ Emma’s brain was racing.
‘It’s a couple of hours to fly to the ranch, and then another couple of hours to ride out to the cabin. You’re not thinking of going there on your own, are you? Can you even ride? The cabin’s in the middle of nowhere, and you’re pregnant.’
‘Yes. But I’m not sick, and I’m not helpless. Exercise for pregnant women is actively encouraged, and this is something I’ve got to do. Tell me about the cabin,’ Emma insisted, in an attempt to distract her friend.
‘It used to be a wreck when we were children, but Luc put it together again plank by plank. There’s no one else there, just Luc. It’s the place he goes to when he wants to be alone.’
‘So...this flight to the ranch?’ Emma asked casually.
‘No,’ Karina said flatly. ‘I’ve changed my mind. Luc would never forgive me if he thought I’d let you go to the ranch on your own. We won’t even contemplate his reaction if you turned up at the cabin—’
‘And I won’t forgive you if you don’t tell me how to get there,’ Emma threatened. ‘Please...’ She grabbed Karina’s hand.
Seeing she was set on going, Karina relented. ‘The Carrier Pigeon would take you as far as the ranch—’
‘The Carrier Pigeon?’
‘That’s what we call the Marcelos light aircraft that shuttles back and forth between the city and the ranch. You’d be safe at the ranch, but you can’t get to the cabin because you would need to ride there—there’s no other way. There are no roads or landing strips. And you don’t ride, do you, Emma?’ Karina demanded in her best attempt at a stern voice.
Emma’s shoulders lifted in a reluctant shrug. ‘If I could just get to the ranch...’
‘Anyway, Luc doesn’t pick up calls when he’s at the cabin, so you’ll have to wait for him at the ranch. And goodness knows how long he plans to stay at the cabin. It’s in a really remote area. The only way Luc can be contacted is by satellite phone, and then he never picks up.’
‘I’m happy to wait at the ranch,’ Emma said blandly.
Karina studied her face. ‘You wouldn’t try anything stupid, would you?’
‘Of course not,’ Emma protested, eyes open wide. ‘I’d really like to visit the ranch...if I wouldn’t get in the way?’
‘You wouldn’t get in the way,’ Karina confirmed, glancing up.
‘Well, then. Will you fix it for me?’ Emma held her breath.
‘I could ring to let the staff at the ranch know that you’re coming, but that doesn’t mean they’ll be able to get hold of Luc. He switches off completely at the cabin. That’s why he goes there. You’d be on your own until he got back.’
‘That’s fine by me. I wouldn’t mind, if I’m not going to be too much trouble for the staff?’
What did she have to lose? She had to see Luc. And as things stood, she was on her own anyway.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
HORSE-RIDING CAME with a far better press than it deserved, Emma thought as she stared down a stable block that boasted snorting firebrands in every stall. Did people actually enjoy sitting on top of a volcano? She’d only arrived at Luc’s ranch that lunchtime and, after being collected at the landing strip by an elderly gaucho who had introduced himself as Pedro, she had quickly settled in and then come straight here.
Her first sight of Pedro had thrilled her, and not just because seeing him had told her she was closer to Luc. With his outfit of battered leather chaps, coin belt and typical hat, garnished with old-world manners, the elderly gaucho had made her feel special from the moment she’d arrived. It was Pedro she was trying to convince now—and not that well—that she had to borrow one of these horses.
‘I’ve been riding since I could walk,’ she asserted airily, hoping he couldn’t see her shaking.
He sized her up. ‘I’ll fetch you a mount.’
‘Thank you.’ She smiled. Job done.
He brought out a mule.
‘I’m to ride that?’ she said, trying not to be unkind as she looked into the doleful eyes of the clearly ancient animal.
‘Sim, senhorita. Nancy is slow, but she is kind. You will be safe.’
Hmm. Biting back her apprehension, she approached the apparently docile animal and stroked her long, velvety ears. Nancy was cute, but that was her assessment while her feet were firmly planted on the ground.
