clarified.
‘Oh.’ Her voice came out as a feeble squeak. She cleared her throat. ‘Why?’
‘When I saw you heading away from the arena, I guessed you’d be going back to camp for a cuppa.’ His voice purred along her auditory pathways as she stared at the small satisfied smile curving his mouth. ‘I thought I’d join you.’
‘Don’t you have things to do? Official duties?’ She looked back towards the arena in the hope that a task might materialise for him. ‘Judging or something?’
‘Not right now.’ The warmth in his eyes made her pulse jump. ‘And, besides, I wanted to talk to you.’
She took a deep breath and recited her mantra again.
Cool.
Calm.
Collected. Was it too much to ask of her cavorting insides? Apparently, it was, because her heart kept chiselling at her ribcage.
‘What did you want to talk to me about?’ She managed to fix him with a steady look.
‘Anything and everything, Kayla.’ There it was again, that lingering verbal caress of her name. ‘I enjoy crossing swords with you. There’s a certain spice to it that I can’t seem to resist. You interest me. I want to know what makes you tick.’
‘You must be a very busy man if you’re this curious with everyone.’ She couldn’t prevent the tinge of asperity that had crept into her voice.
‘Ah, but I’m not this curious with just anyone.’ When he paused, she felt her stomach tighten in anticipation of what he’d say next. ‘Only the people I want to know better. Like you.’ He gave her a sly smile. ‘And members of the criminal fraternity, but that’s part of the job.’
A small bubble of laughter escaped catching her by surprise. ‘You’re a typical policeman, aren’t you?’
‘I am. Does that bother you?’ His gaze sharpened with predatory interest as he straightened in the saddle. The horse shifted restlessly beneath him but Tom didn’t take his eyes off hers.
She shrugged. ‘Why would it?’
‘Tsk. Never answer a question with a question. It’s one of those things that makes us typical policemen suspicious.’ His eyes narrowed and she wondered what he read in her face because when she didn’t say anything, he murmured, ‘Policing is a job, Kayla, not a personality trait.’
‘I know that.’ She felt oddly raw, unprepared to hear the questions she could see forming in his mind. Marshalling her thoughts, she said, ‘You said you wanted to talk to me?’
‘I do.’ He kicked his feet out of the stirrups and in the next instant he’d landed lightly on the ground beside her.
Impossibly close.
She took a small surreptitious step in retreat as he passed the reins over his mount’s head. Holding them loosely in one hand, he turned to face her and swept his arm towards the tents. ‘Shall we?’
So much for her escape. She turned and walked beside him. The sooner they got over to Liz and Jack, the sooner Tom’s company would be diluted. Surely the impact on her senses would diminish with others around.
But it wasn’t to be. When they arrived at the van, it was deserted.
‘How about getting the billy on while I put Ziggy away?’ He pointed to the neat cooking set up she’d seen earlier. ‘Milk’s in the esky. Mugs are on the rack. Sugar and teabags in the box.’
‘How prosaic,’ she murmured. ‘You don’t throw a scoop of loose tea into the billy with a handful of eucalyptus leaves?’
His lips twitched. ‘We can try that another day if you like. For today, teabags are easier. I take mine white with one.’
She nodded and crossed to where a blackened pot with a spout sat on a small portable gas cooker. A peek inside the billy revealed plenty of water so she lit the burner.
Everything was very orderly and in a short time she’d gathered the things she needed. With the water heating, she looked over to where Tom was working beside the float. He had the saddle off Ziggy and was brushing the glossy brown coat. The horse lowered his head and blew loudly through his nostrils. It
‘Oh.’ Her voice came out as a feeble squeak. She cleared her throat. ‘Why?’
‘When I saw you heading away from the arena, I guessed you’d be going back to camp for a cuppa.’ His voice purred along her auditory pathways as she stared at the small satisfied smile curving his mouth. ‘I thought I’d join you.’
‘Don’t you have things to do? Official duties?’ She looked back towards the arena in the hope that a task might materialise for him. ‘Judging or something?’
‘Not right now.’ The warmth in his eyes made her pulse jump. ‘And, besides, I wanted to talk to you.’
She took a deep breath and recited her mantra again.
Cool.
Calm.
Collected. Was it too much to ask of her cavorting insides? Apparently, it was, because her heart kept chiselling at her ribcage.
‘What did you want to talk to me about?’ She managed to fix him with a steady look.
‘Anything and everything, Kayla.’ There it was again, that lingering verbal caress of her name. ‘I enjoy crossing swords with you. There’s a certain spice to it that I can’t seem to resist. You interest me. I want to know what makes you tick.’
‘You must be a very busy man if you’re this curious with everyone.’ She couldn’t prevent the tinge of asperity that had crept into her voice.
‘Ah, but I’m not this curious with just anyone.’ When he paused, she felt her stomach tighten in anticipation of what he’d say next. ‘Only the people I want to know better. Like you.’ He gave her a sly smile. ‘And members of the criminal fraternity, but that’s part of the job.’
A small bubble of laughter escaped catching her by surprise. ‘You’re a typical policeman, aren’t you?’
‘I am. Does that bother you?’ His gaze sharpened with predatory interest as he straightened in the saddle. The horse shifted restlessly beneath him but Tom didn’t take his eyes off hers.
She shrugged. ‘Why would it?’
‘Tsk. Never answer a question with a question. It’s one of those things that makes us typical policemen suspicious.’ His eyes narrowed and she wondered what he read in her face because when she didn’t say anything, he murmured, ‘Policing is a job, Kayla, not a personality trait.’
‘I know that.’ She felt oddly raw, unprepared to hear the questions she could see forming in his mind. Marshalling her thoughts, she said, ‘You said you wanted to talk to me?’
‘I do.’ He kicked his feet out of the stirrups and in the next instant he’d landed lightly on the ground beside her.
Impossibly close.
She took a small surreptitious step in retreat as he passed the reins over his mount’s head. Holding them loosely in one hand, he turned to face her and swept his arm towards the tents. ‘Shall we?’
So much for her escape. She turned and walked beside him. The sooner they got over to Liz and Jack, the sooner Tom’s company would be diluted. Surely the impact on her senses would diminish with others around.
But it wasn’t to be. When they arrived at the van, it was deserted.
‘How about getting the billy on while I put Ziggy away?’ He pointed to the neat cooking set up she’d seen earlier. ‘Milk’s in the esky. Mugs are on the rack. Sugar and teabags in the box.’
‘How prosaic,’ she murmured. ‘You don’t throw a scoop of loose tea into the billy with a handful of eucalyptus leaves?’
His lips twitched. ‘We can try that another day if you like. For today, teabags are easier. I take mine white with one.’
She nodded and crossed to where a blackened pot with a spout sat on a small portable gas cooker. A peek inside the billy revealed plenty of water so she lit the burner.
Everything was very orderly and in a short time she’d gathered the things she needed. With the water heating, she looked over to where Tom was working beside the float. He had the saddle off Ziggy and was brushing the glossy brown coat. The horse lowered his head and blew loudly through his nostrils. It
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