‘Okay, Nel,’ Cath said, searching in her bag for her car keys.‘Let’s get going—’
She stopped abruptly and frowned at Lauren, who had elbowed her.‘What?’
Lauren groaned.‘Nothing, Mum.’
Nel cringed.It was impossible for this to be anything other than awkward, so she might as well just be straightforward.‘I’m going with Jimmy.’
‘Oh?’Cath’s frown turned into a knowing smile.‘Ooh!Okay then.Well, you two have a lovely time, won’t you?Goodnight, darling.’She kissed Nel then Jimmy.‘Goodnight, Jimmy.’
‘Night, Cath,’ he said, a slight smile playing on his lips.
As they walked through Carrinya’s deserted streets towards the beach, Nel was acutely aware of the proximity of their bodies toeach other.It was as though there was a charge in the air between them.Twice the backs of their hands brushed gently against each other and each time she felt a flutter in her stomach.
When they reached the beach, they took their shoes off and walked over the dunes, the wide expanse of sand opening out in front of them.The almost-full moon hung low over the black and silver water.The sand was cold on Nel’s feet and there was a crisp edge on the breeze.She should have worn Lauren’s coat instead of her leather jacket.She shivered and crossed her arms, rubbing them to warm herself up.
Jimmy reached for her hand.‘Cold?’
‘A little bit.’He pulled her into his chest and wrapped his strong arms around her.She felt the warmth of his body on hers and then his kiss on her forehead, his stubble rough but his lips gentle.
She looked up at him and they were still, their eyes fixed on each other, then he leaned down and kissed her, softly at first, tentative, then stronger, their lips parting, his tongue brushing gently against hers.
Chapter 63
‘Where you heading, anyway?’Barry said, one hand on the steering wheel, eyes on the road ahead.
Sophie wasn’t sure what to make of the laconic stranger who had stopped to help them, but he had kind eyes.Pale blue, the colour of his cotton shirt, and crinkled at the corners.You could tell a lot about someone from their eyes, Sophie thought.
They’d only waited fifteen minutes for a car to pass, but that was long enough.By the time Barry stopped, the temperature was dropping as the sun sank in the west.Sophie had rummaged through the bags to find jumpers for the kids, not sure how long they’d be out there.She was coming to terms with the idea of sleeping in the car when a dirty ute rolled to a stop behind her Subaru.He’d taken one look at the situation and got out his towing equipment.
‘I’ll take you back to my joint,’ he’d said.‘We can sort out the tyre in the morning.’
Sophie had thought of that English couple who’d gone missing on an outback road years ago—they’d made a movie about it.She’d watched it with Ryan.Two solid hours of backpackers being terrorised by a psychopath who kept them locked in a farm shed—but what choice did they have?She’d ushered the kids into the back seat of his ute.
She cleared her throat.‘Ah … just to Mount Isa,’ she said, glancing at the kids who sat stiffly in the back.‘To visit my brother.’Harvey pulled a face.Sophie shot him a reassuring smile and turned back to Barry.‘How much further to your place?’
‘Not far,’ he said.
Sophie sighed quietly.Not far.Did that mean five minutes or an hour?Given the distances out here, it was probably the latter.She looked out the window where the first stars were piercing the inky sky.
Ten minutes later, Barry slowed down as the speed limit dropped and they drove down the wide main street of a small town, lights glowing inside scattered homes.
‘Welcome to Willandra,’ he said, turning into a dusty driveway that ran alongside a pub with a corrugated-iron roof.‘This is home.’
‘We got room for four more?’Barry asked, as they stepped inside.‘I found this lot on the side of the road.’
The kids looked around, wide-eyed, surveying the walls that were obscured by historical photos, Akubra hats and sporting memorabilia.Bras hung from the ceiling at the far end of the room where a man with a long white beard sat at a wine-barrel table next to a sign that said,Old Fart’s Corner.The hum of voices came through a corridor that led to the dining room, according to a sign above the door.
The woman behind the bar gave a raspy chuckle.‘Of course!’she said, flipping open a big book with a maroon leather cover.Sophie studied her face as she ran her finger down the page.It was tough but warm.Sophie sensed she’d lived a life.
‘There’s no one in the Outstation, Baz,’ the woman said.‘They can bunk there.’
‘Righto.’He gave her a nod.
Sophie wondered vaguely what the Outstation was—hopefully it was different from an outhouse—but they were hardly in a position to be choosy.
‘I’m Barb, anyway,’ she said.‘Baz’s wife.’
Sophie introduced herself and the kids, figuring they were far enough from Carrinya for their names not to matter.
