Page 79 of Beneath the Quiet

As usual, my mind draws a blank.

I glance at the retired schoolteacher, who seems to be lost in her own thoughts as well, and I blink in surprise when she shakes her head at the man, her eyes narrowed and lips clamped hard into a straight line. Where has the polite old woman disappeared to?

Finally, Mr. Murdoch finishes up and turns around, the animal following along as if it’s a little pooch instead of a two-hundred-and-fifty-kilo steak walking on four legs.

The pooch would probably be the scariest of the two.

While I’d never expect an exuberant greeting from him, I can’t keep my irritation at bay when he passes me without even acknowledging me.

“Thank you, Mr. Murdoch.”

He pulls the bull to a stop and turns his head, his thick eyebrows furrowed in a straight line.

“We don’t need city girls like you changing things in our village.”

It’s my turn to narrow my eyes. “Maybe not, but I’m here for the time being, so you’ll just have to bend a little. I’m not your enemy, Mr. Murdoch.” I gesture to the bull. “But this is the last time that animal ruins Mrs. McCarthy’s flowers. You’re ruining her garden, and that’s not fair. Is that understood?”

He shifts his feet on the ground and glances at Mrs. McCarthy, then back at me.

“Yes.”

I nod, satisfied for now. “Good.”

As the surly man starts to walk away again, a hand rests low on my back. I turn my head to catch which one of my companions the hand belongs to.

I almost wish I hadn’t because, when I catch Aidan’s gaze, my breath comes to a stop for a few seconds.

“Don’t lock your door tonight, Mae.”

I wet my lips. “What about Katie?”

“Don’t you worry about her.” His eyes gentle, but only a fraction. “I have to go.”

I open my mouth to answer him, but no sound comes out.

Aidan’s eyes land on my lips, but then he steps aside and gives a nod to Mrs. McCarthy.

“Enjoy the rest of your day, ladies.”

I only chance a cursory glance at him, hoping that my sharp-witted companion will fall for my air of disinterest in our very sexy and respectable farmer, but when I look back at her, my stomach swoops with nerves.

Mrs. McCarthy raises her eyes at me and clicks her tongue. “Well, pet. That settles that, then.”

I frown. “Settles what?”

Her lips twitch. “Never you mind. I think your job here is done. Don’t you have better things to do for the rest of the day?”

I shake my head, not falling for it, but I also recognise when I’ve been dismissed. “I’ll see you later, then.”

With no other clever retort, I turn my back on her, walk down the pathway, and back on the main road. Something tells me Mrs. McCarthy saw right through Aidan and me, but I also know that she won’t rat on us.

She’s also right. I do have better things to do than stay in her garden.

Which is making sure I’m ready when Aidan comes over later tonight.

I know I’m ready for him, and now that I’ve made the decision, I’m not as nervous as before. Instead, a fire of excitement and yearning for him and his clever mouth and hands settle low in my belly.

But despite what my head keeps telling me, my body might not be able to do what I want it to.