Ringer (16 page)

Chapter Twenty-Nine

RINGER

Miranda’s
silence was the equivalent of punching a hole in my chest.

I wasn’t prepared for that when I had made
my way across the drive fresh from a series of back slaps and ‘go get her’ well
wishes from the boys. Rejection had not been at the forefront of my mind.

I had been certain that even past the
death-like stares, I could feel her body react to me. I should have just
fucking kissed her instead of playing stupid games.
But, it seems I was
wrong about her. Fuck.

Her hair smelt like vanilla, her skin so
soft under my hands, I didn’t want to let her go. I wanted to grasp her so
tightly and never
not
know what it felt like to touch her skin. To have
her by my side. I savoured the memories of her, before working up enough
courage. I finally broke away.

Walking a resolute line back to the huts, I
was determined to pass them as far as I could go, to save listening to the
sounds of her beat-up Mazda, to hum and moan out of my life, and into the
distance.
Away
. From. Me.

But only a few steps into my journey, I
felt the sudden thud of something hitting me between the shoulder blades. I
turned around, my eyes dipping to where something had fallen.

What the?

My incredulous eyes lifted to where Miranda
was standing by her car. From the very vantage point she had just turfed the
door handle at me. I bent down to pick it up, examining it with a questioning
look her way.

Tears welled in her eyes; she looked mad as
hell. I didn’t know whether I should comfort her or run.

She shook her head. “Why can’t I just hate
you?” she bit out in a sob.

My heart raced as I slowly stood. “Well, I
would like to think it’s because I am so irresistible?”

Miranda’s watery eyes looked up at me as I
moved to stand within touching distance. “You’re an idiot,” she said.

I smiled; somehow the insult was like music
to my ears. “They say opposites attract.”

Miranda sniffed. “So what does that make
me?”

“A genius.”

Miranda rolled her eyes.

“Any girl who could nearly run me over,
flip me off, tell me to eff off, drench me in cold water, stomp on my foot,
push me in a dam, rip my
favourite
jeans, make me carry her handbag,
attack me in my sleep, force me to hide under a car … and yet, still manages to
make me fall in love with her?”

I was met by a catatonic stare of
disbelief, and then like some form of magic, as my words slowly sunk in, a small
smile tugged at the corner of her mouth.

“Well, I must be a genius then,” she said.

This time with no gimmick, I took her hand,
laced my fingers with hers. “You’re more than that. You’re the most beautiful,
infuriating person I have ever met in my life, and you may not want anything
from me, but I want everything from you.”

Miranda shook her head ever so slightly.
She sobered and said on a whisper, “But I have nothing to give.”

I pulled her into my arms. Only when her
hands fisted into my shirt did I let the sensation of hope flood through me. I
cupped her chin to lift her face to mine. “You’re more than enough.” And before
she could argue the fact, I silenced her with a kiss, robbing her of all breath
until she melted in my arms.

The sound of catcalls and cheers sounded
from the shearers’ huts. There stood our own little personal cheer squad;
Miranda broke our kiss, laughing and blushing crimson.

“About bloody time.” Sean jumped off the
deck and strode towards the house. “Who knew
The Bold and the Beautiful
was alive and well in Ballan.”

Stan poked his head out from one of the
rooms. “Is it over?”

“Yes,” threw Chris over his shoulder.

“Oh, thank God, I’m starving.” He followed
the others down the steps.

With each passing mate there was a hard
slap on the back, Chris’s the hardest of them all. “Hurry up, lover boy; I like
my eggs sunny side up.” He winked at Miranda.

Miranda raised her brows at me. “They are
leaving, right?”

I sighed. “Even if I have to open every
bloody gate myself.”

Epilogue

Three weeks later

RINGER

The irony was
not lost on me, as I stood outside the women’s changing cubicle in Onslow’s
only women’s fashion boutique.

Oh, how my life had changed.

Miranda’s head poked through the opening of
the curtain. “Ringer, can you grab me a navy of the same, please?”

Off I would go without a care in the world,
skimming the clothes racks. I could see the smug, knowing eyes of the shop
assistant lady watching me, but I didn’t care. Against my better judgement, I
was happy; even though the idea had been to merely drop in to replace the
cardigan I admittedly ruined back in Ballan, it had escalated into a fashion
parade. Not that I minded, having permission to run your eyes over your
girlfriend’s attire was a bonus; I mean, you had to look at the bright side.
The curtains flung back and Miranda stepped out wearing a red knee-length,
figure-hugging dress; she moved from side to side in the mirror.

I cleared my throat, trying to distract
myself from my devilish thoughts. “So when do Steve and Penny hit town?”

“Tonight; they’re picking Moira up from her
girlfriend’s house on the way.”

“Look out Onslow.” I laughed.

Miranda sighed. “I can’t wait to see them.”
Biting her bottom lip in deep thought, she studied her reflection. “What do you
think?”

I stood behind her, meeting her eyes in the
mirror. “I think we need to get out of here so I can show you what I think.”

Miranda’s blush almost matched her dress.

We left Carters, with bags hooked over both
of our wrists. Miranda pulled me up short. “Thank you,” she said, brushing her
lips against mine.

I looked down into her greeny-blue eyes
that sparkled with appreciation.

Christ, I was a goner.

“RINGO JAMES?”

My blood ran cold; paused mid-step, I
slowly turned around, only to be faced with a living nightmare.

Sean Murphy swaggering down the street. “I
thought it was you.” His eyes flicked to our bags. “What are you two up to?”

“Oh, we just smashed Carters.” Miranda held
up her bags with glee.

“You don’t say?” Sean’s brows rose.

I discreetly mouthed:
fuck off.

I straightened, feigning innocence, when
Miranda turned to me. “Ringer said it was the place to go.”

“It’s the only place to go,” I mumbled
under my breath. At least Mrs C didn’t set us up with an account.

“Well, don’t let me stop you.” Sean slapped
me on the shoulder. “Don’t forget to take your woman to Total Bliss for a
beauty treatment.” He flashed a knowing smile.

I couldn’t help but smirk as I watched the
smug bastard walk across the road.

Miranda elbowed me. “What’s wrong?”

I tore my eyes away from Sean’s retreating
back to face her questioning eyes.

I could see now why my friends’ lives had
changed so dramatically as a result of having the love of a good woman. Miranda
hadn’t told me she loved me, but I know she does. She shows me with her body,
but those eyes tell me the real story.

“In all honesty?”

She nodded, worry etching her brow.

I kissed the worry lines, feeling them melt
and smoothen under my lips; drawing back I looked earnestly into her beautiful
face and smiled.

“Absolutely nothing.”

If love is friendship set on fire, wait till you
read Adam and Ellie’s story.

You see there’s this boy.

He makes me smile, forces me to listen, serenades me out of tune and
keeps me sane, all the while driving me insane. He's really talented like that.
But for the first time in since, well, forever, things are about to change. The
question is, how much am I willing to lose in order to potentially have it all?

Acknowledgements

Much love to my amazing husband, Mick, for
being the beautiful part of my reality and supporting me in all I do; I know it’s
not easy but I wouldn’t want to share it with anyone else.

I am blessed with such a talented hard-working
team; these ladies always go above and beyond for me. A special thanks to:
Sascha Craig, Marion Archer, Anita Saunders and Keary Taylor.

Many thanks to my formatters Karen
Phillips, Emily Mah Tippetts.

Always grateful for the love and support of
my friends and family, especially Mum, Kevin, Dad, Daniel and Leanne.

My fellow authors for their inspiration,
support and friendship: Frankie Rose, Jessica Roscoe, Lilliana Anderson, Keary
Taylor. I adore you ladies and would be truly lost without our daily chats.

To my fierce ‘Team Duggan’ warriors, for
your unwavering support and enthusiasm. For always spreading the word and
fighting the good fight to help put the
Summer Series
out there for the
masses. I feel incredibly privileged to have each and every one of you on my
team and in my life – thank you.

A special thank you to Marion Archer from Making
Manuscripts. For being the most lovely, helpful editor any author could ever hope
for. I cannot thank you enough for your support and guidance, but most of all
your friendship.
You will never know how you have changed my
life as a writer; you give me the freedom and time with your amazing turnovers
and attention to detail. I feel truly blessed to have found you. (Love you,
Bette.)

To all the bloggers, reviewers, readers who
have enjoyed and shared the
Summer Series
. For taking something away
from the story, for loving and embracing the characters. In a world that is
often dark enough, it has been an absolute pleasure injecting it with a bit of
sunshine.

About the Author

C.J Duggan is a Number One Best Selling Australian Author who lives
with her husband in a rural border town of New South Wales, Australia. When she
isn’t writing books about swoony boys and 90s pop culture you will find her
renovating her hundred-year-old Victorian homestead or annoying her local
travel agent for a quote to escape the chaos.

The Boys of Summer is Book One in her highly

successful, Mature Young Adult Romance Series.

*While each title can be read as a stand-alone story, you will
likely enjoy the journey with these characters from the beginning.

The 'Summer Series'

The Boys of Summer (December 2012)

An Endless Summer (July 2013)

That One Summer (December 2013)

Ringer (March 2014)

Forever Summer (July 2014)

Follow C.J on her website:
www.cjdugganbooks.com

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