Taming the Outback (17 page)

“Yes, Mum.”

“Thanks for the coffee and cake.” Nathan rose, pushing away his mug and plate. “Take care, Tom.”

“Thanks, Nat, for what you’ve done,” Tom responded. “Appreciate it.”

“No problem. If you want to go look at those bulls I mentioned, give me a call, and I’ll drive you over,” Nathan said over his shoulder as he walked toward the door.

“I’m sure we can manage, Nathan, but thanks for the offer.” Libby waved good-bye to him.

“Thanks, but I’ll only have the sling on for a couple of days, and then I can take Libby over to see them.”

He glanced between the two of them before putting on his hat, nodding, and heading down the steps.

“Let’s go, Winton.” Josh was pulling his mate to the door. “We’ll be out in the shed, Mum.” They walked out with Holly on their heels.

“Sure, guys.” She sighed as she began clearing the table.

“What’s going on, Libby?” Tom sat back in his chair while she bustled around the kitchen.

“Why would you think there’s something going on?”

“Don’t give me that innocent look, young lady. You’ve been up to something, and it seems to me Nathan is involved somehow.”

Libby sat beside him again and laughed shakily, twisting a strand of loose hair behind her ear. “I think I may have gotten the better of our Nathan.” She proceeded to tell Tom what had happened that morning, sparing him just a few of the more intimate details.

He laughed and slapped the table with his good hand.

“Oh my, that’s good. I can just see his face as you told him you would use him for sex. You make me wish I was young again, but I doubt if I could keep up with you young’uns these days.”

“I surprised myself, I can tell you.” She laughed. “I didn’t know I had it in me to carry that off, but after the way he treated me and left me wanting, I figured I had nothing to lose.”

“So what are the plans now?”

“Will the dance still be on?” Libby cleared away their cups, putting them in the sink.

“You bet it will,” he replied.

“I need to get to town and buy a dress. Nathan isn’t going to know what hit him. From now on, it’ll be me calling the shots.”

“I don’t think the boy stands a chance.” Tom laughed as he wiped his eyes. “I can almost see it now.”

“You may be the babysitter that night after the dance.”

“Anytime. Now, I best get out and see what Holly is up to.”

_***

The next couple of weeks flew by. The water slowly subsided, and Tom and Libby went to the McNally’s station for a look at the bulls Nathan had told them about.

Tom wised her up on what to look for and how much she should be paying for it long before they made the visit. Libby had read everything she could get her hands on about the breed as well and had no problem sorting through what she thought were inferior prospects. Tom kept an eye on her and let her know with a nod here and there he approved of the sire she’d chosen.

Next came the haggling over the price they were asking. Libby was frugal from years of making do, and she refused outright McNally’s asking price and made a ridiculous counteroffer. After going back and forth for what seemed like hours, Libby had a new sire for her herd.

Tom was patting her on the back, while Mr. McNally was complaining about city folk not appreciating the true value of good stock.

“Mr. McNally,” Libby placed her hands on her hips and shook her head, “if you don’t want to sell me the animal for that, then don’t. I’ll wait for the sales. Your call, but you won’t get any more money from me. I simply don’t have it.”

“I’ll let it go for that this time, since you’re new and all and have to rebuild your stock,” he grumbled. “Just don’t go telling anyone about the good deal you got.”

“Done.” She shook his hand. “Now, how do we get him home?”

“I can bring him over tomorrow,” said McNally. “Got to go out anyways, so it won’t be much of a problem to me.”

“I appreciate it,” Libby said. “I’ll have your money for you then. Now home, I think, Tom. I want to get into town before the kids get back unless you want to come with me.”

“Why not, I can get a haircut, so I’m all spruced up for the dance,” he said.

Libby and Tom said their good-byes and headed into Charleville. She parked outside the barber’s, and Tom directed her to the dress shop and the bank.

“I’ll come looking for you if you aren’t back by the time I get finished up,” he said.

“Catch you later then.” Libby sauntered down the street in search of the killer dress that would have Nathan dribbling down his shirt.

An hour later, she was still trying on dresses. Nothing was doing it for her. Frustrated, she asked the girl serving her if there was another dress shop in town.

When the shopkeeper shook her head, Libby walked out of the shop, dejected. Her meager wardrobe certainly didn’t have anything that would work. Going out wasn’t high on her priority list when she’d lived in the city. Certainly not since John had died. She headed for the bank, withdrew the money for her bull, and met Tom on the sidewalk as she came out.

“Hey, handsome,” she said, admiring his haircut.

“Hey, yourself,” he replied. “Did you get that pretty dress you wanted?”

“No. They had nothing that looked anything like what I needed. I don’t know what I’m going to do.”

“Let me show you something when we get home,” Tom said mysteriously, getting into the truck.

Libby was intrigued, but he wouldn’t say a word. When they drove in, she parked by the shed as always, but instead of heading for the house, Tom went into the shed and started rummaging around. Libby watched him, suddenly realizing what he was doing. He pushed an old trunk toward her and stood up, indicating she should come and look.

“I couldn’t stand to throw away all of your grandmother’s things, Libby,” he said. “So when Aaron told me you were coming, I just packed all her clothes up and put them out here to give you some more room for your own things. Go through them and see if you can find something you can use. She was about the same size as you are.”

Libby opened the trunk, and the smell hit her first. The same smell that was in her bedroom, the subtle smell of roses and powder. It almost brought tears to her eyes.

“I’ll go and feed the lambs for Holly,” Tom said as Libby started to go through the garments.

Everything was packed neatly. It was obvious her grandmother had been a pretty dresses and lace type of woman. There wasn’t a single pair of trousers in the trunk. Libby unfolded every dress and inspected it. Most were daywear, but there were a couple exceptions. These she did not return to the trunk. She took them with her into the house and placed them on the table.

“Thanks, Tom,” she said, dropping a kiss on his newly cropped head as she passed him.

“Are you going to try them on and get a man’s opinion?” he asked.

“Why, aren’t you the helpful charmer today?” She laughed. Grabbing the dresses, she headed for her bedroom and changed into the floral one, which had first caught her eye. She surveyed herself in the mirror, and opening her wardrobe, pulled out her only pair of high heels. Slipping them on her feet, she looked at her reflection again.

The dress was perfect. It hugged her tiny waist and rose to mold her breasts and lift them to fill the low-scooped neckline. The sleeveless look showed off her shoulders and a good portion of her back. Holding her hair up onto the top of her head, she looked at herself sideways. She quickly slipped a clip in her hair to hold it up off her neck, admiring the long smooth span of skin slowly losing its pale city color.

The gathered, full waist flared over her hips, and the skirt fell softly around her knees. The color was gorgeous. A soft moss green, with sprays of pink rosebuds in abundance, scattered over the fabric. Libby was looking at a very feminine version of herself in the mirror, something she hadn’t seen in a long time. Twirling for her own pleasure, she smiled at her reflection in the mirror.

Tom looked up as the heels tapped down the hallway. “Nathan is a dead man. No two ways about it. You look so much like your grandmother, Libby, it’s just plain spooky.”

“Thanks. What about the dress?” she asked. “Do you think it’s pretty enough for the dance?”

“Hell, yes,” he said. “Nathan is in serious trouble. Are you sure you know what you’re doing with him, Libby? I don’t want to see you hurt in any way.”

Just remember you’re only using him for sex
. Aloud, she replied, “I’m a big girl and can look after myself. I’ve been doing it for years
.” Though I never had a man like Nathan to deal with before.
A shiver traveled up her spine, but she ignored it.

C
HAPTER
E
LEVEN

Saturday dawned sunny and bright. Libby rolled out of bed and headed to the kitchen for breakfast. She was keyed up and anxious about tonight.

What if Nathan doesn’t turn up?
What will I do? Just go with the flow
.

She would at least try to have a good time and meet new people, but she was looking forward to teasing Mr. High and Mighty. She felt up to the challenge. Today was a day for primping and pampering, she thought, sipping her first cup of coffee. Tonight she would let him know what he was missing out on and leave him with his mouth hanging open.

The kids had their clothes ready. The boys had both bought new shirts and had Libby wash and press their best jeans. Holly had plenty of pretty dresses to choose from and tried on her whole wardrobe, parading in front of her mother until they came to a mutual decision.

Libby relished the change in her baby. She was thriving on the farm with the responsibility of looking after the lambs. She had gone from being a scared little girl to a confident child. Holly had never trusted strangers before, but she was so at ease with Tom and Winton. And since the storm, she seemed to have taken a liking to Nathan too. She no longer appeared to be scared of him
.
That was a big plus for the man, in Libby’s mind.

Even Tom was organized for the dance. His clothes were pressed and hanging in his room, ready to go. His western shirt and tie were red and black with a thin strip of silver running through the fabric, and the trousers were black like his boots. He’d brought out his best hat to show Libby and told her how he was looking forward to showing her off to the locals.

Libby took her coffee outside and wandered around the back of the house to her garden. She would spend some time there before it got too hot. There were seedlings in the shed waiting to be planted, and it would keep her mind occupied on matters other than sex. Her skin tingled with excitement.

_***

“Wow, Mum.” Josh laughed when Libby came out of her room that evening. She had banned them all from her room, requesting time on her own to primp and pamper herself, something she hadn’t done in years. She did a spin in front of them, and her eyes settled on Tom.

“What do you think?”

“Oh, Libby,” Tom said. “Girl, you take my breath away. If I didn’t know better, I would think it was your grandmother standing there.”

She’d done her hair up in a knot on the top of her head, allowing tendrils to curl around her face and neck. Apart from tiny diamond studs adorning her ears, she wore no other jewelry. Her grandmother’s dress hugged her body, the skirt falling around her knees, showing the promise of her long legs. Her breasts almost spilled over the low neckline.

“He doesn’t stand a chance.” Tom whistled his approval.

“Who?” Josh asked.

“Nathan, who else?” Winton nudged him with his elbow. “Haven’t you seen the way he looks at her?”

“But I don’t get it.” Josh looked confused. “They bitch at each other every time they meet.”

“There’s no need for that kind of language, Josh,” Libby admonished, stepping forward. She straightened his collar and brushed an imaginary speck of dust off of his shoulder before doing the same to Winton.

“You see way too much, young man,” she whispered in his ear. Grinning, she winked at him, leaving Josh baffled even more.

Holly was waiting for inspection.

“You look good enough to eat, young lady.” Libby took her daughter’s hand in her and twirled the little girl around. The pale, pink princess dress floated around her daughter’s knees, reminding Libby of candy floss. Libby had dressed her hair earlier in a French braid with strands of pink and white ribbons threaded through her blonde tresses.

Tom coughed and handed Libby a small florist’s box.

“Oh, Tom,” she whispered, her eyes going moist. “They’re just lovely. Thank you so much.” She took off the clear lid and lifted a small wrist bouquet of soft pink roses, which matched her dress. Slipping it over her right wrist, she held it out for everyone to see. After much
oohing
and
ahhing
over their dance outfits, they all headed out to the four-wheel drive.

Libby’s body was tingling with a mix of emotions. She was looking forward to seeing Nathan and dancing with him. The thought of being held close in his arms had her nerves fluttering under her skin. She was terrified he might not make an appearance or he might have someone else with him, something she hadn’t thought of until she was getting ready.
God help me if another female gets her hands on him before I do.