Bride at Briar's Ridge Read online

  He was beginning to think he was falling for her, though he never let that out. Neither, for that matter, did she put words to her deepest feelings.

  There had been no natural progression. Their passion had all the power and danger of driving his sports car at high speed, that was how big and fast it was. Their affair was virtually free of admissions, as though admissions carried a high degree of risk, and he sometimes felt the two of them were suspended in time. If their relationship continued they would reach a point where it wouldn’t be safe not to face what was in them.

  He wondered if her family—her mother, surely—knew the strength of their connection. Probably. Mothers had an infallible sense of such things. Though it was not as if he saw Daniela more than once or twice a week. Both of them, it seemed, were better than most people at hiding their true feelings, yet inside he felt as though a dam had burst, flooding his entire body with emotion. If she went away, went back to London, he wasn’t sure how he would react. She had become the focus of his world. All he wanted, needed now, was to be near her.

  Did he want her too much?

  Was it possible to want a woman too much? All he knew was he couldn’t take in the full extent of his hunger. He hadn’t been prepared for it, for things happening over which a man had no control. He couldn’t even control his hands when he was with her, holding her, kissing her, loving her. Even days after they made love he still felt the aftershocks.

  Was it the same for her? He wanted to confront her with it. At the same time he knew confrontation at this stage of their love affair was potentially a danger. He was sure something had happened to Daniela in London. Something she wasn’t comfortable with but wasn’t about to confide. Maybe he had to talk first. Get Cheryl off his chest. He wouldn’t put it past Cheryl to pop up out of the blue. Some women could twist anything around in their heads. Fantasise. Cheryl had acted as if they had shared an illicit passion. Maybe she truly believed it? Maybe she had reasoned the way he had shunned her only hid a fatal attraction? God knew what went on inside that airhead. All he knew was he didn’t relish the idea of confronting his volatile dad, pointing a rifle at him. His dad was an ‘act first and talk later’ kind of guy…

  Daniela was surprised when Violette and Lilli Denby made a reservation for lunch at the bistro.

  ‘You’re becoming famous, cara mia,’ her grandfather told her. ‘The word has gone out.’

  Both sisters gave every appearance of enjoying the lightest lunch on the menu—scallops with watercress and a Vietnamese dressing, no entrée, no dessert—and they shared a chilled bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon. It was afterwards they got down to business, with Violette predictably taking the lead. Daniela privately thought Lilli would have developed better without Violette for a big sister. At least Rose had fought free.

  Violette had requested a word, so Daniela finished off what she was doing, gave some instructions to her very capable mother, whipped off her big white apron and went out front. The bistro was slowly emptying, and as she threaded her way through to the Denby sisters’ table she was repeatedly stopped by customers who wanted her to know how much they had enjoyed the whole experience of coming to the bistro. It might well be that the family would have to shift to bigger premises some time soon. Since she had been home she had passed on a lot of her expertise, and it showed. She had a dream of one day opening her own restaurant. She might employ her family—they worked closely and well together—but she had progressed much too far to settle for bistro dining.

  As she approached the Denby table she had the sensation of two pairs of blue eyes burning over her, of blond heads inclined conspiratorially towards each other. As ever, both sisters were beautifully dressed, perhaps a touch overdressed, with not a gleaming hair out of place. She, on the other hand, had been working more or less flat out for hours, and could feel the heat of the kitchen in her cheeks.

  Violette gave her a big smile, showing her perfect teeth, but her tone was brittle. ‘Please sit down.’ She gave a laugh.

  Whatever did that laugh mean? Daniela reached for a chair at the adjoining table, now empty, turned it, then sat down. ‘How can I help you?’ she asked pleasantly, but didn’t pick up on any wave of friendliness from the sisters. Rather, they—and Violette in particular—appeared to be playing some sort of power game. Was it possible they were going to ask her to leave town? Such was their arrogance she wouldn’t put it past them. The thought calmed and amused her.

  ‘Great lunch, by the way,’ Lilli told her with a note of surprise.

  ‘I’m glad.’ Daniela inclined her head. ‘I do hope you’ll come again, and perhaps bring your friends?’

  ‘We’d love to,’ Violette said. ‘The thing is we’re more or less committed to Guy’s restaurant. Multi-award-winning, as I expect you know. But for a light lunch here is fine.’

  ‘Is that what you wanted to tell me?’ Daniela asked, her pleasant tone slipping a little.

  Lilli responded swiftly, a little colour in her cheeks. ‘No…well, yes…Tell her, Vi.’

  Violette gave her sister an arctic smile. ‘Violette, dear.’

  Lilli’s trained answer was immediate. ‘Violette.’

  ‘I’d be grateful if you would,’ Daniela said, her calm returned. ‘I still have some things to finish off.’

  ‘Of course!’ Violette sat back as if to say, What do you have to do? What does it really matter? ‘I’m planning a dinner party for a few friends at the end of the month, on a Saturday night,’ she said, as though announcing a meeting of the Commonwealth Heads of State. ‘Just twenty of us in all—a small party. We’d like you to handle it. It would be a smart business move for you. If it goes well I’m sure you’ll get plenty of spin-offs.’

  So no written invitation, then? Business, not pleasure. ‘Who do you usually use?’ Daniela asked. Saturday was her night with Carl. She longed for Saturday every single day of the week.

  Violette shrugged, her blue eyes shiny. ‘Oh, one of the chefs from Guy’s restaurant. This time we thought we’d try you. The talk around the town is you’re a marvellous cook.’

  ‘I am,’ Daniela said simply, no false modesty.

  Violette laughed, as if success had gone to Daniela’s head, but Lilli spoke up. ‘Oh, please tell us you’re interested,’ she said. ‘We’d want to see the menu, of course. Stuff like that.’

  ‘And there’s no need for budgeting,’ said Violette, a woman who was only used to the finer things in life. ‘Buy the best.’

  ‘I always do,’ Daniela said, giving a slight frown. ‘I don’t know, Violette…’ She had an idea Violette could be just cruel enough to want to see her make a mess of things. Then again she might be overreacting. Violette would hardly wish to spoil her own dinner party.

  ‘How can you knock me back?’ Violette opened her eyes wide in amazement. ‘What do you normally charge? Whatever it is, I’m prepared to go higher.’

  Daniela immediately named a figure she was certain would put the Denby sisters off.

  Lilli stared fixedly at the white tablecloth as if at an invoice. Violette was up for the challenge. ‘Then we can rely on you?’

  Well, she had no one to blame but herself. ‘Certainly,’ Daniela said in a businesslike voice. ‘I’ll prepare two menus, not interchangeable. Each dish on the set menu will complement the next. The final say is, of course, yours. The dinner party will be at your home?’

  Violette nodded, her manner suggesting the guests would be royalty.

  ‘I usually prepare the table,’ Daniela said. The most gracious and aristocratic lady of her acquaintance had allowed her to do that—indeed, encouraged her. ‘I choose the linen, bone china, silverware, crystal, flowers. All to complement the food. I imagine you have plenty to choose from?’

  ‘Exquisite things!’ Violette confirmed with her usual haughtiness, trying unsuccessfully to hide her shock. Who was this little upstart to take over the table setting and the flowers when she excelled at that sort of thing? But those great brooding dark eyes we
re on her, probing her motives. ‘We’ll leave it entirely up to you,’ she said.

  The truth was, Violette’s great hope was that Daniela Adami would make a real mess of things. It might teach her a well-deserved lesson. MsAdami had to learn she was way out of her class, and the sooner the better. If she thought for a moment she could snare Linc Mastermann then she was out of her tiny mind.

  Daniela drove out of the canopy of trees and into the broad driveway. He was waiting for her up on the verandah, but as she slid into a parking spot in the shade he walked down the short flight of steps to join her.

  ‘So what brings you here on a weekday afternoon?’ Linc called, as if he hadn’t seen her for weeks instead of a few days, his body and even his soul stirring. ‘I thought you’d be working?’

  ‘Forgive my weakness.’ She smiled up at him, thrilled by his welcome, removing her sunglasses. She was wearing a summery white dress that showed off her flawless skin.

  He gave in to his feelings. He pulled her to him, one-armed, and kissed her gently, then harder, tasting the peaches of her mouth. Or was it apricots? It was a marvellous feeling to have her here. Marvellous to kiss her in the blazing sunlight. It had been a magnificent day. Late afternoon was still hot.

  ‘I’ll forgive you anything,’ he muttered. ‘Just so long as it brings you to me.’

  ‘Well, it has.’ She lingered in his arms. ‘I must be feeling perilous.’

  ‘More perilous than usual?’ He slipped an arm around her, leading her to the house.

  ‘Let’s forget I said that.’ She had only just arrived, yet she was feeling the sizzle of excitement. At the same time she felt she belonged there. With him. It was a glorious feeling, yet in some ways it scared her.

  ‘How long can you stay?’ He looked down on her shining hair. It made a wonderful contrast with her dark eyes and golden skin.

  ‘As long as you like. But I don’t want to take you from your work. You’ve been quite a hit in the valley. Everyone seems enormously impressed.’ Especially the female population. He would turn any woman’s head.

  ‘Oh, yes? Who told you this?’

  He didn’t sound in the least concerned. ‘The word has gone around,’ she said. ‘People talk. You know that. It’s a big valley with a small population. You’ve been the focus of all the attention of late. The Sextons come into the bistro at least once a week. They’re very pleasant people. Tom thinks you’re going to make your mark in the valley, and he and Grace already consider you a good neighbour. I don’t know, but Tom said he once knew or knows of your father.’

  ‘That would be “knows of”,’ Linc said, with a sinking feeling, though it was no surprise that anyone in the pastoral world would know of the Mastermanns of Gilgarra. How the hell had he thought he was going to keep anything secret? If Chuck didn’t spill it out in an unguarded moment, the news of his buying Briar’s Ridge would inevitably leak back to his father.

  And the ticking time bomb—Cheryl.

  He would have to deal with that when it happened.

  Inside the homestead, she turned to him with a gasp of pure pleasure. ‘Good heavens, Carl! You’ve done wonders since I was last here.’

  He was gratified by her expression. ‘I wanted to surprise you. Chuck sent a lot of my stuff on.’

  ‘I can see that.’ She loved the Southeast Asian influence, a collection of artefacts, stone sculptures, tables, chairs and chests. The art on the walls was bold, modern, calling for one’s own interpretation. ‘You must be working twenty-four-seven,’ she said, turning to look at him with unconcealed admiration. If he were, he was fairly blazing with energy.

  ‘I’ve never had the opportunity of doing my own thing,’ he said with satisfaction. ‘Your coming into Sydney with me made a big difference. Because we were able to settle on most of the furniture there and then, I was happy to let the removalists put it all in place. Of course, I had to shift a few things around, but that was fun. I haven’t touched the kitchen. It works at the moment. Like a cup of coffee? I bought the beans at the bistro, so they’ll be good.’

  ‘A cold drink would be even better,’ she said, walking towards a seated gilt Buddha. It sat on top of a carved chest, flanked by two extraordinary silver lamps balancing on three legs.

  ‘Sri Lankan,’ he told her. ‘They were originally altar lamps. Do you know what Sri Lanka means?’

  ‘Beautiful island, isn’t it?’

  ‘Right in one. Guy and I stayed with family friends there. Both their sons were sent to our school and later on to uni. The family used to own a huge rubber plantation in the days when Sri Lanka was Ceylon. Now they have a tea plantation. They’re an English-Australian family, but they’ll never leave. They really love the place, and I have to say it’s very beautiful. The chest with the Buddha on it comes from there, as do the ebony chairs. I like a mix.’

  ‘Especially when it works as well as this.’ She turned about. ‘Did you paint that wall saffron?’ It was spectacular against all the white.

  ‘I did. It was well after midnight before I finished. The colour really sets off the big painting, don’t you think?’

  She nodded, studying the huge painting that might have been an abstract tapestry. ‘All those blues!’ She was forever seeing him in a new light.

  ‘The bed arrived, by the way. Ready to deal with that?’ His silvery green eyes glittered over her.

  ‘Only if I want to forget the rest of the world for a few hours,’ she said, a telling warmth rising to her cheeks.

  ‘And don’t you?’

  ‘You’re too good a lover, Carl,’ she said, excitement flooding in on her.

  ‘And you’re a dream to make love to.’

  She didn’t betray what that admission did to her beyond the trembling in her hands.

  Slowly she followed him into the kitchen, loving his lean, elegant frame, the width of his shoulder. His shirts and jackets always sat so beautifully. ‘Violette and Lilli called in for lunch today,’ she told him in a conversational voice.

  ‘What a surprise!’ His tone was ultra-dry. He bent to the refrigerator, withdrew two bottles of Coke. ‘This okay?’ He turned back to her, his skin giving off a wonderful bronze glow.

  ‘Fine.’ She really didn’t care, as long as it was cold. ‘They gave me quite a shock.’

  ‘And more to come?’ He hunted up one of the best glasses for her, intending to drink his from the bottle.

  ‘As a matter of fact, yes. They’ve asked me to cater a dinner party Violette is giving a few Saturdays from now. I didn’t want to, so I made my asking price outrageously high, but it all rebounded on me, I’m afraid. Violette agreed. I’m not sure why exactly. Lilli kept her eyes glued to the tablecloth.’

  ‘Probably as shocked as you were,’ he said wryly.

  ‘I think she knew better than to intervene. Violette is, without question, the boss.’

  ‘She’ll make a hell of a wife!’ he said, pouring her Coke and placing it before her.

  ‘Does that mean splendid, or what?’

  ‘What do you think?’ he asked with a rakish smile. ‘The Denby sisters are very attractive to look at. One might ask the question why they’re not married?’

  She took a long sip of her cold drink. ‘Well, Violette did carry the torch for Guy. She’s since dropped it for you. The pity of it is, I think Lilli has the wild idea in her head that she can outmanoeuvre her big sister.’

  ‘Should I be worried?’ His tongue curled over his beautifully cut upper lip, tasting Coke.

  ‘I think so. I’m betting Violette sends you a written invitation—or maybe she’ll deliver it in person.’

  He thrust back the unruly lock of hair that insisted on springing forward onto his forehead. ‘She already has.’ He waited for her reaction.

  ‘She’s a fast worker.’ Daniela clasped her frosty glass to her. He hated that errant lock. She loved it. ‘No doubt you accepted?’

  He moved nearer her. ‘There was a problem,’ he said. ‘As far as I’m concerned Sa
turday night means you. I’d back off dinner with every other woman alive for you.’

  ‘But you accepted Violette’s invitation?’ She was surprised how cool and collected she sounded.

  He didn’t say anything but continued moving towards her, blocking the sunlight streaming through the windows, blocking her entire vision of the world. Though it thrilled her, she didn’t really know how to deal with it. Gently he placed his hands on her shoulders. The fingertips were callused from hard work, but she didn’t mind that in the least. It only served to make his hands on her soft skin even more erotic. ‘The thing is,’ he said, looking down at her wryly, ‘the party is for me.’

  ‘Wh-a-t?’ Shock and a lick of anger shook her voice. Instantly she regretted it. What they had, no matter how deep and elemental, wasn’t any sort of a commitment. Neither of them, even in the throes of passion, had cried out the dreaded L word.

  He curled a hand around her nape, beneath the thick silky bell of her hair. ‘It’s supposed to be a “welcome to the valley” sort of thing. A “neighbourly thing” was how Violette described it. She and Lilli want me to meet their friends.’

  ‘So you couldn’t possibly refuse?’

  ‘Daniela,’ he said gently, ‘that would have been very churlish. I know you understand that. I never even asked her if you would be invited—’

  ‘Me?’ She shook herself free. ‘I could hardly be classed as a friend. Alana made things smooth for me. Easy. But Violette and her sister are out to make things very difficult indeed. One doesn’t need an instinctive mind to sense that.’

  ‘Okay, they’re jealous,’ he agreed. ‘Can you blame them? They fear you. You’re a beautiful woman. Not only that, you’ve cut out a career for yourself working with the world’s elite chefs in what must be a male-dominated world. You have talent, strength and ambition. Violette and Lilli have been near ruined by their money.’