Page 34 of Road to Rosalee

‘Righto, well, to get to us, turn down the track beside the arena and just keep following it for about fifteen clicks. Just don’t turn off and you can’t go wrong.’

‘Okay, got it.’ It didn’t sound too complicated.

‘Excellent, see you soon. And don’t be afraid to give me a shout on the two-way if you run into any trouble or find yourself lost, okay?’

‘Yup, done.’ So there she had it, the rendezvous point was sorted – now, she just had to get there.

Determined to prove she could hold her own in the challenging landscape, she packed the men’s lunches into the front of the old LandCruiser and headed round to the driver’s side. Harold appeared from beneath the shade of the cottage and lumbered over. She gestured for him to hop in, glad for his doggy company. With him settled in the passenger seat, she climbed up behind the wheel. How hard could it be, taking the men’s food out to them?

Half an hour and four cattle grids later, she felt as if she were about to drive off the edge of the earth. She was starting to worry she’d taken a wrong turn somewhere along the way, which would have been virtually impossible, but not entirely unachievable given her inexperience out here, when she spotted them over the far side of a fenced paddock. As the men spotted her too, hands shot in the air to acknowledge her, some of them holding their hats. Deciding to pull up in the shade of the only cluster of trees for miles, she climbed out and started to set the food up on a tablecloth she’d flung out on the tray of the four-wheel drive, out of the reach of the bull ants scurrying like lines of soldiers across the red earth. Harold got himself comfy beneath the LandCruiser.

The sound of galloping hooves brought her head out from the passenger-side floor where she was collecting an Esky filled with icy cans of soft drink and a basket with pannikins and a couple of flasks of tea and coffee. When she saw who was heading straight for her, her heart skipped a beat, then another. She quickly reminded herself to breathe. Zai Wellstone was impossibly handsome and, on top of that, chivalrous. Until crossing paths with him a month ago, she didn’t think men like him existed.

‘Well, howdy there, Miss Melody.’ He pulled his horse to a stop just short of her.

If only he knew she was really a Mrs. ‘Howdy, to you too, Mister Wellstone.’ She wished she could see his eyes, hidden behind his sunglasses and shaded by the rim of his Akubra.

As he dismounted and his boots hit the dusty ground, she glanced to where his open-neck blue shirt was tucked into his jeans and her stomach fluttered with anticipation. For what, exactly, she wasn’t sure, and she quickly tried to cover up her attraction by momentarily glancing over his shoulder to where Tumbles, Showbags, Slim and Hasselhoof were approaching on their horses.

‘In all the places we could bump into each other.’ Zai lifted his hat off, removing the shadows from his gorgeous smile. ‘Fancy seeing you here.’

She laughed at his playful banter, her heart ramping up to a fast trot.

Joining her, he pushed his sunglasses to the top of his head. ‘You’re an absolute trooper, coming all the way out here.’

‘You guys are busy.’ She shrugged his compliment off. ‘So no biggie.’

‘I beg to differ.’ He went to take the Esky from her. ‘Here, let me help you unpack.’

She pulled it back towards her – she hadn’t come this far to be fussed over. ‘I got it.’

‘So do I,’ he said, yanking it free from her with a smirk that only deepened his dimples. ‘You’re just like your old man, you know that? Stubborn as a mule.’

‘I kick like one too,’ she said, watching how his biceps strained with the weight of the Esky.

‘I believe you.’

Melody couldn’t help but chuckle at the look on his face – this man was infuriatingly, captivatingly addictive.

Spotting the spread laid out on the tablecloth – buttery flaky pies, moist apple teacake, packets of salt and vinegar chips, a bottle of tomato sauce, a container of mushy peas for the pie connoisseurs – his eyes widened to saucers. ‘Holy moly, you’ve gone to heaps of trouble by the looks of this feast.’ He spun back to her, his grin from ear to ear. ‘You are totally spoiling us, Melody, you know that, right?’

She half shrugged. ‘Ahh, it’s nothing. Honestly, it gives me something to pass the time, cooking up a storm.’

The other four men climbed from their saddles and joined them, and there was a chorus of oohs and ahhs – even Hasselhoof looked somewhat impressed, his frown lines the least creased she’d ever seen them. It made her happy to bring such pure delight to their faces with her food.

‘Ladies first,’ Slim said, waving an arm to her.

‘No, you guys go for it. I’m just going to take a breather before I tuck in.’

‘You don’t need to twist my arm. This looks awesome,’ Showbags said with a grin, his plate at the ready.

‘Too right it does. I feel like I’ve died and gone to heaven,’ Tumbles added, looking like a kid in a candy store.

‘She’s bloody awesome, hey guys?’ Zai said proudly, tossing an enigmatic glance in her direction.

‘Bloody oath she is,’ Slim agreed, grabbing two pies then smothering them in mushy peas. ‘I’m going to lose my newfound figure with you around, Melody. Sherrie’s going to be right pissed off with me, but I’m a man who can’t help himself around good food, I tell ya.’

A blush rose on Melody’s cheeks. She still wasn’t used to their effusive and enthusiastic praise. Something about their gratification as they licked their lips and filled their plates meant more than the great reviews she’d regularly got in the newspapers back in Sydney. It was wholesome food versus posh nosh – the latter was exhausting. This down-to-earth style of cooking for equally down-to-earth men was elating. Allowing the men to grab their fill, she carefully poured hot tea into a battered enamel mug, topped it off with some sugar and milk, stirred, then sighed with pleasure when she took a sip, the sweet warmth washing away the dust from her throat. With all five men settled beneath the dappled shade, she grabbed some lunch for herself and nestled down among them.