Captivated By The Single Dad. Barbara Hannay
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Название: Captivated By The Single Dad
Автор: Barbara Hannay
Издательство: HarperCollins
Жанр: Короткие любовные романы
Серия: Mills & Boon M&B
isbn: 9781474096119
isbn:
‘Daddy!’ squealed his children, and two little faces appeared from beneath the side wall of the tent.
‘Hey, there. Looks like you’re having fun.’
‘We’re putting on a puppet show.’ Grinning widely, Josh lifted the sheet to reveal Holly caught in a beam of torchlight and sitting cross-legged at the bottom of the bed. Her hand was encased in a glove puppet that vaguely resembled a duck.
She blushed when she saw Gray.
‘I don’t want to interrupt,’ he said.
Holly shook her head. ‘You’re not interrupting. We were only filling in time until you got home.’
‘But don’t let me stop your fun. Keep going.’
She smiled shyly. ‘Um…well…’
‘Just tell me something first,’ he said, quickly. ‘How was school?’
‘Awesome!’ his children shouted in unison.
‘Really?’
Anna’s eyes were almost popping with excitement. ‘It’s a rocket ship school, Daddy. Me and Josh and Holly are in one rocket ship and we talk on our radio to all the kids in the other rocket ships.’
‘A rocket ship?’ Gray shook his head in bemusement. ‘Sounds exciting.’
‘It is exciting. And we’ve already learned all kinds of math and about wombats.’
Gray smiled at Holly—seemed he wanted to smile more and more lately. ‘I’ll get all the details from you later.’ Already he was looking forward to their conversation.
‘But you’ll play with us now, won’t you?’ demanded Josh.
‘Ah…’ Gray hesitated. They were probably acting out another story he’d never heard of. An excuse—an urgent need to see a man about a dog—was ready on the tip of his tongue.
‘Here, Daddy,’ cried Anna bossily. ‘You can have a puppet.’ She held up something made of bright pink fabric. ‘You can be the pig.’
‘The pig,’ he repeated, feeling instantly inadequate, just as he had on the night Holly had pushed him to read a bedtime story.
But, despite his misgivings, he knew he needed to learn how to do this stuff. For his kids’ sake, he had to make the most of these next few weeks while Holly was still here to show him the ropes.
‘Sure,’ he said, bravely walking closer to the bed and holding out his hand for the pig. ‘What do I have to do?’
‘SO, TELL me,’ said Gray after he’d heard Holly’s full report on his kids’ first day in their new school, ‘is our Outback as bad as you expected?’ He was smiling but Holly thought she detected tension in his eyes, as if her answer really mattered.
‘I wasn’t expecting it to be bad,’ she said.
‘Not even after Chelsea’s warnings?’
She shook her head. ‘I’m not like Chelsea,’ she told him bluntly. ‘Chelsea was a city girl through and through—city girl lifestyle, city girl career, city girl clothes. Not that I need to tell you that.’
They were sitting at one end of the kitchen table eating their heated-up meals. The puppet play had been a great success and Gray had joined in with gusto. Now, Janet had retired to her cottage and the children were in bed, so Holly and Gray were alone in the big silent house.
Gray had showered and changed into a fresh white shirt that made the tanned skin at his throat even darker. His hair was damp and he’d shaved, and Holly could see a small scar on his jaw she’d never noticed before. She told herself this was an everyday, average evening meal and it made no sense that she felt all fluttery every time their gazes met across the table.
‘Don’t you think of yourself as a city girl?’ Gray asked her.
She shook her head. ‘You know what they say. You can take the girl out of the farm, but you can’t take the farm out of the girl.’
He smiled. ‘So what kind of farm did you grow up on?’
‘A dairy.’
‘Really?’ His eyebrows lifted with surprise. ‘Dairies are hard work.’
Holly laughed. ‘And your kind of farming is easy?’
‘Piece of cake,’ he said with a sparkle in his blue eyes that sent her hormones rattling. ‘Except for when I’m driving a truck through floodwaters.’
‘Or wrestling with crocodiles.’
‘Yeah, or wrangling wild bulls.’
They shared another smile. Holly, trying to ignore another flutter, asked quickly, ‘So how big is Jabiru Creek Station?’
‘Close on a million acres.’
‘Wow.’ She stared at him. ‘I’m sure there are countries in Europe that are smaller than that.’
Gray shrugged. ‘A few, I believe.’
‘But Janet told me you run this place all by yourself. She said you’ve been in charge here for almost ten years.’
‘I have, more or less, but I couldn’t have done it without the help of Ted. He’s my manager and he keeps the books and looks after the paperwork. I couldn’t have managed without Janet, either. She and Ted are a great backup team.’
‘But you don’t have any other family here?’
‘No.’ Gray concentrated on spearing a bean with his fork. ‘As you know, my mother’s in Sydney. She and my dad split up when I was a nipper. Later, my dad’s health went downhill, so he moved to Cairns to be closer to doctors. But he’s okay, as long as he has regular check-ups.’
Gray lifted his gaze. ‘Tell me about your farm. Do your parents still run it?’
‘Sure—with my eldest brother’s help. He and his family live with my parents.’
‘Your eldest brother?’ Now Gray looked amused. ‘So how many brothers do you have?’
‘Three. All of them are older.’
Smiling, he pushed his empty plate aside and leaned back in his chair in a way that somehow made his shoulders look huge. ‘So you’re the only girl and the baby of the family.’
‘Yes.’ Holly couldn’t help returning his smile. ‘I know, I know. I must be a spoiled princess.’
‘I can’t see any signs СКАЧАТЬ