Dreaming Of... Australia. Annie West

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      ‘Ah … Three days away from work is more than she could swing. Some imminent breakthrough on an ice shelf project.’

      ‘A what?’

      ‘She works for the Australian Antarctic Division. She’s been studying fracture patterns in ice shelves.’

      He’d said Melissa was smart. Foolishly, she hadn’t believed him. She’d thought it was just what people said about their spouses. ‘At least I can bring my work with me. Transcription goes wherever I do.’ She looked around anxiously for inspiration. ‘So … We’ll be talking to schools?’

      Talking to schoolkids was another tick in the pro column for coming along: the opportunity to share what she’d discovered about herself during that twenty-four hours on the mountainside. She’d needed quite a few ‘pros’ to outweigh the big three-lettered ‘con’ scrawled in the other column.

      S.A.M.

      ‘I think so. And some Victorian volunteer groups. Their Parks and Search and Rescue services are separate up there.’

      ‘So this is about more than just publicity?’

      ‘Not for the department, but for me I look forward to the chance to talk to others in the field. Share expertise. Bring something new back to my team.’

      ‘Sounds like we’ll be busy.’ If there was a God.

      ‘I think there’ll be some down time.’ His blue eyes seemed to turn luminous.

      Oh. Great.

      Aimee struggled to generate small talk until their flight was ready for boarding. Then getting on the plane and seated and into the air knocked off a good thirty minutes. She busied herself with the in-flight magazine, flicking pages she wasn’t reading. It helped keep her from thinking about the way Sam’s thigh pressed into hers in the tight seating. And how she was going to survive three days up close with him.

      He leaned over the armrest. ‘You know, we could probably use this time to get to know each other better.’

      If eyes could get whiplash hers would have needed that neck brace he’d once given her. ‘What?’ she choked, half afraid of the answer. But only half.

      ‘For your book. We never did finish that interview.’

      Oh. ‘No. I kind of blew that on my last question.’

      His lips twisted. ‘What question? I thought we were forgetting that. Do you have your recorder?’

      She slipped it out of her handbag a little too keenly. When had she started so thoroughly hiding behind her job? She wanted Sam in her book, no question, but she could do it without his wife being in it. Leaping in on his marriage hadn’t been premeditated, but her subconscious had definitely acted with intent.

      Now Sam was buying into her folly. But, as gift horses went, he was a pretty good-looking one.

      ‘You’re sure about this? I’ll need to ask you about Melissa.’

      He took a breath. ‘Why don’t we start there? Get it out of the way? I promise not to be reactive.’

      A non-reactive man? Another novelty. Assuming he could pull it off. She lowered her food tray, sat the recorder on it gently and pressed the red button.

      ‘How old were you when you married?’ she asked over the hum of the jet engines.

      ‘Twenty-one.’

      Wow. That made her feel like an old spinster at twenty-five. ‘Young. Is that a Catholic thing?’

      ‘It’s a Gregory thing. We don’t believe in wasting time.’

      His smile was gentle, and she grew aware of how big he was in the cramped seat next to her. Her heart kicked up She shook her head to stay focussed. ‘How did you even know who you were at twenty-one, let alone each other?’

      ‘I knew. Plus Mel had been a fixture in my family for a long time because of her friendship with my brother.’ He studied the digital recorder and didn’t quite meet her eyes, making her wonder if there was more to that story.

      ‘How does she feel about the work you do?’

      Pained creases appeared above his brow. ‘It bothers her. The hours. The disruption to our routine. She’s a creature of habit.’

      ‘You being at such risk?’

      She’d never seen eyelashes flinch, but Sam’s did. ‘She doesn’t like thinking she could be widowed. The financial uncertainty. I get that.’

      The warm glow inside her responded to the misery in his voice. Defending his wife was automatic. Could he hear what he was admitting? Melissa wasn’t worried about losing him, only her husband, and apparently a large chunk of the household income. ‘You never considered giving up the Search and Rescue stuff?’

      He lifted his eyes. ‘When we have kids. Yes.’

      ‘Which haven’t come?’

      She knew it was a mistake before the words even left her mouth, but he didn’t react. Not the way he had to her suggestion his marriage wasn’t solid. This time it was totally unconscious—a deep pain in his eyes. It hurt her to see it. She shifted tangent smoothly.

      ‘You live in Hobart?’

      He picked up the new direction gratefully. ‘Mel’s work has its head office there, so it was a necessary move for her research.’

      Necessary. Word choices like that often led her to the true grit in someone’s story. If only she had the courage to pursue it. On anyone else she wouldn’t have hesitated … But every urge she had to dig into Sam’s life suddenly felt loaded and a bit wrong. She hedged instead. ‘Quite an achievement, given her young age.’

      ‘She was so excited the day she told me she’d been successfully promoted. It had been a long time since I’d seen her so animated.’

      ‘You were happy to move? Away from your family?’

      The look he gave her was pointed. And conflicted. ‘We both thought it would be a good idea for us to … start our own lives. Somewhere different.’

      ‘Must have been tough.’ And there must have been another reason.

      The plane engines were too loud to waste effort with empty words. He just nodded.

      ‘But you had each other. That’s something.’

      His nod continued, shadows lingering around his gaze. But then they cleared as if by conscious effort. He came fully back to the present. She grew almost uncomfortable under his steady regard as his eyes lifted.

      ‘You’re very easy to talk to, Aimee.’

      The compliment warmed her and filled her body with helium. But she wasn’t about to take it to heart. She couldn’t afford to. ‘People say that. I guess it’s because СКАЧАТЬ