Page 95 of The Science of Attraction

He chuckled. “Yeah, I’ve had better mattresses, but a hot bedmate certainly made up for it.”

“Is that right?” I yanked him close, grabbing his arse in both hands and trying to kiss him, but he wriggled free.

“Behave,” he admonished with a smile on his face. “There’ll be time for that later.”

“Spoilsport.” I brushed the hay from his hair and clothes, then tipped his chin up and pressed a series of tiny kisses over his cheeks. “You look beautiful this morning.”

He rolled his eyes. “You clearly need glasses.” But there was a hint of a smile tugging at his mouth.

We gathered the remainder of our midnight picnic into his knapsack, and then he spun on his toes and headed off, calling over his shoulder, “See you at lunch.”

“Hey, what happened to our pre-breakfast date?”

“I think we’ve pushed our luck enough for one night, don’t you?”

He wasn’t wrong, but that didn’t mean I had to like it. “Fine. This is me not pouting.”

He laughed and then came to an abrupt stop with his hand on the woolshed door, staring at it like it might bite him.

“What’s up?” When he didn’t answer, I jogged over to see what was wrong. “Liam?”

He turned slowly to face me. “I’m probably being paranoid, but last night, just as I was falling asleep, I could’ve sworn I heard this door close. I’d forgotten all about it until just now.”

Shit. My heart bounced into my throat. “Are you sure?”

He shook his head. “No, I’m not. But it’s weird that something like that should suddenly pop into my head, right?”

I sucked in a deep breath and blew it out slowly, a sick feeling growing in my belly. “It was probably just Ten checking up on me.”For the first time ever.

“Yeah.” Liam nodded slowly like he believed that about as much as I did. “You’re probably right.” He went up on his toes and kissed me. “See you for the big event. Your dad’s nervous as hell, by the way.”

Once Liam left, I continued to stare at the door like it might offer up its secrets if only I stood there long enough. It didn’t, and eventually I gave up and took a peek outside. The grey light of dawn was breaking over the valley, the station yard still sleepy quiet, a stiff breeze licking at the remains of the autumn leaves composting under the rows of shelter.

Picking up my scent, Hopper’s throaty bay sailed over the tractor shed, demanding breakfast. But when the rest of his kennel mates added their voice to the doggy chorus, Ten slammed open his cottage window and yelled for everyone to shut the fuck up.

I smiled, found my boots and coat, and set off up the grey drive to feed the hungry hordes.

* * *

By the time I’d fed the dogs, checked on the rest of the animals, and been sidetracked talking to Ten who, as it turned out, had been nowhere near the woolshed all night, I’d missed breakfast, finally rolling into the kitchen around ten thirty.

Liam and my parents were sitting around the table finishing their morning tea. I did my best to avoid Liam’s eyes, not sure I could hide my feelings for him nearly as well as I used to. My mother waved me to the chair next to Liam and then set about making me a coffee and putting bread in the toaster. I could’ve kissed her.

“You look l-like shhhhit,” my father observed, but when I glanced up, he was wearing that crooked smile I’d grown used to since the stroke. His speech, although still hesitant and slow, had developed more of a cadence over the last couple of weeks and he was becoming more confident talking in front of the others. “Bloat?”

I waggled my hand. “Just a couple of steers. Spencer said he’s seen a bit of it lately. We got through the night okay, but he’s coming back again this morning to check, and to vaccinate and do the annual physical on the dogs while he’s at it. As for the merinos, there’s just a few stragglers left to lamb. We’ve got fewer on the multi-feeder than last year, which is good news, but I’ll check the numbers and let you know for sure a bit later.”

Dad nodded. “And Ten?”

I read between the lines and swallowed a smile. “I sent them all to work on the pump station this morning. The feeder pipe needs replacing. I figured you might not appreciate too much of an audience?”

My father’s cheeks turned rosy and he grunted his thanks. Even after Liam’s warning, his obvious anxiety still surprised me.

“Are you ready for your big moment?”

He grimaced and glanced to my mother.

“You’ll do just fine.” She handed me my coffee and then kissed my father on the cheek, something that also threw me for a loop. My parents didn’t do PDA.

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