Down Outback Roads by Alissa Callen Read Free Book Online

spherically shaped indicator and not on how good Ewan smelled. The woody notes of his aftershave made it impossible not to be aware of how closethey stood. She only had to lift an arm and she’d touch the smooth plane of his cheek.
    Ewan leaned forward, his long fingers turning a dial. Nothing happened.
    ‘Right, the pump doesn’t work on manual, so that means we need to take a look at the control board. Sometimes a power surge can trip a fuse.’
    He manoeuvred open the cream cover on the box.
    ‘Usually any problems with this pump are pretty straightforward. It’s that antiquated pressure pump that supplies your inside water from the rainwater tanks that is the nightmare. If it plays up, you’ll be in all sorts of trouble.’ He dipped his head towards the small lever that lay in the opposite position to all the others. ‘See? It’s a fuse.’
    He flipped the lever, pressed a button labelled reset and then turned the dial again. The bore pump surged to life and the sound of spilling water echoed inside the tank.
    ‘Now we’re cooking,’ he said as he closed the cream cover. ‘I’ll leave the pump on manual to fill the tank, but tonight, switch the dial back to here where it says automatic.’
    As the full force of his slow grin curled her toes, Kree knew she didn’t need any house pressure-pump problems to already be neck-deep in trouble.

C HAPTER F IVE
    Anytime you’re ready, look away.
    Ewan ignored the sarcasm of his self-preservation and continued to observe Kree in the rear-view mirror. She stood on Berridale’s verandah, watching him leave, a hand shading her eyes. He didn’t divert his attention until she’d turned and headed inside.
    The powerful thrum of his V8 engine carried him west to Glenalla on the bitumen road. Beside him, kurrajong trees, their canopies clipped to cattle-head height by hungry cows, marked the start of Old Harry’s property, Yuulong. Normally, Ewan would have stopped for a cuppa and a chat with his father’s eccentric mate, but he had an appointment to make.
    The phone nestled in the car handset beside him blared into life with the chorus of ‘I’m sexy and I know it’. He groaned. Tish and her warped sense of humour. She was always telling him to lighten up and had taken to changing his ring tone. After their rural romeo conversation she must have hijacked his mobile. He pressed the green button after reading the familiar name on the phone display.
    ‘Hi, Trav.’
    ‘How’d you go at Berridale?’
    ‘Fine. The bore pump had blown a fuse.’
    ‘How was Kree?’
    ‘Good.’ Ewan changed the subject. Travis knew him too well not to sense the strain in his voice at the mention of the stunning American. His self-control had to appear as though it were holding firm. ‘You know what song Tish has used for my latest ring tone? “I’m sexy and I know it”.’
    Travis’s laughter filled the ute cabin. ‘That’s going to go down really well with the new bank manager. What time’s your appointment? I’ll make sure I call.’
    ‘Very funny. As soon as I pull over, I’m changing it back to my normal boring ring. And don’t laugh too hard, Tish has threatened to sign us up to the Rural Hearts dating website.’
    Travis’s laughter stopped. ‘She wouldn’t.’
    ‘Oh, yes, she would.’
    ‘Well, then, we’d better get you hooked up, quick smart.’ Ewan didn’t miss the underlying seriousness beneath Travis’s jovial words.
    ‘Trav, I don’t need hooking up, remember? I’m still recovering from my blind date with the blonde sales rep you thought would be my perfect match. She had us married and expecting twins by the end of dinner. What I do need is this city bloke at the bank to increase my overdraft.’
    ‘You still keen on investing in those Angus and Brangus crossed UltraBlack cattle?’
    ‘Yes, they’re the new black. If I could afford to tap into that market it would open all sorts of possibilities to keep Marellen soluble. Camo might have been all