Half Moon Bay (14 page)

‘That was the sound of soft rain in the night, the crickets, cicadas, and the creatures that live in this bush. This is paradise and we don’t want to share it with wealthy developments. We need a community centre.’ She sat forward in her seat, searching for words to convince him. ‘Many of the residents moved here years ago. They’ve reached the age when they’re starting to need medical facilities, meals on wheels, help from the State Emergency Services in times of crisis . . .’ She paused to draw breath, half expecting Nicholas to interrupt. He didn’t.

‘The original design for the community centre left most of the wilderness untouched, but gave us room to provide what the community needed. We don’t want to see whole stands of ancient native timber felled for housing estates and resorts.’ Something in his stillness kept her from raising the corruption issue again.

‘But it doesn’t need to be like that. It will be a gated compound. We can build underpasses for echidnas and leave the eucalypts for the koalas. The resort will be very exclusive, not intrusive.’ He shifted, folding his legs back under his chair.

‘I’ve lived in gated compounds and thanks, but no thanks – you feel like you’re in jail.’ She pulled a face. ‘You can’t understand that until you’ve been there, done that.’

‘Don’t presume to know where I’ve been, Ellie. You have no idea.’ The bleak note in his voice was at odds with the sudden intensity in his gaze. Definitely something in his past. That faint memory prickled again, but she couldn’t quite pin it down. It annoyed her and she stood up, shattering the intimacy of the dinner.

‘Yeah, well, you’ve presumed a lot about me today. Your plate?’ She held out her hand for the dish. ‘Dessert is just some fresh fruit and yoghurt. Want to wait a bit?’

The battle light faded from his eyes as he smiled. ‘I’ll wait. No point in rushing.’

She snorted and turned on her heel. As she moved round the kitchen, she could hear him talking to Shadow. Had she achieved anything yet? Found out anything more that might help block the development?

Ellie realised she’d being washing the blueberries for several minutes without conscious thought. Confusion reigned. She’d as good as admitted she was prepared to cross the line when she’d ransacked the back of the wardrobe to find the floaty dress she was barely wearing. But that didn’t make it a wise decision. She turned to leave the kitchen and came face to face with that solid chest again. Up close he was even more intoxicating, like a drink of mellow whisky liqueur. She was in all sorts of trouble.

‘You’d gone so quiet I thought you must be adding ground glass to my portion.’ His lean fingers brushed down her arms and a line of fire followed them. Before he stepped back she caught an unguarded look on his face as though he was as conflicted as she was.

She shook her head, trying to muster some opposition to what seemed to be an inevitable moment. ‘No glass here. It wouldn’t kill you anyway.’

‘And killing me wouldn’t make the development go away. They’d just send another engineer,’ he said with a lopsided smile.

‘It might give us more time to mount our defence.’

‘Do you never stop working?’

‘Do you?’

‘It depends.’ His gaze dropped to her mouth and for an instant she felt her lips part.

‘On what?’ She sounded breathless.

‘The strength of the distraction.’ With the lightest of touches he ran his hand through a stray curl of her hair. ‘And you are very distracting.’

‘And we’re on different sides. I can’t do this.’

‘Maybe we’re on different sides, but we’re grown adults. Tell me to go and I will.’ His voice was gentle, tender even. ‘It’s a rare thing to have a connection this strong.’

His words disarmed her. She hesitated, hardly daring to breathe, still in her heart unsure of this step she was taking. The moment he bent and touched her lips so gently with his she knew she’d made the wrong decision. Her body blazed with the heat, the blood thrumming through her veins. Madness, the madness of desire. She wanted to melt against him, feel his body pressed to hers. His hands were already moulding her closer. It would be so easy to surrender to the fire low in her belly, and for a frantic heartbeat she almost did before the enormity of that implication rammed home. Sex had never been gratuitous for her. It was always about emotion, not just a physical act. And she knew this had no future, no tomorrow. This had the potential to break her heart.

She pulled back, her heart beating a rapid tattoo.

The regret was plain to see in his eyes. He half bowed and backed up a step, hands held up, palms facing.

‘Okay, Ellie. I’ll behave. Come and sit back down.’

Her legs were trembling and she wanted a moment alone. ‘I’ll bring dessert out. Please . . .’ She gestured out to the verandah, relieved when he went.

She turned back to the kitchen bench, her breath catching in her throat. Why did the first man who’d made her body sing at the touch of his lips have to be a man she could never love?

Why?

Nick leant on the railing. What was he thinking? He had no intention of doing anything more than flirting with Ellie. So how the hell did he end up trying to pin her up against her own kitchen sink and make love to her? He was a fool.

Everything about her was enticing. Her wit, her resolve, her commitment to her community. They were attributes he would admire in any woman. If only he could turn back the clock, have foreseen Nina’s crazy plan. If only he’d looked after Ellie when she arrived in Afghanistan. If only he’d had the courage to do what he should have done then . . .

But the damage was already done. Ellie Wilding’s courage was something that would stay with him forever. The least he could do was clean up this mess once and for all. She deserved to be able to live life on her terms without her sister’s foolhardy obsession waiting to trip her up.

He glanced inside at Ellie as she worked in the kitchen. She was everything he’d hoped she would be and so much more, but had he blown it tonight? He wanted more than one night of sex. And if he slept with her, knowing he was keeping secrets, how could he expect her to ever forgive him?

Nick had barely sat back down when his phone vibrated in his pocket. He swore, fumbling to pull it free. It stopped. Damn, not now. He peered at the number. It was the boss.

He sighed and pressed recall on the secure satellite phone and walked to the far end of the balcony. The rain enveloped the house in a glistening curtain and he hoped the noise on the iron roof would help muffle his voice. Still he spoke quietly, cupping his hand around his mouth.

‘Hi, it’s me.’

‘Where are you?’

‘Out doing some surveillance work.’

‘Case-related, of course.’ There was censure in the older man’s voice.

‘Of course!’ He kept his voice low. ‘So what’s up at this time of night?’

‘I’ve been advised by the Federal Police there are two men of interest headed to Half Moon Bay. Hit men.’

Nick bridled. ‘Contract killers? Who the hell are they after?’

‘Ellie Wilding. You need to get out of there. The police can provide protection for her. This investigation is too sensitive to risk you. I don’t want you compromised. Neither do the Feds.’

‘Hang on. You’re telling me there’s a hit team headed this way, and you want me out of here? No way. Ellie Wilding and her sister are somehow connected to this deal. We need her alive. If my cover’s blown, I’ll keep off the streets and work behind the scenes, but I’m not leaving her unprotected.’

‘You need to get out, Nick. The case is bigger than one woman. The police can handle it from their end.’

‘And if we lose this shipment, it all goes to hell. It should be happening right now if the weather’s not cruelled it. If not, it will be done in the next forty-eight hours.’

There was a moment’s silence.

‘If it doesn’t happen at all, we’ll find another way to track the money. You need to leave.’

‘Bullshit. It’s my case. You knew when you hired me that I wasn’t some pen-pushing public servant so don’t try putting me on a leash now.’ He disconnected the call.

Bloody bureaucrats. First sign of trouble and they can only think of protecting their image and funding. Reports of a hit team on their way to Half Moon Bay and they’re calling for him back in Sydney? Well, they can forget that.

He turned around and slammed to a halt.

Ellie was right behind him, her footsteps covered by the rain. ‘Who the hell are you, Nicholas Lawson?’ The anger sparked from her eyes.

‘Whoa. Work calls at odd hours, but that’s what you get with an international operation.’ He moved towards her, willing her to believe him, but sensing she’d overheard too much.

‘Don’t touch me. You’re a fraud. “I’m not some pen-pushing public servant so don’t put me on a leash now”? I’m just part of the job and all those sweet words were just talk.’ She took a shuddering breath. ‘You were using me as much as I was using you. Anyway, that’s that. You’re out of here.’

‘Ellie, it’s not what it seems. I do ad hoc contracts for developers.’ His brain was racing, looking for plausible explanations. He walked towards her. ‘Where’s that warm, sexy lady gone?’

‘Don’t. Just leave. Developers don’t hide guns in the back of their cars. Legitimate ones don’t bribe corrupt lord mayors. Nor do they leave such sanitised track records behind them. You aren’t what you seem. Attractive? Yes, we’ve already established that. And with the fascination of danger, but wild animals have the same appeal and I think I almost got ripped to shreds.’

He stopped in front of her, hands limp by his side. ‘For the record, the gun’s a deterrent, not a weapon. Ellie – I never meant to get involved with you, but I have. No matter what you say now, I’ll be back. You can’t deny what’s between us . . . It’s real, it’s right. I can’t stop . . . I can’t stop thinking about you.’ It mattered to him that she believed him. It mattered to him that she didn’t hate him. It mattered to him that tomorrow would be a new day and anything was possible.

He reached out and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and she flinched. ‘Just promise me you’ll listen when this is all over.’

‘Go. Get out.’ Ellie shut her eyes, turned away.

‘Goodbye for now, Eleanor Wilding.’ He bent and kissed the top of her head, then left her alone, her arms wrapped around her body, the big Doberman by her side.

He shrugged the jacket back on and jammed the cap on his head. The rain stung his cheeks as soon as he left the protection of the house. It was going to be a long walk back in the dark night.

How the hell was he going to keep Ellie safe now?

‘Hey, Dad, can you give me a hand?’

‘Sure, which one? Left or right?’ Dan put the newspaper down and held them both out, his wedding band glinting on his left. Mikey pulled a face and Sarah giggled, tugging at her regulation plaits. They were dressed in blue polo shirts and grey shorts, their school emblem the only colour relief.

‘Whichever one works best, Dad.’ Mikey was used to his father’s attempts at humour. ‘I can’t get this bit right on the rescue boat.’ He was on the floor, surrounded by Lego.

‘Sars, give him one of your hands, would you?’

His daughter giggled again, knowing full well her brother wouldn’t tolerate any assistance from her, no matter which hand she offered.

‘
Daaad
.’ Mikey’s bottom lip jutted. ‘Please.’

‘Off to school in ten,’ Felicity said, clearing the last of the breakfast dishes from the table.

‘Come on, Dad.’

Dan knelt beside his son and ruffled his blond hair before picking up the almost completed vessel. ‘You’ve done a great job of this, Mikey.’

Felicity saw her son visibly puff up at the compliment. Sarah wriggled closer, not wanting to be left out. Hard to believe she and Dan had produced these little miracles. At times like this it stole her breath and she felt as though the love in her heart would suffocate her. There was nothing she wouldn’t do to protect them, all of them.

The three heads, two baby-blond and one sun-bleached and tousled, almost touched as they completed the work on the Lego boat.

‘There you go. Nothing left for this afternoon now.’

‘Daaad, there’s the dock still to do.’

‘Okay, time to brush your teeth. Lunches are here.’ Felicity tapped the two cooler bags on the table, one a pink Ariel the mermaid, the other a blue Spider-Man.

The kids scrambled to their feet just as Dan’s phone rang. He answered it as he walked onto the back porch. Felicity figured it was work and left him to it. Five minutes later from the kitchen window she saw him hug his children, pat their bottoms and send them back to her.

A series of smacking kisses later and Mikey and Sarah walked out the front gate, little backpacks bouncing as they walked.

Felicity checked her watch. She’d need to be gone very shortly too. She had time to put a load of washing on and race through the shower. Dan had disappeared into his shed.

By the time she’d done all that there was still no sign of Dan.

‘Honey? Dan? Where are you? I’ve left a load of washing for you to hang out. Is that okay?’

He appeared in the doorway of his shed, then strode across the back lawn. Something had upset him, Felicity realised. Who was on the phone?

The back door banged before he stomped into the kitchen.

‘What the hell have you been telling Ellie Wilding? Huh?’

Felicity was stunned. Dan’s face was flushed, his jaw solid. ‘Nothing. What do you mean? What are you talking about?’ Guilt made her blush.

‘I can’t believe you’d be that stupid. You know what these people are like. They’re dangerous.’ Standing in front of her with his hands on his hips, Dan looked more formidable than usual. The tension in his shoulders as they strained his faded T-shirt was obvious. The prominence of the streaky rooster’s comb jutting from his head meant he’d been tugging his hair in anger.

Felicity held on to her temper. Dan might have a reason to be annoyed, but that didn’t mean he could yell at her, no matter how scared he might be. ‘Ellie was down at the wharf to take photos. I don’t see what that has to do with me.’

Dan’s blue eyes lasered into her. ‘She was digging around, you mean. Someone saw her talking to Gazza and Jase. She even tried to hire them to take her out on the water. I suppose we should be bloody glad she didn’t go or we’d be fishing her body out.’

‘You’re being stupid now. Ellie only knows what she’s been able to glean from the internet and Ron.’

‘Really?’ Dan glared at her and his voice dropped. ‘I know who the whistleblower in the council is, Felicity. I knew from the start it was you. I guess I supported you because it was the right thing to do. But this?’ He shook his head. ‘With this we have no protection. And these bastards have already made two deckies disappear and God knows what else they’re capable of. They’re hard men. They don’t play by our rules. Don’t play by any rules, full stop. You and the kids would be easy pickings when I’m away.’

‘You knew?’ Felicity couldn’t stop her voice rising a notch. ‘You knew and you didn’t let on?’

Dan shrugged and folded his arms across his chest; biceps, courtesy of a life spent hauling nets, bulged. ‘If my own wife didn’t feel she could tell me the truth, I wasn’t about to brand her a liar by asking.’ The hurt was plain to see in his eyes and Felicity blinked back the prickle of tears.

‘It wasn’t like that,’ she protested. ‘I didn’t want to worry you. I knew you had enough with the trawler.’

He cut her off with a wave of his hand. ‘Flick, we used to talk about everything. For the last twelve months we’ve only talked about the kids. And money. I know the catches have been lousy. We’ll be lucky to cover wages and fuel, but as a third-generation trawlerman I know we’ll survive the tough times. If you stick your nose into Gazza’s business, we could all end up at the bottom of the ocean. I’m not joking.’

‘But I didn’t tell Ellie anything. Ron’s heard the rumours from his mates in the RSL. They’re pretty upset that some of their own might be involved in the network. It’s an affront to them that ex-servicemen might be importing drugs. They don’t consider being wounded in action is an excuse for their behaviour. If Ellie is doing any digging, it’s because of that, not me, not you. She has no evidence, and she’s very aware that they’d need that before any investigation can proceed.’

Dan shook his head. ‘Flick, I love you, but you don’t always make it easy to like you. You put your lawyer’s voice on and dismiss me as an ignorant trawlerman. Maybe we need to go to counselling.’ He walked away before she could reply, the back door closing gently on its hinges.

Felicity sank onto the kitchen chair and drew a shaky breath. She hadn’t considered that by not telling Dan she was the council whistleblower she was as good as lying to him. She should have realised he’d think like that. He saw the world in black and white.

Last night had been a wonderful family evening. Dan had waved away the lack of catch with a half smile and Felicity had savoured an extra night with them all together. Snuggled up on the couch, curled against the solid muscles of his wide chest with the rain beating on the roof, they’d read stories until the twins fell asleep. In the early morning as the rain increased, they’d made love with an almost desperate need.

This morning, one phone call and it had all fallen apart again.

‘Why am I doing this?’ she asked in the silence. She hadn’t heard from Ellie this morning and she couldn’t decide if that was good or bad. Counselling? Was he serious? Wasn’t it supposed to be the woman who suggested that?

She stood up and straightened her back. To walk away from this battle with O’Sullivan would make the last six months a waste. She couldn’t let that happen.

It sounded like Dan was taking his temper out on the lawnmower. It roared into life and a swirl of smoke eddied out the shed door.

The kitchen clock said eight-thirty. If she didn’t get a move on, she’d be late for work.

Five minutes later with a swipe of colour on her lips, she stood under her umbrella in front of the lawnmower. Dan was wearing earmuffs and glared at her without removing them. She tilted her head to one side and raised an eyebrow. He capitulated, but the frown didn’t shift. His hair was plastered flat, darkened by the rain.

‘I’m going to work, but we need to talk this out.’

He grunted.

‘And before you go back to sea, or it will fester. If you want a counsellor, then you book it. I’ll be there. I love you.’

He clapped the earmuffs back on and stared at her. She sidestepped and with a curt nod he carried on mowing, leaving a clumpy trail of wet grass behind. That was as much of an agreement as she was going to get for now.

As she reversed out of the driveway she scanned up and down the street. Just the usual neighbours’ cars. Nothing out of the ordinary, another morning like every other on Fishwick Drive. She checked her rear-vision mirror at the corner. All quiet behind. Dan was overreacting because that too was in his nature when it came to his family.

She turned into the staff car park with minutes to spare. Rain dripped down her back from the leaves as she slammed the door and flicked her umbrella open. Water sloshed over her shoes. At the building’s entrance she shook the rain from her umbrella. A white Commodore with darkened windows caught her eye. It crawled past and she thought she could make out two heads inside, most likely males. She reached for her phone, thumbing through for the camera app. As soon as she raised it to take the shot the car accelerated away, leaving a cloud of spray behind.

A splay of goosebumps covered her arms and she shivered. The photo on her screen was blurred. If she blew it up on a computer, would she be able to read the rego?

Was it just a coincidence or something else? Was Dan right?