What Love Sounds Like (11 page)

WHO WAS he trying to kid?

Kade tossed the pen he’d been tapping on the desk into the open drawer. He wasn’t winning the war. He wasn’t back under control. He might have stayed in his office after the river picnic, through dinner and now the entire morning, but he’d been as productive as a hibernating bear.

He dragged a hand over his face. Since when did he even think in terms of grizzly bears? Only since Tilly and her love for all things on the nature channel had interrupted his structured world. To think Mia’s advice for dealing with the chaos surrounding him had been to allow Tilly into his life. Tilly was the very reason his world had tilted in the first place. She was also the reason a distracting speech pathologist had then further spun his universe out of control.

He ground his teeth. He couldn’t catch a break. Days ago he couldn’t work because of Tilly’s and Mia’s laughter and now…now he couldn’t concentrate because it was too quiet. His ears strained for a giggle, a word, anything to let him know where Tilly and Mia were. But just like it’d been all morning, the homestead was quiet.

He gave into the unease elbowing his conscience and stood. What if they were in the garden and found a snake? It wasn’t only birds or kangaroos that took refuge in the shade of the native gum trees and old jacarandas. On an infrequent visit to meet with Patrick, the farm manager, he’d seen what the bite of a western brown snake could do to a workman’s kelpie dog. Tilly and Mia wouldn’t stand a chance.

He headed downstairs. Silence pressed all around him, suffocating and thick. He’d check the summer-house. As he turned the front door handle, he caught the faint strains of Tilly’s laughter. He expelled a tense breath. It felt as though he hadn’t heard the sound for days instead of a few hours. He retraced his steps and pushed open the kitchen door. He frowned. It was empty.

Tilly’s laughter sounded again. A little louder. Mia and Tilly had to be in the conservatory. No wonder he hadn’t heard them. His office was upstairs at the other end of the house. He crossed the kitchen and through the glass doors he saw an auburn head bent close to a blonde one.

Seth Black would be calling to hear his opinion about a new venture, a new venture Kade hadn’t yet read over. Now he knew Mia and Tilly were okay he should return to work. But instead of turning on his heel, he watched them. An almost tangible companionship cocooned them in their own private world. A world he wasn’t supposed to want to be a member of. But like steel to a magnet, his hand lifted and he opened the conservatory door.

Mia and Tilly looked up. An instant smile warmed Tilly’s face. But it was Mia’s face Kade couldn’t look away from. For once her smile didn’t slip when she saw him.

His gut clenched. A welcoming Mia was even more dangerous than any brown snake. He should have headed back to his office. He couldn’t keep allowing his self-control to haemorrhage and his emotions to spill free.

‘Come and play cookie dame.’ Tilly waved at him to come closer. He moved forward on leaden feet. It wasn’t only bears he’d learned about this past week. He’d also learned that resisting the combined force of Mia and Tilly would be futile. He nodded toward Mia.

She nodded in return. ‘You’re timing’s perfect, Kade. You’re just the person we need to finish off our game.’

He eyed off the oversized glass jar with the word ‘cookies’ stuck to it in glittering silver letters and took a seat beside Tilly. ‘No guesses what you’re doing involves food.’

‘You should know by now your niece has hollow legs.’ Amusement threaded Mia’s words.

Tilly rubbed her tummy.

He shook his head. ‘Unbelievable.’

Tilly giggled and pushed a plate of chocolate chip cookies toward him. Mia pushed them away again.

‘Before anyone gets any cookies we have to finish our cookie jar game. Tilly can say her ‘k’ words really well and now we’re practising putting them into sentences. Tilly, can you please show your uncle what to do?’

Tilly picked up a picture card from in the middle of the table and put it in the jar. She raised her hands in a silent question. ‘Who put the kite in the cookie jar?’ she asked slowly but clearly.

‘Tilly did,’ Mia answered with a smile. ‘Tilly put the kite in the cookie jar.’ She motioned toward the remaining picture card. ‘Okay, Kade, you’re lucky last.’

He picked up the card, examined the picture of a kitten and placed the card in the jar. He kept his hands firmly planted on the table. He’d join in their game but there was no way he’d participate in any theatrics. ‘Who put the kitten in the cookie jar?’

‘Kade did,’ Tilly said with such glee, he couldn’t help but smile. ‘Kade put the kitten in the cookie jar.’

’Lovely ‘k’ talking,’ Mia said and slid the plate of chocolate chip cookies toward Tilly. Tilly took two cookies and passed one to him. He nodded in thanks. ‘Yummy,’ she said before taking a large bite.

He offered Mia the plate. ‘Thanks,’ she said, ‘but I’ll have one in a minute. I’ll get our next activity ready.’

He’d be long gone before the next game started. But as quick as he was to polish off his cookie, Tilly was faster. She swallowed her last mouthful and moved her chair closer to him. She grinned as though he hadn’t stiffened, as though he hadn’t looked toward the door checking his exit route was clear. She patted his arm. ‘Don’t worry. Next dame short one.’

The lingering sweetness of the cookie turned to ashes in his mouth. Tilly’s small hand might rest on his forearm bridging the physical gap between them, but it was her reassurance that brought her world crashing against his. Her concern was touching, humbling. Threatening. It’d been decades since he’d received such personal attention. And even then it’d taken over a week for him to be comfortable having his grandmother hug him.

Mia slid a pencil and pile of white paper squares over to him. ‘Here, perhaps you could write some ‘k’ words on these?’

He reached for the paper squares and the pencil as though she’d passed him a life-line. Tilly’s hand slipped off his arm.

‘Any ‘k’ word?’

‘Yes.’ Mia took the picture cards out of the cookie jar and replaced them with the square pieces of paper. ‘We’re going to make silly sentences with Tilly’s target words as well as some unfamiliar ones. It’s okay if you add ones I already have in there.’

He set about writing as many ‘k’ words as he could as quickly as possible then added his squares to the cookie jar.

Mia shook the jar. ‘I’ll pick out three words and make them into a silly sentence.’

She selected three words and laid them out on the table before her. ‘My silly sentence is…the kangaroo ate the king’s kite.’

Kade took hold of the jar even before Mia had finished talking and picked out his words. The sooner he played the game, the sooner he could leave. He laid the white squares on the table. ‘My silly sentence is…’ but before he could continue Mia plucked up the first of his words.

Her fine brows lifted as she read his handwriting. ‘Kudos? I know Tilly is a clever little chicken but even she couldn’t make a sentence with such a word.’ Mia’s laughing eyes met his. ‘What other words did you put in the jar?’

Of their own volition his lips curved. Mia’s smile never failed to make him want to smile too. ‘Kismet, cardinal…’

She held up her hand. ‘Stop, you’re giving me a headache.’

He chuckled. ‘They were the only ones I could think of.’

Tilly looked from him to Mia and then back again. She grinned. ‘What’s kud–os?’

‘Over to you, Kade,’ Mia said.

‘Kudos means praise for a job well done.’

His niece nodded.

Mia fossicked around in the cookie jar. ‘Kudos to you, Kade, for your extensive vocabulary. Remind me never to agree to play a game of Scrabble with you. But…’ She pulled out the squares with his scrawl on them. ‘I think we’ll just stick to
simple
silly sentences.’

He stared at Mia’s face. Light shimmered in the copper strands of her hair that fell loose around her shoulders. Her soft lips were curved in a smile. It didn’t matter how extensive his vocabulary, if he ever played her in Scrabble, he’d lose. It didn’t matter how many days passed since she arrived at Berrilea, her vibrancy and beauty still robbed him of all purpose.

‘Have another go, Kade.’

From the query in her eyes he knew she’d already asked him such a question. He mentally shook himself.

‘Okay, here goes.’ He chose three new words and placed them on the table. ‘The cat kicked the key.’

Tilly clapped.

‘Well done,’ Mia said with another smile.

He looked down at his words. No wonder Tilly was doing so well under Mia’s instruction. Her approval could melt a polar ice-cap. He almost wanted to say another sentence just to have her look at him with such warmth again.

Grown man. Remember.

She passed Tilly the cookie jar. ‘Your turn, Possum.’

Tilly rummaged around in the jar to select her first word. Her tongue appeared at the corner of her mouth as she concentrated. It was as though a million-dollar deal rested upon what word she chose. He glanced at Mia and found her looking at him instead of Tilly. Their gazes held.

Look. Away. Now.

Mia focussed on the cookie jar she held and took her time placing it back on the table. Embarrassed heat spiralled through her. So what if laughter had erased the stern lines on Kade’s face? So what if his blue polo shirt intensified the brilliant hue of his eyes? It was no excuse to study him while he watched Tilly or to wonder about the man behind the frown. She was supposed to be staying behind the professional line.

To her relief Tilly set her three words onto the table.

‘Right, let’s hear your silly sentence,’ Mia said.

‘Kade,’ Tilly paused. Mia nodded. ‘Kiss.’ Mischief brightened Tilly’s expression. As if in slow motion, Mia saw Tilly’s lips move. But instead of rounding to say ‘k’ her mouth began to close as if she were going to say the ‘m’ sound. Mia’s pulse tripped. M for…Mia.

She spoke the first name that came into her head to end Tilly’s silly sentence. ‘Sleeping Beauty. Kade kiss Sleeping Beauty.’

Tilly frowned.

Kade glanced between the two of them. ‘I mightn’t have any idea who Sleeping Beauty is but I do know that her name doesn’t start with ‘k’.’

Mia dredged up a laugh. He appeared oblivious to what name his niece had intended to say but the bright flags of colour that burned her cheeks would soon tell him he’d missed something. She spoke quickly to distract him. ‘You’re not serious? You don’t know the fairytale Sleeping Beauty?’

He shook his dark head. ‘No, I do know of Cinderella, thanks to a day-dreaming PA who kept losing her shoes, but I haven’t ever heard of Sleeping Beauty.’

Tilly pushed her chair away from the table and leapt to her feet.

‘It’s okay your uncle doesn’t need…’ Mia said but it was too late. Tilly bolted from the room on a mission to retrieve the Sleeping Beauty story book they’d read before bedtime. The sound of her running feet faded.

Butterflies took flight within Mia’s stomach. She ignored them. There was nothing to be unsettled about sitting alone with Kade in the conservatory. Even if his rare smile did warm her like sunshine breaking through a winter’s sky he was just like any other father or guardian she’d dealt with. Sure, she might not be in the safety of her office. Sure, not one of her clients had ever unnerved her like Kade could, but all in all it was just business as usual.

‘Is it too late to tell you that fairytales rank alongside food on Tilly’s favourites list?’ she said.

‘I’d never have guessed.’ He smiled a brief smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes. The tension that had gripped him when Tilly had moved her chair closer to his side appeared to have returned. His forearms might rest casually upon the oak table but their tanned contours were corded.

‘You know that she’ll bring down her whole collection, complete with DVDs?’

Kade gave a mock groan. ‘Can I make my escape now?’

‘Not if you value your life.’

Again his lips moved in the semblance of a smile, but his eyes remained cautious. Silence enveloped them. Butterflies continued to spread their fragile wings within her stomach. ‘I might just have that cookie now?’

‘May as well,’ Kade said and slid the plate across to her.

She selected a cookie and took a bite. He picked up the pencil in front of him and twirled it between his strong fingers. She took another bite. The pencil twirled faster in his fingers.

‘Tilly must be writing the book,’ he said, voice strained.

‘She does have all those stairs to climb to her bedroom.’ Mia took hold of her water glass. ‘Perhaps you should go and help her?’

He shot to his feet. ‘I should.’

Mia nodded and sipped. She knew it was a mistake even before the water passed her lips. With her attention on Kade’s broad shoulders as he turned, she swallowed too late. Liquid ran down her windpipe. She coughed. Not a small, insignificant, clearing of the throat cough, but a full-on, undignified, seal-bark cough. Somehow she sat her glass on the table and stood. Her hand covered her mouth as she hunched over. Paralytic spasms savaged her.

She didn’t register Kade’s return until the heat of his hand upon her back seared through the thin cotton of her pink-striped blouse. In between coughs, she waved at him to leave. But he didn’t move away. Instead, he stayed close and held her hair off her hot face. His nearness only intensified her coughing frenzy. Panic set in. She couldn’t think. Couldn’t breathe.

She closed her eyes and fought for control and sanity. She barked out one last body-jarring cough and her airways cleared. Her hand fell away from her mouth. She slowly straightened.

Kade’s fingers threaded through her hair as he brushed it off her cheeks. ‘Are you okay?’

Kade looked at her with such concern she knew a single lucid word wouldn’t leave her lips. His fingers remained tangled in her hair, almost as though he’d forgotten his hands framed her face. She gave in to a last cough and nodded.

She waited for him to move away. But still he stared at her. Still he touched her. What little air she’d been able to draw into her lungs dissipated.