Island of escape (13 page)

`Well, okay, whatever you say, but you're certainly looking very beauteous,' he asserted. 'Now tell me how come you're here on Flinders.'

`It's a—long story,' she said awkwardly. 'As a matter of fact I haven't let Uncle Bill know that I'm here yet —or Jan either.'

She paused and he put in, 'You mean you want me to shut up about it.' He looked at her thoughtfully. 'You're not doing anything you shouldn't, are you?'

`No, of course not,' she said defensively. 'It's just that —well, I mightn't be staying long. I'm—I'm housekeeping—for the Gascoynes. Temporarily,' she added. `You know their aunt died?—the one who kept house for them?'

`Yes, I know that. Charlie told me so the other day. But how on earth did you get mixed up with the Gascoynes, Ellis? Dad said you'd gone off on a holiday with Jake Armour in Tasmania, since Jan was there to take over for a while. Aren't you going back home again?'

`I don't think so, Martin,' Ellis said briefly. 'It's time I got out and tried my wings in the big world.'

`I agree,' said Martin. 'But how do you come to be trying your wings here? Flinders Island is hardly the big world,' he continued humorously.

Ellis couldn't think what to say, and he leaned over and clasped her wrist momentarily. 'I'm sorry, kid. I'm being inquisitive. Don't tell me if you don't want to. One thing I do feel impelled to say to you, however—don't lose your heart to Steve Gascoyne. You're far too sweet a little pippin for a cynic like him.'

Ellis coloured so deeply she was agonised. `I—I won't lose my heart, Martin. I told you, I'm keeping house, that's all. I'm too busy to fall in love. Shearing starts tomorrow—I'm looking forward to that.'

Martin looked carefully away from her crimson face, stretching his arms over his head. 'You're an astounding little beastie, Ellis, but I sure hope you're not going to be overworked. At least I know you won't be underpaid—the whole world knows the Gascoynes are rolling in money. That, if you didn't know, is why Jan winged her way to Flinders when I happened to men
t
ion in a letter that there were Gascoynes here—one of them unattached. I was stunned when she got herself engaged so rapidly, and I'd dearly love to know what made her break it off Ah well, she's having another love affair now—though this one hasn't got as far as engagement rings yet, or I'd have been told the glad news.'

Ellis's colour had subsided by now, and he looked at her again, his blue eyes kind and thoughtful.

`You're not going to tell me anything more about yourself?'

Ellis bit her lip. It seemed churlish not to give him some explanation, but she couldn't possibly admit to having written a—come-on letter to Steve. Nor could she admit he wanted to marry her. She drew a deep breath and said haltingly, 'It's all been a sort of chain of events. I'd heard from Jan about Miss Gascoyne going to hospital and then—Steve
happened
to be at the hotel in Hobart when I was there with Jake. He'd come down for the funeral and he was—was looking for a housekeeper.' She stopped, uncertain what to say next, then said somewhat disconnectedly and not very truthfully, `Jake thought it was a good idea. He—he didn't think I should go back to Uncle Bill.'

She glanced at Martin through her lashes, and though she didn't think he quite believed her story, at least he was pretending to, for he nodded and said seriously, 'I see. Well, it's something that Jake knows. Anyhow, if you should by any chance get yourself into deep water, don't forget I'm here, will you? I'll be going back to the mainland in a few weeks, but I'll keep in touch. Okeydoke?'

`Yes,' she said meekly. 'Thanks, Martin, but everything's all right, I'm going to be far too busy to get into trouble of any kind.'

He didn't ask any more questions, and presently they went downstairs to the lounge where he had a beer and Ellis had a lemon squash, and over it, he talked to her about the research work he was doing. At the moment he was concentrating on the white-bellied sea eagle, and she was fascinated though slightly repelled when he told her he'd seen one of the parent birds carrying a fairy penguin to the eyrie to feed its young.

`I'll be going back to North East River shortly,' he told her. 'If Charlie Gascoyne's coming over that way fishing during the weekend, get him to bring you along too, will you?'

`I'd like that,' she said. They indulged in a little reminiscing until Ellis happened to glance at her watch.

`I'll have to get back ! I've a dinner to cook.'

Martin stood up at once. 'Then I shan't keep you ... How do you get on. with Charlie's wife?' he asked as they walked across the road to her car.

`Oh, fine. She's very nice,' Ellis said, and hated herself for being evasive. But she just didn't want to tell him she was, from today, on her own with the two men. Not that she wasn't perfectly safe.

But in her heart she knew she was not safe, whether Leanne was there or not. And if Martin knew how Steve had been behaving, he'd probably be after him with a shotgun.

At the homestead, Steve's car was already standing in the driveway, though she'd imagined he'd be working late this evening. She parked the car at the side of the house and hurried inside with her purchases, going straight through to the kitchen. In the doorway, she stopped short. Steve was there and on the table were two enormous boxes. Ellis glimpsed bags of potatoes and onions, loaves of wrapped bread, a pile of cans. She raised her eyes to his face questioningly, and, when his

green gaze flickered coldly over her, she shivered involuntarily, as if scenting danger.

`You've taken your time,' he said icily.

Ellis blinked. 'What do you mean? I had some shopping to do in Whitemark.' She tipped out the few items she had bought on to the table and indicated the boxes of provisions. 'What's all this?'

`What do you think it is? Food for the shearers, of course.' He looked contemptuously at her purchases. `Shopping like that hardly warranted a trip to Whitemark.'

`Maybe it didn't,' she flared, and forbore to mention that she'd been almost there when she took Leanne to the airfield. 'But I didn't know there was any law against it.'

`There's not,' he said, still coldly. 'But at least you might tell the truth as to why you went. I know damned well it wasn't to buy half a pound of butter and a tube of toothpaste.'

Ellis put her head up. 'Then you know wrong, because it was. I'm—I'm almost out of toothpaste. Besides, I wanted to take a look around. I've never been to Whitemark.'

Steve came round the table and took her roughly by the shoulders. 'You're protesting too much, I saw your car in town. You went to see Martin Webster, didn't you?'

Her face grew pale. 'What are you implying? He's my cousin ! '

`I don't care if he is your cousin.' He was holding on to her so hard that tears came into her eyes.

`Let go of me, Mr Gascoyne. You're—you're hurting me !'

`I mean to hurt you. And don't start calling me Mr Gascoyne ... I don't take kindly to having my fiancée

spend time in a hotel bedroom with another man. That's what I call cheating. You can count yourself lucky I didn't come in and carry you out forcibly.'

Her eyes widened. 'I'm not your fiancée—and I'm not cheating!'

`You're the woman I'm going to marry,' he said with a deadly intentness.

Ellis shook her head wildly. 'I'm not—I'm not ! '

`You haven't returned the ring I gave you,' he said remorselessly. 'As far as I'm concerned, that's a tacit acceptance.'

`I don't see it that way,' she said, her cheeks paling. `I don't—I don't want it. You can take it back any time you like. And now will you please let me go?'

`In just one moment,' he said, and swept her against him, his mouth finding hers.

She struggled to escape, then desisted as she was inexorably drawn against his maleness—so close she seemed welded to him. Her mouth was warm and bruised from his kisses that wouldn't let her breathe, and suddenly all the resistance went out of her. Fires were shooting probing fingers of flame all through her body to its most secret places, and when he let her go it was all she could do to stop herself from locking her fingers behind his neck and drawing him back to a moment that she longed to repeat, however ashamed it made her feel.

She said shakily, Now may I go?'

`You'd better,' he said meaningly, his glance trailing down her figure from her visibly heaving breast to her trembling thighs, and the look in his eyes made her move quickly. When she reached the door he said, `After dinner I'm going to brief you on the duties of shearers' cook.'

`I'd rather Charlie did that,' she said promptly,

shocked once again by his abrupt return to practical matters.

`Your preferences don't come into it. I'm going to brief you, then I'll know exactly what you've been told.'

Ellis didn't answer that. She ran upstairs to her room to tidy her hair and wash her hands—and to brace herself to go downstairs to the kitchen again. She saw him disappearing into the bathroom as she left her room, and gave a sigh of relief.

No one was talkative over dinner. The two men exchanged a few remarks about the day's work, but Ellis thought Charlie was troubled about Leanne's absence. The meal was over quickly, and Ellis, alone in the kitchen, had dealt with the washing up and was giving some rather nervous attention to the two massive boxes of provisions when Steve came in. There were loaves and loaves of bread, several chickens, a great hunk of cheese, tins of sardines, more vegetables than she could get from the small vegetable garden in a month. How many shearers were there going to be? she was wondering worriedly, suddenly doubting that she would be able to manage after all.

It appeared, however, when she asked Steve, that there would be only four—plus the woolclasser, three shed hands, and Steve and Charl
ie.
Ten men, she calculated mentally.

She asked shakily, 'What time will breakfast be?'

`Just listen,' said Steve. 'You needn't think up the questions, I'm going to tell you exactly what you have to do. To begin with, the men don't sleep here. They're local men and they come after they've breakfasted—and they go home for their dinner at night. Work starts at seven-thirty, and Charlie and I will be in the shed at that hour too. The men knock off at nine-thirty for half an hour for morning lunch and from three till three-thirty for afternoon lunch. You'll make sandwiches and tea for then. Midday dinner is twelve, and it won't always be mutton. You'll remember the men

have hefty appetites—shearing is exhausting work. Can you cook a big hearty dinner for eight? We'll have our dinner at night with you.'

`Yes,' said Ellis, with a certainty she was far from feeling, and wished vainly that Leanne was there, if only to give her moral support.

`You've got those hours fixed firmly in your mind) They're fixed by the union and they're to be strictly adhered to. We'll take all this stuff over to the old homestead near the shearing shed. You'll use the kitchen there, there's plenty of equipment, but no dishwasher—you'll find you don't have a lot of spare time by the time you've done the washing up. The men knock off at five-thirty, and Charlie and I will be ready for dinner here at seven. Have you got all that in your head?'

`Yes,' she said stiffly.

`You can come along with me while I take these provisions over so you can get your bearings.'

`All right,' she agreed, unwilling to go out in the night with him but knowing there was logic in it.

The yards outside the big shearing shed were full of sheep, and the holding pens inside were full too. Ellis helped Steve take the foodstuffs into the kitchen of the old homestead, and she had a look at the big dining room that opened off it. That was where she'd be serving dinner—tomorrow.

As they drove back home, the night was pitch dark, the sky cloudy. Steve garaged the car and Ellis didn't wait for him but called goodnight and hurried ahead into the house and up to her room. She closed her door and thought nervously of the next day. It was going to put her boast of efficiency really to the test! She was just about to start undressing when Steve rapped at the door, and she went to open it quickly, knowing he'd

only open it himself if she didn't.

`Yes?' she said, her voice cold.

He pushed past her and shut the door with his foot, and she felt her heart begin to beat treacherously fast.

`What do you want?' she demanded, by some miracle keeping her voice from shaking.

`I'm accepting the invitation you tossed me earlier on.'

`What—what invitation?'

`To come and get my ring.'

Stupefied, she watched him stride across to the dressing table and pick up the small red box. She saw the emerald flash as he opened it and took the ring out. `I'd like you to wear it, Ellis,' he said, and now as he looked at her across the room it was his eyes that were flashing. 'Can't I—persuade you?'

She shook her head. 'Your particular form of persuasion doesn't work on me.'

His long mouth lifted at the corners. 'I thought it was beginning to,' he suggested. 'I thought you were beginning to discover you might even enjoy being my wife.'