She lifted one finely-shaped eyebrow in his direction and he cursed silently. That really didn't sound good at all. “Sorry, my apologies. I didn't mean it to sound like that. What I meant to ask is, are you sure you want to come out to the station and look after the kids and me? You…uh…don't appear much like a nanny to me.” His words came out inarticulate and he swallowed, wishing he could start the conversation again.
“Don't I?” Her lips pouted and he clenched his jaw. “Well, you need one according to Sue, and I need somewhere to stay for a bit, so it's your call. I can always go back to Sydney if you don't need my help.”
Blake watched her eye lashes drop down to shield her eyes as she glanced at the ground. She twisted her fingers together and, if he was any judge of character, he would say this lady was very unsettled—almost desperate. He wanted help, but did he need someone else's problems? Sue knew what he was looking for and she wouldn't have called him if she didn't think this person was right for him and the kids. They had gone through too many nannies lately to take on someone with more baggage than they already had.
“I need your help if you are willing to give us a go. Can't ask for any more than that now, I guess.”
“No, I guess not. I can’t say I’ve had to take care of anyone other than myself for quite some time, but how hard can it be cleaning up after a couple of kids? Well, I'll just get my bags then, shall I?” She walked toward the door before he could get his feet to move.
“No, let me.” Blake heard Sue snigger behind him as he walked into the shop and silently cursed his aunt’s match making attempts. He knew she meant well, but this time she had it wrong on all accounts. A set of expensive, monogrammed matched luggage stood to one side of the door and he grabbed them both. Turning, he walked out the door and lifted them into the back of the ute. Blake pushed them down amongst the bales of hay, making sure they were secure before turning back to her.
“Well, we should get back on the road if we want to get home before dark. Thanks, Sue. Talk to you later.” He tipped his hat to her and smiled. Blake opened the door, pushed the collection of work tools to the floor to make room for his visitor to sit, and held the door open for Delilah.
She walked to Sue and wrapped her arms around her shoulders, kissing her on the cheek before patting her on the back. “Thank you so much for taking care of me and arranging this. I really appreciate it.” Delilah gave her a bright smile and stepped over to the ute. She smoothed the back of her skirt down and slid in, at the same time reaching for her seatbelt. With the delicate nudge of a lemon stiletto-clad foot, she pushed aside the pile of baling twine on the floor mat.
“Sorry about the mess. Work ute, you know.” One day, he promised himself, I will clean up this mess. Right now there wasn't time to scratch himself, let alone detail the farm ute.
“That's okay. I understand.” She gave him a winning smile and the same jolt gripped his stomach, clenching tight. Blowing a soft whistle from his mouth, he looked over at Sue. She grinned like a Cheshire cat and he shook his head, his stomach tightening as he denied what she implied. Nope, not going to happen. This lady was too different from him. He might be desperate for female company, but even he had to be practical. City-bred chicks found it too hard out here in his neck of the woods. He already knew that from past experience, with his long list of nannies who had stars in their eyes and dreams of marrying a rich country farmer. When they discovered he was neither rich nor looking for a wife, they invariably found a reason to head back to where they had come from. He wondered how long it would take this lady to follow suit.
Blake tooted the horn as they pulled away from the shop. At the end of the street, he stuck his hand out of the open window and waved again.
“You seem quite taken with Sue. Does she do this for you often—find you staff, I mean?”
He looked across and smiled. “No, this is a first for me, but to fill you in, she’s my aunty. Been a rock too since my wife died. It's a bit hard to cope without some sort of family out here.”
Delilah nodded her head. “So, how long have you been on your own?”
“Coming up to five years now, but I’m happy enough with no plans to marry again.” Heaven help me if she thinks I’m on the market like that damned television show that portrays us all as desperate farmers. “Lilly was just a baby and Royce was a toddler. If I could take the time to raise them on my own I would, but with the price of wool these days, I have to earn every dollar I can. It makes more sense financially to have help in the house so I can be out in the field. Not that it is the ideal situation for the kids, but at this stage there is nothing I can do about it.”
Missing out on his children’s milestones was one thing he could never get back and the thought gutted him. There was so much he would have liked to do differently with the children if he had the chance.
“Of course, I understand.” She yawned, covering her mouth delicately with her hand, turned, and looked out at the
