man after the way Peter had hurt her. She withdrew her hand.
Over by the pond, one young Frazier after another fell still and silent.
Four sets of hazel eyes locked onto Jess, and baby Ella, and their father.
One whisper drifted to Jess on the summer breeze. ‘Daddy’s talking to a girl.’
Another. ‘They’re practically holding hands. He hasn’t been near a girl since Mummy died.’
‘Shut up, Rob. Shut up, Mary.’ This came from the eldest boy. ‘Whoever that is, Dad’s not interested like that!’ The boy sent a sharp stare Jess’s way before he turned away, shoulders tensed beneath his T-shirt.
Jess felt put in her place, a woman far younger than this man and, indeed, why would Dan be interested?
You don’t want him to be interested, Jess.
And perhaps the boy hadn’t meant to sound so aggressive? He was probably used to dealing with all his younger siblings and occasionally got frustrated with them…
Had Dan heard those whispers? How long ago had he lost his wife? Had Jess misread his reaction when she touched him?
Had he wished she hadn’t touched him? Or reacted…as Jess had reacted to him?
‘Sorry about them. They’re a little excitable thanks to the move.’ Dan’s neck had reddened slightly.
So he had heard. At least some of it.
‘No need to apologise.’ She ignored the neck. Well, other than the tanned, muscled appeal of it. Jess had to ignore that, too. Because widowed didn’t necessarily mean emotionally available, even if the red was a result of consciousness of her, not simply embarrassment thanks to his children.
Not that it mattered to Jess one way or another, of course. Jess was very much not ready to jump into that particular pond again herself. She really needed this work and couldn’t afford to let anything so foolish as a sudden attraction mess it up, if she could actually get Dan Frazier to employ her.
She had knocked on half Randurra’s doors. She’d got nowhere. She had tried not to worry that she might get nowhere with the other half. Folks all seemed to have their childcare and other needs sorted out.
And perhaps Jess and Dan Frazier could help each other. ‘Dan, I realise we’ve only just met and I haven’t flown down with an umbrella like Mary Poppins. Actually, my brolly’s black with pink polka dots and half the spokes are bent out of shape because I got it jammed under the seat of the car one day.’ Jess drew a breath.
‘But I’m a qualified, practising daycare mum.’ An underemployed one at the moment. ‘I care primarily for younger children but I am trained to take school-aged children as well.’ If those opportunities came along. Jess spared a thought for the surly expression of Dan Frazier’s eldest a moment ago, but if there were any problems she could win him over, surely? ‘There aren’t any official “Before and After School” style of care facilities in Randurra for school-aged children.’
Jess didn’t want to tell Dan any more. She wanted to stick with ‘I think I can help you', be Mary Poppins for him, Jess style, and they’d both benefit.
Instead, she drew a breath. ‘There are two women older than me with grown-up children of their own who’ve recently become unemployed because the meatworks outside of town downsized. They haven’t been in childcare professionally before but they’re great women. I’m looking for more work, but I saw from the noticeboard at the supermarket that they’re both looking for work in that line, too, or a combination of that and housekeeping. So you’ve got some choice and I too would be happy to help out with housekeeping duties.’
‘If you have training with children…Are you saying you’re available?’ Dan’s gaze seemed to travel over each feature on her face.
When his gaze rested briefly on her mouth, her lips wanted to soften. Instead, she forced a bright smile. He was probably just thinking she was way too young for the job. ‘What exactly is it that you need for your children, Dan?’
He seemed to drag his gaze from her mouth and his brows drew together.
Dan Frazier was a little attracted to her. And from that look, he didn’t want to be.
Well, there you were. Jess didn’t want that, either. They were on the same page, even if she didn’t know his reasons for that fact.
He was heaps older than her, a widower and father of five and a potential employer. Did he even have to have any other reasons? Jess didn’t need any other reasons to stifle her consciousness of him out of existence than those she’d just listed. And that was without mentioning Peter.
‘I need someone to watch the children up to five days a week at my home for somewhere between the next three to six weeks or so. It would help a lot if that person could also take care of laundry and meals and some other basic housekeeping.’ Dan drew a breath. ‘This work I have to do is going to mean long hours at home for a while for me. As well there’ll be trips to Sydney maybe up to three days a week until it’s sorted.’ His hand rose to rub briefly at his breastbone before he dropped it back to his side.
In three to six weeks, working five days a week for Dan Frazier, Jess could really earn some money to help towards those repayment instalments. The money wouldn’t pay the debt off but it might convince Councillor Fielder that Jess could get the money to keep making decent-sized instalments.
Surely if she made some regular payments the man would have to give her more time to pay the debt off? Ella’s father should never have gone behind Jess’s back in the first place, but that was typical of Peter Rosche.
And she could work from Dan’s home. Of course she could.
‘I’d like to help you.’ Jess’s fingers tightened around the handles of the stroller. ‘I have some other children on Tuesdays and Saturdays, but I’d be willing to come to you the five other days, if you felt that could work for you. Ella would come with me, and I could give you a list of character referees.’
Not any family ones because Jess was alone in the world aside from Ella.
Her daughter started to fret in the stroller. ‘Du, du, du-u-u!’
Jess leaned forward to unstrap her daughter and lift her out for a cuddle. ‘Yes, sweetheart, we’ll see the ducks now.’
Dan watched Jess cuddling Ella, and then he looked at his children and he lifted his youngest into his arms and started towards the duck pond. ‘I could work around your Tuesdays and Saturdays.’
Dan told her how much he’d pay her per day. It was generous, even when he added, ‘For that amount, I’d be asking you to remain there until I got home late some nights, but you and your daughter would have all your meals at my home.’
‘It sounds very reasonable. I wouldn’t mind doing that for you.’ It sounded like a good way to save some money on her food bill, and Jess could drive the short distance back to her house at whatever time suited.
‘Come and meet the children. That will be a good start, and…thank you. For approaching me and asking if I needed help.’
‘You’re
