when it struck him that, actually, Pete had never said that. Not once.
The brothers had both inherited their mother’s good looks and their father’s height. They were well built from working on the station and well educated from attending a top school in the city. The whole package made them very popular with women in the district and, between the two of them, they’d dated a good percentage. Those interested in more of a bad boy persona tended to home in on Nick whilst Pete had a more strong, silent type of reputation going on. Neither was accurate, but if it worked, they weren’t complaining.
Juliet had arrived on a blistering summer’s day with an Outback Discovery tour that sometimes took in the Websters’ Merino sheep station. Jacob, their leading station hand, had the gift of the gab, and was therefore assigned to answer questions on the tour. He was doing his normal good work when Pete returned from mending fences out on the west paddock and caught sight of a blonde trailing at the back of the group. She wore loose cotton trousers with trainers, and her top half was swamped under an over-sized shirt. A ponytail bounced from the back of a peaked cap. Definitely not what Pete would call his usual type but something about her caught his attention.
Throwing the fencing he’d been about to unload back in the ute, Pete walked up behind the group. The blonde had fallen behind a little more now and was staring out at the vista as up in front Jacob waxed lyrical about wool fineness and weight.
‘Hope we’re not boring you.’
The woman jumped at the sound of Pete’s voice. She turned and tilted her head back in order to meet his eyes.
‘Weren’t you ever told that it’s rude to sneak up on people?’ The admonishment came in a well-spoken English accent, accompanied by a wide smile, and teasing laughter in the gentle green eyes.
‘Sorry,’ Pete replied, grinning and not looking sorry at all.
The blonde smiled again and turned back to the view she had been admiring before he had interrupted. Fields stretched away to the horizon. From here, it looked and felt like they were all alone on the planet.
‘I can’t get over the size of it all.’
‘Yeah, all the girls say that.’
The blonde looked up again and met his eyes, laughter showing in her own, ‘Yes,’ she said slowly, ‘but I’m surprised at how big everything is.’ She kept her emphasis on the word ‘big’ and raised one eyebrow. With that she turned and walked off to catch up with the rest of the group, leaving Pete standing on his own, a big grin plastered on his face. And already more than a little in love.
A short time later, Pete watched the group depart, his eyes focused on the mystery blonde. He didn’t even know her name but, no worries, he would. The driver helped the women into the back of the tour company’s four-wheel drive. Another tourist of similar age to the blonde waited to get in. She made a point of declining the driver’s assistance and hopped into her seat. Pete shook his head. He was all for equality but there were people that took it to extremes and just ended up looking plain rude. He watched as the blonde took the proffered hand with a smile of thanks and disappeared into the cool, air-conditioned interior of the tour vehicle.
‘We’re going into town tonight,’ Pete announced as he finished washing his hands at the sink.
Nick shook his head as he chewed a mouthful of beef stew. Pete dished himself out a portion and sat down opposite his younger brother. Nick was still chewing.
‘What do you mean, no?’ Pete asked as he forked up some of the stew.
‘I’m knackered, mate!’ Nick complained. ‘Jacob was meant to be helping with the new shed until those flippin’ tourists showed up. Joe and I ended up doing it on our own.’ He took a swig from his beer and swallowed forcefully before peering suspiciously down at his stew. ‘Do you know how long Mum’s had this in the freezer?’
Pete looked up from his plate as he chewed. He shook his head and kept on chewing. He gave his plate a questionable look. Nick leant back and grabbed another beer from the fridge. He flipped the top off and pushed the bottle towards his brother. Pete swallowed with the help of the cool drink, glancing down at his own plate.
‘Too long.’
Gathering the crockery, Nick scraped their contents into the bin, then placed the china in the dishwasher. He made a mental note to remember to turn it on before their parents returned from their weekend viewing prospective retirement properties in the city.
‘Anyway, that’s why we’re going to the pub,’ Pete announced.
‘What?’
‘The tourists. Or rather, one in particular.’
Nick rolled his eyes. ‘Oh right. The girl you’re going to marry.’
‘Yep.’
Nick let out a sigh as his stomach rumbled and complained. ‘Yeah, all right. Let’s just hope they’ve got something other than beef stew.’ He left the kitchen and headed up the stairs towards the bathroom for a shower. ‘You’re driving.’ He called back.
The Outback tour group was in the pub when the two men entered a while later. Nick watched as his brother’s eyes scanned the crowd for the blonde. Pete saw her. She was sitting at a small table by the window, writing. Her baggy clothes from earlier had been replaced by a long pink sundress with tiny flowers on it, and a pale lemon cardigan. The ponytail had been freed allowing soft blonde curls to bounce on her shoulders.
‘There,’ Pete stated, as he flicked Nick on the arm to get his attention before making his way over to her table.
‘Hello again.’
The blonde looked up. She seemed surprised, but not unhappy, to see him.
‘Hello.’
They looked at each other for a minute, neither quite sure what to say next. Nick looked between them, then made a small roll of his eyes.
‘Hi.’ He stuck out his hand. ‘I’m Nick.’
‘Pleased to meet you, Nick. I’m Juliet.’
Nick sneaked a look at Pete from the corner of his eye. He didn’t appear to be about to speak anytime soon. His brother bailed him out.
‘Pete tells me you were on the tour today. I hope you enjoyed it.’
Juliet slid her eyes back to the elder brother. ‘Yes, I did.’ She paused. ‘Very much so.’
Pete’s grin got wider. Nick smiled. He had never seen him like this. He really did have it bad. Again, there was a pause.
‘I was just writing to my sister and telling her about the trip to your station.’
Pete bobbed his head happily.
Nick rolled his eyes again and couldn’t help smiling. ‘Well, I’m going to get us a couple of beers. Would you like a drink?’
‘A beer would be lovely. Thank you.’
As Nick turned to cross to the bar, he nudged Pete and spoke in a loud whisper.
‘Mate,
