can’t come to the phone at the moment,’ Nick told Dave’s sister. ‘Can I take a message?’
‘Who the hell are you?’ she demanded to know. She sounded irritable.
‘My name’s Nick. I’m a friend of Dave’s.’
‘Where is Dave, damn him? He’s always complaining that he has to keep that phone glued to his side, but the one time I need to talk to him he’s not there!’
‘He’s in the Gents. We’re at the pub. Can I help?’
‘At the pub,’ she said tartly. ‘Would we all be that lucky! At least he won’t be able to tell me he can’t help me out this afternoon if all he’s got to do is drink himself silly.’
‘Help you out with what?’ Nick asked.
‘My front lawn, that’s what.’
‘What about your front lawn?’
‘My mower-man didn’t come today. I just rang him and he’s come down with some bug or other, but I simply have to have that lawn mowed today. I’m having people over tonight, and after all the rain we’ve had this past fortnight the grass is up to my knees. So where is that brother of mine? Surely he’s out of the Gents by now.
‘Yes, Sue, I won’t be much longer!’ she yelled to someone in the background.
‘I hate to tell you this, Linda, but I don’t think Dave’s in a fit state to mow lawns today. He’s absolutely exhausted after working all day and night at the paper.’
‘Oh, for pity’s sake, you don’t think I’ll fall for that rubbish, do you? Put Dave on, please,’ she insisted snippily.
‘I told you, he’s in the Gents. And then he’s going home. To bed. Look, give me your address and I’ll pop over. and mow the lawn for you.’
‘What?’
‘You heard me.’
‘And why, pray tell, would you do that? You don’t even know me!’
Yep. She was definitely irritable.
‘I’m Dave’s best mate.’ A little exaggeration never hurt, Nick thought. Besides, he was rather enjoying sounding noble in the face of the prickly Linda’s lack of compassion. ‘Mates help each other out in times of need.’
‘Oh.’ She sounded mollified. Or perhaps ashamed of herself for her stroppy attitude. ‘All right, then. I won’t look a gift-horse in the mouth. Thanks,’ she added grudgingly, and gave him an address in Balmain, which was blessedly no more than twenty minutes away from the inner-city hotel he was sitting in at that moment. ‘The equipment’s in the garage,’ he was informed brusquely. ‘Just knock and Madge will show you where. I’ll call her and tell her you’re coming.’
‘You’re not at home?’
‘No, I’m at work, worse luck.’
Nick wondered who Madge was. Friend? Flatmate? Another sister?
‘Okay. Don’t you worry, Linda. Your lawn will be done this afternoon. You have my word.’
‘That’s very sweet of you. Nick, is it?’
‘Yep. That’s my name.’
She sighed, and the sound immediately made Nick think of sex. He’d always been partial to women who sighed a lot when he made love to them. Especially afterwards.
‘Look, I’m sorry if I was rude just now,’ she apologised, another sigh doing nothing to lesson the image he suddenly had of her lying back naked in his bed. ‘Life has been damned difficult lately, what with one thing and another. Yes, Sue, I said I was nearly finished! Sorry. An anxious female panting on a call from the boyfriend. Still, I must go. Deadlines.’ And she hung up.
Deadlines? Nick raised his eyebrows. Another journalist in the family, no doubt. He wondered what Dave’s sister looked like, and if she was single. She’d sounded younger than Dave, and not particularly married. A married woman would have had a husband to do her lawns. Unless she was divorced, of course. Women who worked on weekends often found themselves divorced. Being a dedicated career woman was not conducive to harmony in the marital home.
Nick was partial to dedicated career women. They liked their sex without the complications of love and commitment, which was the only way Nick would have it these days.
‘Who was that on the phone?’ Dave asked wearily as he settled back in his chair. ‘Not the paper, I hope?’
‘Nope. Your sister. I didn’t know you had a sister, Dave. You never mentioned her.’
Dave seemed struck speechless for a moment. But then he laughed. ‘You don’t honestly think I’d tell you about any sister of mine, do you?’
‘Ah, she’s a looker, is she? I imagined as much. You’re a fine-looking fellow, and good genes usually run in the family. How old is she, by the way?’
‘None of your damned business. So what did she want?’
Nick could see Dave wasn’t too pleased about his having any personal contact with his sister—and who could blame him? So he decided that a little lie of omission was called for.
‘She was going to ask you to mow her lawn this afternoon. Her usual mower-man is sick.’
‘And?’
‘I told her you were much too tired from working all night at the paper, that you were about to go home to bed and she was to get someone else. She said she would, and hung up.’
Dave seemed amazed. ‘Really? Just like that? Linda hung up just like that?’
Clearly this was not usual Linda behaviour. Nick decided, in the interests of credibility, to elaborate somewhat.
‘Well, she wasn’t too thrilled at first, but I was very forceful in convincing her of your exhausted state. In the end, she quite happily agreed to follow my suggestion.’
‘You’re a true friend, Nick.’
‘You’d better believe it. Now, off home to the kip for you, I think. I’ll see you here next Saturday, if not before.’
‘You’re a good bloke, Nick. I didn’t mean to offend you about Linda. It’s just that...well...’
‘She’s your little sister and you want the very best for her,’ Nick finished wryly.
‘Something like that.’
‘So how old is this sweet young thing you’re so keen to protect?’ he asked, even more curious now.
Nick found Dave’s hesitation to answer really quite odd. Linda hadn’t sounded at all like the sort of woman who needed an older brother for a keeper.
‘Thirty-one,’ he said at last.
‘Hardly a child, Dave,’ Nick reminded him. ‘Besides, she sounded like she could handle herself very well.’
Dave chuckled. ‘She can be a tough little cookie when she’s riled. I’ll give her that.’
‘So stop worrying about her,’ Nick advised. ‘She won’t thank you for it, if I know women.’
‘You don’t know Linda,’ Dave said drily.
‘Wild, is she?’
‘No, not wild. Just bloody-minded at times.’
Nick could believe that. Beautiful women were often strong-willed. And Linda Sawyer was bound to be beautiful. Her brother would not worry so much about her if she wasn’t.
It was a pity, Nick decided, that she was at work today. He would have liked to see this Linda in the flesh.
His own flesh suddenly stirred, surprising him—till he recalled it had been some time since he’d been to bed with a