A Choice of Fate by Jezz de Silva

Author:Jezz de Silva
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Entangled, Amara, Australia, outback, walkabout, doctor, lawyer, big family, orphan, vacation, outback hearts, Jezz de Silva, multicultural, emotional, contemporary, contemporary romance, across the tracks, overcoming odds, friends to lovers, best friend's little sister, road trip
Publisher: Entangled Publishing, LLC
Published: 2017-12-08T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Fourteen

Olivia lingered beside Jarrah as they strolled through the Grand Hotel’s car park toward the Cruiser before bumping him with her shoulder. “I thought Maddie would end you right there at the table for asking Jai to join us.”

Jarrah nudged her back and pretended he hadn’t feared the exact same thing.

“So how long before Maddie speaks to you again?”

He made the mistake of inhaling too deeply and caught a whiff of the vanilla and caramel drifting off Olivia’s skin and all hopes of a good night’s sleep evaporated into the cool night air. “She’s mellowing with age. I’m guessing halfway through the wet season.”

“Thought as much.”

Her laughter embraced him, and he once again found himself clenching and unclenching his hands. He tried convincing himself it was to work loose the damage caused by his juvenile yet satisfying handshake with good old Dean. He knew damned well it was to keep from reaching for her. She was so close his skin prickled, and if he touched her, he was shit scared he might not be able to let her go.

He shoved his hands in his pockets and focused on the simple joy of being back among the people who’d known him all his life. No pretending to be something he wasn’t. No bullshit conversations about stock portfolios and corporate mergers. And no fake people claiming to be his friends. As far as nights out went, the evening he’d just shared with a couple of hundred of his closest friends had been right up there. Three things could’ve made the night even more perfect: not having to spend an hour reassuring his sisters that Carter Industries had a long way to go before causing any more problems, not having to spend another hour talking them out of burying Jai and Dean in the desert, and finally, if he’d allowed Olivia to knock Manningham and his grabby hands the fuck out.

Yet even as he grinned at the thought of the doc opening up a can of whip ass on the arsehole, a few more things popped into his head that’d make the night truly unforgettable, and they all revolved around the woman strolling beside him.

The hat he’d bought her sat precisely at the right angle to allow the moonlight to bathe her features in an almost mythical glow that somehow made her even more beautiful.

“Well, well, it appears the good doctor’s come down with a serious case of jungle fever.” Dean’s slurred voice slaughtered the calm like a rusty chainsaw as a chorus of muttered curses and laughter accompanied his insult.

Jarrah had been dealing with this shit for thirty years, and the only things that had changed with his move to the city were the age and social standing of the bullies. He turned and stepped between Dean and his three-member cheer squad and Olivia while silently cursing his stupidity.

If he’d paid attention to his surroundings instead of Olivia, he’d have left with the rest of the mustering crew, or at least kept an eye on Dean and Out of Sync.

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