Cloud Riders(4)

Cassie contemplated how a twist of fate had led her here, to this farm, with the strangest of men. Not that she had met many; well, up close and personal, only her father. Kayden had mistreated her but it was nothing she wasn’t used to, yet at other times he was kind and his eyes told her she could trust him. He was so different to the men in the movies she had watched and the magazines she had read. She had thought all men were womanisers, wanting everything their own way and doing anything to get laid, yet she had picked up none of this behaviour from him. She wondered if he would put her on a plane home if she told him who she really was. God, no! She would have to carry her secret alone. She swept her eyes around the landscape. There was a power, an unseen energy pulling her to this spot, this farm and to Kayden. This was where she knew she needed to be—for now anyway. She found a log to sit on and sipped her coffee, watching the glow of day light up the sky and gasping at its beauty.

‘How lucky is the person who lives here? This would be so pretty to wake up to every day.’ She talked quietly to herself as she had done for years. There was usually not a soul to hear her.

A sound behind Cassie made her jump. She stood up and faced Kayden who was standing behind her, looking at her with a strange expression.

‘Yes, very beautiful to wake up to.’ The sunrise reflected in his eyes.

‘Sorry, I didn’t mean to wake you. I just woke feeling better and wanted to see where I was.’

‘You have a slight accent.’ He eyed her a little suspiciously after hearing her speak more loudly and fluently.

Cassie put her head down, wishing she hadn’t spoken. Now he has that ‘I don’t trust you’ look back in his eyes again. ‘My name is Cassandra but most people call me Cassie. I’m not from around here.’ She took a sip of her coffee and ignored the uncomfortable tension that fell between them. ‘I want to apologise for passing out on you. I have a huge lump on my head and it stung under the shower,’ Cassie said, flinching as she touched the tender spot by accident.

Frowning, he walked towards her. ‘Let me see. Keep still!’ He was somewhat gruff but not scary anymore and his fingers, strangely enough, were very gentle as they parted her hair. ‘You may need a stitch but it seems to be healing alright. Do you normally heal quickly?’

Cassie shrugged. ‘Don’t know. I’ve never had a cut before.’

He let her hair fall back. ‘You’ll have a little scar but it will be well hidden under all this hair.’ He squinted and held a hand over his eyes, viewing the sunrise. ‘Sit. Don’t let me disturb you. I just have to go check the paddocks before breakfast. Unless you want to come and have a look around, get out of the house for a bit?’ he asked in a more civil tone.

Surprised at his change of mood, Cassie jumped at the offer. ‘To get outside anywhere would be a treat. Can you wait until I get some shoes on and tie up my hair up?’ She ran inside, excited. Check the paddocks. What does that mean? Her thoughts ran wild as she dressed. Who cares? It gets me out of the house. She smiled.

When she came out to join Kayden, she noticed that he seemed to have a happier look on his face. He wasn’t smiling but he definitely wasn’t grumpy. He stood by a utility truck with the door open, and closed it after her when she jumped in. A little way down the dusty track he pulled up at an open field where horses grazed under lovely flourishing trees along a pretty stream. No red dirt here, she thought, amazed at how this area was so different from the rest of the landscape she had viewed so far. They walked along the stream. Cassie watched as fish darted in and out of the rocks, the clear crystal water flowing over them like moving glass.

Kayden went over to pat and check a couple of the horses. He lifted the hoof of one and pressed it, talking quietly. ‘That’s looking better, boy,’ he said, letting its leg go and patting its mane again. Another couple of horses were ready to foal and he frowned at one of them. ‘You better come with us, girl.’ His tone was calm.

He went back to the truck and grabbed a bridle. After harnessing the horse, he led it around and dropped down the back of the high-sided trailer. Once the horse was safe on the trailer, he checked a few more horses and then they headed back.

It was obvious Kayden wasn’t a real talker which suited her just fine. The last thing she needed right then was someone wanting answers she could not even get her own head around yet.

Kayden took the pregnant horse back to the stable and bedded her down for the day. ‘I’ll have to watch her carefully today,’ he said, making Cassie jump with just the sound of his voice. He’d been so silent since they left (unless he spoke to the horses) and it took her by surprise. Until now, his voice had always had an annoyed tone, implying that she was intruding in his world. Even though he had not yet sent her packing, she had been waiting for it. ‘Mother’s ready but it looks like the foal needs turning. I’ll tend to her after breakfast. I’m sure you can amuse yourself while I’m busy.’