âIâm not offering romance. Iâve been there, done that, and come out empty every time.â
The edge of contempt in Nathanâs voice startled Miranda into looking at him. âLook around you,â he directed. âMy life is bound up in this land. It comes down to basic needs, and that is pervasive if you live here long enough. I have a great respect for basic needs. And sharing them makes sense to me.â
Miranda frowned, realizing he was talking of a stark reality he faced day after day.
âNow, Iâd say thereâs something very basic between us that we could answer for each other. Iâm not interested in the games men and women play in the world you come from,â he said with an relentless beat that seemed to drum on her mind and heart. âIâll say it how it is for me. I want you, Miranda. And you want me.â
Dear Reader,
Last year I chartered a plane to fly me from Broome, the pearling capital of the world, right across the Kimberly region of the great Australian outback. The vast plains are home to huge cattle stations, the earth holds rich minerals, and the outposts of civilization are few and far between. I wondered how people coped, living in such isolated communities.
âThey breed them big up here,â my pilot said. âItâs no place for narrow minds, mean hearts or weak spirits. You take it on and make it work.â He grinned at me. âAnd you fly. Canât do without a plane to cover the distances.â
Yes, I thought. Big men. KINGS OF THE OUTBACK. Making it work for them. And so the King family started to take shape in my mindâone brother mastering the land, running a legendary cattle station; one who mastered the outback with flight, providing an air charter service; and one who mined its richesâpearls, gold, diamondsâselling them to the world.
Such men needed special women. Who would be their queens? I wondered. They have come to me, one by oneâwomen who match these men, women who bring love into their lives, soul mates in every sense.
I now invite you to share the journeys of the heart for these KINGS OF THE OUTBACK. This is Nathan and Mirandaâs story. Tommyâs will follow. Then Jaredâs. Three romances encompassing the timeless, primitive challenge of the Australian outback and a touch of what the Aboriginals call âThe Dreamtime.â
With love,
MISTRESS to a married manâ¦no way!
Miranda realised she was gritting her teeth again and consciously relaxed her jaw. Sheâd end up grinding her teeth right down if she kept thinking of Bobby Hewson and his blithe assumption they could continue as lovers, his forthcoming marriage being no barrier whatsoever to what they shared!
Well, he could find someone else to warm his bed next time he flew into Sydney. Adultery was not her scene. She might have been a fool to have let Bobby play her along with promises for three years, but she was not going to be used for his extra-marital pleasure. Sheâd seen what that second-string kind of relationship had done to her mother. Never, never, never would she go down the same demeaning and destructive path!
âMiss Wade, your gin and tonic.â
Miranda wrenched her mind off burning thoughts and looked up at the smiling airline hostess who proceeded to lay a serviette on the small metal drinks tray, which extended from the wide armrest of the first-class seat. A little bottle of gin, a can of tonic water and a glass with ice cubes were set down.
Nice to be treated to first-class service by her new employers, Miranda thought, and hoped the drink might help relax her. âThank you,â she said, returning the smile.
The hostessâs eyes glowed with interest as she remarked, âI just noticed the book in your lap, Kingâs Eden. Are you heading there?â
It was the book Elizabeth King had given her for background information, once Miranda had signed the two-year contract that tied her to managing the wilderness resort. A history of the place and the family who owned it might be dry reading, but mandatory in the circumstances, and the best use of these hours in flight to Darwin. Miranda sternly told herself it was time she concentrated on her future course and put the past in the past.
âYes, I am,â she answered, deciding to plumb the interest being displayed. âDo you know it?â
âIâve been there,â came the obviously enthusiastic reply. âItâs what you might call a legendary place in the Kimberly, owned and run by the cattle Kings. Now that theyâve opened up the wilderness park for tourists and built a resort to cater for them, itâs a very popular outback destination.â
âDid you stay at the resort?â
âNot at the homestead.â An expressive eye-roll. âToo expensive. A group of us stayed three days in the tented cabins at Granny Gorge.â