Free Outback Sisters by Rachael Johns Page A

dining table and finally found her phone under a tea towel. Her stomach did an unfamiliar flip when she saw the name Logan Knight on her screen. God, even his name was sexy.
    They’d exchanged numbers at the end of their date and had been texting friendly and flirty messages over the weekend. It was a bizarre feeling to have so much interaction with someone besides her mum, Frankie, Harriet or Grace. But lovely all the same. Well aware she had a goofy grin on her face, Simone swiped her finger across the screen and found herself looking at the most beautiful sunrise. In the message were the words: Cable Beach first thing this morning. Hope you have a lovely day. Chat later. x
    Her whole body warmed as if the sun in the photo was shining down on her. It was such a simple message but exactly what she needed this morning. Well, that or a bottle of wine, and eight o’clock was too early to hit the grog. She tried to ignore the prick of guilt that somehow she was cheating on Jason. He wouldn’t want her to be alone forever and Logan accepted that she and the girls were a package deal. Although he hadn’t met them yet, they’d interacted with him more than she had, so she was confident they’d get along in person. Knowing Harriet, she’d probably prefer Logan to Simone.
    Shoving that thought aside, Simone took a quick snap of the carnage that was her kitchen, pressed send and then typed back: Jealous. Your morning looks so much more fun than mine. x
    The first time she’d replied to him it had felt a bit odd adding the ‘x’ to her message—Logan had had longer to get used to their communications than she had—but then she remembered that until now her teenage daughters had been handling her side of the relationship and Harriet and Grace even put smiley faces and hugs and kisses on shopping lists and school essays.
    LOL , came his reply.
    Her mood vastly improved by their interaction, the last thing she felt like doing was the housework she’d promised herself she’d do today before heading into the studio to begin her paid work. Feeling the need for fresh air and an injection of coffee, she abandoned the kitchen, yanked on her boots, grabbed her bag and left the house. She had a Meals on Wheels committee meeting this afternoon and needed to get to work on her latest commission—a wall hanging of an owl for a local—but nothing would be achieved without caffeine and she wanted to see Frankie. Although they had meant to catch up over the weekend, Simone had been busy ferrying Grace to netball in Geraldton on Saturday and Frankie had been unusually quiet.
    Striding down the footpath towards the main street of Bunyip Bay, Simone let her mind wander to her cousin Adam’s upcoming nuptials. Weddings were always lovely but the prospect of potentially having a man to attend with made her even more excited. Did she have the guts to ask Logan? Was it too soon? Without a doubt he’d fill a suit, or whatever he chose to wear, just as well as he filled a pair of jeans. Her mouth went dry at the thought and her nerves tangled with excitement in her stomach. She hadn’t slept with a man since Jason; he was the only man she’d ever slept with.
    Maybe she was getting ahead of herself. After the disaster with Ryan Forrester—how was she supposed to know he was gay?—she’d thought herself destined to be a widow for life. Yet although it was early days, this thing with Logan felt different. She’d all but given up the idea of dating again but the universe had brought Logan to her anyway.
    â€˜Hey Simmo.’
    She turned to the sound of her name as she headed past the primary school to see Stella Reynolds, Adam’s fiancée, coming out the gate. ‘Hi Stella, how are you?’
    â€˜Good.’ Stella beamed. ‘Heidi’s really settling into the school here and everyone is being so supportive and helpful. I couldn’t ask for a better