Read Outback Sisters for Free Online

endearing and decided that talking about himself for a bit might help put her at ease.
    â€˜Well, not too long ago I did an article about online dating in the bush,’ he confessed. ‘That was enlightening. I went into it thinking that the success rates would be low, but I was pleasantly surprised. The paper got lots of feedback from people wanting to share their stories.’
    â€˜Is that why you signed up to the site?’
    He deliberated, wondering if he should tell the whole truth or just a portion of it. ‘Did we never talk about this?’
    She shrugged one shoulder and half-smiled.
    â€˜All right, I’ll be honest. I signed up for Rural Matchmakers simply because I couldn’t get a proper look at the site without being a member. Until then I’d never contemplated meeting potential partners on the internet.’
    â€˜Me either.’ She made a face and then added, ‘Until recently I mean. Go on.’
    â€˜I like to be thorough in my research, so I uploaded a photo and filled in my details. I didn’t really expect to get much response, but the next morning I woke up to literally hundreds of messages. I deleted most of them—it’s amazing what you can tell about a person from what they say online—but something about you stood out.’ He shrugged. ‘I couldn’t help myself, I responded and … well, you know the rest. I feel like I know you almost as well as I know some of my oldest friends; probably better than I know my family.’
    Her cheeks flushed and she glanced down at her wine glass. Shit, maybe that admission was a little creepy; he didn’t want to scare her off.
    â€˜Too full-on?’
    â€˜No.’ She licked her lips and smiled at him.
    â€˜To be honest, I also started investigating the whole online dating thing because of Angus.’
    â€˜Your …’ She sounded as if she’d forgotten who he was. Poor girl was obviously nervous.
    â€˜My brother,’ he clarified. ‘As I’ve said, he’s been single a long while now and I think it’d be great for him to get out there again. I thought if the online dating thing worked for me, then maybe I could convince him to consider it.’
    Simone opened her mouth as if to say something, but they were interrupted by the arrival of their meals.
    â€˜Hi Simone, Hi …’ The young waitress’s voice trailed off as she put two plates down on the table and looked to him. ‘And who are you?’
    â€˜Logan,’ he offered with a smile. ‘Nice to meet you. This fish looks amazing.’
    â€˜Wait till you taste it.’ She flicked long brown hair that probably should have been tied in a ponytail over her shoulder and grinned at him. ‘Enjoy. And let me know if you guys need anything else.’
    â€˜Thanks.’
    â€˜Yeah, thanks, Tegan,’ Simone added as she picked up her fork. She looked back to him as the waitress retreated. ‘So, are most of your articles light-hearted like the rural dating one? When you said you were a rural reporter I was thinking about things like the live-export trade crisis and the closure of Aboriginal communities.’
    â€˜I’ve covered both of those stories extensively. I even flew to Indonesia when the live-export problems were rife. But I like to mix up the serious with the human interest stories.’
    â€˜That makes sense. I’ll be honest, I rarely listen to the news or read the papers because most of what I see when I do depresses me.’ She twisted some strands of fettuccine around her fork and lifted it to her lips.
    â€˜I know what you mean. To be fair though,’ he continued, ‘the outback dating one was more serious than it sounds. So many rural towns are shrinking rapidly and many have way more men than women, which is a real problem—not only for communities as a whole but for men’s mental health. Online dating might seem a little desperate to