by Tania Joyce
Grace’s eyes clouded with sadness. “You’re the first woman to capture Troy’s eye in quite some time. That’s saying something. It’s not only Troy I look out for; it’s everyone, because in this community, we’re all like family. But Troy is extra special to me.”
Kelleigh thought about her own family. Franny, on the northern edge of the city, struggling every day, all for love. Her parents living hours away from Melbourne in Bendigo. Her father controlling. Her mother too timid. She shuddered at the reminder of how close she’d come to being like them with Rodrigo. “That’s what I love about this place. You all look out for each other. In Melbourne, I didn’t even know my neighbors in the apartment next door to me.”
Sadness washed over Grace’s eyes. “I don’t know how you live like that.”
Kelleigh hated it too. Other than Franny, she started to wonder how many true friends she had. Not one offered to help her when she was in dire trouble. They were all fake and a façade, just like her relationship with Rodrigo. Suddenly the thought of going back to Melbourne made her chest feel empty.
Oh well, she had two weeks left here in the Hunter Valley so she better make the most of it.
She pushed back her chair and slapped her hands down onto her thighs. “I’ve got to get going out to the site.”
“I can’t believe Larry’s ol’ farm is going to become a golf course. It doesn’t seem right to me. It’s prime farmland going to waste. But in my business, I can’t knock the potential tourism your new golf course is going to bring to the area, and I know the Japanese love a good drink.” Grace stood up and collected the dirty dishes off the table. “And as for you and Troy, you’ve had some fun, but that’s enough.”
Thanks for one last reminder, Grace. But she was right; there would be no more Troy.
Grace had successfully altered Kelleigh’s mood, making her drag her feet on the way back to her room to collect her things for the day. This place and the people in it had started to weave its way into her heart in such a short span of time. There was something magical about the sense of community, the countryside, the energy in the air … and Troy. It was going to make it hard to say farewell and return to her life in Melbourne.
***
After wading through thick mud and knee-high wet grass out in Larry’s paddocks, Kelleigh, Toru and the environmental auditor, Jerry, stood on the back veranda of Larry’s house and looked over the detailed maps on which she’d marked out all the points where her team had to drill for soil samples. It had taken her ages, but she needed to ensure they collected enough data so she’d be able to calculate the correct foundations for construction.
“Jerry,” Toru rubbed at one of his thick black eyebrows, “you know we only need a brief report for the development application. From our research, there is nothing of concern in this area that will prevent our development from proceeding. Right?” Toru asked.
“Look, these original vegetation maps are really old.” Jerry pulled out another map from underneath Kelleigh’s pile. “This access on to the land has given us a good chance to do a thorough flora and fauna audit. I’ve found a few endangered red gums as we walked around, but with correct mitigation there should be no cause for concern.”
“Good. I’m sure you won’t find anything else, we’ve done checks already.” Toru sweated profusely and continually wiped his brow with a handkerchief drawn from his pocket.
“I’m sure you’ll get a good report, Toru.” Jerry winked at him.
Kelleigh shot glances back and forth between the two men. What was that?
“Better get to work. See you later on.” Jerry waved as he walked across the veranda with heavy footsteps, and took off down the paddock in his vehicle. Feigning a smile, Kelleigh shuddered, trying to ignore the sensation of spiders crawling up her back now she was left standing alone with Toru. Something was not right.
She grabbed her map and drew Toru’s attention to it again. “After looking at the new designs, I’ve reworked the layout and position for the new villas and added in extra sampling sections up here on the main foothill.”
Toru’s eyes squinted as she pointed to an area of concentrated red marks on the map. “That is not necessary. No extras are required. Take the minimum samples you need and send them to Jerry in Maitland for testing.” Toru didn’t even look at the map.
“Jerry? I thought he was only doing the flora and fauna assessment, not our soil and water analysis. I’ve arranged to use our regular testing facilities in Melbourne?”
“Too far to send. Jerry’s company does everything and will be able to perform all the necessary tests. He will ensure everything is good.”
Kelleigh clenched her fists down by her side and gritted her teeth together. Why was Toru overruling the areas of the project she was responsible for? She had everything in place. Couriers were booked. Analysis time was scheduled in the labs.
“I need to do everything to make sure our development application is approved.” Toru continues. “Without it, we’re all out of a job. You understand? Yes?”
“No, I don’t understand.” She tugged at her shirt collar before folding her arms. “What do you mean we’re out of a job?”
“Your ongoing employment is subject to the approval of the development application. If there is no approval, there’s no hotel. No hotel, no job.”
Kelleigh felt the color drain away from her face. She’d never considered that part of her employment agreement could ever come to fruition. She couldn’t afford to be out of work; she needed the income to help pay off the debt left by Rodrigo.
Toru jutted his chin toward her. “Do I make myself clear? We have the council meeting to present our application on Wednesday week. Everything must be finalized by then. Do not waste unnecessary time on too much sampling.”
Kelleigh managed to nod. Toru was her boss and she had to abide by his decisions. But if the correct sampling wasn’t done, it would only create more expense down the track when construction details needed to be finalized. She couldn’t work out correct foundations for all the buildings without having accurate data. What was she to do? She struggled to breathe; petrified of standing up to him, but the ability to do her job was at stake.
Why was it she could flirt and feel like she could take on the world when she was with Troy, but felt like a mouse when she was being ordered around by others? She couldn’t let this happen. The consequences were too great. Her mouth ran dry as she mustered up the courage to speak. “I’m sorry, Toru, but all these samples are necessary.”
Toru’s nostrils flared. “We have invested a great deal of time, effort and money into this project, we need to get this application in as soon as possible with no more delays. Do not question my authority.”
Kelleigh’s stomach twisted into a tight knot. Was he trying to get rid of her by making her look incompetent? Well, fuck him. That was not going to happen.
Her insides trembled and bile gurgled in her belly. Vomiting could be an option at any moment, but she held her ground. “I will question it when you don’t know what you’re talking about. The samples will be done as required. Nothing more. Nothing less. If you want to use Jerry, fine, but I will not cut any corners. Do I make myself clear?”
Toru’s nostrils flared and his face reddened. But finally Toru nodded, very subtly, and took a step back.
“I’m glad we understand each other.” Kelleigh wanted to high-five herself for finding the strength to stand up to Toru, but she was not sure she could move just yet. Everything still trembled and the knot inside her stomach hadn’t gone away. She didn’t trust him. Not that she trusted any man any longer, but her radar seemed to be working in overdrive when it came to Toru.
“Now we have that sorted.” Toru smirked at her. Ergh, he was such a creep. “I need you to attend the festival dinner tomorrow night for networking purposes. We need to excite the local suppliers about the development of our new golf course and hotel. I will see you there, yes?”
What? She didn’t want to go t
o some fancy dinner and mingle with people she didn’t have anything in common with. More importantly, she didn’t want to be in the same room as Toru. She searched her brain for a quick excuse. “I didn’t bring anything to wear to a corporate dinner.”
“Fine. Use your company credit card and go into Maitland tomorrow morning and buy yourself something. I’ll authorize $500 dollars for you to spend, is that enough?”
Five hundred dollars! The man was insane. But then she took a moment to think. She had no other plans for the weekend, and considering work offered to pay, why not take advantage of the offer. It would be a long time before she’d be able to buy anything for herself again. It had been months since she’d been out somewhere nice and had the opportunity to get dressed up nicely and go out for dinner. Pity it had to be with Toru.
“Fine. I’ll go.”
“I’ll email you the invitation.” He glanced at his watch. “I have another meeting to go to so I will see you tomorrow night at seven o’clock, yes?”
She grunted as Toru walked off down the veranda and disappeared from sight. She rolled her shoulders, glad the frosty air had now dispersed. She couldn’t believe she stood up to Toru about the sampling; the glow of the small win brought a smile to her face.
She scanned over the map before her examining her sampling layout once more. Something about Toru bothered her, especially the way he acted toward Jerry. Her skin used to itch when Rodrigo told her to brush things aside, she now knew it must have been her intuition telling her he was lying and covering something up. She wasn’t going to ignore the same sensation when it came to her boss. She hoped it was nothing, but couldn’t let it go. At this stage it was only a hunch, but she had to follow through with the idea jumping around in her head.
Gathering up her map, she dashed off the veranda, into her Landcruiser, and headed up the hill to where her team was drilling. As she jumped out of the car, the engine on the rig roared as it resurfaced from taking another sample from the earth below. Duncan turned the motor off. Paul and Lucas detached the rod, laid out the long cylinder tube of dirt on a tray and readied to pack it into tubing for transportation.
“Wait!” Kelleigh dashed over and scanned over the sample. Looking through the layers she prayed for something to jump out at her. She hadn’t paid much attention to their previous collections, but now her instinct told her otherwise. “Duncan, you got a sec?” She waved him over to the tray. “Why would Toru want us to avoid full sampling, especially where the villas and resort are to be constructed? The only thing I can think of is that there may be some form of contamination in the soil, like dangerous pesticides or something. Would there be any indication in these samples or do I have to wait for the analysis to come back?”
Duncan took off his gloves and ran his finger along the core of dirt. “Usually for chemical contamination, there’s oily or black spots in the layers. Traces of pesticides aren’t usually visible, they only show up in lab tests. But wait, see here. These dark patches may be something. And smell it. It doesn’t quite smell earthy, does it? It’s got bit of an odor.”
“Right,” Kelleigh said. She walked over to the truck, grabbed a new sampling rod and headed to the back of the vehicle.
“What’s going on?” Duncan asked as all the men followed her. She connected the rod onto the drill and prepped the machine to dig. The rotating motor whirred loudly to life again.
“Call it women’s intuition, but I don’t trust Toru.” She raised her voice over the noise of the engine. “For every marker, we now take two samples. One goes to Melbourne as planned, and one goes to this guy Jerry that Toru wants to use. I want to compare the results when the reports come back.”
“But that’s going to take us twice as long.”
“Well then. We better get to it.” She positioned the rod’s head firmly on to the ground, slapped her hand against the button on the side of the truck and sent the drilling head into the earth below.
Chapter 17
It was nearing Friday lunchtime when Troy made his way back toward the homestead. He’d had a busy morning in the field, checking on the progress of the fruiting; this coming harvest was looking good. As he drove out of the vineyards and around the end of the wine sheds, he saw Jessica’s Audi parked outside the cabins. There she stood on the porch with her eighteen-month-old baby, Liam, in her arms. Troy pulled up beside her car and jumped out to greet her. Bounding up the two steps to her side, he kissed her on her cheek. Concerned filled him as he noted her thin cheeks, the dark circles under her eyes, and her usual gorgeous tall frame looked too thin and frail.
“Hey, Jess. Good to see you as always. You okay?”
“I’m just tired. Liam still wakes up in the middle of the night and hardly sleeps through the day. All the travel we’ve been doing for work and organizing corporate events is exhausting. I’m looking forward to having a week off after this weekend is through.”
“Sorry to say it but, yes, it looks like you need a break.”
Jessica nodded as she kissed Liam on the cheek.
“May I?” Troy held out his arms to take the child.
“Sure.”
Troy took the baby from Jessica and held him ever so gently, cradling him on his hip. He’d never really been around infants but took to Liam the moment he met him. Missing out on seeing his own son grow up would always remain one of the biggest regrets in his life. Holding Liam in his arms made his solar plexus ache. Liam looked so perfect as his little hands tugged at the collar of his shirt. Troy had always wanted to have kids with Nicola, but it never happened. Here was his old flame, Jessica, who had her second child at thirty-seven years of age with Nate. Maybe there was hope for him yet.
He looked down at Liam in his arm and touched the tip of his nose with a soft stroke of his fingertip. “Are you being trouble for your mummy? You wouldn’t do that, would you?” he cooed at Liam.
“I’ve just fed him, so be careful he doesn’t throw up on you.”
Troy looked up when the cabin door opened and Nate appeared with a cloth.
“Hello Troy, how are you, pal? You might want this.” The British hotelier offered him a cloth and placed it over his shoulder. Nate curled his arm around Jessica’s waist and kissed her on the forehead; her face full of adoration as she looked up at him. Troy smiled, lost in his thoughts for a moment. Twenty years ago Jessica used to look at him like that. But a life with her was not meant to be. No second chance either; Nate had clearly won her heart. Troy held no hate, jealousy or regret toward him because the more time he spent doing business with Nate and getting to know him, the more he had to admit he was a perfect match for Jessica. Both were crazy workaholics and loved the fast-paced corporate life while he preferred to do his hard work in the outdoors and live within the serenity of the countryside.
“Thanks. I see on the Wine Festival program Jessica’s reeled you in to be a keynote speaker at tomorrow night’s dinner.”
“Yes, she’s always volunteering me to do stuff.”
“While you’re here I want to catch up with you. Our new semillons are ready and I want to discuss the possibility of expanding our supply into your hotels. Our wine continues to do very well in your restaurant in Sydney.”
“Sure,” Nate agreed. “My food and beverage manager is coming up for the day tomorrow. If your wine is as good as you say it is we may consider putting more through our Asian and European hotels. I know it’s a busy weekend for you; when’s the best time to catch up?”
For Gumtrees to expand their supply into Nate’s hotel chain internationally was the opportunity Troy was looking for. More sales, more revenue and more recognition. The additional income would benefit their new projects starting after harvest. Troy’s schedule was busy during the festival tomorrow, but Sunday was clear. “How about first thing on Sunday morning? Nine o’clock in the restaurant?”
“Sounds grand.” Nate replied in his strong British accent. “We’ve got to head back to Sydney early in the afternoon, so that would suit
me well.”
Troy grinned, unable to hide his enthusiasm.
For no apparent reason, Liam burst out crying. Troy lay Liam over his shoulder and patted his back. He tried rocking, rubbing, whispering and everything he could think of to settle him down, but his sobs were getting worse.
Feeling helpless, he glanced over at Jessica for help. Her shoulders slumped and her face was drawn with exhaustion. “Why don’t you go and have a rest,” he said to her, “I’ll take him for a walk over to see the horses.”
“I’m fine. I don’t need a rest. Here, let me take him.” Jessica held out her hands to take the baby but Liam reached out for Nate.
Nate took Liam in his arms. “Jess, why don’t you go for a walk with Troy and catch up. You said you wanted to stretch your legs after the long drive. I’ll take Liam inside and see if I can get him down for a sleep.”
As Liam curled in to Nate’s chest he immediately started to settle. It reaffirmed to Troy he was definitely not father material. Nate took the cloth from Troy’s shoulder, but not quickly enough. With one almighty belch that most men would be proud off, Liam threw up all over Nate’s shoulder. Troy couldn’t help but laugh.
“Bollocks!” Nate cursed. “Why do you always do that on me?” Liam’s face beamed with the widest of grins. “Let’s go and get cleaned up.” Nate didn’t look impressed as he turned on his heels and headed inside the cabin.
“Well Jess, would you mind if I joined you for a walk or would you prefer to go by yourself and enjoy the peace and quiet?”
“I’d love you to join me. It’s been too long since we’ve caught up face to face. Let’s go.”
With no further prompts required, Troy offered out his arm. She curled hers around his as he led her down the steps toward the front vineyard.
Within a matter of fifty yards, the tension in Jessica’s arms faded away and the stress disappeared from her face. She only glanced over her shoulder once to make sure Nate didn’t need her help.
