Lachie nodded. “That could be it.”
Though he sensed something more. Especially after finding her in his room earlier.
What was that woman up to?
Chapter 11
Abbie stepped out of the air-conditioned confines of the hospital and took a deep breath of fresh, country air. The evenings were cooler now, and she had decided to walk the short distance home from work.
She turned down the street and was just passing the church when she heard her name being called.
She couldn’t avoid him like she had so many times in the weeks since the funeral. He was walking towards her and he looked determined.
“Hi, Lachie.” She kept her tone light and friendly, despite the pounding in her heart.
He came to stand in front of her. The faint scent of his aftershave swirled alluringly around him. She had tried so hard to forget the way he smelled, the way his blue eyes captivated her, and the way he kissed her.
She missed his kisses and his comfort. The last three weeks had seemed like an eternity.
“How have you been?” He shoved his hands in the pockets of his blue jeans, and her gaze inadvertently followed the action.
She jerked her head away, coming to look just over his shoulder. “Fine, thanks.” She lied. “You?”
He shrugged. “Alright.”
She made the mistake of catching his eye. There was so much left unspoken between then.
And the one big secret Abbie was holding onto.
She looked around the church yard, grasping for a neutral topic of conversation. “What are you doing here?”
He breathed out the initials. “AA.”
“Oh.”
He scratched his neck. “I’ve been attending more regularly since, you know, Dylan.”
“That’s great. Of course this must be such a trying time.” With everything going on, she hadn’t even thought about how Lachie would be handling things. Not just the loss of his friend, but the trauma of having found him.
“The hospital has a good counsellor. I’ve been seeing her.” Her boss hadn’t given her much of a choice in the matter. Couldn’t have a nurse break down in theatre, after all.
“I know. She called me and we talked.”
It surprised her to hear that Lachie had opened up to someone. She had expected him to be like other men and bottle up all his feelings. Like Dylan had at the end.
“And you haven’t been drinking?” she asked.
He shook his head. “I wanted to, that’s for sure. But these meetings have helped. And work.” He laughed his deep, throaty laugh. “You should see Brigadier Station. It’s never looked cleaner.”
She smiled at him. “I’m so happy for you.”
He reached out his hand to hers, and their fingers linked. It was a brief moment, but long enough for her heart to ache. She could feel his body heat drawing her in. Her mouth went dry. When she looked up, he caught her glance and held it with those amazing blue eyes of his. The corners of his mouth curved just a little, causing tingles to course through her body.
She dropped her hand and crossed her arms. “I’ve got to go.”
She turned to leave.
“I miss you.”
She started at his softly spoken words. Vulnerability covered his face.
She swallowed hard. “I can’t do this.”
“Why not?”
The words were on the tip of her tongue. But once she spoke them, she knew she would never be able to stop the tornado of events that would follow.
“I just can’t,” she said before turning and walking away from him as fast as she could.
“Thanks for helping out. I don’t know what I would have done without you,” Maddie said with a worn smile.
Lachie tilted his head before lifting the ute’s tailgate back into place and locking it securely. “I’ll come back after the rodeo and start on the bore pump.”
Maddie shaded her eyes from the sun. Gauntness hollowed her face, and dark circles stained the spots under her eyes. These past few weeks had taken their toll on Maddie Seares, and Lachie wished he could do more to help.
The whole community had gotten behind Maddie and her kids. The CWA were over every day with food and would clean and babysit while Maddie and Lachie maintained the station.
A large “for sale” sign had been erected, but so far there had been no bites. There wasn’t much demand for a de-stocked cattle station when the future of beef was so uncertain and the drought so damaging.
“I still can’t believe there’s going to be a rodeo in our honour,” Maddie said.
“Believe it. Ticket sales have gone through the roof.” Lachie had joined the committee formed to plan the event. All the proceeds would be given to Maddie to help tide her over for a while. She had confided to Lachie that the bank was threatening to foreclose and she had no idea where to get the next payment from.
She threw him a tight smile. “And with Darcy competing and Riley running helicopter flights it’s become a family affair for the McGuires.”
Lachie put his arm around Maddie. “You’re family to us. We’ll do anything we can.”
Her face clenched and her eyes overflowed with tears. He pulled her in for a hug.
“I’m sorry,” she said when she pulled away, wiping her eyes with her shirtsleeves. “I never thought I’d be here. A widow with two kids in charge of a cattle station.”
“You’ve been dealt some tough cards.” His heart ached for her. What a shitty situation she was in. “Surely it can only get better.”
She sniffed and looked up at him. “Jamie is looking forward to the rodeo. He wants to try the mechanical bull.”
“Uh-oh.” Lachie laughed. “Maybe we can get him to stay on the safer rides that won’t encourage a career as a bull rider. I hear there will be a Ferris wheel.”
“Yes, that would be much better.”
Lachie waved a goodbye before climbing into his ute and heading for home.
The last few weeks had been busy, but lonely. After the funeral, his brothers and their partners had gone home and the house had once again fallen quiet. His mum was always good company, he couldn’t ask for a better mother and housemate, but he missed the noises and companionship of other people.
He missed Hannah’s enthusiasm and zest for life.
He missed her mother too.
He hadn’t seen or heard from Abbie since that day in the church parking lot. He had tried to find out what was going on with her, with them, but she had clammed up again, leaving him with the belief that she didn’t want him after all. Those kisses had just been a result of their shared experience and nothing more. He had obviously misread the affection in her eyes.
So he had focused on other things. Helping Maddie on her property and planning the rodeo had taken up all his spare time.
Now, on the eve of the big event, he knew he would be returning home to a houseful of visitors. He had seen Riley and Noah fly over in their Robinson R44 a few hours ago on the way to the landing strip on Brigadier Station.
Darcy and Meghan had horses to float over from Arabella Plains so they would want to arrive before dark.
His thoughts travelled to Abbie again. He wondered if she would come to the rodeo. Hannah would surely want to go, and he doubted Abbie would deny her such an authentic outback experience.
He couldn’t wait to see them. Even if it was just a passing glance.
If she didn’t give him some reason to hope she still felt something for him, he would bury those feelings for good and forget about her.
This was his last chance.
Chapter 12
Oh my God,” Judith Forsyth said, clamping her hand over her nose. “That smell is disgusting.”
Abbie took a deep breath and counted to five in her head. “It’s a rodeo, Mother. There are lots of animals here.”
Judith looked down at her leather sandals, which were now coated in sand, and Abbie suspected gritty particles were now rubbing the soles of her moth
er’s feet. Well, that was one way of getting a foot scrub.
“You could have told me to bring boots,” Judith said.
“You wanted to come to a rodeo. You should have known boots and jeans were the dress code,” Abbie said, waving at her mother’s cream linen shirt and black trousers.
At least her father looked more the part in his designer denim and polo shirt. He was in deep conversation with his granddaughter as they walked towards the entry of the arena.
Country music blared through the speakers, and food smells lingered in the air. They showed their tickets and were ushered into the festivities just as the noise of a helicopter whooshed up in the distance.
“That’s Riley.” Hannah waved as the helicopter lifted up.
“Who?” her mother asked, her hand raised against the bright afternoon sun.
“One of our friends,” Abbie said then steered the group down a long alleyway filled with food vendors and sideshow alley games.
Hannah pulled on her grandfather’s arm and pointed to a ball-toss stand. “Can we play, please?”
“Sure,” he said, easily giving into her whim.
That was what it had always been like with him. Adam had always showered his only grandchild with gifts, as if that could replace her not having a father. Hannah had become spoiled and selfish in Brisbane and Abbie had spent many months teaching her she couldn’t always get what she wanted.
Abbie sighed. A few games and treats today would be fine. It was big gifts, like the expensive clothes her mother had brought with her when she’d arrived last week, that Abbie didn’t appreciate. Especially when they were dresses and skirts entirely unsuitable for life in an outback town.
But while Hannah had received gifts, Abbie had received a talking down. “When are you going to be finished this crazy experiment and move back home?” Judith had said, waving her arms around the tiny house that all up was the size of their living room back on the coast.
“We like it here,” Abbie had said. “We have friends and I love my job.”
“This is no place to raise my granddaughter. She needs to be around people of education and good breeding, not a bunch of cow farmers.”
Abbie had scoffed. There were many types of education to be had, and her mother’s idea of it wasn’t necessarily the best. “They’re graziers, Mum. They run cattle stations, not farms.”
Judith waved her hand. “And I’m sure they do it very well, but do you really want to see Hannah live the rest of her life out here? Do you really want to settle down with a … grazier?”
Abbie paused. Did she? Could she?
All the while she had been contemplating her relationship with Lachie, she had never really paused to think about the long-term consequences.
He would never move to the city. His whole life was here. Even holidays away would be difficult to plan because there were animals to look after.
Her mother had looked at her then, hope in her eyes. “Abigail …” Her mother used that tone and her full name even though she knew Abbie hated it. “Have you met someone out here?”
Abbie had turned away so her mother wouldn’t see the flush rising on her skin. Fortunately, Hannah had chosen that moment to steal Judith’s attention and the subject hadn’t been broached again.
“Oh, wow, that’s Zoe Gilmore.” The excitement in Hannah’s voice made it rise even higher than its usual soprano tone.
“Who?” Judith asked, and everyone turned to where Hannah was pointing. A tall, slim, blonde woman stood at the side of the stage talking to a man whose back was to them.
“She’s like this amazing country music singer.” Hannah turned to Abbie. “Can we meet her?”
“I don’t know if she’s meeting people. She must be about to go onstage.”
The man she was talking to turned and Abbie stilled. It had been far too long since she had seen that face.
“It’s Lachie.” Hannah squealed and started running towards him.
Abbie called her name but she kept barrelling along. The adults had no choice but to follow.
By the time Abbie and her parents reached them, Lachie had lifted Hannah onto his hip and she was talking to the singer.
“Would you and your dad like a picture?” Zoe asked.
“Yes,” Hannah said
“I’m not her dad,” Lachie said at the same time.
Abbie’s heart squeezed. She stepped forward. “I’m sorry about this. She got away from us.”
Zoe smiled at her and Abbie focused on the superstar in front of her, all done up in heavy makeup, a guitar slung over her shoulder. “You must be Hannah’s mother.” Zoe extended a hand, which Abbie shook. “I’m Zoe.”
“Hi, I’m Abbie. We’re big fans.”
“Can we take a photo?” Hannah turned to her mother.
Abbie finally looked at her daughter, which also meant looking at Lachie since they were so close to each other.
He cleaned up nicely. Too nicely. She wondered if he’d been making moves on Zoe before they’d come over. She couldn’t remember if the star was single or not.
Lachie lowered Hannah to the ground.
“If it’s okay with Zoe.” She smiled and when Zoe agreed Abbie fished out her phone.
“You have to be in it too, Mum.”
Her father offered to take the photo, so she handed over her phone then stood beside Hannah.
“And Lachie too,” Hannah said. “You need to be in the photo as well.”
Abbie watched as Lachie raised his eyebrows questioningly. When Hannah waved him over again he relented and moved to stand beside Abbie. His arm brushed against her, and she tried hard to concentrate on smiling for the camera.
“Get in a little closer, Lachie,” Adam said, gesturing with his hand as he studied the phone screen.
Lachie stepped in and snaked his hand around her waist. Even the simplest touch left her breathless with desire. Their gazes collided and his smile faded as his blue eyes gathered intensity.
When Adam finally lowered the camera, Abbie stepped out of his embrace and moved a safe distance away.
Hannah hugged Zoe. “Have a great show.”
“Thank you. I hope you enjoy it.” She kissed Hannah’s cheek and smiled at the family.
Hannah moved to stand by her mother as they watched Zoe start up the stairs. Her name was announced and cheers went. There was no need to move from their practically backstage view.
“Hi.” Lachie’s voice was a whisper in his ear as he leaned in behind her. “It’s good to see you.”
She turned a fraction so he could hear her over the music. “You too. How are you?’
“Fine. You?”
“Good.” Could this be any more uncomfortable?
Abbie remembered her manners then and turned to introduce him to her parents. Her father, Adam, took his hand and gave it a squeeze.
Judith looked him up and down speculatively. “Oh, so this is your grazier?”
Abbie swallowed and looked between Lachie and her parents. He frowned at her as thoughts raced through her mind. If she said yes, they would lay off her and stop asking when she was coming home. She would have a reason to be here. On a whim, she took his hand and nodded, hoping he would play along.
“Well, it’s nice to meet you,” Adam said, shaking Lachie’s hand. “We’ve never met one of Abbie’s boyfriends before.”
Abbie wished she had put on more makeup. She was sure her face was tomato red now.
“She’s quite a girl,” Lachie said, squeezing her hand.
“Come and join us,” Judith said. “We’d like to get to know you better.”
Abbie looked towards her daughter who stood a few feet ahead, dancing to the music, none the wiser to the deceit her mother was acting out.
“I’m sure Lachie’s really busy. He’s on the planning committee.”
“Are you?” Judith asked, looking, what was that? Impressed?
“That’s why I was talking to Zoe. I organised for her to be here,” Lachie expl
ained.
“Well, she’s a hit.” Abbie waved at the crowd of people singing and dancing along to the performance.
“Shall we find somewhere and sit down?” Judith said.
“I’d love to join you, but I have to go and check on the rodeo guys. That part starts next.” He looked straight at Abbie then. “I’ll come back and find you in a while.” He moved in and captured her mouth in a kiss.
It wasn’t like before. This one was full of heat and desire. Like it had been building since the first day they’d met.
When he pulled away, Lachie flashed Abbie a look so raw and intense her breath caught.
Then he turned back to her parents and said his goodbyes.
Before leaving, he walked over to Hannah and whispered something in her ear. She laughed at whatever he’d said and hugged him.
Abbie wrapped her arms around herself and watched Lachie walk away. His promise to find her still rang in her ears.
That’s what she was scared of. That when he found her again, this time, she wouldn’t be able to let him go.
Lachie finished his to-do list in record time. Everything was going just to plan, minus a few small hiccups, which was to be expected. His duties to the committee were done until after the rodeo, so he set of in search of Abbie and her family. Their kiss still fresh on his lips.
People were packed in the circling grandstands like sardines and, around the far side of the arena, families and friends huddled on picnic blankets or in the backs of utes that had been parked there before sunrise. Everyone wanted the best spot to see all the action of the centre ring—the campdrafting, the barrel racing, and the bull riding.
Zoe Gilmore’s unmistakable country twang sung the last strains of her most famous, award-winning ballad. The atmosphere was electric, the anticipation high as the crowd cheered loudly.
Lachie made his way through the crowds, scanning faces as he went, searching for Abbie.
He didn’t know what was going on with her and her parents, but he wasn’t one to look a gift horse in the mouth. If she wanted to shower him with affection and kisses, too right he was going to make the most of it.
The Legacies of Brigadier Station Page 9
