by Iris Blobel
“Perfect idea,” she replied and lifted her head to give him a kiss.
Mat walked up a side street, and Tiffany noticed other women staring at him. Jealousy overcame her, mixed with contentment that she had shared the bed with him for the last few days. The simple thought sent a shiver down her spine. She was having the best time of her life being spoilt by Mat. And, not only in bed. He’d made her breakfast, showed her the local sights, cooked her dinner, and on top of it all, made sure she wasn’t neglecting her studies.
Mat was the man of her dreams. And she was falling for him. Despite telling herself repeatedly that even though Queenstown might be closer to Melbourne than Cairns, it was still another country.
Tiffany straightened her shoulders and started walking. There wasn’t much time to explore the small alpine town, but enough to get a taste of how much she’d liked it. Wanaka was smaller than Queenstown and equally less busy. A beautiful township nonetheless with plenty of cafés and restaurants looking across the crystal clear lake, as well as a wide open lake front ideal for picnics.
An hour later, they sat by the lake, full after a big serving of fish and chips. Mat wrapped his arms around her from behind as they enjoyed the scenery in front of them. His warm breath teased her neck, and a shiver ran through her.
She leaned into him and said, “I’ve travelled around Australia and seen the most beautiful places on earth. I’m proud to be Australian and proud to be living in Australia, but I don’t think I’ve ever felt so at peace as in the places you’ve taken me over the last few days.”
“Yeh,” he said. “New Zealand is one beautiful country. It’s very special as well.”
She looked over her shoulder and met his gaze. “No wonder you and your family never settled in Sydney. Don’t get me wrong, I like Sydney, but from the little bit I’ve come to know about you and your parents, I don’t believe it was the place for you all to live. Is Auckland as big as Sydney?”
He laughed. “Nah, not even close, but it’s a capital with the atmosphere along with it. Mum and Dad live north of Auckland. It’s just easier to say Auckland because nobody really knows the small towns around there, unless you’re a Kiwi.”
Her gaze drifted back to the lake as she nodded.
Placing a kiss on her temple, he said, “Time to keep going, baby. We still have a little drive ahead of us.”
Their drive took them along the shore of Lake Wanaka and over the Haast Pass through some spectacular scenery — rainforest, waterfalls, mountains, and rivers with crystal clear water as well. Tiffany’s phone was clicking away as she took photos at every corner. Finally, late in the afternoon, Mat turned into a long driveway towards a house. As soon as she saw the building, she remembered Steve telling her that Mat had renovated an old barn and turned it into a house. She looked around, and it seemed they were in the middle of nowhere, with the snow-capped mountains to one side and the ocean on the other.
“Welcome to my place,” he said, the pride in his voice evident. “This is where I live. And this,” he explained as he pointed to a big shed, “is where Lucy lives. I believe she’s still working hard, but she should be home a little later.” He looked up to the sky and added, “The weather is too good of an opportunity to stop flying.”
“I take it the weather is important when it comes to flying Lucy?” she asked, but regretting the stupid question as soon as she had said it. “Never mind. Of course it is. Have you ever flown in bad conditions?”
He nodded then frowned. “Yes, I have, and it’s scary. It’s the most important thing to remember to trust your abilities and to not lose your cool. The weather up there can change in an instant, and it’s hard to explain that to people who have no idea about it. They’re up there for a good amount of time. Sometimes we take hunters to a little hut, but have to tell them a day or two later we’re going to pick them up again because we’re expecting a week of nasty weather.” He choked back a chuckle. “Often there’s a lot of swearing and cursing, and to be honest, I understand their frustration, but their safety comes first. Most of them get it, but some are so obsessed about it. And it’s not only the hunters. Tourists or anybody who has invested a lot of money in getting up there. They don’t want Mother Nature to interfere with their plans.”
She nodded. “I can see where they’re coming from.”
“Me too, but —” Mat finished the sentence with a shrug, and she understood dealing with disappointed, sometimes angry, customers was one of the drawbacks of his job. It was the first time he appeared despondent.
Not wanting to dampen the mood after such a beautiful day, she placed a hand on his arm and asked, “How about you give me a tour of the house?”
Nodding, he replied, “Let’s do it.”
They got out of the car, and he took her hand to lead her to his home. What Tiffany saw next took her breath away.
Mat opened the front door, and she stepped into a large living space with a cathedral ceiling.
“Up there used to be the hay loft. It’s now my bedroom,” Mat explained, as he closed the door behind them.
She let out a soft laugh. “I see you have your priorities right.”
He placed his hand on her lower back and guided her farther into the house. “Over there,” he said as he pointed to the right, “is the living room. And this part of the house has the kitchen, a small study, dining area, and another three bedrooms with two bathrooms.”
Tiffany walked to the living room area, past the huge rock fireplace, her hands gently brushing the top of the couch as she ambled to the massive front window. She took in the panoramic view of the mountains, covered in snow and lit by the sunlight shining through the clouds.
“And you’re really going to move to Queenstown and leave all this behind?”
“Who says I’m leaving it all behind?”
Startled, because she hadn’t noticed him behind her, she turned, but instead of meeting his eyes, her gaze drifted towards the vaulted ceiling and the exposed beams. “What do you mean?” she asked, just above a whisper.
He hooked a finger under her chin and moved her head so she had no choice but to make eye contact. “I worked on this house for about three years. I love it. I’m not leaving it.”
“I thought you were going to move to Queenstown?”
“I will, but that doesn’t mean I will leave all this behind.”
She opened her mouth, but no sound came out. The idea that Mat had enough finances to afford both houses had never entered her mind. She was impressed how humble he was despite the money he obviously had. Even though he had a business, she never thought a small helicopter business in a small town like Fox Glacier would be so lucrative. It was a bit intimidating considering she hadn’t achieved much in life…yet. She figured his father would’ve earned a lot of money as an All Blacks rugby player, but vaguely remembered Mat telling her Hemi had helped him financially with the setup of his business, but not more.
His gentle kiss pulled her back to the present. “A penny for your thoughts.”
Shaking her head, aware of her flushed cheeks, she rushed her reply, “Nothing.”
“I will still need to come back here once in a while. After all, half of my business is here.”
She nodded. Probably too quickly.
“Baby, what is it?”
Tiffany rubbed her left temple. “I’m sorry. The fact that you have lot of money just sank in. I’m not used to it.”
“I haven’t made you uncomfortable, ay?” he asked, with obvious concern in his voice.
“No. No, not at all. It’s…it…” She shrugged. “It’s a new experience for me.” Placing her hands on his chest, she leaned closer and placed a lingering kiss on his lips. She kissed him slowly, enjoying every second of it as well as his hands, which had moved around her waist, pulling her tight. When she slowly withdrew her lips from his, she whispered, “I’m glad you’re not selling this house.”
****
The
next day, Mat watched Tiffany as she headed to the bathroom. The side of his mouth edged up at the thought he was about to join her in the bath, but a grin followed when he heard her familiar Oh, my God scream. With a few long strides, he stood behind her.
“What’s wrong?”
Pointing at the freestanding bathtub, she whispered, “A bath with a view.”
He wrapped his arms around her and pressed a kiss on the top of her head. “I designed it.”
“I love it.”
I love you.
Surprised at the last thought, he closed his eyes, and let the three words settle in his head. Gave it room, because he liked it. Very much so.
“Well, get in then. I’ll join you in a minute,” he heard himself saying, his voice sounding throaty even to him.
They had spent most of the day in Fox Glacier, where he introduced her to Adam and his staff, but also excused himself for two hours to catch up on business. Fortunately, she’d been more than happy to explore the small village on her own. Alas, they hadn’t been able to fly Lucy because of bad weather. But he’d made sure he booked a time slot a couple of days later after checking the weather forecast. He couldn’t wait to take her up into the air.
After lunch together, they had walked up to the edge of the glacier. No wonder she was looking forward to a long hot bath. Little did she know what he had in mind though, once he joined her.
His phone buzzed in his jeans pocket. He considered ignoring it, but checked the ID and saw it was Steve. Moving out of the bathroom and towards the other end of the house, he pushed the button to answer.
“Steve, how are you?”
“Is Tiff around?”
The way the words were spoken and his friend’s tone put Mat on full alert. Something was wrong. And he didn’t like it. His gut told him to prepare himself.
“She’s having a bath. What’s up? Need to talk to her?”
“Are you able to give her some bad news? Or would you rather get her?”
“Pōkokohua 7.”
There was a moment of silence before Steve asked, “Which way, mate?”
“Shoot.”
“Tim, Tiff’s dad, is in hospital with a heart attack.”
Mat froze. Not able to form a word, let alone a sentence, he listened to his friend.
“Happened this morning when he grabbed Tiff’s mail.”
Steve went on to say that her father had been assaulted when picking up Tiffany’s mail earlier in the day. Cold anger crept up inside Mat as well as a sudden, overwhelming rage when he figured out the reason behind it all.
“I had the feeling this was sorted.”
Steve’s sigh told him half the story. “We all did. There was no sign of anybody the whole time. We took turns getting the mail, thought we were safe. Even the police agreed.”
The cursing and swearing that left his lips made even him blush, but he wasn’t able to hold back and needed to get it out before telling Tiffany about it.
“Mate,” Steve interrupted him. “Do me a favour and clean that filthy mouth first before talking to Tiff.”
“I hope this guy rots in hell.”
“Get Tiff to call Liam, and they can sort out what she wants to do.”
“Will do.”
Mat disconnected the call and rubbed his hand over his face as he closed his eyes to clear his head, aware of his curled fists and the throbbing blood in his temples as he suppressed the urge to punch something. He waited until it had passed. He sauntered back to the bathroom, his heart aching at the sight of Tiffany covered by the bubbly foam. He didn’t want to be the one telling her, and it broke his heart to destroy the moment.
“Baby,” he whispered, “I need you to get dressed. We need to talk.”
Twelve
Everything inside Tiffany clenched when she heard Mat’s gruff voice. A rush of unwelcome emotions swayed her, and she was unable to sort them in her head. It was as if her ears had taken in his words, but her brain wasn’t able to process them into a meaning. Into something that made sense to her. Despite the water being warm, a cold shiver ran down her spine.
Need you to get dressed. We need to talk.
Surprised, she repeated the words in her head again, but whichever way she looked at it, she was unable to sort them.
And why had he avoided looking at her? She tried to recall what had been said. Or what she had said or done, but nothing obvious came to mind. Had he found something in her diary? But she wasn’t able to remember anything she’d written in it that was bad. More the opposite. Had he, by any chance, read the small note that she was falling for him?
She stilled for a moment as she remembered his phone ringing before. Fear and worry shot through her as she thought of her family. She stood so abruptly the water splashed over the side of the bath and all over the floor.
Stepping gingerly out of the tub, Tiffany was in such a hurry she didn’t bother to towel herself completely dry. In a rush, she slid her legs into the track pants and grabbed her T-shirt before she went in search of Mat.
Standing against the window with his arms outstretched, his head was bowed.
“What’s wrong?” she wanted to know.
He didn’t move, which made her even more nervous.
“Please tell me what’s wrong. I need to know.”
Silence hung like a blanket in the air. Heavy silence.
Instead of replying, he turned, took her hand, and pulled her into his arms. The way he held her in his arms and hugged her, she knew there was something he needed to tell her. Something bad. And she wasn’t sure she wanted to know.
His hand moved up and down her back when he placed a kiss on her forehead. “You need to call your brother,” he whispered against her skin. “Your dad is in hospital.”
Her gaze shot back to meet his gaze, sure his eyes were glistening, telling her he was struggling with something.
“Oh, my God, Mat. Tell me what happened.”
“Baby, he’s fine, but it’s not for me to tell you what’s happened. Use the phone in the study and call your brother.”
Tiffany looked around, unable to hold back her tears any longer, and ran to the study. Grabbing the phone, she asked him for the Australian country code. But her hands were shaking so much she wasn’t able to push the buttons. Mat came by her side, took the phone out of her hand, and paused with his fingers over the numbers.
“What’s his number, baby?”
She sobbed out the phone number and watched him as he called her brother. He checked the connection before handing her the phone. Her hands clammy, she had to hold the phone with both hands not to let it slip through her palms. Tears still ran down her cheeks, and she sat as soon as she heard Liam’s quiet voice.
“It’s Tiffany.”
There was a moment of silence during which she heard his breathing. Obviously, he was also struggling with whatever he had to tell her.
“Dad’s in hospital, Tiff. He had a heart attack this morning.”
She swiped her tears with the back of her hand, trying hard to stay focussed. “No,” she murmured.
“Sis, he collected your mail this morning and the bastard wanting the list was there again.”
“No. No, please, no.” Her tears turned into sobs. Unconsciously, she noticed Mat’s hand on her shoulder before he pulled her closer to wrap his arms around her.
“Your neighbour saw the whole thing and rang the police officer…Harris, who must’ve raced there, because he was at the house within a very short time. Fortunately, because by then Dad was already struggling.”
“Dad,” she sobbed.
“He’s fine, Tiff. Recovering like a trooper. We weren’t sure whether to tell you or not, but—”
“No. No, thanks for telling me. I’m coming home as soon as I can.”
“There’s no need to come home—”
“I need to, Liam. Please understand. I need to be there for Mum and Dad. It’s my fault.” Agai
n, she wiped the tears, this time with the edge of her shirt.
“Tiff, honestly—”
“No. No discussion.”
She heard her brother’s long exhale but was sure it was what she wanted…what she needed to do. Mat brushed away a tear with his thumb, and she looked up to meet his gaze. He’d been such a rock the last fifteen minutes she’d almost taken it for granted.
“I’m sorry,” she mouthed.
Instead of replying, he placed a gentle kiss on her forehead.
“Tiff? Still there?”
“Yes,” she whispered.
“If there can be some good news, I’d say it’s that the police found the infamous list. Hudson sent a USB via snail mail, but with the incorrect address so it took longer for it to get to its destination. It’s now with the police. I haven’t caught up with them yet, but they want to move swiftly to end this whole nightmare for you.”
Her brother’s words should’ve caused her some relief, except an emptiness took hold of her. She closed her eyes, absorbing the intensity of it all. And as Mat stroked his fingers through her hair and pressed a soft kiss on the top of her head, the peace she’d experienced in Queenstown as well as Wanaka flowed through her body.
“Thanks, Liam. I’ll stay with Mum and Dad anyway until Dad’s okay.”
“No worries, I understand. Let me know when you get back, and I’ll pick you up from the airport.”
“Thanks, Liam. How’s Mel going? Please tell me she didn’t stress too much.”
“All going well. She’s handling it okay.”
“Thank God. So sorry for all of this, Liam,” she whispered.
“Not your fault, Sis. By the way, how’s New Zealand?”
Her voice grew more upbeat. “It’s beautiful, Liam. So beautiful.”
“I’ve never been to the south. Time to put that on my list to do, I’d say.”
“Mat’s a great guide,” she replied, as she met his gaze.
“I’m sure he is. Anyway, I’ll see you soon. Love you. Have a safe trip back.”
She disconnected the call and rested her head against Mat’s chest, closing her eyes as she savoured the scent of him, and again, a sense of security surrounded her. Silence filled the moment, only broken by the sound of the wind whistling around the house.
