MisplacedLessons

by Mari Carr

She wrapped her arms around his shoulders, holding him to her tightly as they rocked together. Time stood still as they clung to each other. For so many years, she’d felt lost, just a little out of step with everyone else around her.

  With Andrew, she was the true Amy. It was a precious gift he offered.

  When they came, it was together. Bittersweet and beautiful as the clock continued to count down.

  Tomorrow he’d say goodbye. Fly away on other adventures, traveling off the beaten paths, while she returned to one that was way too familiar in Australia.

  Funny how Farpoint didn’t feel like home anymore.

  She wondered if it ever would again.

  Chapter Seven

  Amy looked at the blue mountains in the distance and knew she’d come home. After a tearful farewell to Andrew in Chicago two days earlier, it had taken her all of five minutes to decide she wanted to return to Farpoint. America held no fascination for her without him in it.

  She sniffed the light scent of eucalyptus from the gum trees and remembered Andrew’s complaint about the way her country smelled like medicine. Now she wasn’t sure she could ever inhale the faint odor without thinking of him.

  She was home. Back in the land of brown eggs covered in feathers and poo, spiders on the loo, no tipping and super-short showers that turned cold too quickly.

  As much as she’d wanted to escape Chicago and its memories of Andrew, Farpoint didn’t seem very welcoming either. Bloody hell. What had she done? Lived a lifetime in ignorant bliss, moving from moment to moment without a care in the world. In one week, Andrew had made her care too much. About him.

  Surely this feeling would fade with time.

  Wouldn’t it?

  She hoped so. Right now, her heart ached and she felt like a teenage girl suffering her first lost love. She was considering holing herself up in her cottage with Harper for a week, eating ice cream from the carton and belting out one sad song after another. She was the cliché of a broken-hearted woman. Marc and Keith would have a field day with this, but she didn’t give a shit.

  She’d thought coming home would help. Wandering around an empty house in Chicago for a week felt too unbearable so she’d decided to come home to be with the people she loved. She also consoled herself over cutting her vacation short with the thought that, this way, she’d have a chance to hang out with Harper.

  Of course, that was going to have to start after she crawled out of bed approximately three days from now. She’d never felt so exhausted. One week of sleep-deprived, sex-filled nights followed by two days on nonstop travel had zapped every ounce of energy left in her body. She suspected she could close her eyes and not open them again for days, maybe years.

  Even then, she still wouldn’t want to wake up. Her dreams of Andrew would have to sustain her from now on and she could only have those while asleep.

  She stepped out of the ute she’d rented at the Cobar airport and was promptly greeted by Jett, Keith’s black Kelpie. The dog wasn’t too far ahead of his master and soon she found herself wrapped up in hugs and greetings and questions of “What the hell are you doing home already?” from her two best mates.

  Only after Keith, then Marc released her, did Amy spy Harper. Her friend’s familiar features and crystal blue eyes reminded her too much of the man she’d just lost. Amy took two steps and fell into Harper’s embrace, tears escaping despite her best efforts to hold them at bay.

  “Hey,” Harper said consolingly. “Please tell me you didn’t come home early because of me and that stupid phone call.”

  Amy shook her head. “No. Andrew…” It was all she could say before her throat seized up again.

  “Oh my God. What the hell did he do? I’ll kill him.”

  Amy laughed through her tears. “He didn’t do anything.”

  Harper looked perplexed. “Then why are you crying?”

  “Because I fell in love with the stupid man. And now he’s back at work and I’m here and, God, I’m such an idiot.”

  If Amy hadn’t been so upset, she would have laughed at Harper’s slack-jawed expression. “You fell in love? With my brother?”

  Amy nodded.

  Harper’s shoulders drooped. “I’m so sorry, Amy. I should have warned you. It’s just… I mean my brother may be a bit of a player, but he’s never led a woman on or toyed with her emotions. I had no idea he would use you and then—”

  “He didn’t use me,” Amy interrupted. “I think he might have fallen in love with me too.” Neither of them had said the words, both cursed with too much self-preservation. She couldn’t tell him how she felt knowing she had to leave and that nothing could come of her feelings. And besides, who the bloody hell fell in love with someone after only a week?

  “Amy! You’re home!”

  Amy glanced behind Harper and saw Annie emerging from the big house. The sight of her friend caught her off-guard. Annie did. Her friend had fallen in love with Hunter Sullivan after a weeklong visit to Australia. In fact, she’d fallen so deeply for the boss at Farpoint, she’d uprooted her life in New York and moved halfway around the world to be with him.

  Annie offered Amy a warm welcome-home hug. “We weren’t expecting you until next weekend.”

  Amy shrugged, hoping her tears had dried enough to go unnoticed. “I got a little homesick.” It was a lie and Annie was too shrewd to be fooled. Even so, she let it go.

  “Hazel will be thrilled to see you. She’s mentioned several times how much she’s missed your spirit around this place.”

  Amy smiled, but didn’t have a chance to respond.

  Harper was still looking at her. In fact, her gaze hadn’t moved since Amy had dropped her “love” bomb. “Andrew is in love with you?”

  Amy lifted one shoulder. “I don’t know that for sure. He never said he did. I just—”

  “Of course he fell in love with you,” Marc interjected. “I figure an American boy didn’t stand a fighting chance against our Amy.”

  She laughed, the heaviness in her chest lifting. She was home, surrounded by people who loved her. She’d been right to cut the trip short and return. She needed their support, their strength to keep her going for the next few weeks…months.

  Harper frowned. “But Andrew never—”

  “He never falls in love,” Amy finished. “Yeah. I know. Maybe it’s wishful thinking on my part, but I’m okay with that. After all,” her voice cracked slightly, “I’m most likely never going to see him again. It’s just nice to believe my feelings were returned and it’s not like it’s going to hurt anyone for me to hold on to that idea.”

  Her hands trembled slightly, so she shoved them in the front pockets of her jeans.

  “I hope you’re right, Amy. I’ve always worried about my brother’s inability to let any woman into his heart. I should have known if anyone could do it, it would be you.” Harper gave Amy another quick squeeze.

  Annie reached for Amy’s hand. “Come on into the house. You’re going to have to tell Hazel and me all about this man.”

  Harper stepped over to say something to Keith and Amy wondered about Harper’s sudden blush. It looked as if Harper and Keith had made their own love connection. Then Marc stepped closer and wrapped his arm around Harper in a way that seemed a touch more than friendly. Harper and Keith and Marc?

  Harper gave her a shy shrug and Amy grinned. Her friend looked incredibly happy. Amy was relieved. She’d expected to find her friend still upset considering the sadness in Harper’s voice the last time they’d spoken.

  Annie grinned. “Those three have been inseparable since your friend arrived.”

  “Really?”

  Annie winked at her then opened the front screen door. “I think I’ll let Thomo and Blue fill you in on the details.”

  Keith took off his akubra, running his fingers through his sweat-matted hair, thanks to the hot day. It was a familiar gesture and just one more tiny insignificant thing that helped convince her she’d left heaven and landed smack-dab in the middle of rea
lity.

  This sucked.

  “There’s my girl.” Hazel wiped her hands on her apron as she walked from the kitchen. Then she threw her arms out, capturing Amy in a tight squeeze. Hazel gave the best hugs on earth.

  The tears Amy had just managed to stem began to flow once more, harder this time. Hazel’s grip never slackened as Amy’s cries turned to sobs.

  “There, there, sweet lass. I’m sure it’s not all as bad as that.” Hazel continued to murmur soothing words while Amy cried out all the emotions she’d fought so hard to keep in for the past two days.

  She led Amy to the couch where the two of them sat down. Annie claimed a nearby chair.

  “I’m sorry.” Amy reached for a tissue from the box on an end table, wiping her eyes and nose.

  Hazel brushed Amy’s hair away from her face. “It sounds like you’ve been holding those tears in for a while. What happened in Chicago, Amy?”

  “I met a man.”

  Hazel glanced at Annie and rolled her eyes. “Dear God. What is it with you young people and these international romances?”

  Amy laughed. Leave it to Hazel to find a way to ease the pain. “I didn’t fall in love with him on purpose.”

  Annie leaned forward. “None of us ever do. The heart wants what the heart wants and practical things like jobs and geography rarely win out.”

  “So who is this man?” Hazel asked.

  “Harper’s brother, Andrew.” Amy’s throat squeezed when she spoke his name and she fought down a fresh round of tears. She was a mess.

  Hazel pressed back against the cushions and studied Amy’s face. “This is the man with the cable show, right? The one who lives your dream job, traveling all over the world?”

  Amy nodded. She’d often related to Hazel the stories Harper had told her about Andrew’s adventures. Many times, the two of them would pop online to look up the latest place he’d been just to see pictures and clips of the program. While Hazel had rarely left Farpoint—and never expressed the slightest bit of interest in seeing the world—Amy suspected there was a tiny kernel of wanderlust in her boss as well.

  “Well, that makes things interesting. I assume he’s out jet-setting again?”

  “He was in Chicago while I was there. We spent the week together and it was—”

  “Magical.” Annie supplied the word and Amy knew it was one she’d used to describe her first week on Farpoint with Hunter.

  “Exactly.” Amy didn’t bother to deny it. “And stupid. I should never have let things go so far. I knew how they were going to end.”

  Hazel took her hands, tugging until Amy faced her more fully. “You didn’t do a bloody thing wrong. Your willingness to open yourself up to life, to even risk heartbreak, is one of the things I admire about you, Amy. Ask yourself this. If you had it all to do over again, knowing what you know now, would you do it?”

  “Hell yeah.” Amy didn’t even need to think about the response.

  “Then it wasn’t wrong, Amelia Wesson. You’ll take some time, lick your wounds and you’ll find a way to move on because you’re smart, strong and brave.”

  A tear escaped before Amy could hold it back. She blinked rapidly, letting Hazel’s words soothe her.

  “I’m smart, strong and brave.” Amy repeated the words, hoping that by speaking them aloud, they would take root.

  “Just keep saying that.”

  “And if you want to fall apart or need a friendly ear, we’ll be right here,” Annie offered.

  Amy smiled through her tears, grateful for her friends. No, the Sullivans had become family to her somewhere over the years. And despite that, she couldn’t shake the emptiness looming inside her.

  Smart, strong, brave. She wanted to believe that, but one word rang out louder.

  Alone.

  * * * * *

  Andrew stepped out of the helicopter and took a deep breath. Yep. Australia still smelled like fucking Vicks VapoRub. Funny thing was he didn’t mind as much this time. It made him think of Amy.

  He smiled. Amy. He was so close to her now. Finally.

  He saw a dust cloud coming down the road, kicked up by a truck. Obviously his arrival hadn’t gone unnoticed. Not that he’d expected it to. Sort of hard to sneak onto a ranch by way of helicopter.

  He still couldn’t quite believe he was here. He’d gone back to work four days ago, meeting with the producers of Off the Beaten Path. As his paradise isle was still recovering from the monsoon, they’d needed to come up with an alternate location to shoot next.

  For two days, Andrew pushed hard for Australia, using every ounce of persuasion in his body. Then, just when it looked like he was going to lose, the show’s executive producer, Georgia Drake, asked to speak to him privately. She’d tilted her head and asked him what the hell was in Australia.

  Like a lovesick fool, he’d confessed. And, to his surprise, he’d discovered that his ball-busting producer was a hopeless romantic at heart. She’d gone to bat for him and now he was here—on the cable company’s dime—facing an even harder battle.

  The truck pulled up to the tarmac and two men emerged. He recognized Amy’s two best friends, Marc and Keith, as they walked toward him. She’d shown him pictures of the men one night over dinner, cracking him up with stories about their childhood pranks. He nodded when they came to a stop in front of him.

  The taller of the two men spoke first. “I’m Keith Munroe and this is Marc Thompson.”

  Andrew stuck out his hand. “I’m Andrew Shaw. Harper’s brother.”

  “Yeah. We kinda figured that,” Marc said, accepting his handshake.

  “I understand my sister has been visiting here.”

  Keith crossed his arms. “Listen. While we respect a guy looking out for his sister, Harper’s a woman now and more than capable of taking care of herself.”

  Andrew was surprised by Keith’s defense of Harper. His initial thought was that they were the first line in keeping him away from Amy. “I know Harper can take care of herself.”

  “Is that right?” Marc asked.

  Andrew struggled to understand what the fuck was going on. The men appeared to be as protective of his sister as he was. He wasn’t sure whether he should be grateful they’d looked after her or insulted that they seemed to consider him a threat.

  “I didn’t come for Harper.” Andrew wasn’t sure why he was explaining himself to these two jackaroos or stockmen or whatever the hell they were.

  Keith’s entire body relaxed and a grin emerged. “Then you must be here for our Amy.”

  Our Amy. Andrew sucked in a deep breath. “No,” he wanted to say. Amy was his.

  Or so he prayed.

  Then an uncomfortable thought emerged. “I was. But now I’m thinking I might like to know what the hell is going on between you two and my sister.”

  Marc’s anger faded and he looked chagrined. The guilty look had Andrew’s fists clenching again. He knew it!

  “Listen, mate,” Keith raised his hands in surrender. “Harper and Amy are back at the main house. Why don’t we give you a lift and we can all have a nice long chat?”

  “Or you could answer my question here.”

  Keith didn’t seem offended by his demand. Andrew’s respect for the man notched up, despite his suspicions. It was clear one of these men was interested in Harper in a more-than-friendly way. Which meant one of them had upset her enough to call Amy crying. Problem was, Andrew couldn’t figure out which of them was the villain.

  “You’re definitely gonna want to kick our arses later. But I think you need to talk to Harper before we get down to the brawlin’.”

  Our arses? Andrew wasn’t sure what to make of that.

  The image of him and Tom making love to Amy at Velvet Chains drifted through his mind. Then he looked at Marc’s and Keith’s somewhat guilty expressions and imagined the same scenario with the cowboys and Harper.

  He’d fucking kill them.

  “Come on.” Keith turned before he could reply and Marc grabbed the
bag at Andrew’s feet. “I know two women who are going to be over the moon to see you.”

  Andrew followed, trying to calm down. He’d gone from excited to arrive, to nervous about seeing Amy, to pissed as hell over whatever the fuck Harper had been up to. If he didn’t find a way to rein all of that in, he was going to screw up everything.

  Marc—and his luggage—sat in the back of the truck while Andrew claimed the passenger seat. None of them spoke on the short ride back to what Keith had called the “main house”. As he rode, it sank in how different his and Amy’s lives truly were. He’d been raised a city boy, but this vast wilderness had been Amy’s childhood home.

  The truck stopped in front of a large, well-kept house. Andrew stepped out just as Harper emerged, standing on the front porch.

  “Andrew?” Harper sprinted toward him, leaping into his arms. He embraced her, so fucking relieved to find her not only healthy, but happier than he’d seen her in years.

  “Damn, you’re a sight for sore eyes.” He kissed the top of her head. “Never again, Harper. I swear to God, I don’t care if you travel to China, you tell me. I promise I’ll give you your space, but you have to at least tell me where you are, keep in touch.”

  “I’ve missed you so much. I’m sorry for leaving the way I did. I just wasn’t sure how—”

  “How to break loose of your insanely overprotective brother. I get it. I’m sorry I made you feel like you had to go to such extremes.”

  Harper shook her head. “I’m just as much to blame as you. I guess we’re long overdue for a heart to heart chat.”

  Andrew nodded. Opening up to Amy had made him realize how long he and Harper had swept the past under the carpet, ignoring the elephant in the room rather than facing it and moving on. “Yeah. We are.” Andrew looked around, aware their conversation could be overheard by the other men.

  Harper noticed his glance. “What do you say we table the conversation until we get home? Enjoy Australia together.”

  He pulled her close for another hug. “Deal. Now…about Marc and Keith. What the hell is—”

  “Andrew?”

  He stopped speaking as Amy’s voice sounded from behind him. He released Harper, trying to figure out why his arms had suddenly gone numb.