Susie’s Pete was more than happy to drop Cate off on his way home after she’d finished work. It all became too easy. She didn’t see Noah, although she hesitated outside his office again. She heard his deep voice on the phone and continued past. She wasn’t rushing into anything. It was better this way.
When she stepped off Pete’s boat not far from the doorstep of her parents’ house, it felt strange to be home, almost as if she didn’t belong there any more.
Water stretched in every direction and the fences had disappeared beneath the surface. The late afternoon sun had turned the expanse of water to burnished copper and for such destruction it held incredible beauty.
Then her mother came down the verandah steps and enveloped her in a hug. ‘Welcome to Forrest Island, darling,’ she said with a laugh, and Cate didn’t feel so strange.
Cate hugged her back and they moved onto the verandah. Her father rolled out in his wheelchair with Ben behind him and they crowded around Cate. She realised that Ben had grown and there was no doubt he was now a man. She’d have to stop bossing him around, that was for sure. Maybe it was time for him to stay and her to go.
‘So, did you organise the hospital the way you wanted to?’ Ben teased.
Cate bit her lip. ‘Actually, they had a new CEO who did a pretty good job, but tell me all the news from here.’
They pulled her inside to sit around the kitchen table and the Primus stove was on the bench with a billy of tea bubbling away. The power was still off. They discussed the work involved to get the farm back on its feet once the water receded. The farm had lost all the winter hay bales, most of the fences were damaged and the tractor would have to be stripped and rebuilt, but it was all doable.
William shrugged. ‘Nature decides when we need a clean-out and we’ll salvage what we can and be sorted out in a few months. I’m pleased for your mother that the water didn’t come into the house. And it’s good to have you both home.’
Later she and Ben had a heart to heart. When she asked why he’d left he met her eyes ruefully. ‘Because you always seemed to be able to do everything better than I could. And I couldn’t stand it.’
Cate squeezed his shoulder. ‘I’m ten years older than you are. You’re a man now, Ben, and we’re equal. We don’t have to compete and I don’t even want to. Me not being here for the flood worked well for both of us.’
She gazed out the window at the water stretching into the distance. ‘I had to be strong for Dad but I’m tired of being responsible. Who knows? If you stay I might have time for my own life.’
Ben looked at her with new understanding. ‘I never thought of you as being tired, but I guess you have carried the farm with Mum for a long time.’ He hugged her. ‘I want to stay. I’ve missed the farm but I’ve learnt new skills that I can use here.’
So everything worked out in the end, Cate thought. Except she didn’t know what she wanted any more. Perhaps she just needed her bed. Noah’s flood had exhausted her. But it was the man and not the flood that filled her thoughts as she drifted into sleep.
Tuesday 13 March
The sun was rising when Cate woke and she stretched luxuriantly in her own comfortable bed. When she turned her head to look out of her window, the golden pink dawn sent shimmering rays of multicoloured light to reflect off the expanse of water. Great flocks of white and black ibises lined the edge of the water as they enjoyed their breakfast, and cattle jostled for position around the hay bales Ben had left.
Cate hadn’t stirred all night and as she sat up she felt refreshed and ready to face the day. And Noah.
He’d been right. She had been a coward. How long was the right length of time if you’ve met your soul-mate? One week, one month, one year? It didn’t matter if you couldn’t imagine them leaving. Noah had said he wanted to talk and she should have listened. It wasn’t too late to tell him how she felt.
She got up and padded down the hallway before lifting the upstairs phone and dialling his direct number. She could feel the smile on her face, and she wondered if he was still angry with her. A bubble of anticipation simmered away inside as she waited for him to answer. She listened to the phone in his office ringing and then she was cut off.
Disappointed, but not surprised he wasn’t there, she dialled the main hospital number and asked the switchboard operator to page him for her.
The receptionist’s voice was bored, as if she’d passed this message on several times already. ‘Mr Masters is unavailable. A Mr Brown has taken over in the interim but it’s Tuesday and he’s not in. Would you like to leave a message?’
Cate bit her lip. ‘No. Thank you. Goodbye.’
Unavailable? What did that mean? He’d gone? Without a word?
But so did you, she reminded herself, and she sat carefully on the hallway stool and thought about the consequences and what control she had over the situation.
She phoned Amber at work. She needed to tell Noah that she was ready to talk about their future together. Amber would know where he was.
CHAPTER NINE
‘CATE, I’m so glad you rang.’ Amber sounded anything but glad and her voice shook. With a flutter of alarm, Cate remembered the last time Amber had been reluctant to pass on news.
Cate tightened her grip on the phone. It had to be something to do with Noah. ‘I’m glad you’re glad. Now, tell me what’s made you sound odd before I start imagining things are even worse than they are.’
Amber’s voice wavered. ‘It’s been terrible. We had a fire in the children’s ward last night.’ She paused as if to collect herself. ‘It was a very close call. One of the patients’ older brothers was playing with matches. When the curtains caught alight it took over faster than anyone could believe.’
Cold dread filled Cate’s stomach as she imagined the horror of what could have happened, and icy fingers recalled Sylvia with oxygen beside her bed. ‘Tell me none of the kids were injured?’
‘Sylvia’s been treated for smoke inhalation and if Noah hadn’t been reading to her, she would have been in real danger of being burnt to death.’ There was a catch in Amber’s voice and she was still noticeably upset. ‘He carried her through a wall of flame that should have killed them both. I know you don’t like him, but he’s a hero, Cate, and nobody will listen to anything bad about him from now on.’
Cate’s face felt wooden. Was that really what people thought? That she didn’t even like the man she loved? Was that what Noah thought? A cold panic settled in her stomach as she struggled to get the situation straight in her head. ‘So is Sylvia all right?’
‘Yes.’ Amber’s voice trailed off.
‘And Noah? Is he all right?’ Cate tasted the blood from her lip and realised how hard she’d bitten it as she waited. Come on, Amber, stop stalling. I’m going insane here.
‘He will be. He has second-degree burns to his hands but they think there will be no lasting damage.’
Cate sagged against the wall. ‘Thank God for that. And smoke inhalation?’
‘No. His lungs are fine. It’s—it’s his eyes.’
Cate felt like screaming. ‘What about his eyes, Amber? Where is he?’
‘His eyes were damaged and they’re not certain if his sight is going to be badly affected. They flew him out last night in one of the helicopters to St Vincent’s in Sydney.’
Cate didn’t say anything. Couldn’t. Just leant against the wall and tried to imagine big, strong, in-control Noah blindfolded and with both hands bandaged.
‘Are you there, Cate?’ Amber’s voice squeaked down the phone, and Cate pushed the pictures from her head and tried to work out a plan of action.
‘Yes. I’m here.’ She rubbed her brow. ‘Listen, Amber. Has Noah’s family been notified?’ She shook her head at her own lack of knowledge. ‘I don’t even know if he has family or even a house in Sydney. He must have one or the other. Find out for me. I’ll try and get a lift to the hospital and I’ll catch up with you then.’
Cate hung up and when she turned around her mother was standin
g there.
Leanore put her arm around Cate. ‘What’s happened, darling?’
‘A fire at the hospital. Noah is hurt. He’s been taken to Sydney and I need to go to him.’
‘Noah, the domineering, human logarithm who works out?’ She smiled gently at her daughter. ‘You’re in love with him, aren’t you?’
Cate gave a small hiccup of laughter at Leanore’s infallible memory and her disorientation settled. Was she in love with Noah? She looked at her mother. ‘I guess I must be. I can’t bear the thought of him disabled and defenceless. I have to be there for him.’
‘Then I’ll phone Susie’s Pete again while you pack.’
The boat ride was uneventful, and even though the highway was still cut off and the planes were grounded, the trains were still running. Cate was able to secure a seat on the train to Sydney for later that morning.
Amber had found Noah’s address but no evidence of next of kin. She’d taken one look at Cate’s face and put her hand over her mouth. ‘You’re in love with him.’
‘Yes. And he asked me to go back to Sydney with him.’ Cate swallowed the lump in her throat.
Amber was wide-eyed. ‘And you said you’d go?’
Cate turned away. ‘I’m still here, aren’t I? But I was a fool. I’d follow that man anywhere.’ She looked at Amber. ‘I have to go. I love him and he needs me.’
When Cate stepped down from the train at Central Station in Sydney it was late in the afternoon, coming up to peak-hour traffic and raining. She carried her case easily, a tall, confident woman in jeans and oilskin, her black Squatter Akubra hat resting comfortably on her head.
Some Japanese tourists smiled and waved and took a photo and Cate supposed she had farmer written all over her. She waved back and anxiously strode over to a waiting taxi.
‘St Vincent’s Hospital, please,’ she told the cabby, and sat back to stare out of the window. She tried to glimpse the sky above the buildings that stretched up out of sight. She’d been to Sydney several times as a child to watch her father compete at the Royal Easter Show, but the tall buildings and the multiculturalism, compared to Riverbank, never failed to amaze her.
When the taxi pulled up at the hospital, she paid the driver and alighted at the huge entrance. She supposed there must be bigger hospitals but, compared to Riverbank, it was a monster.
She hurriedly followed the signs to Reception to ask to speak to Noah’s doctor. Noah was under the care of an eminent ophthalmologist and Cate was allowed to speak to the great man’s registrar.
Half an hour later she was standing outside Noah’s room and the determination that had seen her through the long journey suddenly dried up and disappeared.
What if he didn’t want to see her? What if there was some other woman in the wings? She should have asked the doctor that, too. Noah’s wife had been dead for two years—it was possible there was someone else. Cate lifted her hat and ran her fingers through her hair. Well, standing out here wasn’t doing anyone any good. She opened the door, picked up her case and walked in softly.
The curtains over the window were pulled and no one had been in to turn the light on yet. Her first glance had gone to the bed but it was empty. Then she saw that he was sitting in the armchair beside the window. He’d turned his head towards the door when she’d entered. His eyes and both hands were heavily bandaged. Cate’s throat closed and her voice choked on the greeting she’d been about to offer. She could have lost him before she’d even appreciated what she’d found. She hoped he still wanted her.
‘I’m not really in the mood for an examination right now.’ Noah’s voice was resigned and more hoarse than usual. She supposed it was from the smoke. The thought of him being hurt was too much and she crossed the room and knelt beside the chair.
She swallowed and tried to moisten her dry mouth. ‘Hello, Noah.’
‘Cate?’ He smelt the rain on her oilskin and the herbal scent that she liked. She’d come. Noah averted his face. He’d been wishing for and dreading the possibility of her arrival. She was the woman he wanted to spend the rest of his life with—but not if he was blind. The thought of vital Cate tied to him as an invalid horrified him.
He hated her to see him like this but it was too late now. Her presence reminded him that if he lost his sight he would lose more than that. ‘What are you doing here?’ His voice was harsh with the seesawing scenarios in his mind.
Cate wanted to grab his hand and hold it to her cheek, but his body language repelled any advances. She rested her hand on her own thigh instead as she knelt in front of him. ‘I came when I heard. I thought you’d like to know that Sylvia is fine and going home tomorrow. And everyone is calling you a hero.’
He cursed his inability to walk around the room so she couldn’t read his face, though he supposed most of his features were bandaged. He grimaced at the memory of the last time he’d tried to pace. That would be all he needed to complete his ignominy—to trip over a stool and fall flat on his face in front of her. The worst thing she could give him would be pity.
Damn this contrary woman! She wouldn’t come when he wanted or stay away when she should. ‘You could have phoned to tell me all that. There’s nothing wrong with my ears.’ His voice was cold.
‘So you can hold a phone, can you?’ There was emotion in her voice but he couldn’t tell if it was anger or distress. She seemed to be ignoring his bad humour, and perversely that made him more angry.
‘Low blow, Cate. No, I can’t hold anything.’ Not even you, he thought bitterly. When she didn’t retaliate he shrugged, settled back in the chair and turned his face towards her. ‘So what really brought Country Cate to the big, bad city?’
He heard her shift beside him and thought it was one of the few times he’d managed to discomfit her. Then her beautiful voice came from beside him and he could imagine the way her lips moved and the expressions on her face, and suddenly the picture in his memory made him want to bury his face in her neck and hide. He loved her and that was why he hadn’t wanted her to come.
‘I came because I needed to know that you’re all right.’ Her voice was quiet. ‘I see that you will live, despite the bandages, but your manners could do with improving.’
Noah couldn’t stand much more of this. He had to drive her away before he weakened and begged her to stay. ‘Well, I’m glad one of us can see. My apologies for not standing up when you came in, but I tend to fall over.’ He gave a short, sharp laugh and he felt Cate flinch beside him.
It was better to hurt her now than later. ‘Listen, Cate. Go home. I don’t want you or need you here. This is my town. I want you to go back where you belong.’ There, he’d said it. Now he wished she’d leave him to be miserable in private.
There was a long silence before she said, almost in a whisper, ‘I don’t believe you, Noah.’ Her voice was expressionless and she stood up and walked around the room.
Her footsteps stopped in front of him. ‘How about I tell you what I think you should do and you listen?’
Noah snorted. Already she thought she could decide what was best for him. The next thing she’d be wanting to mother him. He’d throw himself out the window first. His voice was soft but brooked no argument. ‘Be careful, Cate. Even blind and without the use of my hands, nobody tells me what to do, not even you.’
Unfortunately she didn’t sound impressed. ‘Well, I don’t think you have much choice here, Noah. I’ve spoken to your doctor. If you have a carer, me, you can be discharged in a couple of days. Of course, that depends if the result is good when the eyepads come off tomorrow. Or you can stay here. Alone. Bored silly. Morose as hell until your hands heal in a week or more.’
Her voice softened. ‘Why don’t you let me stay so that I can take you home when you’re ready? We can spar for the next couple of weeks and I’m sure the time would go more quickly.’ She crouched down beside him and laid her hand on his leg. The warmth from her fingers soaked into him and he almost lifted his own hand to lay it over the top of hers
until he remembered the bandages. What if his sight was permanently damaged? A picture of her leading him around his own house burst into his brain, like a Technicolor horror movie.
‘No way!’ The passion in his voice shocked both of them, and Cate sat back unsteadily. He tacked on a belated ‘No, thank you’ but it didn’t change his vehemence.
Cate had known Noah could prove difficult to convince but this was daunting. He was dependent and he’d hate that. She’d even be pleased if he started to boss her around again—as long as he didn’t tell her to go. She now knew that Noah was loving, caring, passionate, that he didn’t want to dominate her, as she had feared. Sure, he was strong-willed and determined to be master of his own life, but that was just another reason why she loved him. It felt good just saying that to herself. She loved him. It gave her strength.
She smiled to herself. Perhaps this wasn’t a good time to tell Noah, though. She squared her shoulders. He should have remembered who he was up against.
She stood and looked around to see where she’d put her case. ‘Well, that was a definite answer. I guess I’ll just have to keep coming back until you agree.’
Exasperated, Noah clenched his hands, and then swore at the pain he’d caused when he’d squeezed his fingers together. ‘For heaven’s sake, Cate. Can’t you see I don’t want you here? I don’t want you seeing me like this and I don’t want to have you caring for me when I’m weaker than a child.’
Cate wished she could share his pain, but she stopped herself from softening. She was just as determined as he could be, and she had to be strong for him.
‘It’s because of a child you are here. Sylvia owes her life to you.’
He snorted. ‘So that’s why you’re here? Because of Sylvia?’
Cate gently poked his leg. ‘No. That’s not why I’m here, you big oaf, but we’ll talk about that later.’ Then she stroked his thigh. ‘And why the hell can’t I look after you? You need daily dressings—I’m a nurse. I’m experienced and quite strong. I can’t see a line-up of people waiting for the job, Noah, so accept my help graciously and get us both out of here. Sooner rather than later.’
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