Outback Dreams (20 page)

‘I understand, but I really hope we can work something out.' Ryan put his fork down. ‘I'd miss you.'

‘Humph. You'd miss having someone around to sort your socks and tease.'

He shook his head. ‘I could get a wife if that was all I wanted.'

She smiled. ‘Don't let the girls around here hear you talking like that. They might stop falling all over themselves to get you into bed with them.'

‘No great loss.'

It was her turn to rest her fork on her plate. ‘I don't understand you, big brother. You're thirty-one, you've had plenty of years sowing your wild oats, you could have the pick of young women in this district and they're not all bad… What is it you want out of life?'

‘That's the million-dollar question, isn't it, Faith?'

‘It looks like the purchase is going ahead,' Monty said, leaning against the fence as he delivered his news to Ruby.

‘That's such fabulous news.' She turned away from the horse she'd been grooming and grinned. ‘I couldn't be happier for you.'

‘Thanks.'

After days of emails and faxes going back and forth to work out logistics, he was now waiting for the big one from Mack— the contract to buy Clancy's Breakaway. In the end, Tim and Nora had offered vendor finance. Mack had explained this meant Monty's loan from the bank would pay what he could and the Pattersons would provide the rest of the money as an interest-free loan. It sounded too good to be true, but having met the couple and spent two inspiring days in their company, he was confident this was the real deal.

All told, he should have been feeling a lot happier than he was. He had work lined up for the six weeks until the settlement on Clancy's Breakaway was complete. The lease on his rental had a few months to go, but the landlord had agreed to let him out of the contract early. And he'd been out with Ruby two nights out of the last four. Although they hadn't kissed properly since the first date, it was only a matter of time, and he couldn't have asked her to be more enthusiastic about the farm. She'd listened intently as he went over every single detail about the property and his plans for it. Really, he was one lucky bugger.

Yet despite all this, he had to force his smile at Ruby's enthusiasm. Maybe it was the guilt that gnawed at him over what he'd done with Faith. He'd conveniently left that little detail out of their discussions about his trip, not knowing how to bring it up without ruining things with Ruby. Yet the longer he didn't say anything, the more it felt as if he were walking around with bricks inside him.

‘I should make you dinner to celebrate,' she suggested, offering her horse a carrot as a reward for good behaviour throughout the grooming. Thankfully, she was looking at the horse and couldn't read the anxiety in his face.

‘That would be great,' he said, trying to sound enthusiastic when all he could think about was the fact that he'd betrayed her.

‘What's your favourite dish?'

‘You mean aside from macaroni cheese?'

She raised one eyebrow and laughed. ‘I'll cook that if you want me to.'

‘Surprise me,' he said, loosening up at the easy banter.

‘Okay.' But she sounded a little uncertain as she hauled herself over the fence. ‘I'm working this afternoon, so how about I come round to your place about six. I'll bring the ingredients.'

‘Sounds good.' How could he not smile at the idea of a beautiful woman cooking for him in his kitchen? Today she looked sensational in fitted riding pants, a polo-necked pale blue shirt and a sexy blush that crept right up her neck and bloomed in her soft cheeks. Would he ruin whatever was between them if he told her about Faith?

His gut ached at the quandary. He wasn't the type of bloke to mess around on a woman, and he knew that if he didn't tell her he'd be lying by omission, but technically they weren't officially together when it happened. And anyway, the thing with Faith was a one-off. A crazy, drunken one-off that hopefully hadn't ruined the best friendship he'd ever had.

‘I'll buy some wine,' he said, deciding that for now at least omission was the kindest option. ‘Red or white?'

‘I'm not sure I should tell you.' She flicked her long hair behind her shoulders and grinned. ‘You wouldn't give me a hint about the food.'

‘Fine. I'll buy one of each.' He glanced at his watch. ‘I'd better go. Mack's faxing the contract to the library anytime now.'

‘See ya later.' She wiggled her fingers in a wave and he thought about kissing her goodbye but couldn't quite bring himself to do it.

The Jones' small-acre property was only two minutes from town, so it didn't take long to reach the main street. It was Wednesday, and although midweek usually saw fewer people in town, it appeared today was the exception. Somehow he scored a parking space right outside the library building. He spotted Faith's four-wheel drive a couple of cars along and wondered what she was doing in town.

They'd spoken a few times since that fateful night, but not seen each other. As promised, he'd kept her updated with news of the purchase, which was good because it had given them something to focus on aside from the other thing. He thought they'd done a great job of ignoring it, but now for some reason he was nervous about running into her.

Slamming his door shut, he strode down the pavement.

‘Morning, Mandy.' He nodded at a local farmer and her three kids under school age who were squabbling at her feet. ‘Nice day.'

‘Ya reckon?' But she grinned at him as she scooped up the youngest who'd found something to nibble off the pavement. ‘Heard your good news. Couldn't have happened to a nicer bloke.'

‘Thanks.' He picked up a plastic toy phone that one of the kids had dropped and handed it to her before continuing on his way.

As was the way in small country towns, he stopped to talk with three other people before making it inside the building. Mrs O'Neal sat behind the desk, squinting at something on the computer. A determined old woman, she refused to wear glasses even though everyone could see she was half blind.

She looked up and beamed at him. ‘Hi, Monty. Put the kettle on, Cara,' she ordered the younger woman who worked there part-time, before turning back to him. ‘We've got your fax. And I've made some scones to celebrate with.'

‘Scones and tea. Can I be in that?'

Monty's heart hitched another beat and he turned at the familiar voice. He found himself staring at Faith in the doorway behind him. Even in faded, torn-at-the-knee jeans and an old shearing singlet leftover from her uni rousing days she looked as edible as her famous caramel slice.

‘Of course you can,' Mrs O'Neal chirped. ‘The more the merrier.' She went to fetch the fax and the scones, leaving Monty and Faith on their own.

He swallowed, his mouth parched and desperate for that drink. ‘Hey, Faith.' He hoped he didn't sound as weird as he felt.

‘Is that fax what I think it is?' she asked, dropping her keys and phone on the counter. She didn't quite look him in the eye.

‘Uh-huh.' Inside he grinned, but the awkwardness between them made him hesitant. ‘Want to be my witness?'

She bit her lower lip before speaking. ‘Do you think I should? Tim and Nora think we're … you know. It might be better if they don't recognise the name. I'm certain Mrs O'Neal would love to do the honours.'

‘Yeah, you're right.' At her reference to their time away, his blood heated. ‘So, what brings you in here?' he asked, as much to distract himself as anything.

‘I need to use the photocopier to print off the tickets for the ball.' She pulled a folder out of her bag and then held up an A4 sheet with ten tickets on it. ‘Things are really taking off now. We've already had loads of interest, so I've decided to put them on sale early.'

‘Very exciting, isn't it Monty?' Mrs O'Neal called from the back of the room. ‘I've marked the night in my calendar.' Her eyes might have been failing her but those ears were supersonic. ‘I'll be expecting a dance with you.'

He and Faith laughed.

‘And by the way, Faith, Those books you ordered arrived this morning. I'll get them for you in a moment.'

‘Thanks,' Faith called back.

Mrs O'Neal returned to the desk, waved a bunch of papers in the air, and then handed them to Monty. ‘These are what you've been waiting for.' She rummaged in a box labelled ‘Pre-ordered Books' and passed a small pile to Faith. ‘And these are for you.'

Faith glanced down at the pile. ‘Actually, they're for Monty.'

He looked up from where he'd been checking over the contract.

‘They're a bunch of books on cattle farming,' she explained, still not quite meeting his gaze. ‘I asked Mrs O'Neal to order them in last week, the day Mack told you about the property.'

‘They came quickly,' Mrs O'Neal added.

A lump formed in Monty's throat at the gesture. Typical Faith—always thinking of other people, doing things to make them feel like the most important person in the world. Had he always taken her for granted?

She misread his silence and dumped the books back on the desk. ‘If you don't want them, Mrs O'Neal can send them back.'

He snatched them up and then pulled her into a hug. ‘I do. Thank you.' The scent of her shampoo wafted up into his nostrils as her silky hair slid against his cheek. He ignored the physical reaction that welled up deep inside him. ‘I'll read every single one.'

The hug lasted a little longer than normal, and finally Mrs O'Neal cleared her throat. ‘Are we going to sign these papers or are we not?'

Faith extracted herself. ‘Go on. This is what you've worked so hard towards.'

They crossed to a vacant table in the non-fiction section. Monty spread the paperwork out in front of him and quickly finished scanning the information to ensure it was as Mack had discussed. Satisfied everything was in order, he picked up the pen Cara had delivered and leaned over to sign his life away. Mrs O'Neal happily played witness then they all got stuck into the tea and scones.

‘We're going to miss you here,' Mrs O'Neal said with a sniff.

Cara snorted. ‘Yeah, who else will fix your house up at the drop of a hat?'

‘I promise I'll check everything is in order before I leave.' Monty offered the older woman a smile. He'd miss her Anzac biscuits almost as much as she'd miss his hammer.

As Cara cleared away the mess and Mrs O'Neal tottered off to check a book out for someone, Faith wiped a little cream off her lip and asked, ‘So, are we going out to celebrate?'

‘Maybe tomorrow night or Friday?'

Her face fell. ‘You already have plans tonight?'

He nodded, hating to disappoint her. ‘Ruby's making dinner.' Why was that simple statement so damn hard to get out?

‘Great.' He could tell her smile was forced. ‘Are you going to take her down to see Clancy's Breakaway soon?'

‘We haven't discussed it yet. It's just early days.' Talking about Ruby with Faith still felt awkward. ‘Besides, I'm going to be pretty busy up until settlement, what with seeding at Adam's place and everything.'

‘Of course.'

Once Faith would have asked him about the plans for seeding and if there was anything she could do to help, but instead another horrible silence descended between them. There was nothing he hated more than standing next to Faith, racking his brain and being unable to think of one thing to say.

He gathered up his papers. ‘Well, I'd better get these faxed back to Mack.'

‘Yes. Congrats again.' Faith smiled. ‘Call me if you want to get the gang together on Friday.'

Monty watched as Faith farewelled Cara and Mrs O'Neal. He couldn't tear his eyes away as she opened the door and headed out onto the street. He kept looking through the window as she jogged down the pavement and climbed up into her four-wheel drive. The tension between them made his chest ache but he didn't have a clue how to fix it.

On Friday night, Faith feigned a headache. The emotional rollercoaster of the last few days had more than taken its toll. She'd self-prescribed lots of baking and early nights and even bought a natural calming tablet from the chemist—anything for some quality sleep in which she didn't toss and turn thinking about Monty.

Much to her surprise (and relief), the torrid dreams had ceased. During the day, she often thought of that night in the tent, but at night she merely lamented her lost friendship. No matter how often Monty insisted they could remain friends, she couldn't see a way to make it work.

‘You not coming into town?' Ryan asked as he entered the kitchen, where Faith was loading her baking efforts into containers for the freezer. He nabbed a square of caramel slice and shoved it in his mouth.

‘Nah, got a bit of a headache.'

‘What about Monty's big celebration? He'll miss you.'

‘I guess.' Although she wasn't so sure. He'd text-messaged her with the details the day before.
Texted
. He couldn't even make the effort to call. ‘I celebrated with him when we went to see his new farm.' Boy oh boy had they celebrated!

‘Suit yourself.' Ryan stole another piece and surveyed the full containers littering the kitchen bench. ‘You've gone above and beyond with this year's seeding cooking. Is that so Dad will have no excuse not to give you a turn on the tractor?'

Ironically, that hadn't even crossed her mind. The conversations with her father were still few and far between, but she'd barely spent a moment worrying about him or the farm since returning from down south. ‘Something like that. You have a good night.'

She wanted Ryan to take his good mood elsewhere so she could get back to wallowing. This would likely be his last night out for a while. The weatherman had predicted rain in the next week and that meant all the local farmers would soon be glued to tractors and burning the candle at both ends.