The Grass is Greener (37 page)

One Year Later

Sitting in front of a huge platter of Horace's famous garlic prawns, Jack's semillon sauvignon blanc in her glass, while Lydia mixed the dressing into freshly made coleslaw, Bronwyn reflected that life couldn't get much better.

That year's vintage had been a cracker – record sales and the best-tasting wine she'd had in a while. The wine wankers had been out in force and she'd encouraged them every step of the way. Now all they needed was James Halliday to pop round and give them the five stars she knew they deserved. She was working on that and also pushing Jack's wines into Perth's most popular shows. Antoine had finally got his pinot noir and was making a name for them with that well.

Bronwyn had not regretted her move to Oak Hills one iota, nor buying into a company she had loved for the last ten years. Working there for the past twelve months had been one of the most rewarding experiences of her life. A life she couldn't imagine without Jack Franklin in it.

He was the man who had helped Oak Hills to thrive and flourish again.

The man she loved.

Who loved her in return.

She'd never forget the day he'd declared it. Her in a dog suit, in the middle of a fairground, her best friend arguing with her now–significant other just over to their right. Who needed drippy candles and chocolates – that was what you call romance!

‘I don't care that it all turned out to be sham. There's a lesson to be learned in this,' he'd said sternly. ‘If you want to go chasing after dog fighters, you take me with you. I'm one of those protective types.'

‘Are you, Jack?' she had asked. ‘You're not just bored after coming home from exotic France?'

He groaned and grabbed her by shoulders. ‘Isn't it obvious how I feel about you?'

‘No.'

‘I love you, Bronwyn.
Always have
. Just never thought I stood a chance against Chris.'

Bronwyn sucked in a breath. ‘I never thought of Chris that way. Never. It was always you, right from the beginning.'

‘What about now?' he'd demanded. ‘Do you love me right now?'

‘Yes.'

‘Then we've got everything we need.'

And he was right.

Since that moment they were exactly where they needed to be. She looked across the table at Horace. His health was still fading but his face was definitely not as grey as it had been when she'd first arrived at Oak Hills. You could say that after he had reconciled with Jack, it had given him a new lease on life. As she observed him, he was busily engaged in giving Sebastian Rowlands the third degree.

‘Why haven't you been here to visit me before? If you want to date my daughter, you need to get my approval first.'

‘
Dad
,' Claudia protested. ‘Leave him alone.'

‘Well, he's been dating you for over a year now and this is the first time I'm meeting him. I want to know what he's been hiding, apart from a ten-year bloody age gap and a pink shirt.'

‘I told you you shouldn't have worn that,' Jack said with a shake of his finger from across the table.

Sebastian's lip twitched.

Claudia glared at Jack and then turned back to her dad. ‘
Nothing
, Dad. He's hiding nothing. We've just been busy.'

‘My apologies, Horace,' Sebastian smiled ruefully, slinging an arm across Claudia's shoulders and drawing her into his body. ‘Honestly, I wish I could have come and seen you sooner.'

‘Well, what the hell has Claudia been so busy with?' Horace demanded.

‘Turning me into a better man, of course.'

Claudia grinned at him. ‘Good answer.'

Bronwyn loved the way Claudia was with Sebastian. There was no doubt in her mind that they complemented each other perfectly. When they had decided to date properly, Claudia had moved back into Bronwyn's place and quit her job at Hanks and Eddings. Losing her position there actually hadn't been a great sacrifice. Working at a different but no less prestigious law firm had given Claudia the confidence to prove herself away from the sniping about her being an Eddings. She also got to do more pro-bono work for an animal-rights charity, as one of the partners in her firm was a strong environmentalist. ‘Uncle' Cyril had been sad to see her go, but smugly satisfied at her new relationship with Seb. Apparently he was taking complete credit for this development.

Her mother also seemed to be keeping her word. There was no more interference from Bianca's side of things. Yet Bronwyn suspected that she was far too busy with all the new work coming in from Leon McCall to be concerned about small fish such as Claudia and herself. In any case, if worst
came to worst, she was sure Elsa was still prepared to protect her if Bianca decided to cause any more trouble.

And if not Elsa, then Seb would step up to the mark. Claudia still had that ridiculous photo they'd taken of the four them dressed up in their South-West Pet Show costumes sitting on her mantel in Perth. Seb had made one disgruntled chicken. But if that didn't say ‘I love you' then Bronwyn didn't know what did.

By now, Lydia had finished mixing the coleslaw and was handing out plates. ‘Has anyone heard from Chris? That boy is such a poor correspondent.'

Bronwyn gave a secret smile. This observation fit right in with his talent for disorganised paperwork and over-scheduling, but as it happened she did have news. ‘You mean you haven't seen the photos?'

‘What photos?' Lydia asked.

‘He sent some photos of him and Maria in front of the Trevi Fountain just last night. It looks amazing.'

Chris's adventures overseas really did inspire her. For a man in a wheelchair, he certainly made the most of life. She was so proud of him for that, but especially that he'd finally let Maria love him. Sometimes, she reflected ruefully, the hardest thing in life was allowing yourself to be vulnerable. But it could also be the most rewarding.

‘I've seen 'em,' Jack helped himself to a plateful of coleslaw. ‘And I've gotta say, I'm pretty jealous.'

‘I'm glad he's enjoying himself,' Lydia commented as she took a portion for herself. ‘But I do miss him terribly. I hope he doesn't mean to migrate to Italy permanently so that we never see him again. Or worse, do a five-year stint there the way Jack did in France!'

‘Well, he'll have to be here this time next year.' Jack put a hand on the back of her neck and she turned to meet his laughing eyes. ‘Cause I'm going to need a best man.'

Lydia's fork clattered to her plate and she squealed. ‘You're getting married!'

Bronwyn tore her gaze from Jack's twinkling eyes to meet the expectant looks of the family. She held up her hand on which a diamond ring winked officially. ‘We got engaged last night.'

‘And you didn't tell me?' Claudia cried, jumping up from her place at the table and racing around to her seat. ‘As the best friend, I should have known at least a couple of hours before anyone else.'

Bronwyn stood up and hugged her. ‘We wanted to tell everyone at the same time.'

After that, there was nothing but talk of weddings. When, where, and what she might be wearing. The boys soon got bored and went off to play cricket on the lawn. Elsa raced around between them, barking cheerfully every time someone hit the ball.

As Lydia stood up to clear away the dishes, Claudia reached out and grabbed Bronwyn's hand.

‘I gotta say, Bron, when you first suggested we should swap places I never imagined it would turn out like this.'

‘Why?' Bronwyn smiled. ‘You don't think my grass is greener?'

‘Well, it wasn't at first!' Claudia retorted. ‘It was just like you said. Bloody awful.'

‘So was yours,' Bronwyn pulled a face. ‘The truth is, it was never about swapping our lives exactly. It was always about making the most of our own.'

‘So,' Claudia said with a slow wink, ‘what you're really saying is, the grass
is
greener on the other side, but
only
if you water it.'

Bronwyn threw back her head and laughed. ‘Absolutely.'

It's been a very busy year! Along with writing a book and caring for four children, I had to move house as well. There are so many people I have to thank for helping me get through it all in one piece.

My family, of course, leads the pack. Mum, Dad, Shirley, Steve, Aunty Moira, Uncle Richard, Jacenta, Tim, Lena and Ang. Thanks for everything. Not just for the babysitting to give me more time to write but for helping with the move and the renovations as well. We couldn't have achieved it all without you.

To my critique partners, Karina and Nicola. You were the ones who kept me sane. Ladies, your reassurance and support meant so much to me. You both knew exactly when I needed a confidence boost. Thank you so much.

My warm appreciation to our nanny Elysha, who worked extra hours whenever I needed it. I was so thankful for your flexibility and enthusiasm. You are a pleasure to have in our home. Thank you also to my mum and sister Jacenta, who provided extra babysitting especially when my deadline was looming dangerously close. You guys were lifesavers.

As for the actual story itself … where would I be without my gurus?

Thanks firstly to Ben Gould, vineyard owner and winemaker for Blind Corner – birthplace of delectable, organic and sustainable wines with unique and diverse flavours. Ben has been such a wonderful source of information over the years and has been so generous with his time. Thank you so much for all your help and for agreeing to read random chapters without a murmur of complaint.

Special thanks to Andrea Jennings, my legal eagle; I sincerely hope you don't find any mistakes in my work! And if you do, I take full credit for them. You were such a great sounding-board for all of Claudia's court dramas. Thank you so much for your time, your war stories and your advice. I had such fun throwing plotlines at you and you were such a good sport about it. Hugs.

Thanks to everyone at Random House who worked on this book with me, especially my publisher, Beverley Cousins, editor, Kathryn Knight and publicist, Jessica Malpass. Thank you for getting behind yet another of my books with so much enthusiasm.

Thank you also to my wonderful agent, Clare Forster, for all your support and advice behind the scenes.

To my husband, Todd. You have been so patient, so understanding and so supportive. At the end of the day, you have put as much into this book as I have. Love you so much.

And finally, my kids. Luke, James, Beth and Michael. Yes. Now mummy will take a long break. Let's go out!

Dear Reader,

 

This story follows the antics of two best friends who swap lives. Half of the story is set in Perth, exploring the fast-paced legal profession. The other half is set in the south-west region of Western Australia in a quiet town called Yallingup – a place very dear to my heart.

Yallingup is a small slice of the Margaret River wine region, most famous for its world-class wine, surfing and gorgeous natural limestone caves surrounded by beautiful jarrah and marri forest. If you ever have time to visit this part of the world I highly recommend you do, if only to enjoy the organically grown produce and delicious wine. I have family there, so it's where my husband and I always choose to spend our holidays.

While I wanted to keep the book as real as possible for readers, I want to clarify that Rickety Twigg Road, which cuts from Bussell Highway to Yallingup, is not a real road, nor do any of the estates mentioned on it, such as the Oak Hills Winery, exist. This road and the surrounds, however, are based on Wildwood Road – the real gateway to Yallingup.

There are so many other gorgeous wineries in this region similar in operation to Oak Hills and definitely worth the visit. I've tried to keep the winemaking part of this story as real and authentic as possible; to do so, I drew on the experience of my good friend Ben Gould, who owns and runs vineyards in Wilyabrup and Quindalup, also part of the Margaret River wine region. His winery is called Blind Corner.

If you would like to taste Ben's label – and you should, it's delicious! – you can find his wines in many fine restaurants throughout Australia. Or check out Blind Corner's website to order at
www.blindcorner.com.au
.

Apart from great food and wine, this book is about starting again. I think at one stage or another we've all been stuck in a rut. You feel like your life is going around in circles and you're never going to get out of it. It's easy to look at our friends, neighbours or work colleagues and wish we had what they have. The grass is always greener on the other side, right? I really wanted to write a book exploring that theme because I felt that, like all great theories, it was definitely flawed. Someone else's life would never perfectly suit. You'd always have to adapt to it or make it adapt to you. True happiness doesn't come from being someone else but from being our best selves.

I really enjoyed pushing my two heroines, Claudia and Bronwyn, to discover just that. I hope you enjoy their journey too.

 

Happy reading,

Loretta Hill

 

 

Loretta was born in Perth, the eldest of four girls. She enjoyed writing from a very early age and was just eleven years old when she had her first short story published in
The West Australian
newspaper.

Having graduated with a degree in Civil Engineering and another in Commerce, she was hired by a major Western Australian engineering company and worked for a number of years on many outback projects. She drew upon her experiences of larrikins, red dust and steel-capped boots for her bestselling novels
The Girl in Steel-Capped Boots
,
The Girl in the Hard Hat
and
The Girl in the Yellow Vest
. Her fourth novel,
The Maxwell Sisters
, was set in the Margaret River wine region, where she returns for her fifth novel,
The Grass is Greener
.

She lives in Perth with her husband and four children.