The Sunnyvale Girls (24 page)

TONI
ran out the house after Jimmy, who was striding towards the shed.

‘Jimmy,' she called, but he didn't slow. When she was close enough she reached out and pulled on his arm. ‘Wait up, I want to talk to you,' she said rather gruffly.

‘It's okay, I don't need any help,' he said, facing her.

God, he was handsome. His blond hair was clipped, his stubble at that perfect length that she found sexy. ‘Good, 'cos I wasn't going to offer you any.'

He blinked. Confused.

Toni reached out and caressed his face. It was now or never. She was throwing all her chips on the table. ‘I just wanted to tell you something that I probably should have told you a long time ago – I care for you, Jimmy. Actually, I'm in love with you.' Tears threatened but she blinked them away.

Jimmy's eyes shimmered in the dying light, realisation turning them a darker shade of jade. ‘What was that? I think I missed it.'

Toni smiled. It was rare that she ever caught Jimmy off guard. ‘I think you heard me. So what do you think? Have I missed the boat?' Her heart stopped. Everything was hanging on his reply.

Jimmy closed his eyes, then he reached for her, pulling her into his arms with a strong wildness. ‘No, you haven't missed the boat.'

Jimmy smelt like home: the sunshine, dirt and eucalyptus all rolled into one. God, it was so good to be back in his arms. Toni sucked in deep breaths of him. She'd needed this hug. She'd needed it at Rocco's just as much as she'd needed it back when Maggie had told her the news about Rocco. The difference was that only now did she realise it, and only now did she let herself surrender to it.

‘I missed you like crazy,' he murmured next to her ear.

She wanted to stay in his embrace forever, savouring the feel of his stubble against her cheek, the beat of his heart against her chest. It was heaven.

He pulled back so he could see her face. ‘So, you didn't find any nice Italians over there, then?' The cheeky grin she'd missed so much finally reappeared.

‘Yes, I did actually. A gorgeous bloke called Stefano. Such a gentle­man.' Toni almost laughed when Jimmy's face darkened. She'd never seen him jealous before. She rather liked it on him. ‘And he and Flick got on like a house on fire.' She felt giddy and excited, high on life – or was it love? Whatever it was she felt free, like she didn't have to keep part of herself locked away any more.

‘Really? You sure she was all right with him? Is he worthy?'

And that right there was the main reason she loved Jimmy with all her heart. He loved her daughter as if she were his own, and that was just fine by her.

‘Yes. Let's get going and feed the sheep, shall we? And I'll tell you all about our trip.'

‘No.'

‘No?' Toni was puzzled.

Jimmy smiled. ‘I've waited all this time; I'm not going anywhere yet with unfinished business.' He caressed her face, then, holding her chin, he tilted it up and found her lips.

Toni let out a whimper and melted against him. He held her with those strong arms. Heat was burning through her.

Jimmy groaned and pulled back. ‘We'd better go or I'm not going to stop.' There was no cheeky smile or teasing spark in his eyes. He was deadly serious.

The sun was starting to set in the west. Toni realised just how long her day had been, yet being in Jimmy's arms filled her with energy she didn't realise she had.

‘Who said I want you to stop?' She loved the way his body reacted to her words.

Jimmy was watching her carefully. ‘Are you sure about this? About us?'

‘Even with everything that's happened, I've never been more sure. I don't want to waste any more time. I want to live in the moment.' Toni cocked an eyebrow. ‘Are
you
sure about us?'

‘I've always been sure,' he said seriously. ‘I think I loved you from the moment I set eyes on you.' An evil glint flicked across his eyes. ‘Or maybe it was when I caught you skinny-dipping in the dam a few years ago.'

Toni threw her head back and laughed.

‘God, I've missed that sound,' he said.

Passion swept into his gaze and Toni's body tingled enough to curl her toes as Jimmy found her lips once again.

FLICK
sat on Contractor as the sun rose on another beautiful day. Bright orange blazed across the tops of the crop, lighting them on fire.

‘I really did miss being with you guys,' she said. It had nearly been two weeks since they'd arrived back from Italy. Leaning forward, she wrapped her arms around Contractor's neck. ‘Did you miss me while I was away? I see you have a soft spot for Jimmy now too.'

Fella barked at the mention of Jimmy's name and stood up, glancing around. Flick laughed. ‘He's not here, Fella.' She breathed in deeply. There really was nothing like home. Flick slid down from Contractor and walked towards the crop. Tall stalks held heads of wheat; Flick snapped one off and ground it between her hands, releasing the grain. So different from the big leafy tobacco plants in Italy.

The crops looked good this year: no frost, just plump grains. She flicked off the chaff and tipped the wheat into her mouth, chewing and crunching on the seeds. Grandad always chewed the grain as if it was gum. They would go crop inspecting together and Flick would retrieve some heads for him to study. He always called her his long legs. Sometimes he'd ask her to run through the crop, do cartwheels and jump around. The smile on his face was always worth it.

Flick pulled herself up onto Contractor. ‘Come on, time to head home.' They were getting the header and field bins set up today. Jimmy wanted to take off a sample of barley for testing. And Flick wanted to check her email again. She and Stefano had been sending emails every day since she'd got home. She still had his first one pinned up in her room.

Buongiorno bella Felicity,

I hope you arrived home well. I miss you so much. I came home with my family in Montone. Coming home was hard without you. I see you everywhere. Everything is back to the way it was but it feels empty without you.

A più tardi,

Stefano.

They talked about everything. She'd told him about their flight home, meeting Rocco, and Nan's reaction to the news. She'd told him how happy Fella and Contractor were now that she was back, and spoke of how much she missed him. And really, she did. While part of her had always hoped that it was little more than a holiday fling, Flick couldn't deny that Stefano was on her mind all the time. She missed him with an ache that cut deep to her core – a pain that hurt far more than her break-up with Chad.

It made her realise how hard it must have been for Nan to say goodbye to the man she loved. Flick wasn't sure if she was in love with Stefano but it felt darn close.

Once she'd put Contractor back in the stables and fed him, she made her way over to the old house. Jimmy had moved in, and his stuff filled up the house – stray clothes, boots and CDs, making it feel warm and lived-in. Flick was also adding her own personal flair to the mix – her shoes, hats and collection of snow domes. While she'd been overseas Jimmy had finished setting up the spare rooms, no doubt ready for his family to visit, and in doing so had made the house feel complete.

The floorboards creaked under her steps. The wide passage­way felt bright with the cream-coloured walls against the wooden floor. Jimmy had even hung up some of the black and white photos Flick had found of the house after it was built. He'd framed them with jarrah panels from the old shearing shed. They were rustic, even with nail holes, but Jimmy had brought them to life and it just suited the warmth of their house.

Flick headed straight into the lounge room by the kitchen, where she had set up the new computer. It had arrived while she was away, and Jimmy and the local computer guy, Russ, had set it up for her. At least this way she had privacy when reading her emails. Jimmy wasn't likely to look over her shoulder – not like Nan and Mum.

She flicked on the computer, happy that it started up more quickly than the old one. Clicking on her mailbox she watched as a message downloaded. It was from Stefano.

With a whoop of delight she started reading, at first zooming through it quickly but then going back to read it again and again.

Buongiorno bella Felicity,

Si, I still miss you. I go to the lights of Umbertide most nights to feel close to you. Sofia thinks I am silly but I know it is more. I feel it in my heart. We had new Aussie tourists in Montone, an older couple but their accent reminded me of you. Because I miss you I have talked to my parents about coming to Australia as I have the money put aside. They are happy for me to go and experience your country. They gave me two months. Can I still visit? You use me for harvest, si? I wait your reply.

A più tardi,

Stefano.

‘Flick, are you in here?' yelled Jimmy.

‘Yeah,' she yelled back, then heard the creaks as he came down the passageway.

‘I need your help, can you drive the tractor with the field bin to the paddock while I take the header? Your mum had to go into town to get oil and grease for the truck.' He frowned when he saw her face. ‘What's up?'

Flick felt like she was going to burst. ‘I just had an email from Stefano. He wants to come help us with harvest, if it's still okay.' She knew she was probably grinning like the Cheshire cat. ‘Is that all right?'

Jimmy laughed. ‘Don't know why you're asking me, I just work here. You need to check with the boss.'

‘Well, she's the one who offered it to him when we were over there, so she should be cool with it.' Flick swivelled her chair around and tilted her head. ‘Hey, I consider you a boss here.' She gave him a wink. ‘Especially seeing as you're dating the big boss,' she teased.

Red flushed across Jimmy's face and even reached his ears. He dug his hands into his jean pockets.

‘Come on, Jimmy, I'm absolutely delighted. Surely I deserve a hug for all the ground work I did in Italy.'

He smiled and opened his arms. ‘What ground work?' he asked as she stepped into his embrace.

Flick felt safe in his arms, protected. Was this what it felt like to have a real dad? She squeezed him tight before letting him go. ‘Yeah, you know, a nudge nudge here and a hint hint there. She just needed to know that it was fine to have what she wanted. Life's short, you know?' Flick picked up her sunglasses and put on her green John Deere cap. ‘I think seeing me with Stefano may have helped with that too.'

‘Well, I'm glad he's coming here. Now I can give him the third degree and see what he's really like. Not all this sweet and nice stuff you and Toni keep spruiking.'

Flick gave the computer one last glance; she'd get back to Stefano this afternoon once she'd talked to Mum. She slapped Jimmy's arm as she headed to the front door. ‘We didn't exaggerate, Jimmy.'

‘What? He couldn't possibly be as cool as me.'

He flicked her hat off her head but she caught it on the way down. They shoved each other while trying to get their boots on; Jimmy fell back onto the wall and Flick ended up on her knees, laughing.

‘Race you to the shed,' he called, sprinting off, his boots thudding across the verandah.

While Jimmy was young at heart, his body wasn't. He didn't stand a chance as Flick rounded him up. Even in her work boots she glided past, chuckles erupting from her throat while the dogs barked and joined in the fun.

She ran around the edge of the shed and leant against the tyre of the tractor, quickly trying to catch her breath. ‘What took you so long?'

Jimmy stopped and bent over, breathing like a smoker. ‘I'm going to regret that tomorrow. Probably pulled a few muscles.'

‘Come on, old man, don't we have work to do?' She climbed in after lifting Fella up.

‘You cheeky —'

The rest of Jimmy's words were lost in the slamming of the door. She pulled a face as he gingerly walked to the header. He slapped his backside and she snorted. Their code for ‘kiss my arse'.

Flick warmed up the tractor, reached for the two-way, and waited until Jimmy was inside the header. He would have Gypsy in there too. ‘So, boss, where to?'

‘Meet you at the new land. Can you open the gate and have the fence down for me?' came his reply.

‘Roger, ten four, old yella out,' she teased.

Old yella was what they called the tractor she was driving. It had been yellow once, but now it was faded and rusty. Still reliable, though – they didn't make them like this any more.

Jimmy's voice crackled out over the old speaker in the tractor. ‘Maggie, you there?'

‘Yes, Jimmy,' came her reply from the house.

‘We're ready for that ride.'

‘Roger, big boss, old duck out,' she said.

Flick burst out laughing. ‘Good one, Nan.'

Life was finally back on track. Mum was back eating meals with Nan and they talked like they'd used to. And best of all, Flick wasn't stuck in the middle any more.

She took off down the back track, Jimmy following, until they hit the gravel road that went through their farm. Here Flick stopped and opened the double gate into their neighbours' paddock – it was a tight fit and she'd have to direct Jimmy through. Every harvest they went through McKenna's paddocks. It was handy having great neighbours.

Nan came charging through with the ute, drove through the bush to overtake Jimmy so she could get in front and open the rest of the gates for him on their neighbours' farm. Flick waved as she drove past, following the rough track along the fence line.

She wiped the sweat from under her hat and indicated for Jimmy to lift the comb and come slightly left. With an inch or so either side, he crept through and followed Maggie while Flick finished shutting the old gate.

Flick took the nature reserve track to get to their barley paddock and made her way to the fence that they shared with their neighbours. She could see Nan driving through McKenna's paddock, scaring his sheep towards the far corner.

‘Fancy meeting you here,' said Flick to Maggie as she began unhitching the wire from the posts that held the boundary fence. Two massive rocks sat by each post. Farmers' tool number thirty-two.

‘Ready to go?' asked Nan.

‘Yep.'

Nan helped pull the wire down so it was flat on the ground. Quickly Flick put the rock on it. They did the same at the other post just as Jimmy approached. Nan took out a hankie from her pocket and started waving it at Jimmy, as if his red header was an angry bull. ‘Olé!' she cried.

Flick giggled while Jimmy drove the header straight through and continued into the paddock, harvesting the barley while Flick righted the fence after Nan had brought the ute through.

Fella jumped on the back of the ute and Flick got in while they waited for Jimmy to collect enough for a sample.

‘It's so good to see you and Toni so happy. It makes this old duck's heart swell,' said Maggie, reaching for Flick's hand and giving it a squeeze. Her eyes sparkled with joy and her face rippled with lines as she smiled.

‘And I'm glad you and Mum are back to normal again.'

‘Yes, so am I. She asked me last night after dinner to tell her about him, when he arrived on Sunnyvale. It was so good to share that with her and for Toni to be interested. I just wish Rocco had taken the news better.'

‘I agree. Do you think Mum is handling it okay?'

‘She seems to be. Maybe being with Jimmy, she's happy and isn't giving it much thought,' said Maggie.

‘How about you, Nan? Are you still thinking about Rocco?' asked Flick.

Maggie pulled a loose thread on the hankie in her lap, her head bent down. ‘Oh, I will always think of him, love. I have done my whole life, so why stop now?' She gave Flick a weak smile. ‘But I do wonder what he's thinking of all this. Is he curious about Toni and me? Will he ever want to see us?'

‘Do you think he'll ever make contact? He knows where we live. Or should we try again?'

Maggie shook her head. ‘No, I don't think we should. He knows now, he knows where we are, so the ball is in his court. But I don't think we should wait. We need to move on with our lives.'

Flick agreed but she couldn't help wondering how Nan had tried to move on with her life fifty-three years ago.