She lifted her eyebrows. “Then tell me.”
He slid his arm around her waist, needing her comfort. “It was what you said about this land not being ideal for a station. Sofia hated it here, the dust and the heat. It was one of the reasons she left, and it’s kind of a sore spot.”
“I don’t hate the land,” Faith said. “But I was picturing it from your ancestors’ point of view. They came from England, right—land of green hills and rain. This,” she gestured around, “is about as far from the mother country as you can get. When they arrived, nothing would have been here, no buildings, no town, no roads. It would have been a huge culture shock and a massive gamble, particularly if they’d lost stock and supplies in the wreck.”
He hadn’t considered it from that point of view before. It gave him a lot more respect for his ancestors.
“I like this land, Darcy. I’ve always preferred warmer weather, and the harshness has a beauty all of its own.” In the fading light, her eyes shone with sincerity.
“OK.” He kissed her again, long and slow, and then took her hand. The sun was below the horizon with only its final rays giving a last farewell to the day. “We seem to have missed most of the sunset.”
“Maybe you can show me the sunrise tomorrow.” She smiled at him.
Yeah, he’d like to do that. Perhaps they could even go for an early morning ride if he could convince Brandon to do the morning chores. “We’d better get back before we lose all the light. It does get dark out here when there’s no moon.”
Hand in hand, they descended the dune and walked along the path back to the homestead. It was fully dark by the time they arrived, but the light on the porch was a beacon. Brandon stood in the garden cooking meat on the barbecue. He raised his tongs in greeting as they walked in. “I figured you wouldn’t be long after sunset. Grab a drink and I’ll be in soon.”
Darcy had become used to his older brother being home, but every now and then it hit him that Brandon was back for good. This was one of those times. He rubbed his chest as he opened the kitchen door for Faith. Amy grinned at them. “Had a nice walk?”
“Yeah.” He turned to Faith, who gasped and then laughed.
“You’ve got a bit of lipstick there.” She rubbed around his mouth.
No wonder Amy was grinning at him. “Maybe I like it there,” he said, pulling Faith close. “I think I need some right here.” He caught her lips with his, swallowing her gasp of surprise.
When he pulled away, Amy said, “We’ve got beer and wine.” She showed Faith the bottle.
“A glass of wine might be nice.”
He’d forgotten about the drinks Amy had packed for their walk. He returned them to the fridge and got himself a bottle of beer.
Brandon brought the meat in and set it on the long table. Only four settings were out. “Where’s Matt?” Darcy asked.
“Gone into town. I think he has a date, but he wouldn’t admit to it,” Amy said. “He’s staying with his parents this weekend.” She raised her glass. “We need to toast,” she said. “To new friendships.” She clinked her glass with Faith.
That was something he could get behind. “To new friendships.”
Chapter 9
Dinner was a friendly, chatty affair with Amy and Brandon talking about their upcoming wedding as well as asking Faith about the pony club. Through it all, Darcy sat by Faith’s side and his presence made it difficult for her to focus on the conversation. Her thoughts constantly went back to their kiss.
She hadn’t been expecting it, had been bowled over by the intensity and passion. She’d been tempted to rip his clothes off. But she could wait for tonight. She’d sent her parents a message to say she was staying at the Ridge so she didn’t have to drive home in the dark. It was a good excuse, but she doubted she fooled either of them.
Faith helped clear the table and do the dishes and then Brandon said, “You want to tell us what you’ve found?”
She’d forgotten about the point of her visit. Darcy was a great distraction. She retrieved the folder from the bench and carried it over to the table, flipping it open. “Don’t get too excited,” she warned. “The biggest issue is there’s not a lot of proof linking Stonefish to the company Darcy bought the cattle from.”
“But they bought the domain name,” Brandon said.
“Someone used their name when buying a domain name,” she corrected. “That’s probably the defence they will use.”
Amy got up to put the kettle on and then said, “Do we need whisky for this?”
Faith chuckled. “Tea is fine. I spoke with a colleague and she sent me some details about Stonefish. They’re a vast company with a lot of money behind them. They have the time and the funds to drag this out.”
“We can’t afford that,” Darcy said. “With them slaughtering so many sheep and our funds low, we might not survive the season.”
She squeezed his knee. It was worse than she’d thought. “What about a loan from the bank?”
