“What?” The word came out sharper than she intended.
Declan nodded. “Helen will be working with Penelope and we thought you and Matt could work together on the signs on the west of the ranges.”
Matt looked as horrified by the suggestion as she felt. She’d be stuck alone in a car with him for hours, maybe even days. “Has Darcy given you leave for this?” Georgie asked.
He nodded, but he didn’t look pleased at the situation.
“Great,” Declan said. “Now that it’s sorted, let me go through the details.”
Georgie clicked her pen, staring down at the blank notebook in front of her. She could do this. She had to show Declan how capable she was, and that included working with the man who’d broken her heart. She forced herself to focus on her boss’s words. So what if the roar of earlier was down to a pathetic mewling.
She could do this.
***
Matt barely heard what Declan was droning on about, but at least Georgie was taking notes. His mother had asked him to attend this meeting weeks ago, before he knew Georgie was working for Parks and Wildlife, or that she loved him. He’d thought they would be talking strategy, but it appeared all the details had been worked out ahead of time.
His mother squeezed his hand and when he glanced at her, he saw concern in her eyes. Her gaze shifted to Georgie and then back to him in an obvious question. He shook his head and smiled as if nothing was the matter, but he didn’t fool her.
Georgie sat across the table only a couple of metres away, looking pale. The dark circles under her eyes and her ragged nails were a sure sign she’d been upset. Between taking notes, she twisted a short strand of her blue hair around her finger. The blue had faded since he’d seen her in town, but it still looked good. Georgie could pull off any look.
Somehow he had to work with her, but he still hadn’t figured out how he felt, let alone what to say to her. All he knew was he had to make things right.
Around him people gathered their notes. “Everyone on the same page?” Declan asked.
Matt nodded though he had no clue what he was agreeing to.
“I’ll get my keys.” Georgie dashed out of the room.
Matt walked with his mother back to reception and they said their goodbyes to Declan. When Penelope arrived with her gear, Helen said, “I’ll be with you in a moment. I just need to speak to my son.”
Matt sighed as they exited the building and went to stand in the shade of one of the gum trees.
“Are you and Georgie fighting again?”
He hated how obvious it was to everyone. He’d never even had to think about his relationship with Georgie until now. Sure, they occasionally argued, but they were always mates.
Until now.
“We’ll sort it out.” It wasn’t until he said the words that he realised how much he needed them to be true. He hated this uncomfortable tightness in his chest when he saw her. He wanted things to be normal again.
“You’ll have plenty of time today to do so.” She kissed his cheek and joined Penelope at her car.
Georgie was already waiting by one of the four-wheel drives. He got into the passenger seat and the silence as they drove out of town was bizarre.
“Did you pay attention to anything Declan said?” Georgie’s voice made him jump, but her wry tone was so familiar and welcoming.
He exhaled. If she was going to pretend things were normal, then he could too. “Something about signs and Bayungu terms.”
She shook her head, but her snort of laughter gave him hope. “At least one of us was taking notes.” She explained the branding exercise and then said, “I figured we’d start at the far end and work our way back towards town.”
“You’re in charge.”
“Yeah, I am,” she murmured, her tone a little odd.
It was overcast today, the clouds forming a grey patchwork in the sky. They shielded the sun making it a little cooler, but the humidity was still high. Georgie had the air-conditioning cranking.
“Any progress on the treasure hunt?” she asked.
