“He doesn’t mean to be a hard ass,” Mark said. “Liam’s the youngest of five sons, so he’s also been on the defensive. And our other three brothers like to take the piss out of him. They’ve been that way ever since we were younger.”
Nathan could empathize, but he didn’t need to rehash anything more about his dreaded cousins. “What do they think of him as a farmer?”
“Honestly, they don’t like it. They wanted him to sell. They could’ve gotten more money if we all bundled our land together to sell, rather than what they’re making it renting it now. But I didn’t want to give this place away. It’s our home.”
“He’s good at it. Farming,” Nathan said. “I’ve only seen him in action a few days, but he cares.”
Nathan wondered if he’d ever cared so much about something, or someone.
“Sorry,” Mark said about the dishwasher. “I’m a bit anal about loading it my way.”
“You seem to know best.”
They returned back to the living room. And there was Mariel.
Singing. Right in front of Nathan.
Franny sat on her knees in front of the TV where the video played. Mariel was dressed at Fantine fromLes Miserablesin a taping of one of her stage performances. She wore a brown wig of short, chopped off hair and a dirty dress.
And she sang.I Dreamed a Dream. She sang the ballad beautifully. Her voice filled the room, filled the house, filled all of New Zealand with its longing and melancholy.
It was like she was singing directly to Nathan. There she was. Alive and right in front of him. This was his mother. This was as close as he would ever get to her.
“Franny, what are you doing?” Mark asked.
“I was thinking about what you said earlier.” She was talking to Nathan now, but her voice was a bit of a fuzzy blur. “I need to find something to focus on. I want to act. Like my mother.”
Like our mother.
The room went silent. Walt and Franny watched with rapt attention. Nathan craned his neck at Mark, and the look he gave the screen was heartbreaking. Nathan wanted to cry, but he held it in. He couldn’t let them see. That would lead to questions. Why was this man crying over this woman he’d never met?
That is my mother, and I will never meet her.The bad feelings came bubbling up.She didn’t want you. She ditched you in England because you ruined her life.
Mariel stopped singing. The audience gave her a standing ovation, but in the living room, nobody uttered a word.
“I’m going to go to bed. I’m quite knackered,” Nathan said quietly. It went unacknowledged. He closed the door of his bedroom and lay on the bed.
There was no way he was going to get any fucking rest tonight.
Chapter 10
Liam
Liam dreamt about Nathan’s crotch. His smooth, shaved crotch. He pictured them on his couch again. In his dream, instead of reaching for his laptop, Liam slid a hand into Nathan’s jeans, past his tight stomach, and felt his—
The sound of sheep baa’ing lurched him out of sleep just in time.Did I really dream about that?He was curious. That was all. That was all it could be. After all, Nathan had been so open about it.
The sheep kept baa’ing, more desperate than before. Maybe it really was sheep thieves this time.
He jumped out of bed and put on jeans. No more half-naked farmer for him. He tiptoed to the kitchen window to get a better look. Before he saw Nathan out there, he heard his voice. His slurred, shouting voice warbling some song he couldn’t make out.
Liam ran outside and found Nathan dancing—well, more like swaying and twirling—at the edge of his property. He skipped around and between the sheep, causing them to freak out more. A bottle of some type of alcohol clinked in his hand.
“I dreamed dream dream dream dream dream dream…” He slapped sheep on their asses. His dancing downgraded to a shuffle, almost like a zombie.
“Nathan!” He called out and jogged over to him. Liam’s heart began to speed up. He started to worry, which he couldn’t stand because Nathan was a pain in the ass. He wasn’t supposed to be somebody worth worrying over. “Nathan!”
“Liam, you joined the party!” He took a swig of his drink.
