It had been an eye-opening experience when Kenzie and Brook had first started coming home to lend a hand during some of the busier times of the year. Having never had anythingto do with cattle work, they soon learned the hard way to grow a thick skin around the cattle yards. Well, Kenzie did, at least—Brook had stormed off back to the house after the first time and vowed never to help again. It was now a family running joke, so much so that Brook found a T-shirt withSorry for what I said when we were doing cattle workwritten across the front, and bought it for their mother, adding a sign-off in Sharpie:love, Jack.
‘I can give you a hand tomorrow, if you like?’ Ewan offered.
‘Yeah?’ Jack replied, looking across at him. ‘Thought you were on your way home?’
‘I don’t have anything to get back for. A couple of days won’t make any difference.’
‘Well, if you’re sure, that would be great.’
‘Then you’ll stay here tonight,’ Sam said.
Kenzie inhaled part of the mouthful she’d been chewing, coughing loudly.
‘Smaller bites, Mummy!’ Poppy admonished as Kenzie hurriedly sipped some water.
‘I can get a room in town,’ Ewan said, sending a quick glance across at Kenzie.
‘Nonsense,’ Sam answered for her. ‘We’ve got plenty of room.’
Kenzie lowered her gaze to her plate and silently counted to ten. What the hell was her motherdoing? They didn’t even know this guy and she was inviting him to spend the night?
Well, technically you slept with him and didn’t even know him, an unhelpful little voice reminded her.
After lunch, as Kenzie was stacking the dishwasher, Ewan stepped into the kitchen, depositing a stack of plates on the bench beside her. ‘Look, about earlier—your mum inviting me to stay—I really don’t have to. I was planning on staying in town. I don’t want to put you in an awkward position.’
Kenzie forced a smile to her face as she glanced up at him. ‘It’s fine,’ she said. ‘You’re doing Jack a huge favour.’
The clink of plates and rattle of cutlery filled in the silence between them as they worked side by side, stacking the dishwasher.
‘She’s pretty awesome,’ Ewan finally said. ‘Poppy,’ he added when she looked over at him. ‘You’ve done a great job with her.’
‘Sheisawesome. I had lots of help.’ She nodded towards the sound of voices outside.
‘It’s great your family are so close.’
She hesitated before replying, ‘I get the feeling yours isn’t?’
‘We are, mostly. Mum’s the ultimate matriarch. She lives for her children and grandchildren, and my sister is a modern-day version of Mum. It’s just … me and my old man. That’s still a bit frosty.’
‘Why’s that?’ When he didn’t rush to immediately answer, she added, ‘Sorry, none of my business.’
‘No, it’s fine, there’s just not one, simple answer, that’s all. And I guess it is your business—in a way—seeing as it’s also Poppy’s family.’ He paused, and she waited. ‘I guess it’s because, in his eyes, the wrong son died,’ he said. He grimaced, as though to make light of the statement.
Kenzie stared at him, her hand poised above the next plate she’d been about to load into the dishwasher. ‘That’s a terrible thing to say.’
Ewan shrugged. ‘Arran was supposed to inherit the property. He was always the one who’d planned to follow in Dad’s footsteps.’
‘That’s a shame. Do you think you’ll ever reconnect?’
‘Stranger things have happened, I guess,’ he said, sounding unconvinced. ‘Anyway, my mum and my sister are pretty awesome, and I have two nephews.’
‘Does your sister live close by?’
‘She and her husband live and work on the property too.’
‘That must be nice, having everyone together like that.’
‘It can be. It can also be a bit of a pain when you live and work together all the time, if you don’t have your own interests.’
