‘Yeah, I know. Fingers in every pie, that’s what the locals usually say.’ She smiled tolerantly.
‘But the winery was your idea?’
‘Joe’s and mine. Joe worked in wineries for years and we decided we wanted to create our own vineyard. Dad wanted Joe to come and work for him, and we planned on saving up to buy our own place. Only it’s like that old Eagles song, “Hotel California”, you know,’ she said dryly, looking over at Kenzie, ‘the bit about being able to check out whenever but never being able to leave? That’s kind of what it’s like when you come back to this place.’
‘Why’s that?’ Kenzie asked, both curious and a little confused.
Floss looked over to where the kids were playing, her earlier amusement melting away slowly. ‘Dad has a way of—’ She paused, as though silently amending what she’d been going to say, ‘—convincingyou to his way of thinking.’ She noticed that Floss’s smile didn’t quite reach her eyes when she turned to look at Kenzie once more.
‘At least you ended up with your winery, I guess?’ Kenzie said, looking for the silver lining.
‘Sort of,’ Floss said with a sigh.
‘Ewan left, though. Before?’
Floss sent her a considering look. ‘Has he told you about that then?’
‘Not in great detail. He’s just mentioned it. I take it he and your dad had a falling-out over something.’
‘Yeah,’ she replied as she looked towards the kids again.
Her abrupt reply left Kenzie feeling slightly awkward. ‘I wasn’t fishing for gossip,’ she said, fearing she’d just made Floss angry.
‘Oh,’ she said, quickly glancing at her. ‘No, I didn’t think you were. That’s just not my story to tell.’
A squabble broke out between Angus and Cameron, and Floss’s attention was swiftly redirected to her children, getting up to play referee before it could escalate.
That evening, after Kenzie tucked Poppy into bed and said goodnight, Ewan asked if she’d like to go for a walk outside again. All day, she’d caught herself thinking about him and reliving the night before last. She still had no idea what they were doing or where this was headed. Surely it wasn’t a goodidea? And yet, try as she might, she couldnotstop thinking about him.
Ewan took her hand in his and they followed the gravel path. Tonight the moon was full and the moonlight hit the small stones, making the path glow brighter than two nights before. His hand was enormous as it closed securely around hers, and a giddy feeling began to bubble up inside her.
‘I haven’t been able to stop thinking about you all day,’ he said as they stopped at a small bench beneath a weeping willow.
‘Me either,’ she admitted.
‘You don’t sound happy about it,’ he remarked.
‘It’s not that,’ she said, wondering how she was going to explain it. ‘I’m just … not sure what we’re doing.’
‘Has it been that long that you’ve forgotten?’ he joked.
‘I’m being serious. I told you before … that night, back then … that wasn’t usually me. It’s still not.’
‘I never thought it was,’ he said.
‘It’s just … you don’t know what you’re doing, where you’re going to be. How do we start something when there’s no assurance we’ll even be in the same state?’
‘It’s not as bad as it sounds. I mean, sure, I’m currently without a job and that isn’t ideal boyfriend material, but I can assure you I’m not destitute, and I don’t plan on being without a job for long. And I don’t know where you got the interstate thing from. It’s always been my plan to go back to the coast. I just needed a break. That’s why I was coming down here.’
‘So, you’re not thinking about moving down here?’
‘Here?’ he echoed, sounding surprised. ‘No. I guess I just needed to lick my wounds a bit, and then when I realised that Poppy could meet my family at the same time that just kind of sealed the deal. You wanted me to use this time to think about what I wanted,’ he said, softening his tone. ‘I want to be part of Poppy’s life. I want to be there to watch her grow up. I want to be her dad.’
‘Is that what this is about?’ she asked cautiously.
‘What, what’s about?’ he asked.
‘Us. This … thing that’s going on,’ she said. ‘You don’t need to be with me just to be part of Poppy’s life.’
