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‘I’m going to find out the truth, Dru.’

‘No, Em. Please leave it.’

Emma stared at her and shook her head and for the first time in her life, Dru saw a glimmer of a hard core in her sweet, older sister.

‘No, you’re going to be in hospital for at least a few days. We’ll keep Ruby at our place until I find Connor.’

‘Good luck with that.’

The phone rang again and Dru stared at the phone on her lap, as the lift door opened, and the paramedics wheeled the trolley out.

Emma picked it up and held it out to Dru. ‘You have to tell Connor, Dru. He’s your husband and the father of this child.’

Chapter 13

McLaren Mango Farm - Saturday

Tarni

Tarni filled her drink bottle from the royal blue stoneware water purifier on the kitchen bench. How wonderful would it be to have a kitchen like this? Since her parents died and she’d sold the family home, she’d lived in small impersonal apartments as she’d finished her degrees. The closest she’d got to decorating in a style she liked had been after Jonty moved in when they got engaged.

They’d had plans, but life didn’t follow the plans they’d made, and the dreams they’d shared. Their wedding had never eventuated. Her life had changed, and now she lived day to day without thinking ahead. There was no way she would ever leave herself emotionally vulnerable again. Tarni picked up the sponge from the kitchen sink and wiped the pale marble-coloured stone benchtops

Ellie’s kitchen was a delight to work in; one day Tarni was going to make a home like this. She could see herself in a little cottage on the side of a hill overlooking paddocks, sitting in her chair on the veranda, bread baking in the oven.

A rocking chair?

An unbidden smile came to her lips. She’d probably need a rocking chair by the time she could save enough money to buy a place of her own and then she’d be too old to enjoy it.

Didn’t hurt to dream, though. It was the first time she’d allowed herself to do that for a long time. Being out in these wide-open spaces had been therapeutic.

White tiles lined the walls and the pale colours were relieved by splashes of red and royal blue in the accessories. Even the tea towels and hand towels matched.

Her mind turned to the day ahead, and she went to the fridge and put two apples and an orange in her cooler bag, along with her filled water bottle. She already had her small laboratory set up and had started work on the first seeds that Kane had left for her. Today she was putting together the seed boxes ready to go into the incubator, and she wanted to experiment with the propagating heat pads, and the light box to see which one was most effective.

She was already into a good work routine and hadn’t laid eyes on Cy since Monday. She’d heard his ute come and go a few times and noticed a light on in the shed last night, and had seen his shadow cross the window a few times, but it had been peaceful.

Even if a little lonely.

Maybe she’d been a bit harsh; she had this wonderful kitchen to herself and he was down there with a small butane stove and a camping fridge on a concrete floor. Now that she’d met him, and knew he wasn’t going to intrude on her space, maybe she’d make the offer for him to share the kitchen in a few days.

From what she’d picked up from him so far, he didn’t seem the type to be plying her with questions and wanting to know her background. He was a worker and seemed to be a bit of a loner. The night before last she’d heard him drive out, and he hadn’t come back until late. It was strange, but she’d felt a little bit lonely here on the property by herself. She was used to the city where there was always someone around, even if she was cocooned in her world at work, and in her apartment. At the Institute, she’d had several co-workers with her in the laboratory and that was very different to being on a large property in the middle of the Northern Territory.

It hadn’t taken long to shake that strange feeling off and focus on her work. Each day this week, she’d immersed herself in the research and before she knew it, the sun was setting, and she headed back up to the house for the night.

Tarni picked up the cooler bag and took the keys off the hook next to the phone. She locked the screen door but left the front door open to let some fresh air into the house. She’d cooked another vegetable curry last night and the aroma lingered.

There was no sign of Cy or his ute, even though she hadn’t heard him drive out. She hadn’t seen him to talk to since the day she’d arrived. She’d only been aware of his ute coming and going. It was a perfect arrangement. She unlocked the shed door, and as it was such a lovely morning, she used the remote to put the large roller door up to let some fresh air in. Switching on the fluorescent lights she headed across to her workbench. She was enjoying this work and making progress more quickly than she’d anticipated. By the time Kane and Ellie returned, the new hybrid plants might be almost mature enough to plant.

Even though she’d worked in a heated environment in the city, the warmer ambient temperatures that occurred naturally here were making a bigger difference than what she’d expected. Even in only a couple of days of late autumn. It would be good to be here in the warmer months and see how quickly the seeds sprouted.

Tarni examined the two glass jars she’d left on the propagation heat mat overnight and compared them to the control without heat. The development was identical and she nodded with satisfaction. The more natural the environment was, the better for Kane’s future work, and knowing she didn’t have to worry much about stable temperatures meant she could concentrate on the chemical composition of the fertilisers. With luck, she’d have enough of these seeds propagated to plant out before he came home. She lifted her head and listened as a car engine broke the silence.

That was strange; Cy usually came up from the direction of the dam at the back of the property when she was up having her lunch at the house. She’d got into the routine of staying in the house for a long break until he headed out again, although there was probably no need to do that because she now knew that he wouldn’t bother her while she was down here.

The motor stopped, and a car door slammed; Tarni looked up as a shadow crossed the doorway. Cy paused just inside the doorway, the sunshine behind him shadowing his face. Tarni was surprised to see him so early; it wasn’t morning tea time.

‘Morning, Tarni. I hope I’m not bothering you. I forgot to pack my thermos this morning.’