Page 40 of Where the Wattles Bloom

Red was nowhere to be seen.

‘Where’s your man, sweet thing?’ she murmured as she let Hazel snuffle her other hand. ‘Is he out there doing manly men stuff with Lachy?’

Blue thumped her tail again as if in the affirmative.

Straightening, Rowena knocked on the door because it didn’t feel right just walking in. But she’d barely dropped her hand before the door was yanked open and Reggie greeted her with a broad grin.

‘Ro! No need to knock, darl, come on in.’ She relieved Rowena of the plate. ‘Did you sleep well?’

The warmth of the kitchen surrounded Rowena in a cosy cloud and she took a moment to appreciate the joy of a wood stove. There was no Albert or Lachlan in the kitchen as Reggie indicated for her to sit.

‘I slept like a log.’

Reggie beamed as if she’d been personally responsible. ‘It’s all the clean air out here. Good for the heart.’ She tapped her chest. Her fingers slid to the plain gold cross around her neck. ‘Good for the soul.’

Holding up a teacup, she cocked an eyebrow. ‘Fancy a cuppa?’

‘Thanks, not a fan of tea. I’m a coffee gal.’

‘Same as Lachy.’ She scooped tea into the pot as she talked. ‘He reckons you’re not a proper copper unless you have a ten-cup-a-day addiction.’

Rowena smiled. ‘Sounds like a lot of nurses I know. I try to keep mine down to a couple a day.’ It used to be more but her anxiety condition didn’t need the excess stimulation.

Reggie held up the percolator. ‘You want another?’

‘No. I’m good, thanks.’

‘I hope the bagpipes didn’t wake you earlier?’

Rowena gave a half laugh. ‘I did hear them, yes.’

‘Sorry ’bout that. I told him to maybe knock it off this morning in case he woke you, but Lachy does love those pipes. And I missed hearing them when he was gone all those years. So did the sheep, I reckon.’ She laughed. ‘Just wish he’d add another song or two to his repertoire.’

The note of indulgence in Reggie’s voice belied her frustration over Lachlan’s song choice.

‘He plays them every morning?’

‘Pretty much.’

Well, that was something to look forward to. ‘Looks like I’ll have to get me some earbuds.’

Reggie gasped a little, her eyes glowing. ‘Does this mean you’re going to stay?’

Rowena laughed. It was hard not to with Reggie practically vibrating with excitement. ‘If the offer still stands?’

‘You betcha, darl,’ she beamed and then, impulsively, she pulled Rowena up and hugged her.

Rowena blinked at the unexpected action. Not coming from an overly demonstrative family, it felt weird, and she stood a little stiffly at first as her space was well and truly invaded. But, at the continued bear hold, a lump formed in her throat and she felt herself relaxing.

It seemed Reggie was a hugger. And Rowena, it seemed, needed one more than she knew.

*

An hour later, Rowena was in the passenger seat of Lachlan’s ute, bumping down the dirt road to the main highway into Acacia Junction.

‘So,’ she said, turning away from watching the dust that was being kicked up behind them blow across the scrubby paddocks. ‘Bagpipes, huh?’

He shot her an unabashed grin. ‘Not a fan?’