Thirty-seven
Ash rode out for the Stoneys before sunrise, preferring the cold deep caverns than face his brothers. The wind carved sandstone columns, while some overhanging rock ledges were like frozen ocean waves forever rolling high on a sea of stone. No two stone corridors were the same.
‘Oh Romeo, Romeo wherefore art thou, Romeo?’ It was Bree, over the radio. ‘You should hear the acoustics, I’m about to start a rock concert back here.’
‘What do you want, Bree?’ Ash was not in the mood.
‘Well, good morning, snowflake. Are you ready to tackle the day, where the aim of the game is to not choke on too much cattle dust? With any luck, I’ll be ending this day soaking in an ice bath, watching some hot hockey players, and knocking back some gin. But in the meantime, I’ll be playing your wingman. So, where are you, my little snowflake?’
‘Halfway to Grass Tree Creek.’
‘Seen any cattle on the way through?’
‘No, but I can hear them.’ Their indistinct murmurs, and hooves clashing on rock, were echoing off the canyon walls that were a winding, twisty maze.
‘There you are.’ Bree rode towards him on her handsome black horse. ‘Here, you left this behind.’ She held out a small paper bag.
‘What’s that?’
‘Your breakfast.’
‘You legend, you.’ He was practically salivating as he tore back the wrapping. ‘Where’s Charlie?’
‘Pop’s setting up some hessian wings to steer those we flush out towards that paddock. So today, you get the rare once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to tell me where to go.’ She peered up at the wall of towering stone. ‘Is this what they call the nosebleed section.’
‘You’re kidding, I get to be your boss today?’ He began tucking into his bacon-and-egg toasted sandwich.
‘You wish, jellyfish.’ Her evil laughter bounced off the stone walls. ‘But this is a good spot to start that toy of yours. I’d say the ones that are missing were stuck inside this corridor when the storm happened.’ She nodded at the labyrinth that stretched on either side.
‘Good point. We’ll start from here and push them back.’ He paused, to wolf down his brekkie in a few bites.
‘You are one of the bosses, you know.’
He frowned, as he swung off the horse and set up his drone on the flat rock bed while Bree held the reins of his horse. ‘Did you hear my brothers lecturing me last night?’
She shrugged, completely blasé, like normal.
‘I’ll take that as a yes.’
‘I said nothing.’
‘Do you agree with them?’
‘I don’t work for you guys, and Ryder made it perfectly clear I should keep out of your family’s business.’
‘But you have an opinion.’
‘Wait, do I need to reset my mood board for this conversation?’ Her eyes sparkled to match her wry grin. ‘You’re asking if I dwell on the little things so I can overthink everything ? Because that’s what you’re doing. Don’t give me that look, snowflake, you asked. And I have nothing to gain by telling you the truth, or to tell you whatever BS you want to hear. I really don’t care.’
He looked at her with pleading eyes, as he gulped down some water to wash down his breakfast.
‘Aww, come on.’ She rolled her eyes, swung one leg up onto the saddle and crossed her arms over it. ‘Fine.’ She took a deep breath and asked calmly, ‘Tell me, what part upsets you the most?’
‘All of it. That I’m not doing my job—’
Her laugh cut through the air, to bounce off the walls as she leaned over her saddle. ‘Is this the part where I tell you I know Charlie’s been doing your trough duties this past week?’
He dropped his head. ‘Dammit.’
‘And there is wake-up call number one. Let’s aim for number two.’
‘They said I’m still playing the part of an employee and treating it like a game.’ Although, this felt like an awkward game show where he was the mug in the middle with no idea what the prize was if he won.
‘Are you?’
‘I’ve never been a boss before.’
‘It takes time to adjust. I know I freaked out, going from someone with a steady pay cheque to suddenly being my own boss. That stress load you feel across your shoulders—that if you didn’t get up in the morning, you don’t get paid—gets easier once you adapt.’ She rode her horse closer to point at him. ‘You haven’t got that yet, not like your brothers.’
‘I do feel it. I just … avoid it,’ he replied, admitting that more to himself.
‘Why? You’re a strong guy. I’ve seen you tackle a micky bull in the scrub. You’ve got nothing to be afraid of. Plus, you’ve got your brothers backing you up. Besides, if you fail, you can always go back to being a contractor.’
‘Do you think I can do it?’
‘All I’m saying is that it’ll take time to adjust. You guys haven’t even unpacked the boxes in the farmhouse yet. So cut yourself some slack.’
He wanted to hug the redhead wearing two stockwhips, carrying a shotgun and a rifle in her saddle, and she’d brought him breakfast.
But Bree made sense, which also gave him hope. ‘My brothers said they’ve been cutting me some slack, for Mason’s sake.’
‘And you only realised that now?’ She shook her head. ‘Listen, cucumber, Cap and Dex moved out of the farmhouse so Mason and Harper could each have a room, and Ryder is the one paying Harper’s wages. I’m sure you’ve heard that saying, it takes a village to raise a child , and you’ve got one already doing their bit to help you and that boy. You just haven’t realised how lucky you are.’
‘Lucky? How? I didn’t ask for a kid. He might be better off with someone else.’ There, he’d said it. ‘I didn’t ask to become a father. And what am I going to tell that kid about his mother, when I don’t even remember her?’
‘Did you bother to find out who she was?’
He couldn’t even look at her, only now realising how selfish he’d been. ‘I’m afraid I’ll muck it up … all of it. The station. Fail my brothers. Fail my son.’
She grinned.
‘Why are you grinning at me like that? I don’t like that grin.’ It was positively evil.
‘That’s the first time I’ve heard you call him son.’
He blinked at the realisation.
‘Seeing as how we’re on the verge of swapping friendship bracelets with this heart-to-heart chat, you do realise that your brothers are the same as you. They’re afraid they’ll fail and lose this station, especially with that mine chasing your water.’
‘I wish there was a way to help them somehow.’
‘Did you talk to Harper?’
‘I did.’
‘And?’
‘She asked to see the letter …’ He turned towards home.
‘Look at you …’ Bree leaned over in her saddle, her green eyes narrowing at him. ‘Did something happen between you two?’ Her eyes widened as she pointed at Ash. ‘It did, didn’t it? You’re pining for her. You, the guy who can’t wait to leave a woman’s bed is—’
‘Nothing happened, just a kiss.’
‘Snowflake, why are you lying to yourself?’
‘Cap told me to stop seeing Harper.’ But there was no escaping the truth over how deep his feelings were for Harper.
Bree just blinked at him. ‘Why are you listening to relationship advice from a bunch of beer-belching bachelors? Is that because they want you to join their outback monkhood or something?’
‘No. But Cap said I shouldn’t expect Harper to be part of an instant family. I haven’t even taken her out on a date, and Harper is not the type of lady to take to the pub.’
‘Pfft.’ Bree dismissively waved her hand at him. ‘Harper and I had lunch at the pub just the other day. She was fine. And they have a Michelin-star chef.’
‘You know what I mean …’
‘Oh, you mean a date date. Like romance and candlelight.’ Again, that grin of hers grew.
Ash shrugged. Normally he didn’t bother dating, he didn’t need to. But if that’s what Harper wanted, he’d do it for her.
‘Well, when you decide you want to take Harper out on a proper date, let me know. I’ll help you with that.’
‘Won’t you be breaking the rules of getting involved in our business?’
‘I live my life stuck under so many rules I either forget them or break them routinely. Remember, I don’t work for you guys, so you can’t sack me.’ She sat back in her saddle and shrugged. ‘If you want to date Harper, date her. I know she’s got a soft spot for you.’
‘Really?’ Hope filled his chest.
‘Snowflake, you talked Harper into being a nanny when she’s never even babysat a pot plant in her life. She followed you from the supermarket when you’d just met, and you talked her into going on a muster. Do you want me to set up a billboard with flashing neon signs saying Harper likes Ash , as much as you like her?’
The redhead was right. ‘When I get back, I’d like to do something for Harper, like go on a date. Will you babysit?’
‘No. I’m not ready to babysit. Get Cap to.’
Again, he looked back in the direction of home.
‘Harper will be fine. She’s a lot stronger than we give her credit for. If not, it’ll be one helluva learning curve for her. I have faith she can do it, otherwise, I would have gone home last night.’
‘Why did you stick around?’
‘We haven’t finished the muster. We both know the job’s only done when all your cattle are safely behind a fence that’s standing.’
‘We have a lot of fencing to do.’ Plus, the other big list of duties to get the station back on track. ‘At least we have cattle now.’
‘You do. So, can we get a wriggle on, snowflake? It’s your strays we’re playing hide-and-seek with.’
‘So they are.’ Keen to finish this job, which he was actually good at, he realised he had every right to be a part owner of this station.
He just had to prove it to his brothers.