Ten
Mia smiled so wide it bloomed from her heart as she watched Cap play with the small boy, Mason. He was a truly kind man, who saved dogs, and had been so helpful to Mia, just like Bree and Charlie. Cap was not only sensitive to others and animals, he also had the body to create one stunning masculine package. He was a rare unicorn indeed.
But then a stabbing twinge of pain became that cruel dose of reality forcing her to turn away from Cap doting over his nephew. She didn’t deserve those happy family moments, it’s why she chose losers for partners, and in the last instance, a monster.
Cap was doing his best to help her, giving her a place to stay, and a job she’d always dreamed about. Technically he was her boss. And she’d hate for him look at her with pity like she was some broken animal.
The reality being she really was broken in a way that was hidden to the world.
‘Hi, I’m Harper.’ A slender woman with ivory skin and black hair approached, wearing a wide-brimmed hat, new jeans, and a crisp collared shirt. She looked fancy. ‘You must be Mia.’ Surprisingly, she shook hands like a man.
‘You did the shopping for me. Thank you.’ After Mia arrived at this place with nothing but the clothes she was wearing, Bree rang Harper to collect the necessities for Mia on her way home from work.
‘I hope it all fits.’
‘Absolutely, I must pay you back.’
‘All good. You can pay in babysitting fees. If you stay… here ?’ Harper screwed her nose up at the demountable. ‘Really? You’d give up Bree’s comfy couch for this?’
‘I’ve lived in worse. Mining companies make a point of putting the revegetation workers in the worst accommodations.’
‘You should have seen the farmhouse when I first arrived. Bree called it a frat house.’ Harper held out a dark brown, wide-brimmed hat. ‘This is for you. Cap said you’d need one. Bree suggested the size and style, she’s good like that. If you don’t like it, I have others you can try, or I can swap it for a different size when I go in to work later. It seems I have a new obsession with hats these days. I’ve accumulated so many that Ash is making me a new hat rack for the hallway.’
‘Because of your skin.’ Mia slid on the wide-brimmed hat. ‘This is brilliant.’ It was a great fit. Same with the overalls Bree had found for Mia to sloth around in.
‘You should hit up Bree for her sunscreen. It’s the best. She makes it herself, and all sorts of home remedies. I think that’s why Dex calls her a witch.’
‘I didn’t know that.’ Mia watched Bree go through the demountable while Cap played with Mason. ‘It’s like being back home, hanging out with Bree and Charlie.’
‘How so?’
‘Bree had me helping her make chilli sauce, and tomato purees for pizzas. My mother did that too with jams and preserves.’ Washing jars, sterilising them, then doing the bottling, to leave the kitchen bench covered with bottles, and the fragrance of fruit lingering in the house. Especially when Charlie brought in loaves of bread he’d baked that morning before sunrise, it was the best.
‘I’ve been having cooking lessons with Bree. Can’t cook, but I can make a salad. Cap said if you move in here, you’ll go on the cooking roster for the farmhouse.’
‘I want to be useful, because you guys have done so much for me.’
‘They do that,’ said Harper, sharing a soft smile at Cap. ‘The Riggs brothers will drop everything to help when needed. You should’ve seen what they did for Mason. Now you.’
‘I’m not putting them out, am I?’
‘Are you kidding? Cap is like mega-excited to have you here. He can’t wait for you to start. He really likes you.’ Harper nudged her playfully.
‘Cap is just being kind. Offering me a room so I stop taking up space on Bree’s couch.’ She wanted to get her independence back, to get her mind on her job and bury her past. Plus, this would make Cap her boss, and workplace romances rarely lasted.
‘Oh, good, you’re here, Harper.’ Bree jumped out of the demountable, her boots landing squarely in the dirt. ‘Have you two swapped recipes yet?’
‘Getting there.’ Harper giggled. ‘I’m putting Mia on the cooking roster.’
‘Brilliant. You won’t need lessons from me then.’
‘But…’ Harper pouted as if to start fake crying.
‘Oh, right. Sorry. Silly me.’ Bree playfully rolled her eyes. ‘ Cooking lessons is code for a girls’ get-together to drink wine and gin while I try to teach you the ways to perve on men who play ice hockey. Not necessarily in that order. You’re included, precious.’
‘I’ve never done that,’ replied Mia.
‘What? Perved on ice hockey players?’
‘I meant the girls thing. Not since school. On mine sites its mostly men. We’d get a few women on differing shifts, but not enough to plan things.’
‘I can relate.’ Harper shared a timid shrug. ‘I worked in politics, always drinking cold coffee, too busy to eat a meal and savour it, until I came here. Bree’s like my first female friend.’
‘Really?’ Mia didn’t believe it.
‘So, I’d better warn you, I suck at small talk and generally scare people away when I start talking about politics.’
‘Pfft. You’re doing fine. Both of you are.’ Bree put her arms around the two younger women. ‘Right, so now we have our little coven happening, I have a plan. Cap?’
He sauntered over, with Mason sitting on his shoulders. ‘Please tell me you have some ideas?’
‘Why? Don’t you like this retro 50s horror movie theme you’ve got happening here?’
Cap angled his head at her, his Stockman’s hat shading his sexy eyes. ‘Mia, Harper, please help?’
Bree grinned, removing a tape measure, a notebook, and a pencil from the deep side pockets of her workman’s trousers. ‘My first suggestion is you ditch the rickety steps and build a wide walkway along this side of the demountable, with a roof to cover the doorways. I’d suggest you make that roof long enough so you can park your vehicles under it for the wet season. As for that spot, where you like to sit and enjoy the view, I’m suggesting you build an enormous outdoor deck.’
Pressing her back to the wall of the demountable Bree took long lunging steps and stopped about ten metres away. ‘You can make it a long viewing deck—who doesn’t love a long deck. It’d be a brilliant spot to put a Mexican heater in the corner for winter that you can use to boil your billy.’
Cap raised an eyebrow, intently listening, especially about the cuppa bit.
‘And in the wet,’ continued Bree, ‘you can use shade sails to pull across, allowing you to watch the rain and still enjoy the sunrise and sunsets from this space. If it was me, I’d use this section to create an outdoor kitchen and put in a double sliding door in this wall.’
Bree walked and talked, leading them to the back. ‘And, if you really want to dream big, tiger—which I’d totally approve of—you can turn your room into the lounge area, make Mia’s room an office or extend your bathroom, then pick up a few shipping containers and whack them together like Lego bricks—’
‘To build extra rooms.’ Cap’s eyes shone like delicious dark diamonds.
‘So you can see it?’ Bree smiled at him with hands on her hips. ‘The potential is there to make this into your family home, but one that would suit your ethical standards by using recyclable materials.’
Carrying the toddler on his shoulders, Cap took long steps, counting out the meterage. Then he turned and smiled. ‘Bree, you’re bloody brilliant. I can see it now.’
‘You might want to ask Dex to do some grading first. He likes to play with the grader, so I can’t see him saying no.’ Bree pointed towards the kennels that stood further along, from where the house stood on the rise. ‘This place cops the main run-off in the wet season. It’s what Pop calls Kennel River . So, I suggest you ask Dex to channel the run-off away from the demountable and the dog kennels before you start building that—’ She pointed to the empty metal structure with a torn shade cloth. ‘What have you decided to call it?’
‘Mia’s native plant nursery.’ Cap nodded at her and the rush of warm gooey goodness had her toes curling in her boots. Mia had to look away and face the dirt. Cap had given her permission to design it however she wanted, using whatever materials the property had available to her. And Bree said there was plenty of gear to use.
‘Hey, we could build a pond for the run-off.’ Mia blurted out, tapping into Cap’s excitement.
‘Is that a good idea? It’d be a breeding ground for mozzies.’ Bree shrugged.
‘I get what Mia is saying.’ Cap stood beside Mia to face the dirt patch beyond the rundown kennels. ‘We can re-use the run-off from the house and the kennels for the nursery.’
‘Not wasting a precious drop.’ Mia mirrored Cap’s smile. For a hot second, her mind pictured the whole scenario, her plant nursery, sharing lazy sunsets on the deck beside Cap as they both watched over his dogs. She couldn’t deny how much she liked the idea.
‘Wow, you two speak your own language.’ Harper covered her mouth to giggle.
‘Told you so,’ muttered Bree.
Mia felt the heat brush her cheeks, because she’d forgotten Bree and Harper were there. She had to stop this attraction to Cap, because she was nothing but a load of red flags for a guy like him—who deserved so much better. Besides, Cap wasn’t interested in her, he was just being helpful, which was his nature.
No way would she take advantage of him. But she could help him with his land, which wouldn’t be hard when it was her dream job. She also had to do something to forget her heated dreams of her and Cap—when she should be healing and forgetting all about men.
She needed to get back to work. And there was nothing better than a girl covered in dirt to scare away any man.
‘With your permission, Cap, there’s a stash of steel girders around the back shed we could use to make a start.’ Bree extended her tape measure against the demountable.
‘What about timber?’
‘You’ll have to order treated timber from town. But if we do this right, you could sweet-talk your brothers into a working bee on Saturday afternoon.’
‘That’s a lot of work.’ Cap arched his eyebrows at Bree as she wrote down the measurements in her notebook.
Bree shifted to the next area, again extending her tape measure. ‘I’m talking about building the deck and painting Mia’s room. The rest you’ll have to plan for, and Dex has the skills to be your builder.’
‘We’ll be drafting the cattle we brought back from Wombat Flats soon. My brothers and I are hoping you’ll help us, Bree.’ Cap shifted the toddler on his shoulders.
‘Bree-Bree help?’ Mason asked.
‘Always, for my little big man.’ Bree playfully tickled the little boy’s knee, as he squirmed on Cap’s shoulder. ‘But I don’t work for your uncles.’ Bree stared at Cap for a beat before returning to her measuring.
‘I already told Ash I’m in. But he said we won’t need the horses this time. But I’m still in.’ Harper raised her hand. ‘I’ve never seen the drafting process.’
‘Me neither. If you need my help, I’m in.’ Mia was keen, too.
‘I think that’s why Bree had me get you that hat.’ Harper playfully tapped the brim of Mia’s new hat.
‘If it’s okay with you, Mia, I’d like to see what Willow is capable of.’ Cap nodded at the kelpie sitting beside Mia.
‘Me too.’ Out of habit she tickled the fur on the bridge of Willow’s nose. ‘I can’t ride a horse, but I can ride a motorbike.’
‘We’ll have to give you horse riding lessons in the future, as we’re trying to use horses more if we can.’
‘I have riding lessons,’ said Harper, again playfully nudging Mia like a long-lost friend. ‘Ash bought me a stock horse.’
‘Oh, I’m definitely in.’ She was in farmer’s heaven.
‘I know Charlie’s keen to help,’ he said, facing the redhead busily taking measurements and scribbling notes down in her notebook. ‘We could really use your help, Bree.’
‘I’m not a stockwoman.’ Bree’s tape measure wound back with a snap.
‘Come on, Bree. You’re a thousand times better than all of us on a muster.’
‘Behave, buttercup. As much as you all may want me to drag out my Wonder Woman costume from the back of the cupboard, I’ll be busy working on your new deck. Wait—’ Bree narrowed her eyes at Cap. ‘Are you using me to get to the brand?’
‘The one your grandfather is holding hostage.’
‘Are you talking about a cattle brand?’ Mia asked.
Cap nodded. ‘Somehow, Charlie has the Elsie Creek Station’s cattle brand registered in his name.’
‘That he does.’ Bree laughed, closing her notepad and sliding it into her pocket. ‘So, you’ve finished fencing the drafting yards, then?’
‘They’ll be finished today, and the paddock’s fence, too.’
‘It’s Ash’s paddock, he can’t wait,’ said Harper. ‘He’s got his new tags he wants to test out.’
‘I can’t wait to see them myself.’ Cap then faced Bree. ‘But we need to re-muster the herd we brought in from Wombat Flats. We’re hoping to have enough fats to make a sale.’
‘Got a stock agent?’ Bree asked.
‘Not yet. Do you know of one?’
Bree shrugged. ‘I might.’
‘Do you have any idea what they’re talking about?’ Mia asked Harper. ‘I only know sheep.’ Mia tugged at the bib straps of her overalls. ‘We’d bring in the sheep for shearing and do health checks.’
‘No, it’s all over my head.’ Harper cleared her throat and waved at Bree and Cap. ‘Hello, can you please explain to us in the private theatre boxes what you just said?’
‘Well, aren’t you two in for a treat, because a day in the drafting yards is something you’ll never forget. Just be ready to jump some fences, protect your shins and enjoy the smell of—’
‘Bree, don’t scare them off.’ Cap warned her.
‘Fine. It’ll be the stuff of stories, ladies.’ Bree removed her hat, her locks spilling everywhere, to deeply bow to them like they were royalty.
‘Please, Bree,’ implored Cap. ‘We need your help. It’s our first draft at Elsie Creek Station, and Charlie told me you’d be an asset to the team.’
Bree huffed, crossing her arms over her generous chest. ‘Fine. I’ll help muster the mob to the drafting yards, and that’s it. Then I’ll start on the support frames for your deck.’ She looked at the patch of parched dirt, bleached from the sun, and the old demountable with its walls covered in red dirt. But Bree looked at it with excitement.
‘On your own?’ Mia blurted out.
‘Listen, precious, it’s not my first building makeover, when I work with steel all day.’ Bree then playfully poked Cap’s arm. ‘While Mia and Harper paint Mia’s new room, your job is to get your brothers to screw the decking boards in place. But we need Dex to play grader driver first, or I’ll be giving you flippers and matching pool floaties for Christmas.’ She then slapped her hat on her head and gathered her hair into a thick loose braid. ‘In the meantime, I’ll order the wood from the hardware store. You can pick that up when you collect Mia’s paint, and those new guardian dogs from the vets.’
‘They’re gorgeous, big white fluffy bears.’ Harper just swooned. ‘I want one.’
‘They’re not pets,’ Cap said. ‘Dex is still complaining about you turning the ex-police dogs into house pets.’
‘I don’t care what Dex says.’ Harper raised her chin. ‘I love spoiling Ruby and Scout, and Sarge from a cordial distance because he’s a boss dog.’
‘Alpha,’ corrected Cap.
‘Yeah, that. And Dex had better not complain to Mia about Willow, either.’ Harper pointed to the kelpie leaning against Willow’s legs, while all the other dogs lay under the shade of the demountable.
‘Willow’s not my dog.’
‘Are you sure about that?’ Bree again playfully tickled the little boy sitting on Cap’s shoulders and said, ‘And you, Mason, can tell your father and his brothers that they’re needed for a working bee on Saturday afternoon. Your Uncle Cap can put on a barbecue.’
‘Unnncle Cap.’ Mason’s little cowboy boots swung over Cap’s broad shoulders, as he tapped down on Cap’s hat like a drum.
‘Easy, Mason, that’s my head.’ Cap scooped the boy off his shoulders and held him to his chest as if he’d been doing it all his life.
The scene only tore at Mia’s heartstrings.
‘I don’t have a barbecue, just that little gas burner for my kettle.’ Cap pointed at his comfy camping chair.
‘You can pick one up from the hardware store when you collect the wood. Keep the receipts to give to the bank.’ Bree waved as she walked off.
‘So, it looks like you’re moving in,’ Harper said to Mia.
She looked at Cap. ‘Really?’
‘Do you think Mia should move in, Mason?’ Cap asked the little boy, who nodded. ‘Well, the manager agrees. Do you?’
Hell, yeah, she wanted in. Then she paused with eyes widening. ‘Does that mean I have to meet your brothers?’