Chapter 18
‘You look like you’re ready for a marathon rather than a bush walk,’ Brookes laughed when she got into his Hilux. She was a little disappointed Rover wasn’t with him, but dogs weren’t allowed in the national park.
‘I’m unfamiliar with the conditions,’ she said.
‘Not much has changed. Busier maybe, but not much else,’ he said as they pulled out of the driveway.
‘Did you have any luck with the cameras at the tavern?’ Harper asked once they were on the New England Highway heading south.
‘Just as I thought. They were sitting dusty in the back storeroom. They’d never bothered to install them.’
‘I guess not much has changed about the lax security.’
He murmured something under his breath that she didn’t catch, but she didn’t ask him to repeat it. Instead, she looked out the window as they passed and spotted the well-known Ballandean pyramid in the distance. The owner of the land had put it up on their property, and now it was a tourist attraction from afar.
Harper really didn’t feel like talking and was happy that Brookes didn’t put too much effort into making conversation as they drove. They turned right off the highway towards Girraween, passed a few signs advertising the local wineries and finally towards the National Park.
The park was busy, and that suited her just fine. She felt safe with Brookes, always had, but knowing there were lots of people around gave her some level of comfort, especially since the area was a dead zone for phone reception.
‘Any preference to the trail?’ Brookes said.
‘This one,’ Harper said.
He raised an eyebrow. ‘Trust you to choose the easiest one.’
‘What’s that supposed to mean?’
‘That’s going to be a forty-minute round trip. Hardly worth the effort.’
‘Fine, this one then.’
‘Better.’
They entered the track and followed the signs on the granite. A kangaroo rested under a eucalyptus tree, paying little attention to the tourists snapping photos with their iPhones. Harper smiled as she passed them, leading the way along the marked path. There was a stillness in the air, fresh, crisp, peaceful. The serenity she never got in the city. She took a moment and veered off the path and onto the boulder, surrounded by a waterhole. Kneeling, she waded her fingers along the water, then noticed a turtle swimming towards them, its head bobbing out of the water as it neared the edge.
‘Think he’s hungry?’ Brookes said.
‘Definitely trained to feed off the tourists.’
She moved her hand from the water and watched the creature swim back and forth along the edge of the waterhole, while another smaller one made its way towards them.
There was a part of her that missed this. She glanced over at Brookes; he was watching her too. She stood and wandered back onto the path. As she did, she felt his hand glide along her back. She ignored it and kept walking.
‘Catch up, old man.’ She said and took the lead on the trail. He was barely a couple of years older than her, so it wasn’t an insult, but she liked to walk fast and wanted to set the pace for today’s trek. The route they chose was likely to take a few hours or more if they took his leisurely stroll.
‘This isn’t a race,’ he said, following.
‘Isn’t it?’
‘Is that a challenge?’
They walked in silence for a while, Harper in the lead, as she took in the fresh air and greenery around them. It was slightly chilly, but the pace warmed her up in no time, and with the sun slipping through the branches, it warmed her skin, making the walk even more enjoyable. She used to walk these trails every week, each time choosing a different one, sometimes doing two, one after another. It had been therapeutic and good for her fitness. She’d still walked in the city, but it wasn’t the same.
After about forty-minutes, they reached a large boulder. Several people were slowly making their way down, and so they waited to the side until they passed. Brookes offered his hand to help her up. She took it as she stepped up on to the boulder as her body tingled all over, then she let go and began the climb up. The boulder was deceiving from below and didn’t seem all that steep until one walked on it. Harper knew that, but she hadn’t remembered just how tricky it could get, so she took her time.
When they reached the top, the view was spectacular as it stretched across the national park and Granite Belt. She’d missed this, only now she realised just how much.
‘It never ceases to amaze,’ Brookes said beside her.
‘Hmm,’ she murmured.
She looked down and saw him squatting as he opened his backpack and pulled out a blanket, sandwiches, and a bottle of wine.
‘Oh wow, you came prepared.’
‘I didn’t want to disappoint.’
She smiled. Brookes could never disappoint. He knew exactly what people needed and wanted. Disappointment was not one of his traits. The fact that he went to this effort shouldn’t have surprised her. She didn’t deserve it, though. Not after the way she’d left things.
She sat down and Brookes opened the bottle and poured some in the plastic wine glasses he’d brought along. He handed it to her, and she took a sip.
‘Wow, that is a perfect blend,’ Harper said, taking another sip of the wine. ‘Where is this one from?’
‘Mathers Vineyard?’
‘Is this your way of trying to persuade me to agree that selling is a bad idea?’
‘I don’t think I need to persuade you. You already know it’s a bad idea.’
She savoured the view and the wine but said nothing. Maybe he was right. Selling was a bad idea, but she couldn’t stay and take over the vineyard. She had a job in the city, a life. At least what she considered to be her life, and she had worked hard for it. Harper wasn’t prepared to give it all up for a life in the country.
‘There’s a storm brewing.’
‘We don’t get too many this time of year,’ he said, looking out over the horizon. ‘It looks like it’s headed straight for us. We should probably get down this boulder before the rain hits.’
Harper finished the wine and gave him back the glass. ‘What? Can’t let good wine go to waste.’
He smiled, shaking his head as he took her empty glass and returned it to his backpack along with everything else. ‘I guess we’ll literally have to take a raincheck on this.’
‘Yeah,’ she said as he helped her up. ‘This was nice, thanks.’
‘We might have to make a run for it.’
The rain clouds drew closer. When the rain hit, she’d rather be off the rock and at least walking on the trails. One slip up here could end disastrously.
They made their way down the boulder, trying to avoid the rain while not slipping down and over the edge. When Harper’s feet finally touched the soil on the trail, she had to admit that she was relieved, and they hurried along the trail back towards the car, and just as they reached the parking lot, the rain hit; first a drizzle and then the sky opened up and the rain came bucketing down.
Running for it, they made it to the car just as the first strikes of lightning hit. Brookes pulled out two towels from the backseat and handed her one.
‘Always prepared.’ She took it smiling and wiped her face and arms, then wrapped the towel around her just as more thunder roared nearby.
‘That could have ended differently.’
‘It was fun, though.’ Fun and irresponsible. But she couldn’t remember the last time she did either. When had the spontaneity disappeared from her life? Sometimes, the most enjoyable things couldn’t be planned. They just happened, and when she’d been with Brookes, that had always been the case. It was an adventure where both of them said yes to anything.
‘We should probably wait this out a little bit. The storms rarely last long, but I don’t want to be driving in this weather, and this is the safest place we can be right now.’
She sat back and closed her eyes, listening to the rain tap on the roof of the car. The storm moved closer and the thunder following the lightning strikes approached. Her heart beat faster and she was afraid to open her eyes because she knew Brookes was staring at her.
Harper turned her head slightly to the right, her eyes still closed. In between the thuds of rain, she heard his breathing and shifting in his seat. When she finally opened her eyes, his face was inches away from hers. His eyes were like pools of dark chocolate that she could spend endless hours swimming in. She remembered the days and nights when they’d lie in bed or on the couch or even like this in the car and just look into each other’s eyes. Sometimes they talked, sometimes they didn’t, but the eye contact never broke.
She should have turned away, sat up and told him to drive back to the inn, but instead she leaned into him at the same time he did. Their lips touched, gently at first, then pressed harder against one another. His hands reached her cheek, behind her ears and through her hair as he pulled her closer to him until their chests were pressing against each other, the handbrake the only thing in between them. His lips tasted just like she’d remembered. The familiarity returned immediately. Her body relaxed under his touch as his tongue explored her mouth. It was new and familiar at the same time, like the past six years of separation had never happened.
She hesitated. He must have sensed it. ‘Get out of your head, Harper.’
She always did that. Ruined a moment by overthinking it. She kissed him back, fighting the thoughts of reason and logic. This was a bad idea. It didn’t matter how good it felt. Kissing Brookes right now, in his car, with the raindrops and thunder around them, was a terrible idea. It would only add to the complication. So why did it have to feel so good, so perfect, so right?
Harper pulled away, pushing her seat up. ‘It looks like the worst of the rain has passed. We should make our way back.’
He sighed beside her and inclined his seat before starting the engine without saying a word. The taste of him remained on her lips on the silent drive all the way back. There’d be another eight days of working side by side, and the temptation growing with each passing moment.