by Karly Lane
‘Are you sure you don’t want to come with me?’ Michael said again as they reluctantly moved from the bedroom of the apartment, their bags packed and ready for a taxi.
‘I need to get back to Stoney Creek. I’ll fly up in a couple of weeks after I’ve sorted out a few things back home.’
‘Try and make it one week. I’m not sure I can last two.’
‘I’m sure you’ll be fine. You managed a lot longer than that before you met me,’ she teased.
‘I don’t know how. I can’t even remember what it was like before I met you,’ he said seriously, and it should have sounded stupid, only he was right. They’d spent every waking moment together and her whole world had changed. Two weeks did sound like an eternity.
‘I’ll see what I can do,’ she promised.
A taxi honked outside and Georgie swallowed over a lump in her throat. You’re being ridiculous, she chided herself firmly. She stepped outside the front door as Michael set the alarm behind them and followed her towards the car waiting at the curb.
A strange fear gripped her as she slid into the back seat of the taxi. Why did it suddenly feel as though everything was going to fall apart if she let him out of her sight? It had to be nerves. They’d been secluded in their own little bubble, away from reality and it was now hitting her that she’d miss him terribly. However, the feeling seemed to linger, refusing to go away the entire trip to the airport.
When they finally dragged themselves apart to go their separate ways, she watched Michael walk away with a hollow feeling filling up the space where before there’d been only happiness. ‘Don’t be stupid,’ she muttered under her breath, forcing herself to turn away. ‘It’s two weeks.’
Georgie found her gate number and sat down, watching the planes out on the tarmac as they prepared to board or deliver their passengers. Her phone beeped and she pulled it out of her bag, smiling as she read the message from Michael.
Miss you already. Absolutely won’t last more than a week.
She wasn’t sure she would either.
Long after she knew Michael’s plane had taken off, she watched the sky through the window, a heavy cloud of something she couldn’t identify weighing her down.
It would all be fine once they were back together again. She repeated this a number of times while she waited for her flight to be called, and for the rest of her long trip home.
They decided to keep the announcement of their marriage a secret, planning a surprise reception for their family and friends once Georgie could join Michael in Brisbane. It was pure torture keeping the news from Shannon, although the fact that she was completely absorbed with her own budding romance helped.
Shannon had always been the adventurous one. Unlike Georgie, who’d always known she wanted to return home after university, Shannon’s aim had been to move as far away from the country as she could. She’d always had her sights set on the city. Shannon was outgoing and fun—she was the quintessential party girl. For Shannon, meeting some guy and moving states to take a job on the spur of the moment wasn’t out of character. But when she learned about Georgie eloping with a guy she’d only just met and not even telling her—well, that was going to be a whole other story. Georgie was bracing herself for the repercussions.
During the first few days back at Stoney Creek, Georgie was kept too busy to spend much time pining for Michael. But at night she found herself moping about, and the occasional doubt would begin to creep into her mind as she waited for his phone calls and the reality of what she’d done would strike her with full force.
She’d married a stranger.
When they were together, it didn’t feel like that at all, it felt as though she’d known him all her life, but the reality of it was she’d only known him a handful of weeks. She’d always been the logical, cynical one. She’d never been gullible or made decisions without careful planning and thought. This decision didn’t make logical sense at all … only, it felt right. When she was with Michael, she felt as though she belonged.
It had been almost a week since her return, and Georgie was waiting at the counter of the feed store when she heard her name and turned with a smile to see Peg from the pub.
‘I haven’t seen you around for ages. Thought you’d run off and left town or something.’
‘I went away for a few days,’ Georgie hedged, unwilling to start a conversation she feared would be spread around town by the close of business that day.
‘Hey, I meant to tell you. Your new fella was in the paper. Recognised him as soon as I picked it up. Caught yourself a good ’un there,’ she winked.
‘Sorry?’ Georgie frowned a little. When Georgie continued to look lost, Peg clicked her tongue impatiently. ‘The fella from the pub you had lunch with. Go get the Farmer’s Daily, there’s a big write-up about him in there.’
Georgie stared at Peg’s back as she paid for her purchases and walked out of the shop. What on earth was that all about? She gave her order to Fred Provost behind the counter when he returned to serve her and waited until her supplies were loaded in the ute before parking in front of the newsagency.
A trickle of unease crept up her back as she scanned the row of newspapers on the stand, searching for the Farmer’s Daily. She resisted opening it in the store, paying for her purchase and swapping idle chitchat with the newsagent, trying unsuccessfully to edge towards the door. It was a relief when another customer walked in and asked for some assistance locating a magazine, allowing Georgie to make her escape.
Inside the cabin of the ute, she opened the paper and began flicking through the pages of ads and market reports until a photograph leapt out at her and her heart stopped momentarily.
NEW HOLDINGS KING
In a record-breaking deal, Michael Delacourt outbid his stepfather and former mentor, land tycoon Derick Matthew, buying one of the largest parcels of land in central Queensland and overtaking Matthew as the largest Australian owned pastoral company.
Michael Delacourt, who until three years ago had been working alongside Matthew, started his own company and swiftly began making a name for himself in the beef industry, securing land and contracts worth millions. Yesterday’s news thrusts Delacourt firmly in the limelight, with his total land holdings now the largest for an Australian owned and operated company.
A photo halfway down the page of a family standing in a dusty paddock next to a For Sale sign accompanied an article about the increasing exodus of rural families from their land as the economy and weather wrought havoc on farms all over the country. She glanced over the story, but it was the photo, the pain and despair on the faces of the family in the picture, that held her captive. The woman stood hugging her two small children protectively, a look of weary resignation etched in the lines around her eyes. The man in the photo could have only been in his mid-thirties, but he looked older. His eyes reflected a look of utter defeat that tore at her heart, and she was once more back there, watching the auctioneers selling off her own family’s belongings piece by piece. Her father sitting under the tree in the backyard, drinking from a bottle to drown out the microphone and the bids and his daughter’s accusing eyes.
Her gaze was drawn to the one name: Matthew Enterprises. The same company that had bought out her father. Her hand shook, and she was forced to place the paper on the seat beside her.
Michael was not only in the industry she loathed, he’d been working for Matthew Enterprises.
His family were the very people who now owned Tamban.
How could he have sat there and not said a word? He’d started his company three years ago … which meant he’d still been working with his stepfather, almost five years ago … when they’d hounded her father to an early grave.
Michael gave a long, drawn-out sigh as he dropped the phone back down and rubbed the bridge of his nose with his fingers.
‘You look worn out. Is there anything I can do for you?’ asked Celeste, his PA, leaning against the edge of his desk, her arms braced either side of her hips.
Michael was pretty sure she was deliberately showing her cleavage to full advantage, and he averted his eyes. Brent had hired her a few months earlier on the recommendation of their mother, who was a friend of Celeste’s, assuring Michael that she came with glowing references. She was efficient and did her job well, but her flirting, once something he brushed off without much thought, now got on his nerves. She may have been the kind of woman he once found attractive, but she wasn’t Georgie.
God, he missed her.
His thoughts went back to his earlier phone call. It had rung out, just as it had the three times before when he’d tried. Where was she? He’d been so busy with this last merger that they’d been playing a frustrating game of phone tag for the past twenty-four hours.
‘There must be something I can do?’ Celeste said.
‘Well, actually … there is,’ he said, leaning across the desk to pick up a folder, before holding it out to her with a smile. ‘If you have time, can you file these for me? I’m off to my meeting.’
He headed towards the door, ignoring the huff he heard beneath her breath as he left.
He was a married man and he wanted to shout it out to the whole damn world, but he’d agreed to wait until Georgie was here and they’d told his family. He just hoped he could get hold of Georgie when he tried again after the meeting. It wasn’t like her to not have returned his call.
That evening Georgie continued to ignore the phone. Her mobile registered four missed calls and she turned it off, placing it on the kitchen bench without a second thought. She couldn’t speak to Michael yet, not because of what she might say, but because she literally could not form any words. Even at her lowest point, after her father’s death and the sale of Tamban, she hadn’t felt this numb.
For the next two days she forced herself to function, grateful to be outside on her own for most of the time and not having to concentrate on paperwork. Never had she been more grateful for a worker who didn’t like to talk much. If Matt noticed she was quieter than usual, he didn’t comment, and for that Georgie was grateful.
The arrival of a vehicle at Stoney Creek late that night wasn’t completely unexpected—she’d been anticipating it ever since she’d stopped taking Michael’s calls—but it still made her stomach knot in apprehension. She’d rehearsed a thousand times what she wanted to say to him, but none of it came to mind when she opened the door, staring at her husband.
‘Georgie? What the hell’s going on? Are you all right?’ he asked as his dark eyes swept over her quickly. She took a step back when he reached for her, and she saw the crease between his eyebrows.
‘Why haven’t you been answering your phone?’
He looked tired and worried and still wore his work clothes and she struggled not to care.
‘I wasn’t entirely sure what to say to you.’
‘Damn it, Georgie, what’s wrong?’ His tone would have tugged at her heart if it hadn’t been frozen solid. ‘Has something happened?’
‘You’ve saved me a trip to Brisbane. I was going to drive up there this weekend.’
She turned away from him and headed into the kitchen. Behind her she heard him following. Stopping beside the bench, she scooped up the two gold rings and held out her hand, dropping them into his. ‘To return these.’
For a long moment he stared blankly at the rings, before shaking his head.
‘You’re not making sense. Why would I want your rings back?’
Leaning across, she picked up the newspaper and slapped it against his chest, clenching her jaw in order to keep tears tightly in check.
Slowly he lowered his uncertain gaze to the newspaper, laying it flat on the bench and scanning the page. His expression remained perplexed until he spotted the article and she saw his baffled look transform into one of defeat.
Taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes. ‘Georgie, I was going to tell you.’
‘Really? When?’
‘This whole deal … it blew up unexpectedly while we were overseas. I was planning on telling you all about it once we came back and we were settled, but I didn’t have time to fill you in before it hit the press. I didn’t think you’d see it before I had a chance to explain. It’s not what you think.’
‘Oh, so you’re not part of an industry I despise, and your family weren’t the vultures who bought Tamban?’ she demanded sarcastically.
‘It’s not all about this,’ he said, waving the paper at her in frustration. ‘You’re only seeing it from one side.’
‘Yeah, the victims’ side—pardon me if I don’t have a great deal of sympathy for the mega-rich CEOs who make a fortune off other people’s suffering.’
‘It’s not like that, Georgie. I was planning on taking you out to show you first-hand how we run these places, how I run my places,’ he corrected angrily.
‘You thought I’d want to see that? You thought I’d care?’
‘I was hoping you’d have shown the maturity to try to see it from my perspective, yes.’
‘You lied to me.’
Michael stood his ground. He held her angry gaze with a deeply intense one of his own.
‘I didn’t reveal the complete story,’ he corrected. ‘I admit that was wrong, but I knew you’d react this way if I told you. I can help you get Tamban back, I want to help you, but I knew you wouldn’t listen if I tried earlier.’
‘So instead you asked me to marry you? What did you think was going to happen, Michael? That I’d be so in love with you it wouldn’t matter?’
‘Actually, yes,’ he admitted calmly.
Georgie gaped at him in disbelief.
‘Just let me explain.’
‘Were you or were you not working for Matthew Enterprises when my father sold his land?’
‘Georgie …’
‘Just answer the question, Michael.’
‘It was my stepfather’s company.’
‘You were there. You were part of it. You were one of the heartless bastards who pressured Dad into selling,’ she said, barely able to squeeze the words out through her rapidly closing throat. ‘Weren’t you?’
‘I—’
‘Weren’t you?’
‘I worked with my stepfather during that time, but I—’
‘Get out,’ she said coldly.
‘Georgie—’
‘Get out! Take your rings and your lies and your goddamn company and get the hell out!’
‘Georgie, please. We just need to talk.’
‘I swear, if you don’t leave right now, I’ll call the police. And wouldn’t that make an interesting newspaper headline.’
He held her stare, and for the briefest of moments she thought he might refuse to leave, but slowly he lowered his head and sent her a tight grimace. ‘I’ll stay in town at the pub tonight and we can talk in the morning, once we’ve both had time to calm down.’
‘I have nothing else to say to you, Michael. I’ll be waiting to receive papers to put an end to this ridiculous marriage as soon as you get back to the city.’
‘Then you’ll be waiting until hell freezes over. We made a promise and we’re sticking to it,’ he said, standing with arms folded across his wide chest and jaw clenched tightly.
‘You honestly believe this is something I’m going to change my mind about?’
‘That’s up to you. I hope you’ll have the decency to at least hear me out once you’ve had time to think about it.’
‘Decency?’ she breathed the word in disbelief as she searched for something to throw. She found nothing except a plastic food container drying on the sink, which bounced harmlessly off his wide chest as he stood calmly facing her across the room. ‘You’re the one who lied to me, you arrogant bastard.’
‘I’ll call back tomorrow morning.’
He left her heaving great gulps of outrage and frustration and headed outside, slamming the door behind him.
Only once she heard the car drive away did she give in to the grief, sinking into a nearby chair, allowing the t
ears to fall in this one moment of release, before she pushed it to the back of her mind and moved on. She’d had practice at that. She knew what to expect and, more to the point, she knew she could go on with life. It didn’t end just because you’d had your heart ripped out and stomped on and were left broken and bleeding.
Thirteen
Michael swore loudly, thumped the hire car steering wheel and pulled over to the side of the dirt road. On the hill in the distance he could see the lights of the old house mocking him.
It never occurred to him that she’d find out like this. He wasn’t expecting anything to hit the press so damn soon.
When he hadn’t been able to get hold of her, he’d rung his brother, hoping to casually find out if Shannon had heard from her recently, citing friendly curiosity after spending the weekend with her a few weeks earlier. His brother thankfully hadn’t thought too much of the odd request and told him that Shannon hadn’t been able to reach her when she’d tried calling. His frustration at not being able to reach her had instantly turned to panic. What if she’d injured herself out on the property? He’d been assuming her farmhand would be there, but what if he was away and she’d been working alone?
He’d known on some level he was probably overreacting, but he hadn’t been able to shake the feeling that something was terribly wrong. It wasn’t like her not to call him. He’d caught a flight and driven like a madman to get to the property. When she’d opened the door his relief had been short-lived, thanks to her oddly cold welcome. He knew he should have told her. Way back in the beginning. But how could he? Once she’d told him about her father and losing her family property … he’d seen the heartbreak, heard the pain still there today.
He knew he was responsible—not physically, he hadn’t been involved in the actual negotiations for the Henderson property. The company dealt with multiple acquisitions and his main interest had always lain in managing the beef production on the properties they already owned. But he did remember it. He recalled discovering the farmer who’d just sold his property to them had killed himself and he’d felt sickened by the news and the heartless comments about it that had been thrown around by his stepfather and his cronies.