Meet Me in Bendigo

by Eva Scott

  Did GardenerGuy94 mean it when he said he wanted saving?

  They’d been chatting for months now. Perhaps it was time she suggested they met for real. The thought set off a cavalcade of butterflies in her stomach. Not since Ben had she felt this close to a man.

  Ben’s image flickered through her mind and she resolutely pushed it away. Happiness briefly visited her yesterday and so rarely did it make an appearance, she didn’t want to throw a shadow over it. Ben belonged to the past and, while she still wore his locket, she’d been working hard to try to keep him there.

  Mel had been right when she’d said Annalisa was hiding. She’d come home to Wongilly to hide from the memory of losing Ben, to be somewhere he’d never been so his ghost couldn’t find her.

  Instead, she’d been plagued by the ghosts of her long-departed family. What would they think of her doll-house idea? Would they approve? It didn’t matter because she didn’t have a single other idea of how to keep this place afloat.

  The only thing she could do well was make things with her hands. While that hobby had never made her money in the past, this time might be different. People were asking for her craft. They wanted her doll houses and she had every intention of giving them to the world.

  Once she worked out the price she’d be charging per house, she’d find a way of getting the message out to the community. Surely there’d be plenty of folk who’d want one of her creations for their little girls. She’d have to figure out a way to market herself.

  She’d have to have a name for her business, something other than Cappelli’s Hardware, obviously. GardenerGuy94 could help her come up with something. She’d message him as soon as the hour was decent.

  The sun cracked the horizon, seeping weakly into the room as if it too had had a hard night.

  Annalisa watched the world outside her window slowly come to life. The morning chorus, led by the liquid song of a magpie, filled the air gloriously as it had every morning of her childhood.

  She slid the Book of Cappelli closer to her from where it sat on the table. Lifting the cover gently, she turned the pages carefully, taking in the generations that had gone before her as if she could absorb their energy.

  Joe had told her that her father used to say idle hands meant an idle head, which only invited wrong thinking. Naturally a cheerful soul, her father Al had believed in keeping busy. Action, he’d said, was the cure to almost anything.

  As she sat with her sketchbook, she thought he may have something there. By making plans and taking action, she’d managed to lift herself up a little. Now she could see a way forward when there wasn’t one before.

  Her heartache over Ben had begun to recede into the background. Her body had woken up and responded to the presence of a handsome man. Her heart had opened to her new friend. Things had begun to shift.

  Back beyond the house, there was a field. For as long as she remembered it had lain fallow, filling with wildflowers every spring. Her great-great-grandfather had cultivated them for her great-great-grandmother as a romantic gesture of love.

  While some flowers had begun to bloom, many waited for the warmer weather and the tender administration of sun and rain. She felt like one of these wildflowers, waiting out the winter, knowing there were better times ahead.

  Ed had barely opened his eyes when there came a pounding on the door.

  ‘What the?’ He scrubbed his face with the palms of his hands, trying to force himself awake. ‘Who is it?’ he called as he searched for some pants to put on.

  ‘It’s me, Jeremy,’ came the muffled response.

  ‘Geez, Jeremy?’ Ed flung open the door before he’d finished pulling on his T-shirt. ‘What are you doing here?’

  Jeremy the operations manager, cheery in his high-vis jacket and hard hat, held up two hot coffees. ‘I come bearing gifts.’

  ‘Come in.’ Ed stepped back to allow him to enter the apartment, which seemed to shrink in size as he did so.

  ‘Cosy in here,’ said Jeremy as he placed the coffee on the table. ‘Sorry to wake you so early. The boss said to come up and make sure you’re ready.’

  ‘Ready for what?’ Ed frowned, bleary eyed and confused.

  ‘The photo shoot.’ Jeremy took up more room than he ought to.

  ‘Sit down, please.’ Ed picked up a coffee and drank, the caffeine hitting his bloodstream almost instantly. ‘God, that’s good. Thank you.’

  ‘Least I could do. Picked it up at the little café down the road. Asked for extra hot. Not as good as Maureen’s but it will do.’ Jeremy sat down at the tiny dining table.

  ‘Bring me up to speed. What’s going on?’ Feeling revived, Ed switched to work mode.

  ‘Your sister has arranged for the local journalist to come and do a piece.’

  ‘On what?’

  ‘On the upcoming grand opening of Carpenter’s Warehouse.’

  ‘Today? How come I’m only finding out about this now?’ Annoyance surged as he spoke. Typical of Rosie to set him up.

  Jeremy shrugged. ‘I’m just the messenger, mate.’

  ‘And babysitter.’

  ‘Maybe that too. Look, from now on I’ll give you a call when I get this kind of instruction. Give you the heads up. I get the sense you’re kept largely in the dark, am I right?’

  ‘Like a mushroom, mate.’

  ‘Got it. Well, the journalist is bringing a photographer so you’d better look your best. The stock starts arriving later today. Oliver has employed the managers and the staff applications are being assessed.’ Jeremy lay his hands on the table, his thick fingers like sausages.

  Ed sighed deeply. ‘Do you know exactly when the journalist is due?’

  Jeremy checked his watch. ‘About an hour, give or take. He’s meeting us out onsite.’

  ‘Do I need to be present when the stock arrives later?’

  ‘Nope, that’s what I’m here for but there is an expectation that you’ll manage things for a bit afterwards. You know, keep an eye on it all. The new store manager will be here but Rosie doesn’t trust him as far as she can shove him. He hasn’t proven himself yet.’

  ‘Rosie doesn’t trust anyone, not even Rosie,’ muttered Ed.

  Jeremy laughed. ‘Got that in one.’

  ‘Sorry you had to make the drive. She could have called me and saved you the trip.’ Ed finished his coffee in one long gulp before rising to get himself ready for the day.

  ‘It’s okay. Good excuse to get out of the office.’ Jeremy’s cheerfulness buoyed Ed’s mood.

  ‘Are you going to be in this picture with me?’

  ‘As long as I don’t have to stand next to you. You’re too good-looking and too tall,’ he joked. ‘Makes me look like an extra from The Lord of the Rings.’

  ‘Give me a minute to have a shower.’ Ed closed the door to the bathroom behind him. The moment he could sneak away he would go over to Cappelli’s and hang out for a bit, capitalise on yesterday’s connection. He’d gone to sleep thinking about Annalisa and woken up with her on his mind.

  He wanted to get to know her better before he told her who he was or why he’d come.

  Ed had spent all night going over and over all the different ways the scenario could play out and this was the only way he could see things working. She had to like him enough not to turn him away. It was his only chance.

  Outside, Jeremy was talking on the phone, possibly to Rosie. Ed turned on the shower and stepped under the hot water. He’d play his part so Rosie would have no complaints. He’d do his duty, although he wasn’t stupid. He knew his duty to his family and his burgeoning feelings for Annalisa were going to get tangled up sometime soon. But not today.

  ‘One day at a time,’ he muttered as he soaped up. ‘One day at a time.’

  Annalisa kept one eye on the door, waiting for Ed to return. The old guys, content to play cards, sat in their customary positions near the wood stove. She’d brought her work out to the counter and sat perched on a stool, decorating posters advertising her doll ho
uses and the build-it-yourself kits. Every time a car drove past or someone wandered by she’d look up in anticipation.

  By ten thirty she figured he wasn’t coming. The old guys didn’t raise the subject of Ed so she didn’t either. Her interest in him was strictly private. Her body might be interested in Delicious Ed but her heart was deep into an emotional affair with GardenerGuy94.

  She occupied herself with her posters, having printed black-and-white copies so she could add a little colour and glitter to draw attention to them. Business had been slow for the last few days. Who was she kidding? Business was always slow.

  Annalisa picked up her handiwork and examined it. The light flashed off the gold and hot pink glitter she’d used to fill in the lettering. While the process proved time-consuming, she wanted her posters to pop, to get the attention of little girls and their mothers.

  ‘Looks good,’ said Joe who had not appeared to raise his eyes from his hand.

  ‘You think?’

  ‘You gonna hang them up around town?’ Dave asked.

  ‘That’s the plan, and I’m going to head out to surrounding towns as well. Maybe even advertise in the paper. I don’t know yet. So much to think about.’

  ‘You should get a website or something,’ said Dave.

  ‘Get your head in the game,’ growled Joe, ‘it’s your call.’

  Dave grunted and refocussed on his cards.

  Annalisa ignored their bickering as she stuck her first poster up in the window. She’d put a few more up in town and save the rest for the surrounding area. Maybe put an ad in the local school newsletter too. Advertising options in Bendigo also had to be explored. Her mind ticked over the possibilities as the bell over the door tinkled, announcing Nonna’s arrival.

  ‘Hello, darling,’ she said, placing a kiss on Annalisa’s cheek. She picked up one of the flyers and held it at arm’s-length. ‘Fabulous poster. Let me take some to the mahjong ladies. They all have granddaughters who need Christmas presents.’

  ‘Thank you, Nonna.’

  ‘Where can I put this?’ She carried a tub of freshly baked shortbread.

  ‘Over here,’ called Joe. ‘I’ll take them.’

  ‘You don’t deserve them,’ Nonna said in mock disapproval, but Annalisa could detect a soft bloom of colour across Nonna’s cheeks.

  ‘I will do whatever you need me to do to be worthy,’ said Joe.

  ‘What a suck,’ muttered Terry, shaking his head. The wisps of his white hair waved like anemones growing on the top of his head.

  ‘Don’t worry, I’ll share,’ said Joe in an exaggerated stage whisper.

  ‘You can have one each.’ Nonna drew herself up, like some imperious biscuit queen doling out favours to her loyal subjects. She opened the plastic container and offered the men a biscuit each. ‘I hope your hands are clean.’

  Joe took a bite and closed his eyes, savouring the moment. ‘Sheer perfection.’ He sighed. ‘You should marry me. It’d be a match made in heaven. You need someone to cook for and I need to eat.’

  Nonna laughed and slapped his shoulder. ‘You’re a rogue, Joe Kelly.’

  They’d known each other for sixty years. As Annalisa watched the scene play out she began to wonder if Joe was joking or not. The way his eyes tracked Nonna’s progress around the room and the hunger she could see reflected in them made her think it wasn’t Nonna’s cooking he hankered after.

  She smiled, calculating how she might help Cupid along.

  ‘What are you so happy about?’ asked Nonna as she offered Annalisa a shortbread before snapping the lid firmly back on the container.

  ‘Something, nothing, everything.’ Annalisa took a bite, her teeth sinking into the buttery, crumbly texture of the shortbread. Joe had been right. Sheer perfection.

  ‘It’s that secret boyfriend of hers,’ said Joe.

  ‘The African prince?’ Dave seemed confused as he looked from his hand to Joe and back again.

  ‘He’s not an African prince,’ said Annalisa for what felt like the hundredth time.

  ‘Might be the hottie who came in yesterday,’ said Terry slyly, as he placed his cards on the table. ‘I fold.’

  ‘What hottie?’ asked Nonna as she put her handbag away under the counter, retrieved her store apron and put it on.

  ‘Just some guy, a customer actually, who came in to buy a hammer and these guys hijacked him.’ Annalisa dismissed Ed, keen to move off the topic.

  ‘We did not,’ said Joe indignantly. ‘We merely invited him to come and play poker today if he had nothing better to do.’

  ‘And it appears he did because he hasn’t shown up,’ she pointed out, acknowledging the disappointment weighing her down as she spoke.

  ‘It’s early yet,’ said Terry. ‘Dave, come on, what are you doing? Daydreaming?’

  ‘Maybe he’s pining for Ed,’ Joe chuckled.

  ‘I’m hoping he’s a better poker player than you,’ said Dave. ‘I’m upping the ante.’ He threw coins into the centre of the table.

  ‘Ed is the guy from yesterday.’ Annalisa brought Nonna up to speed.

  ‘And he bought a hammer?’ Nonna asked.

  ‘Yes, and he’ll be back for something else he doesn’t need today. Mark my words,’ said Joe. ‘I know a lovestruck man when I see one.’

  ‘What would you know about love, Joe Kelly?’ Nonna laughed. Her focus was on the biscuit container so she missed the look that passed between Dave and Terry, but Annalisa hadn’t. ‘I’m putting these out the back where those old reprobates can’t eat them and then you can go if you’d like, darling.’

  ‘Okay, Nonna.’ Annalisa watched the hurt look cross Joe’s face like a summer rain shower, there one minute and gone the next. Interesting.

  She busied herself packing a bag with her posters and flyers, all the while plotting how to get Nonna to see that for the last sixty years Joe had been in love with her. How could Nonna have missed that? Maybe she didn’t have any feelings for Joe. Then again, she did blush when he spoke to her. Food for thought.

  Ten minutes later, she’d managed to get out of the shop and was heading for the bakery. John the baker had said he’d be happy to have her put her poster in the shop window. The girls at the café had been keen too. The grocery store guy had said no to the poster but yes to flyers on the counter. She was off to a good start.

  Hugging her bag to her chest, she walked into the chilly wind that tried to push her back the way she’d come. She wished she’d put her beanie on before she’d left the store, hat hair be damned. Ducking facedown out of the wind, she didn’t see Ed until she bumped into him.

  ‘Whoa, there.’ He steadied her with his hands on her shoulders, their imprint searing through her jumper.

  She jolted, the intimacy of the connection getting behind her defences before she’d had a chance to put them up.

  ‘Oh! Hello.’ Flustered, Annalisa clutched at her bag full of flyers as if it contained a life jacket. ‘What are you doing here?’ She didn’t mean to sound so accusatory. ‘I’m sorry,’ she said. ‘You have every right to be here.’

  ‘Gee, thanks.’ He shoved his hands in the pockets of his jeans and laughed. ‘Good to know the bakery is a free zone. I’m glad I ran into you. I was going to get the lads some baked goods but I have no idea what they like.’

  ‘The lads?’ It was her turn to laugh. ‘I don’t think I’ve heard anyone refer to them as lads in my lifetime. No wonder they like you so much.’ Annalisa stepped back a little and regained her emotional footing. This guy was way too charismatic for her own good. ‘You can’t go wrong with John’s cream donuts.’

  Ed stood there, nodding and smiling almost as if he knew something about her that she didn’t. That magnetic energy of his drew her in, a little closer with every passing second she remained in his presence.

  ‘I didn’t think you were coming today.’

  ‘I got caught up with work. You know how it is, got to earn a living. But I wouldn’t miss a chance to get schooled in poker. Not
in a million years.’

  The wind picked up a strand of her hair, tugging it as if to move her on. Ed reached out and captured it, returned it to the fold by tucking it behind her ear.

  She looked up at him, eyes wide, frozen by the intimacy of the gesture. In one blinding moment, a cone of silence seemed to descend around them and everything—the town, the bakery, the wind—disappeared. Ed’s smile also vanished and he looked as shocked as she felt.

  ‘I’m sorry, I …’ he began awkwardly.

  ‘That’s okay, I’m just …’ She pointed at the bakery and raised her bag as if her mission were self-evident.

  He frowned at her bag. ‘What have you got there?’ A leaflet, one with emerald green glitter, poked out the top. ‘May I?’

  She shrugged. Anything to get out of this intense and awkward scenario. Ed carefully slid the flyer out and studied it.

  ‘You make doll houses?’ He pulled a face she chose to interpret as impressed.

  ‘Yes, I do. Well, I’ve only just started but so far so good. I mean, I’ve only made one but I do have orders for another two, and I’m making build-it-yourself kits too so …’ Catching herself mid-ramble, Annalisa stopped and studied her feet.

  When was she going to learn to own her stuff? She made damn fine doll houses so why not be proud of that fact instead of immediately adding a qualifier?

  ‘I’d love to see them sometime,’ said Ed, handing back the flyer. ‘Are you putting that up in here?’

  ‘That’s the plan,’ she said, wishing he’d go away so she could spend an hour being mortified in peace.

  ‘Let me give you a hand.’ He pushed the door open and the smell of freshly baked bread escaped out into the street. Ed closed his eyes. ‘Man, that’s good.’

  Despite their boundary-crossing moment still rattling her senses, Annalisa couldn’t help smiling. Delicious Ed managed to get cuter by the minute. She stepped past him and into the bakery to be greeted by Lea, the baker’s wife.

  While she put up her doll-house flyer and stacked her macramé class leaflets, Annalisa watched Ed flirt with Lea out of the corner of her eye. Something he said made her giggle and blush like she was sixteen years old. What a charmer! He probably laid it on thick with all the ladies, which put her exchange with him into a new perspective.