by Diana Fraser
He tilted his head to one side. “A coffee? Are you sure? It would mean things like”—he shrugged—“conversation. Exchanging pleasantries, even ideas perhaps. Are you up for that?”
“Yes. Definitely.”
He raised an eyebrow. “Okay.” He rose and held the door open. The smell of his aftershave and freshly laundered shirt was so him; it made her think of things totally unrelated to coffee. She blushed.
He frowned. “After you.”
She hurried into the kitchen and filled the kettle. When she turned around Gabe was leaning against the door, arms crossed, watching her.
“What’s up, Maddy?”
“Up?” She colored again and plucked two mugs from a shelf and spooned in instant coffee. There was no state-of-the-art coffee machine for Dr. Gabriel Connelly. “Nothing.” She looked around in desperation. “I was admiring your home. It’s very cool.”
He sighed. He obviously knew she was making conversation. “No thanks to me. My brother’s an architect.”
“Which one?”
“Cameron. He lives in the UK. We don’t get to see him often. Just weddings.” He hesitated. “And funerals.”
Suddenly Maddy remembered a tall, dark-haired, intense man at Jonny’s funeral. That must have been him. She’d watched them all from a discreet distance, as Jonny’s estranged wife had requested.
“It was Cam who suggested I buy this place. So, you’ve suddenly become interested in architecture since you’ve arrived?”
She shrugged and thought quickly. “Flo and I have been looking around her house to see what could be done. It’s fantastic but…”
“Needs some investment to make it a going concern? Yeah, I thought that myself. I can always contact Rob and see if he’s interested in investing locally. He’s done it before. And he has money to burn.”
“I’m not sure how Flo would feel about investment, I mean it’s her baby.”
Gabe shrugged. “It’s up to her. If you want to run it by her, I’ll do my bit.”
She made the coffees and handed him his before sitting down at the table.
He took a sip. “I have a proposition for you.”
Her heart really shouldn’t have thumped as it did. “A proposition?”
“Don’t look so scared. I’m not suggesting anything improper. I was simply wondering if you’d like to come to dinner at Belendroit tomorrow night.”
“Dinner?” she said cautiously. “Just you and me?”
He raised his eyebrows. “We’re talking about the Connellys here! No, Dad will be home. And Amber of course.”
“Ah, right, that’s fine. Thank you.”
“And then there’s my sister, Lizzi, and her family visiting from Tekapo.”
“Ah,” she said slightly less enthusiastically. The larger the family gathering, the more she’d feel as if she were being included as a member of that family. She didn’t want that, but it was too late now. “Thank you.”
“And then Rachel and Zane will be there, of course.”
Maddy’s heart sank further. She swallowed, wondering how she could back out of it without looking a jerk.
“And then there’s Etta. Wherever Rachel goes, Etta will be.”
“Who’s Etta?” asked Maddy faintly.
“She’s Rachel’s daughter. And Zane’s niece.”
“And Rachel and Zane are married?” she asked cautiously.
Gabe waved a dismissive hand. “I know. It’s complicated. But that’s my family for you. So, how about I pick you up around seven thirty?”
She shook her head, wishing she’d never agreed. From a simple invitation to Belendroit, she’d been cornered into being picked up as if for a date.
“No!” she said, too loudly. She turned around to cover her confusion.
“Oh,” Gabe said, sounding disappointed. “You don’t want to go?”
She did want to go, more than he knew. She’d wanted to see Jonny’s home ever since he’d told her about it. “No,” she repeated, deciding to pick up on the one thing that made her feel most uncomfortable. “It’s not that. I mean I’ll make my own way there.”
“But it’s quite a walk.” He frowned. “I’ll probably pass you in the car. What’s the point in that?”
“The point, Gabe, is that I feel uncomfortable about you picking me up. It feels, it feels, kind of like….”
“Ah,” he said. “Like a date.” His voice was flat. “You really are against dating me, aren’t you?”
She grimaced. “I’m against dating anyone. I’m against anyone looking at us and thinking we’re on a date. I’m against feeling disloyal to my ex.”
“He’s no longer around,” Gabe said gently. “Do you believe he’d never want you to date again?”
She bit her lip. “He was very jealous, very protective of me when we were together.” She shrugged. “I don’t know.”
“I can tell you this, for nothing. If he truly loved you, he’d want you to be happy. Okay, that might be on your own, but that might, just might also be with a man. And it’s down to you to decide what makes you happy. Don’t let it be anyone else’s decision. Least of all mine. Okay?”
She nodded. He spoke sense, and she knew it.
“So, are you coming tomorrow?” Gabe asked again.
“Sure.”
“Good. A lift?”
She shook her head. “I’ll make my own way there. It might seem strange, but I’d prefer it.”
“Of course.” Gabe stood up and picked up some papers out of the printer. She could tell from his brusque reply and quick movements that he was disappointed that she hadn’t taken him up on his offer of a lift. But there was nothing she could do about that. Not yet, anyway. “Now, I’d best get on with my travel arrangements,” he continued.
“Travel arrangements? Are you going on holiday?”
He looked at her in surprise. “I’m going back to Papua New Guinea in a few weeks. Didn’t I tell you? I’m a volunteer for Médecins Sans Frontières. It’ll be about my tenth stint.”
“No, you didn’t mention it.” It was her turn to feel disappointed. And that was even more unreasonable. “Nor did Amber,” she couldn’t help adding, trying to disguise how out of sorts she felt. By his quizzical glance, she suspected she hadn’t done a very good job.
“I guess they’re all used to me disappearing, leaving a locum in my place.”
Maddy felt suddenly bereft. “How long will you be gone for?”
“Just a month this time. I’m filling in for someone. I’m usually away longer.”
“A month,” she muttered.
“But of course, if you wouldn’t mind continuing with the paperwork, I’d appreciate it. It’ll make the locum’s work that much easier.”
“Sure, no problem.”
Two of the six months had already slipped through her fingers. Now another would go without him being here. It should make it easier. Then why did she feel the opposite?
* * *
In the early evening of mid-summer, the Belendroit homestead lay like a sleeping beauty, drunk from the nectar of the fragrant flowers, and lulled into a half-sleep by the hum of bees and insects and the first chirruping cicadas. Even the trees seemed asleep, unmoving under a cloudless sky. Of the colonial building, only its two chimneys and finials shaped in the form of a windlass emerged from the trees, and only the long veranda could be seen from the beach path. But there was no one on that path to view the building yet.
Gabe couldn’t figure out why Maddy hadn’t accepted his offer of a lift. Was he really so unacceptable as a date? He’d never thought about it before; damn, he’d never had cause to doubt his attractiveness to women before. But now he was beginning to think there was something wrong with him.
He looked around at his sisters and brothers-in-law, seated on the veranda chatting and laughing, none of whom had found love the easy way, but they’d found it nonetheless. And he’d found Maddy who, whether she knew it yet or not, was the one for him.
“Isn’
t it, Gabe?” repeated Lizzi, as she accepted a drink from Pete, and sat down with the sigh of a busy working mom on the wicker chair. She lifted a Victorian fan which Amber had unearthed from somewhere in the house and began to fan herself.
Gabe turned his back on the view of the beach pathway which wound its way to Akaroa and wondered what his big sister had been talking about. “Isn’t it what?”
Lizzi rolled her eyes. “Weirdly hot for this time of year. What is wrong with you? You’ve hardly paid attention to anything anyone’s said.”
“Perhaps his mind is elsewhere,” suggested Pete, as he poured glasses of wine for everyone. Amber gave Pete a warning glance, but too late because Lizzi had picked up on it.
“Where elsewhere?” demanded Lizzi. “Amber? What’s going on? What have you told Pete that you haven’t told me?”
“Yes, Amber, what have you told Pete?” asked Gabe, with mock sternness. He couldn’t be really stern, not with Amber, no one could. Just one glance at her innocent face and you could see there was no malice. No, Amber was an open book; the trouble was she was open with everyone else’s books, too.
Amber put down the book on crystals she was reading and looked at Gabe over the small wire-framed reading spectacles she’d picked up for a song at a thrift shop. With her red hair piled high in a messy bun and her long floaty dress, she looked like someone from a different century. “Just that you’ve been seen with the mysterious Madeleine around town.”
Lizzi gave a low whistle. “Bro! You’ve been holding out on your big sister. Spill the beans. Who is this mysterious Madeleine; why is she mysterious, and is it serious?” She held up her hand to stop anyone speaking, not that Gabe had any intention of responding. “Don’t tell me. If she’s mysterious, it must be serious, because that’s your thing.” She sat back and took a sip of wine with a satisfied air.
“Aren’t you the clever one? If you know so much, why don’t you tell me what it is with me and mystery? I’d love to know.”
Pete groaned. “Don’t get her going, Gabe. You know how much she loves to analyze us all.”
Lizzi dismissed Pete’s remonstrances with an airy wave. “I’m good at it, that’s all.”
She fixed Gabe with a focused gaze, and a bright smile, one that Gabe could never resist. Despite her years of heartache with an abusive man, she’d been strong, and she’d brought herself, and her daughter through everything life had thrown at them and had ended up married to the perfect guy—Pete. She could say anything she liked, and Gabe was putty in her hands. But then he was with all the women in his life. Not that he’d let them know. “You think you’re good at it, but you don’t know what makes me tick.” He narrowed his eyes. “I’m an enigma.”
“Only to yourself,” Lizzi scoffed. “No, you like mystery because you have none yourself. And you’re a sucker for a sob story. You’re too kind by half, and want to cure everybody’s ills.” She turned to Amber, and her bright smile fell. “Don’t tell me the mystery woman is hurt, too?”
Amber glanced at Gabe and nodded.
Lizzi groaned. “Oh, shame. But that’s it, then. Gabe’s gone and fallen in love.”
Gabe jumped up and made a dismissive sound. He’d been about to deny it outright, but the words wouldn’t come. He strode over to the other end of the veranda and helped himself to some antipasto, trying unsuccessfully to figure out what ingredients had gone into its preparation. He shrugged and shot Lizzi an irritated glance. He liked to be the one who analyzed, the one who cured, not the one who was the subject of so much attention. He held the parcel of unidentifiable food up to his mouth and then thought twice and dropped his hand. “She’s just a girl who—”
“You like,” prompted Lizzi.
“More than like.” Amber grinned.
“Of course I like her. Who wouldn’t?” replied Gabe. “She’s unpretentious, she’s intelligent, she’s…” He trailed off, as he tried to find the words to describe just how wonderful Maddy was. But as soon as he’d found a word, he had to reject it again. None of them could accurately describe her.
“She’s blonde and gorgeous,” said Amber. “And she has legs that go on forever,” she added.
Lizzi laughed. “So why dwell on the ‘unpretention’ and the ‘intelligence’, Gabe, when it’s her beauty which has you hooked?”
He sighed and ate the unidentifiable food. He scrunched his brow. “It’s fish. Um. It’s tasty.”
“Good try to divert the conversation, but it won’t work. And the fish is raw.” She grinned as Gabe’s expression changed. “Rachel’s been experimenting with a New Zealand version of antipasto. It’s tasty, isn’t it?”
He had to admit it was.
“So?” pressed Lizzi, unwilling to leave the subject, like any self-respecting curious sister. “So, you’ve fallen for her gorgeousness?”
He helped himself to another mouthful, shrugged and pointed to his mouth. But Lizzi speared him with a glance. She wasn’t going to be put off so easily. There would be no getting out of this.
“It’s not just her looks, Lizzi. There’s far more to her than a pretty face—and figure,” he couldn’t help adding. “There’s far more to her than that.”
“Oh,” said Lizzi. A silence descended on the small group.
He looked back to the path. “Anyway, you’ll be able to judge for yourself any minute. I’ve invited her to join us.”
Suddenly everyone was talking over each other, and jumping up to look down the path, where a lone figure had appeared, still some distance away. Gabe was the only person stationary as two of his sisters, Lizzi and Amber, ran around, adjusting themselves and their surroundings, and Pete followed orders to make sure the wine was in the fridge and to tell their father, Jim Connelly, to come out from the garage where he was mending something.
No one took any notice of Gabe after he’d dropped the bombshell, and he followed the dogs around the corner. Maddy was walking up the path from the beach but hadn’t yet seen him. Despite the time they’d spent together, she was still an enigma. She had the looks of a supermodel, the brains of a university professor, and the shy, delicate, untrusting heart of a beaten dog. He didn’t understand her, but he would. He never gave up on a beaten dog. He reached down and petted the two cocker spaniels—Stanley and Boo—who were most definitely not beaten, but instead, thoroughly spoiled.
“Come on, you two.” He looked up just as Maddy saw him. “Let’s go and meet our mysterious guest.”
They barked in agreement and trotted happily at his side as he walked down the lawn to where the grass turned into the sandy beach.
He stopped and petted the dogs but didn’t take his eyes off her. She looked different and, as she came nearer, he realized why. She was wearing a dress. It was the first time he’d seen her in anything but shorts and a shirt. The dress was neither new nor smart, but its vintage material draped around her long, lean body, and drifted aside with each step she took. And it was covered with flowers. Old-fashioned pink roses with trailing green stems and leaves.
“Maddy,” he said, trying, without success, to suppress a grin that he knew his siblings would have described as silly.
She gave him a wary smile. “Gabriel,” she said, before giving her attention to the two affectionate dogs who jumped around her, licking her hands and ankles. Gabe understood their impulse. It was all he could do not to press his lips to her uncertain ones, and coax them into certainty. Instead, he thrust his hands into his pockets to ensure he didn’t reach out to her, and formed his lips into a smile, rather than a kiss.
“Only my brother, Jonny, used to call me that.”
Her wary smile faltered once more, and she glanced away. But when she looked back at him, the smile had returned, firmer than before, as if she’d made a decision. “I like it. It suits you.”
They fell into step, the dogs bounding around them. As they turned a corner, Belendroit came into view, and she stopped abruptly.
“What’s the matter?” he asked.
She
shook her head. “It’s just as I’d imagined.”
He frowned. “You’ve imagined this place?”
“Yes.”
“What, since I invited you here?”
She shook her head but didn’t elaborate. Instead, she bent down and fussed over Boo, who was looking particularly beautiful with her adoring expression, and golden coat gleaming in the late afternoon sun.
He shrugged and decided to take a stab at the answer himself. “I guess it looks intriguing from the Backpackers.”
He looked from the house back to her. The expression in her eyes was strange, unreadable, as if she were miles away, looking at him with new eyes. A shiver tracked down his spine. It was as if someone had walked over his grave. Even the two dogs, Stanley and Boo, seemed to have picked up on the atmosphere and Stanley, the more sensitive of the two, nudged his head against Maddy’s knee as if providing comfort. While Boo, always keen to move on when things became too soppy, found a half-chewed ball and dropped it at Gabe’s feet.
Glad of the interruption, Gabe picked up the ball and threw it toward the house. He was off with his aim, and it knocked over a pot, sending the flowers, earth, and terracotta shards everywhere. There were shrieks, a few choice words from his sisters, and a bellowing shout from his father.
Gabe shot Maddy a rueful glance. “Welcome to my family.”
He swore and ran up the steps of the veranda where suddenly everyone appeared.
“What are you doing, Gabe?” asked his father, his bushy white eyebrows beetling together.
“Sorry, Dad. My aim was off.”
Jim Connelly grunted and bent stiffly to pick up the pieces. Gabe had a horrible feeling that nothing about this evening was going to plan. “Let me. I’ll clear it up. It was my fault.”
“It’s only a pot!” said Amber, who hated atmospheres of any kind. “I’ll tidy it up.” She grabbed a shard and dropped it with a sudden squawk, clasping her hand, from which a trail of blood flowed.
Lizzi picked up a tea towel from the table which, unfortunately, had a bottle of red wine on it which overturned and glugged red liquid onto the old floorboards whose patchy white paint wasn’t enough to repel the liquid. Pete leaped over and grasped the bottle but not before most of it was lost on the deck. In the middle of it all, the two dogs danced around, spreading the soil from the pot with the red wine and leaping up at Maddy, placing dirty red paw prints all over the delicate silk of her dress.