by Karly Lane
As he watched Mitch now, dressed in a business shirt and pants, complete with shiny shoes and makeup, for Christ’s sake, Ollie wanted to hit him just for dressin’ like a complete knob.
He switched his gaze across to Hadley, who sat on a chair just to one side of her sister and ex-husband. Initially the producer had attempted to place her in the middle of them until Hadley had sent the man a glare that quickly made him change his mind. So far it seemed to be going well. Mitch was doing most of the talking—naturally—and exchanging sickeningly sweet glances with Harmony. The questions had all been straightforward, and since they’d all been written by Samuals, there were no nasty surprises.
‘And Hadley,’ the interviewer said, turning away from Mitch, ‘what was your reaction to all this? Your husband and your sister? I think anyone would find that extremely hard to accept.’
‘It was a shock,’ Hadley said, nodding. ‘I had no idea. I suppose at first things were a little strained between us all,’ she said, playing it down considerably. ‘But Mitch is right, we were better at being friends than we were at being husband and wife.’
‘And Hadley’s job didn’t help matters,’ Mitch added quickly, ‘She was away for months at a time on occasion … that really wasn’t any way to make a marriage work,’ he said, shaking his head sadly.
Ollie’s fists clenched by his sides as he listened. The slimy bastard was deliberately making Hadley out to be the bad guy.
‘Well, it takes two to make a marriage work … and, let’s face it, in ours there was three,’ Hadley answered swiftly. ‘Myself, Mitch and Mitch’s ego,’ she said with a helpful smile.
‘Ha,’ Mitch gave a nervous chuckle, before adding, ‘that was always our little in-joke, but the truth was that our marriage had been over for quite some time before Harmony and I started seeing each other.’
‘Over, but not divorced?’ the interviewer commented, ‘You don’t deny that you were still married when you began seeing Harmony?’
Mitch’s confident, suave exterior faltered slightly as the questions went rogue. ‘For all intents and purposes, it was over,’ he said, ‘and we’ve all remained very good friends. We’ll always be family,’ he added, taking Harmony’s hand in his and bringing it to his lips to kiss, as he steered the questions back on track.
The interviewer threw in a few more questions before the opportunity to announce a brand new special Mitch was going to be hosting later in the year. Then, finally, it was done.
‘Thank God, that’s over,’ Hadley said as she reached his side a few minutes later.
‘He’s the biggest coc—’
‘Head into town for a celebratory drink later?’ Mitch asked, cutting in on his way past. Clearly feeling generous now that his career seemed to have been saved.
‘We have plans,’ Hadley told him.
‘We do?’ Ollie asked after they’d left.
‘We sure do,’ she said, sliding her hands up his chest slowly. ‘We have a motel room booked for the whole night.’
Inside he was jumble of emotions. He knew this would be one of the last times they’d have together. She was leaving in three days’ time to head back to Sydney and sort out her last-minute things before flying to London and back to her real life.
He didn’t want to spoil the time they had left by moping about, even though that’s exactly what he felt like doing. It was hard to ignore the fact she was leaving and he hated it. And yet he knew that if he begged her to stay, told her he couldn’t bear to let her go, she’d probably cave. He knew she hated the thought of leaving as much as he did, but it was important to her to see out her contract. When it came down to it, he couldn’t ask her not to do that. He’d just have to suck it up and be patient.
They spent the night lapping up the luxury of the newly opened apartments in town and spent far too much time in the spa bath before making love long into the night. It was perfect. And it was over all too soon.
Ollie watched the sun rise, holding Hadley in his arms, torn between watching her sleep and wanting to spend every waking moment touching her. She’s coming back, he told himself. He knew it was true, but he also knew that life could change in the blink of an eye. What if he lost her? What if something happened to her while she was working in some remote hellhole and he couldn’t do a damn thing to save her?
‘Stop it,’ Hadley’s sleepy murmur made him jump slightly.
‘Stop what?’
‘Worrying. I can hear that mind ticking over. It woke me up,’ she smiled gently.
‘I can’t help it.’
She lifted a hand and traced the side of his face. ‘I love you, Ollie. I’m coming home.’
He stared into her sleepy blue eyes and felt himself drowning. He wished they could stay here, like this, forever. Block out the rest of the world and just lie here.
‘I love you too. More than you’ll ever know.’
She smiled before pushing herself up on her elbows and kissing him slowly.
The sky outside the window began to lighten, filling the room with a gentle light. He couldn’t stop the new day dawning and he couldn’t change the world. All he could do was show the woman he loved how much he adored her and trust that she was right—that she’d be back in his arms again and their life together could finally start.
Hadley looked around her bedroom one last time and let out a small sigh. It was always hard leaving, but this time it was excruciating.
She carried her suitcase out and her father came forward and took it from her to put in the car. ‘Thanks, Dad,’ she said, kissing his cheek. She knew he hated goodbyes even more than she did, the big old softy. They wouldn’t be making eye contact when it was time for goodbyes. That would just set everyone off and she wasn’t sure she’d be able to go through with leaving if they all started crying.
Her mum was already sniffling. ‘I packed you some morning tea,’ she said, handing over a bag. Hadley knew what would be inside. A sandwich, wrapped in plastic wrap; some homemade biscuits, usually jam drops, which were Hadley’s favourite; and an apple. It was always the same and she loved that, even as an adult, she was clearly not too old to have her mother pack her a care parcel for her car trip home.
Griff and Liv had come over and were hanging out in the kitchen.
‘You’re not going to let anything get in the way of you coming back for the wedding, are you?’ Liv asked when the two women hugged goodbye.
‘Of course not. I put in for the time off last year.’
‘Not even if there’s a tsunami? Or a royal birth?’
‘I promise. Nothing will make me miss this wedding.’
It was only a few months away and that had been her bargaining chip when it came to saying goodbye to everyone … she’d be back home before the end of her contract for the wedding.
She gave her parents and brother one last hug and opened the car door. It was almost over. She really hated goodbyes. Thank goodness she and Ollie had said theirs last night. A distant sound made her glance up and her heart dropped briefly before soaring once again as she made out Ollie’s ute heading towards them.
She tried to blink away the tears but they began swelling, and by the time he pulled up they were falling unchecked down her face.
‘I know you said you didn’t want to say goodbye today, but there’s no way I’m letting you leave without doing this,’ he said. He kissed her, his arms holding her so tightly that she wasn’t sure she could take a breath, but she really didn’t care at this point. When he pulled away she didn’t bother holding back the sobs. ‘I’m not sure I can do this, Ollie. I love you.’
‘I love you too. You can do it. You won’t be happy if you don’t. So go get this bloody eight months over and done with so you can come home,’ he said, his voice husky with his own failed attempt at keeping up a brave face, a trail of tears running down his cheeks.
‘You’re so pushy,’ she said, wiping her eyes and straightening up.
‘It’s annoying, huh?’ he grinned as they swapp
ed a long glance. ‘Be careful.’
‘I will.’ She took a deep breath and slid into the driver’s seat, sending one last look up at the man she’d fallen so deeply in love with.
She drove the car down the long driveway, heading away from Ollie, and somehow, despite this, she felt that she was driving towards him. Their future was ahead of her, not behind. It didn’t stop her looking back through her rear-vision mirror and smiling through her tears. She wasn’t leaving. This wasn’t the end. It was the start of the rest of their lives.
Epilogue
Hadley looked around at the people gathered and her heart swelled with gratitude and love. She’d missed everyone so much in the time she’d been away. She’d had a week back home for Olivia and Griff’s wedding, but other than that there’d only been a few weekends here and there and brief stops on her way through to assignments.
She and Ollie had spoken almost every day, either on Facetime or by phone, but it hadn’t made up for the fact she wasn’t with him. She’d been homesick over the years when she’d been away too long, but it had never been like that.
If her time away proved nothing else, it at least wiped away any doubts she may have had about leaving her job. There was no way after this last stint that she could or would go through that again. Things were different this time around. She was different. Before, she did her work and went home, grateful for her comfy bed and some civilisation; now, she pined only for Ollie. She’d never pined for anything before … except maybe indoor plumbing and a decent coffee now and again, but she’d felt such an aching loneliness for Ollie. She still did her job and focused on the stories, but in the down times—long hours of travelling and waiting in airports—her thoughts were always of how much she missed him. She had never really understood when colleagues had moaned about how much time they spent away from their partners on assignment. After all, she’d never really felt disappointed if she’d had to stay away longer than originally planned. She’d known Mitch would be fine with her absence, and she hadn’t missed him overly. Now, she got it though.
Dare to Bare had gone from strength to strength during her time away. Ollie’s idea to bring ‘The Next Shout’ sessions to pubs throughout rural communities had become a big success. Teaming up with a group of volunteer counsellors, he’d taken the concept on tour, and the response had been incredible. It was a great start. It was never going to be a quick fix. After all, the walls built to enforce resilience in a hard country had taken generations to install, but they were chipping away at them and eventually change would come. She was so incredibly proud of Ollie for dedicating himself to his promise to ensure Luke would be remembered.
Her gaze moved to the back of the room and rested on a couple sitting close together, a matching pair dressed in expensive designer outfits, looking like a power couple even at a relaxed family gathering. Harmony held her gaze, but Hadley detected a shadow of reservation. While she’d been overseas, Hadley had thought a lot about her sister and their relationship. Over the years she’d judged Harmony, maybe unfairly, for how perfect her life had always seemed. With the revelation of her affair with Mitch, and the benefit of a little distance and time for the wounds to heal, Hadley had realised some of the blame in their strained relationship was her fault. If she’d taken the time to ask Harmony what was going on in her life—really taken the time, instead of looking in from the outside and making assumptions—maybe their relationship would have been stronger. Maybe Harmony would have seen Hadley as a friend instead of some stranger and maybe … well, you could talk yourself in circles … but maybe things might have turned out differently.
One particularly lonely night Hadley had reached for her phone and dialled her sister’s number. She hadn’t allowed herself to think about it, she’d just done it. ‘Hi, Harmony. It’s me,’ she’d said, feeling more nervous than she had in a long time.
‘How are you?’ Harmony said after a brief pause.
‘I’m okay. In France, waiting at the airport.’
‘Yes, I saw your piece on the riots. Are you safe?’
Her sister’s concern surprised her. ‘Yeah, we’re fine here. That was further north. Things seemed to have quietened down a bit.’
‘That’s good then.’
‘How are the kids settling in to the big smoke?’
‘They’re loving it actually. I think it was the right move. Griffith was feeling a little stifling.’
‘I’m glad everyone’s happy.’ Hadley closed her eyes briefly at how awkward the conversation felt. It was wrong. This was her sister. It shouldn’t be like this. ‘Look, Harmony, I just wanted to say that I’m sorry.’
‘Sorry? For what?’
‘I’ve been doing a lot of thinking lately. I’ve been a really crappy sister to you and I want things to be different.’
‘You’ve been a crappy sister to me?’ she repeated dryly.
‘I have actually. I should have been there for you. I should have realised you were unhappy. I’m your sister and I should have forced you to tell me what was going on with your marriage, but instead I was intimidated by how perfect I thought your life was.’
‘I probably wouldn’t have admitted it to you anyway.’
‘It should never have gotten to that point. If we’d been closer, we would have talked more.’
Neither woman spoke for a few moments as the words settled between them.
‘Maybe we can start now?’ Harmony said softly.
‘I’d like that,’ Hadley answered, and from then on the two sisters had spoken to each other every week. The conversations weren’t exactly deep and meaningful; they stuck to easy subjects—the kids, Hadley’s latest story. They didn’t talk about Mitch or the past—this wasn’t about him, it was about two sisters trying to forge a new relationship, and it meant a lot to Hadley that they were trying.
She smiled and it was a genuine smile, one that said how much it meant to her that Harmony was here, and she saw her sister’s smile lift and the shadow of uncertainty disappear.
Beside her, Olivia gave a small sniff and Hadley sent her a rueful grin. Hormones were playing havoc with her best friend lately. Five months earlier, Olivia had finally made an honest man out of Griffin and the wedding had been beautiful. Hadley had been maid of honour, and that brief week of being home had been both a curse and a blessing. It had broken up the eight-month stint, but it had made it near impossible to leave again.
Griff and Liv hadn’t messed around, with Liv announcing only a few weeks later that they were expecting … twins. Griff couldn’t be happier and it was a welcome relief to have something positive to celebrate again in the family.
She saw Linc with not-so-baby Mia on his lap, seated beside a radiant-looking Cash, resting one hand on her basketball-sized belly that held their second child, due within a few weeks. If anyone had said a couple of years ago that she’d give up being a foreign correspondent and Lincoln Callahan—her big, tough, ex-commando brother—would be happily playing peekaboo and attending prenatal classes, she’d never have been able to imagine it. And yet here they were. She held Linc’s gaze and read the silent message. We made it. And they had. He’d had his demons and she’d had hers. Of course, they’d taken the hardest, longest way around, but they’d finally reached their destination.
Her parents and Gran looked happy, and Hadley was relieved there was no sign of the stress and sadness that had been weighing them all down before she’d left.
She smiled at the man on the other side of her and felt a sudden rush of overwhelming gratitude flow through her, causing a sting in her eyes. She blinked furiously to stop them falling. Hormones were a bugger of a thing. She could relate to Liv’s struggle, since that brief catch-up in May had resulted in a surprise of her own. Luckily at five months’ pregnant she was hardly showing, much to Olivia’s disgust, given she had a noticeable bump.
Ollie smiled down at her and her heart lurched. He was so handsome.
‘I now pronounce you husband and wife,’ said the
celebrant, and the tears she’d almost managed to control spilled over as the loud applause from their family and friends filled her ears and Ollie stepped closer to kiss her.
‘I love you,’ he said softly, against her lips.
‘I love you,’ she said back, and smiled as he wiped the tears from her face.
They’d come full circle. All her family together, at her wedding—even the original groom, she conceded dryly with an internal shake of her head. Only this time, even he’d finally found the woman he was meant to be with, and Hadley was with the man who’d been there, right under her nose, her entire life.
And now there was a new generation of Callahans coming into the world and the circle would continue to turn once more on Stringybark Creek.
Acknowledgements
The idea for this story was sparked when I read an article about a real-life Ollie named Ben Brooksby and the site he’d started called The Naked Farmer.
The work Ben and his co-founder partner, Emma, have done to raise money for rural mental health through the Royal Flying Doctor Service is a credit to them both. They started the original Naked Farmer calendar and travelled around the country, visiting rural Australia to interview and document some of the stories behind the farmers on their calendars in an effort to raise awareness of rural mental health.
I hope you’ve enjoyed this series, The Callahans of Stringybark Creek, as much as I’ve enjoyed writing it.
Thank you to all my friends in Rankins Springs and surrounds who gave me the inspiration to write this series and helped me out with questions. If you haven’t been out to the Riverina area, put it on your bucket list—it’s a beautiful part of our country to visit.
Thank you as always to my readers, many of whom have become friends and who always lend a hand when I put out a call for help!
If you or someone you know is struggling with a mental health issue, you can call the Royal Flying Doctor Service mental health unit on 1300 887 678 twenty-four hours, seven days a week. Also available are: