Blackpeak Station

by Holly Ford

  This pain in her chest, it would fade. Of course it would. And all the more quickly the less she dwelled on it. It was like a scraped knee — the more she picked at it, the slower it would be to heal. If she could just put it out of her mind and get on …

  The sudden roar of an engine shattered her thoughts. A Range Rover Sport, its red paintwork gleaming, careened into the middle of the mob, stopping just short of one beast that stood, as if glued, astride the centre line. Terrified, most of the rest of the cattle bolted down the steep verge and into Carr’s boundary fence. The wire tightened, then gave. An arrogant blast from the horn sent the few remaining heifers down the same route.

  ‘You stupid prick!’ screamed Charlotte, but the Range Rover was gone, rolling alarmingly as its driver accelerated round the next bend.

  ‘Jesus Christ!’ said Jen furiously. ‘They must be giving out driver’s licences in bloody Weetbix packets again.’

  ‘What an arsehole.’ Charlotte’s cheeks burned with rage. ‘Come on, let’s get them back up here.’

  Letting her horse pick its way down the slope, she shouted angry commands to the dogs running after the fleeing cattle.

  An hour later they had most of the heifers back on the road, but Charlotte estimated about fifteen head were still missing, having made good their escape into the steep and scrubby hills. Glencairn’s hills. If the cattle were ever to be seen again, it wouldn’t be until the autumn muster. And in the meantime, she’d have to pay for the repairs to Carr’s fence. Charlotte and Jen continued the drove in furious silence. Yet more stock lost. That was all they needed.

  Rex drove down with the horse float to pick them up from Carr’s yards.

  ‘We’d better go up to the homestead,’ Charlotte sighed, ‘and explain to Carr about the fence.’

  ‘What fence?’ asked Rex.

  ‘Exactly,’ said Jen sourly.

  Three days later, Charlotte was on her way down to pick up the mail when she saw him. She blinked, wondering if the heat haze coming up from the shingle was playing tricks on her eyes. But there he was. A man, soaking wet, walking slowly up the road towards the homestead.

  As Charlotte drove closer, he stopped and waved her down. She pulled up beside him and opened her window.

  ‘Hi!’ His voice was full of relief. ‘Look, could you help me? I seem to have got my car stuck in the river.’

  Resisting the urge to laugh, she looked him up and down. There was something oddly familiar about him. ‘Why was your car in the river?’ she asked.

  ‘I, er … I was trying out the four-wheel drive.’ He grinned in embarrassment. ‘I guess it doesn’t work quite as well as I thought.’

  The smile did it. God, was it really him? Suit-guy, what was his name — Luke Halliday — from her father’s funeral? He was wet from the chest down, and dust from the road had formed a thick film over his shirt and trousers. But his green eyes were laughing, and as Charlotte stared at him, the look she got back was unmistakably his — one she’d never entirely forgotten.

  ‘You’d better get in,’ said Charlotte finally. ‘We’ll see what we can do.’

  His designer loafers squelched as he walked around to the passenger door. Inside, he stretched out his hand.

  ‘Luke Halliday. Nice to meet you.’

  She took his hand. ‘You don’t remember me, do you?’

  His eyes flared in alarm. Boy — why did she get the feeling it wasn’t the first time a woman has asked him that? ‘I’m sorry …’

  ‘Charlotte Black?’ Nope, nothing. ‘This is Blackpeak. John Black’s property?’

  ‘God! I’m sorry — of course. Charlotte. I didn’t recognise you.’ His eyes moved over her, as if to make certain it wouldn’t happen again. ‘So this is Blackpeak Station.’

  ‘It is.’ She smiled sweetly. ‘In fact, you’re trespassing, actually.’

  ‘Am I? Oh God. I didn’t realise this was private land. I just saw the road, you see …’

  Right. ‘And the sign?’ Charlotte’s voice was wry.

  He grinned. ‘Must have missed that. Sorry.’

  ‘Hmm. So what brings you here?’

  ‘I’ve just had a couple of days in Queenstown and I was on my way back, so I thought I’d try out the new vehicle.’ He paused. ‘Bad move, really. So, all this is your land?’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘You and your brother running it now?’

  ‘Just me.’

  ‘Must be a big job.’

  ‘Not when you know what you’re doing.’ There had been a hint of disbelief in his voice, and Charlotte resented it.

  ‘No, I suppose not.’

  He sounded rebuked, and she relented. ‘So, are you still with …’ She realised she’d forgotten its name. ‘The same company?’

  ‘Cooper Liddell Sachs. Yes, I am.’ He pointed. ‘The car’s just behind those willows there. I’ll get the gate.’

  His car was two-thirds of the way through the river, buried up to the bonnet in water. Charlotte stared at it for a moment in disbelief before her mouth set into a hard line. It was a Range Rover Sport. A bright red Range Rover Sport.

  Luke laughed, a little nervously. ‘The sales guy said it’d go anywhere.’

  ‘I expect it would if you knew what you were doing with it.’

  ‘Excuse me?’

  ‘Have a good drive down to Queenstown, did you?’

  He looked startled. ‘I’m sorry, I don’t understand.’

  Charlotte glared at him. ‘No problems coming through the pass?’

  ‘No … oh, some idiot had let a whole lot of cattle wander all over the road, and one of them bloody nearly dented the Rangie, but I missed it in the end. Do you think you can tow it out?’

  Charlotte’s first impulse was simply to hit him. It took a few moments to wrestle it down. ‘Have you got your cheque book?’ she asked at last.

  ‘I think there’s one in the car.’ His eyebrows rose. ‘How much is it going to cost me?’

  ‘Nine thousand dollars.’

  ‘You’re joking. To tow a car out of a river?’

  ‘No, for the fifteen head of cattle and one fence you cost us.’

  Luke stared at her for a moment before comprehension dawned. ‘Ah. That was you on the road?’

  ‘That was me.’

  ‘Oh Christ.’ To Charlotte’s amazement, he began to laugh. ‘I certainly chose the wrong river to get stuck in, didn’t I?’

  She glared at him.

  ‘Oh, come on! I’ll give you your money — once I’ve seen some proof they were really worth that much. But you’ll have to get me out of here first.’

  Turning her back on him, Charlotte walked unhurriedly back to the Hilux and tossed him a rope. ‘Have you got a tow bar?’

  Luke nodded.

  ‘Go and tie this to it, then.’

  She looked on with grim satisfaction as he waded into the river. The day might be warm, but she knew the water wasn’t. ‘Watch out,’ she murmured under her breath as Luke disappeared up to his neck, ‘there could be a hole around there.’

  The Range Rover was easily rescued but, with its electrics full of water, flashed a great many warning lights and steadfastly refused to start.

  ‘I’d better tow you up to the homestead,’ Charlotte sighed. ‘I don’t suppose we can leave you here.’

  ‘Thanks.’

  ‘It’ll give me a chance to work out how much you owe us,’ she added maliciously.

  Luke smiled wearily. He might be a total idiot, but she did have to admire his cool.

  They ground to a halt outside the homestead. Luke slid out of his car with a squelch. Charlotte hoped the leather seats were ruined.

  ‘Wow,’ he said, looking round. ‘This is quite a place you’ve got here.’

  ‘You’d better come in.’ Charlotte tried to be brusque, but looking at him standing there, clothes dripping, it was hard not to smile. ‘I expect you’ll want to get changed.’

  Kath was waiting expectantly in the kitchen.
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br />   ‘This is Luke Halliday,’ Charlotte explained. ‘He used to work for Dad. He got his car stuck in the river.’

  ‘Oh dear, you poor thing,’ Kath fussed. ‘Look at you, you’re soaked to the skin. How about a nice cup of tea? That’ll make you feel better.’

  ‘Thanks.’ Luke flashed her a jaw-dropping smile. ‘That’d be really nice.’

  ‘Nick didn’t call, did he?’ Charlotte asked, watching, fascinated, as Kath — what would you call it? Simpered?

  ‘No, not yet.’

  She turned to Luke. ‘Come on, I’ll show you where you can get changed.’

  As they walked down the hall, the grandfather clock began striking eleven. Luke paused to examine it. ‘This really is a beautiful house.’

  ‘Thanks. My great-grandfather built it.’

  ‘Really? So it must be — what, a hundred years old?’

  ‘About a hundred and twenty, most of it.’ She opened the door to the spare room. ‘There you are. Come back through when you’re ready.’

  ‘But will I be able to find my way?’ she heard him say, half under his breath, as she closed the door.

  Back in the kitchen, Jen had arrived. She looked agitated.

  ‘Whose car is that outside?’

  ‘It belongs to one Luke Halliday.’ Charlotte grinned. ‘I found him in the river.’

  ‘But isn’t it—’

  ‘Sure is. Our friend from the other day.’

  ‘What the hell was he doing there?’

  ‘Trying out the four-wheel drive.’ Charlotte giggled. ‘Luckily, his cheque book was undamaged.’

  Jen started to laugh. ‘Boy, he picked the wrong river, huh?’

  ‘That’s what he said.’

  ‘So, what’s he like?’

  Charlotte frowned. ‘Nice, actually.’ Though on second thoughts, she didn’t think that was quite the right word. ‘He used to be Dad’s financial adviser, believe it or not — I met him once before, when he came to the funeral.’ For some reason, she felt herself starting to blush. ‘Anyway, you can see for yourself in a minute or so — he’s just drying off.’

  ‘And he’s going to pay up?’ Jen asked gleefully.

  ‘Yep. Which reminds me — I’d better go print off the receipt from the sale.’

  Luke stared at the figures in front of him. ‘How do I know you really lost fifteen cows?’

  ‘They’re not cows,’ said Charlotte evenly. ‘They’re heifers, and you know because I’m telling you.’

  ‘Can’t you just get them back?’

  ‘We can if we muster the tops of Glencairn. Four men, a couple of days of helicopter work. You can pay for that instead, if you like — it’s fine by me.’

  ‘Okay, okay. Still, fifteen cows — heifers, I mean — only comes to …’ He tapped away on his phone. ‘Eight thousand four hundred and sixty-eight dollars.’

  ‘You’re forgetting the fence.’ Charlotte smiled triumphantly. ‘An even nine grand should do it.’

  She was impressed to see that he could still manage a smile — albeit a grim one — as he wrote out the cheque. Most guys would have lost their temper by now, but Luke seemed to be able to field the best she could throw at him with ease. She wondered what it would take to get under his skin.

  ‘Just out of interest,’ — he looked up and straight into her eyes — ‘what would you have done if I’d refused to pay?’

  ‘I’d have put your car back in the river, and you could have walked to somewhere your phone would work,’ she said sweetly. ‘That would’ve taken you, oh, I’d say about five or six hours. Then I’d have reported you to my insurance company, and the police for dangerous driving.’

  His mouth twitched. ‘Like I said, I was just asking.’ He slid the cheque across the desk.

  ‘Thanks,’ said Charlotte.

  Kath bustled in. ‘Will you be staying for lunch, Luke?’

  ‘I, um …’ He looked at Charlotte, then smiled at Kath. ‘That’s kind of you, thanks. I’d love to.’

  ‘Oh, good. It’ll be about an hour.’

  ‘Getting your money’s worth?’ Charlotte said when Kath had gone.

  The smile broadened. ‘Mad if I don’t.’

  ‘Well.’ She got up. ‘I’ve got work to do.’

  ‘Wait.’ Luke looked up at her, that lazy, lingering gaze travelling over her face. Now he’d dried off, he was harder to laugh at. ‘Maybe I could tag along.’ How did he do that with his voice? It was like he had a string connected to her insides. ‘I’ve never really spent much time on a farm.’

  ‘No kidding.’

  ‘So … will you take me in hand?’

  ‘Hmm. What size shoe do you take?’

  ‘Why?’

  ‘You’ll need some gumboots.’

  In the porch, Charlotte knocked the spiders out of an elderly pair. With only slight hesitation, Luke pulled them on. Actually, he didn’t look as silly in gumboots as she’d thought he would. They went quite well with his loose, faded jeans and the grey v-neck that was clinging to every … God, what was wrong with her? Shaking herself, she walked outside and climbed into the truck.

  Luke lounged against the opposite door as they drove off, slowly pushing his sleeves up over the long muscles of his forearms. Charlotte’s cheeks started to burn. For someone who’d wanted to see a farm, he didn’t seem to be doing a lot of looking out of the window. Her hand accidentally brushed against his thigh as she changed gear. He didn’t move it out of the way. In fact — had he moved closer? She gave herself a mental kick. What was she playing at? What about Rob?

  She set her jaw. What about him? He was as good as gone, wasn’t he? Rob was moving on. Shouldn’t she do the same? She pulled up outside the hay shed. Luke got out and — at last — started looking around. ‘Pretty view.’

  Yeah — she supposed. There were a lot better around. You couldn’t see much from here beyond the flat terrace blocks around the homestead.

  ‘How many hectares would this be?’ He smiled. ‘This valley, I mean.’

  ‘About three hundred.’

  Luke’s eyebrows shot up. ‘You’d fit a few golf holes on that.’

  Charlotte laughed. She’d never thought about it like that. ‘Yeah, I suppose you would.’

  ‘Do you play?’

  ‘What — golf?’ She climbed up the stacked bales for a better view at the hole the last wind had torn in the roof of the shed. ‘No.’ If she took a few more bales down, she could probably get up and patch that from the inside. She started to let herself down.

  Luke’s hands caught her, sliding up over her ribs to stop what felt like about a millimetre under her breasts as he helped her to the ground. Yikes. She could feel the hard muscles of his chest press against her shoulder blades. In the small space between Luke and the haystack, Charlotte turned to face him. ‘Um … thanks.’

  ‘You’re welcome.’ The green eyes laughed down at her. ‘So what do you like to do’ — he picked a piece of hay off her shirt — ‘for fun?’

  Double yikes. She’d better get out of here. Fast. Dropping her eyes, she slid sideways. ‘I used to play a bit of tennis.’ She tried to sound nonchalant as she headed back to the ute. ‘When I was at school.’

  ‘I can imagine.’ Oh dear, he was closer behind her than she’d thought.

  Charlotte nodded towards the passenger door. ‘We’d better be getting back. Lunch will be ready soon.’

  ‘Aren’t we going to fix the roof?’ She could hear the smile in his voice.

  Um, no — not now. Something told her that going back up there wouldn’t be a very wise plan. ‘I don’t think there’s time.’

  ‘No?’ Luke climbed in beside her. ‘Shame. I was looking forward to that.’ His knees spread widely across the bench seat. ‘The exercise, I mean.’

  ‘This is divine, Mrs Macdonald,’ Luke said, looking up from his plate. ‘It’s such a long time since I had a roast.’

  It was interesting, Charlotte thought, to watch the effect of his smile on someone els
e. Was that what she looked like when he used it on her? She hoped not.

  ‘I suppose you’re used to something a bit more modern,’ Kath said.

  ‘Believe me, I wish I had the chance for more meals like this.’

  Jen pushed her knife and fork together loudly, and Charlotte saw her roll her eyes at Rex. By the cold look he was giving Jen, she was pretty sure that Luke had seen it too. Ah, he didn’t like it when his charm didn’t work — she wondered how often that happened?

  ‘Here,’ he said, leaping up as Kath began clearing the plates. ‘Let me do that.’

  ‘Well,’ said Charlotte briskly once Luke had finished loading the dishwasher. ‘Hopefully your car’s dried out by now. Let’s see if we can get it started.’

  ‘Right.’

  Outside, Luke climbed in and turned the key. He didn’t look as thrilled as he might, she thought, when the engine whirred into life. Suddenly, the dash began dinging loudly.

  ‘It’s the oil pressure light.’ Luke stared at it. ‘It’s gone red.’

  Charlotte peered underneath the car. ‘Shit! Turn the engine off!’

  Luke obeyed and climbed down to join her. ‘What is it?’

  ‘See for yourself.’ Charlotte pointed grimly at a large puddle of oil. ‘You must have cracked the sump.’

  Luke winced. ‘I did hit something pretty hard.’

  ‘A big rock, by any chance?’

  ‘So now what do we do?’

  ‘Call the garage in Tekapo.’ She shook her head. ‘Looks like you’re not going anywhere for a while.’

  ‘How long do you think it’ll take?’

  ‘A day or so to fix it, maybe. But they’ll have to get the parts in first — from Christchurch if you’re lucky. I’d say you’re looking at three or four days all up.’

  At last, he started to look worried.

  Charlotte couldn’t resist. ‘This is really turning into an expensive trip for you, isn’t it?’

  He groaned. ‘I knew I should have gone to Bali.’

  A phone call to the garage confirmed Charlotte’s rough time estimate, and Luke’s insistence that he had to be back at work on Monday could do nothing to improve it. He hung up the phone with a muttered curse. ‘They said they can’t even get a tow truck here today.’