Honey Hill House

by Lisa Ireland

  The divorce. That probably explained the sad look on her face. This was a can of worms he didn’t want to open. Dwelling on the past was waste of time. This he knew from experience. ‘Ha, so you’ve taken early retirement then?’

  She grinned. ‘I wish. I’m not exactly flush with cash, which is why the one-dollar lease was so attractive to me. That and the name.’

  ‘The name?’

  ‘Yeah. Honey Hill House. Honey. Bea. Honeybee. Get it?’

  Seemed like a strange way to choose a new place to live, but he was enjoying the story so he nodded along as if it made perfect sense. ‘Ah, now I see.’

  ‘When I saw the ad for Dulili in the paper, I was intrigued, but when I saw this place I fell in love. The name sealed the deal for me. I figured it was a sign that the whole thing was meant to be.’

  This time Mitch couldn’t conceal his surprise at her decision-making process. ‘Wow. That’s a big leap of faith to take. I’m not sure I could do that.’

  ‘You don’t believe in fate?’

  He shrugged. ‘Not really. But seeing as you do, I guess I should tell you that it’s not just your house that runs with the honey theme.’

  ‘What do you mean?’

  ‘The farm’s name, Warialda, is an Aboriginal word meaning “place of wild honey”.’

  Her eyes sparkled. ‘Really? That’s amazing. Makes me think my instinct was totally right.’

  ‘Yeah, but it wasn’t named that because of any bees. My great-grandfather settled here and built the main house for his new bride. She named the farm after the town she’d grown up in, Warialda.’

  ‘Well, even so, now I’m totally convinced this is the place I’m meant to be. I can’t wait to tell my friend Em this story.’

  He shook his head. ‘It’s a nice coincidence I guess, but I’m not sure I believe in all the fate mumbo jumbo. I guess I’m just not the superstitious type.’

  She laughed. ‘Oh my God. My family would drive you nuts then. We have a long list of superstitious rituals that must be adhered to, otherwise mark my words, the earth will open and swallow us up.’

  ‘Oh yeah, like what?’

  ‘The usual stuff. If you spill salt some must be thrown over your left shoulder to avoid bad luck. Don’t walk under ladders. That sort of thing.’

  He shook his head and laughed. ‘You don’t seriously believe all that stuff do you?’

  She shrugged. ‘That’s not the worst of it. We have our own special family rituals too. For instance, I have to wear the scarf my mum knitted me when I was ten to every Geelong footy club final. If I don’t wear it a loss is guaranteed.’

  ‘Huh, I would never have picked you for a football fan.’

  ‘Born and bred Cats supporter. But I only like real footy, not soccer or that rugby stuff they play up here.’

  ‘Rugby League.’

  ‘Whatever. It’s all the same to me. It’s not real footy and you’ll never convince me otherwise.’ Her voice rose enough to make Rosie open her eyes and prick up her ears. ‘Sorry girl.’ Bea stroked the pup’s back and she settled again. ‘That’s one thing about Melbourne I’m really going to miss. I go to as many Geelong games each season as I can, and if I can’t get there in person, I always watch the game on TV. I guess I’ll be lucky to even see a replay on telly up here.’

  ‘I might just be able to help you out there.’

  ‘How’s that?’

  ‘Well, it might not be your beloved home team but I do know where you can catch some AFL action next weekend.’

  ‘Really? Where?’

  ‘There’s a local league. Dulili doesn’t have its own team. We used to but these days there’s not enough blokes here to field a whole team. The club amalgamated with Mandurama to form the Demons.

  ‘You are kidding me? A real footy team here in country NSW?’

  ‘I’m not kidding. In fact, it just so happens that yours truly used to play on the backline until a couple of years ago. I’m retired now but I still try to get to as many games as I can. I’m planning on going to the game next Saturday. You can tag along if you like.’ Bloody hell, what did he go and say that for? Bea was nice. Too nice for him to be leading her on. He hadn’t meant the invitation as anything more than a friendly gesture but now her eyes were all lit up and she was nodding enthusiastically.

  ‘I’d love that. It’s a date.’ As soon as the words were spoken the smile disappeared from her face. ‘Actually … um … look, Mitch, I’m hopeless at this sort of stuff. I’m always putting my foot in my mouth. I’d really like to go to the footy, but I don’t want you to get the wrong idea. I don’t want you thinking …’

  ‘Thinking it’s a date?’ He hoped the relief he was feeling wasn’t visible on his face.

  She averted her eyes. ‘Exactly.’

  ‘Of course not. It’ll just be me giving you a ride, introducing you to some of the other locals. That’s the neighbourly thing to do, is it not?’

  ‘Okay, sure. So long as we’re clear? Sorry … I’m just … I need to settle in here and stand on my own two feet. I’m not looking for anything else right now.’ She bit her lip and he fought back an urge to lay his hand on hers to reassure her.

  ‘That’s perfect. I’ll be honest with you, Bea. I was a little worried when you invited me for dinner. I thought maybe you saw it as something more than a simple thank you. I’ve had a fantastic time tonight but, like you, I’m not looking for a romantic relationship right now. I’m always in the market for a new friend, though. There’s not too many of us around the same age here in Dulili, so we need to stick together. What do you say? Friends?’ He thrust out his hand for her to shake.

  She took his hand and grinned. ‘Friends it is.’

  Chapter 4

  Bea banged loudly for a second time on the farmhouse door. She could hear the strains of a children’s television show coming from inside, punctuated by the squeals of at least a couple of toddlers. She looked down at her phone to double check she had the right address when she heard a woman’s voice call out, ‘Coming.’ She heard footsteps and then some sort of commotion behind the door before it finally opened.

  A smiling blonde woman with her hair pulled back into a jaunty ponytail greeted her. ‘You must be Bea,’ she said and then laughed. ‘“Be Bea”, that’s a bit of a mouthful. Anyway, come on in. I’m Caitlin. Excuse the mess.’ She nodded to the couch, where a pair of adorable red-haired toddlers sat. ‘These two have been particularly rambunctious this morning. I swear they’ve pulled out every toy they own.’

  ‘They’re gorgeous. Twins?’

  Caitlin nodded. ‘Ruby and Max, say hello to Bea.’

  ‘Hello, Bee,’ the twins chorused and then Max began to make a buzzing sound, while Ruby giggled.

  ‘Oi, stop that, the pair of you,’ their mother demanded. She gave Bea an apologetic shrug. ‘Sorry. People talk about the “terrible twos” but they’ve already turned three and I’m not seeing any improvement.’

  ‘Don’t worry about it. I think they’re cute.’

  Caitlin raised her eyebrows. ‘When they’re asleep maybe. Anyway, come on through. I’ve got a little salon set up here in the spare room. I just need to keep the door open so I can keep an eye on the Dynamic Duo. They shouldn’t be too much trouble. I’ve just put on a Peppa Pig DVD so they’ll leave us be for a bit.’

  ‘No worries.’ Bea followed Caitlin into her makeshift salon. There were two chairs, one in front of a basin and the other facing an antique-style mirror. Bea took a seat in front of the mirror, while Caitlin went to fetch a cape to cover her. She pulled off the black bandana she was wearing and freed her hair from the elastic hair tie she had it pulled back in.

  ‘So what are we doing? You said on the phone something about a new colour?’

  Bea nodded. ‘The pink was a mistake. My hair’s naturally a light-brown colour but I’ve been dyeing it blonde for years. The week before I moved here I decided it was time for a change.’

  Caitlin nodded as she ran
her fingers through Bea’s hair. ‘Fresh start, eh?’

  ‘Exactly. I decided to try being a redhead for a while. My ex wasn’t fond of red hair and so I thought now that we’ve gone our separate ways it was the perfect time to give it a whirl.’ Bea gently bit her lip in an attempt to stem the flood of information pouring from her mouth. What was it about hairdressers that made you want to tell them your whole life story?

  ‘So you did the colour yourself then?’

  ‘Uh huh. Can you fix it?’

  ‘Oh yeah, no worries. But your hair is in quite poor condition. All those years of harsh colouring have done you no favours. I can give you a treatment if you like, but really my advice would be to cut it short.’

  Short? For as long as she could remember, her hair had been shoulder length or longer. Her husband preferred it that way. When she’d met Jason, the first compliment he’d ever given her was about her hair. They’d met at a mutual friend’s birthday party in southern Italy when she was just twenty-one. In a sea of dark-haired Italian beauties her long blonde hair stood out and she found herself the object of much male attention. Jason, a fellow Australian, had rescued her from the advances of a drunken Lothario. ‘Your hair really is gorgeous,’ he’d said. ‘But I think it’s causing you more grief than joy tonight. Stick with me and I’ll protect you.’

  Stuck with him she had, for nearly ten years. He’d been her everything for so long. Over the years she’d acquiesced to his preferences and had been happy to do so. After all, he’d given her so much. A beautiful home, expensive clothes and jewellery, travel and the freedom not to work unless she chose to. She’d always seen the little compromises she’d made as her way of contributing to a happy marriage. After all, didn’t there have to be some give and take in every relationship? Her naïvety had played right into his hands.

  ‘How short?’

  ‘Depends on how daring you want to be.’ Caitlin met her eyes in the mirror. ‘Honey, I hope you don’t mind me saying, but you’re hiding your light under a bushel. Look at those gorgeous dark brown eyes of yours. And you have killer cheekbones. With the right cut and colour you’d give any of those supermodels a run for their money.’

  Bea laughed. She was about as far from a supermodel as a person could get. But the idea of a totally new look was appealing. To hell with it. It was only hair. ‘Yeah. Okay. I mean why not?’

  ‘That’s the spirit! I have a little trick I use with ladies who are making a radical change, not that I get too many—we’re in the heartland of the blue-rinse set here. Anyway, I like to cover the mirror while I cut and colour, that way they don’t fret while the transformation takes place. What do you think? That way the next time you see yourself you’ll get the full picture—a beautiful butterfly emerged from her cocoon.’

  Bea nodded, not trusting herself to speak.

  Caitlin clapped her hands and raced off to get another black wrap, which she draped over the mirror. ‘There,’ she said. ‘When I take that away you’ll be looking at a whole new you.’

  Bea’s heart hammered in her chest, but there was no going back. She’d promised herself she’d be brave in this new life she’d begun. A new look was a good way to start.

  Perhaps sensing her unease, Caitlin began to chat, entertaining Bea with stories of life in her newly adopted home. ‘I hope you like living here, Bea. There’s not too many of us under-fifties in town, so having you new dollar people move in is like a breath of fresh air. Do you know any of the others?’

  Bea shook her head. ‘I only arrived a few days ago and you’re the first person I’ve officially met, other than the Mitchells of course.’

  ‘The Mitchells are a lovely family. They’ll look after you. Evelyn is a real sweetheart. Heart as big as Uluru, that one. She’s the one who started this whole dollar thing in the first place. Reckoned we needed some new blood in the town. And she wasn’t wrong about that. She got the ball rolling by donating the house you’re leasing.’

  ‘Honey Hill House belongs to the Mitchells?’

  ‘Used to. Now it belongs to the town. No one had lived in the old house for years. Sid Mitchell, Geoff’s uncle, was the last person to live there. He used to keep bees at one time. In fact, I’m pretty sure that’s how Honey Hill got its name. Anyway he died over five years ago. Both Mitch and Jimmy were already set up in their own places on the farm when Sid passed on. The Mitchells put it up for lease a few years back but there’s not much of a market for rental properties here. I think looking at that empty house and thinking there must be some better use for it was what sparked Evelyn to start the Dulili Project Committee.’

  ‘Wow. The Mitchells must really love this town to give up part of their property like that.’

  Caitlin shrugged. ‘I guess so. They weren’t the only ones to donate property. But that’s what it’s like around here. Everyone pitches in. You’ll see.’

  ‘Yeah. It seems very friendly. Mitch dropped by yesterday to fix my oven for me. He insisted. Said it would take days to get a repairman out here.’

  ‘Ah so you’ve already spent one-on-one time with Dulili’s most eligible bachelor, then?’ Caitlin’s tone was playful.

  ‘What? No, no. It wasn’t like that. I only cooked him dinner to say thank you for fixing the oven.’

  ‘You had dinner with him? Oh girlfriend, if my hands weren’t all full of colour I would so high-five you! Mitch hasn’t dated anyone in forever. Not since …’

  ‘What?’

  ‘Not since his fiancée left him. It would have to be at least eighteen months ago now. He’s become a bit of hermit lately. In fact, there was some talk around town that the real reason behind Evelyn’s drive to bring newcomers to the town was to find a new love for her son.’

  ‘Oh good grief. You don’t think that’s true do you?’

  ‘Of course not. But I’m sure she’d be very happy if he did find someone. He’s been through a pretty rough time this past year or so. He spends nearly all his time on the farm.’

  ‘Really?’

  ‘Yeah that fiancée of his really did a number on him. Took off when he was off at a cattle auction. Didn’t even say goodbye.’

  ‘Wow. Why did she leave?’

  ‘No idea. He followed her to Sydney but I’m not sure what happened down there. After a week or so he came back without her. Evelyn told me the wedding was off and that was that. Lucy, his fiancée, was originally from England. Evelyn seems to think she’s gone back there for good.’ Caitlin moved to stand by the mirror. She screwed up her face. ‘Good riddance, if you ask me. I never liked her.’

  Bea raised her eyebrows. It was difficult to imagine Caitlin being anything other than sweet and friendly.

  ‘She’s stuck up that one. Real hoity toity. Thought she was too good for the likes of us here in Dulili. I never understood what Mitch saw in her. But that’s love isn’t it? Sometimes it doesn’t make any sense.’

  * * *

  Mitch had spent the past six days wondering if taking Bea to the footy was a good idea after all. He’d really enjoyed himself on Sunday night. Bea was smart and funny and easy to be around. After their awkward discussion at the end of the evening he had no fears that she was looking for something he didn’t have to offer. In fact, from the sound of it she was even less interested in a relationship than he was. But once they were seen together tongues would wag.

  That was the one downside to living in a tiny town like Dulili. Everybody knew everybody else’s business. It would take the bush telegraph all of five minutes to relay the news to his mother that he was keeping company with a woman. He could just imagine her excitement, especially when she discovered it was Bea—one of her handpicked newcomers. He could do without the scrutiny, but backing out wasn’t an option. He’d promised Bea he would take her and he wasn’t a man who went back on his word.

  He pulled up the ute beside the house—it was still hard to think of the old place as anything but Uncle Sid’s house. He wondered what his great-uncle would think of Bea’s gra
nd plan to turn it into a ‘wellness retreat’. Fools and their money are soon parted was one of his favourite sayings, and Mitch imagined the old man shaking his head and uttering those very words as looked down on his house from above.

  Mitch opened the car door and Rosie, who’d been sitting beside him, clambered over his lap and jumped to the ground. She barked excitedly as she bounded up the steps to the back verandah, wagging her tail madly when the back door swung open. Mitch got out to follow, but stopped dead when a stunning figure appeared on the verandah.

  ‘I heard you pull up.’ It was Bea’s voice calling to him.

  Mitch’s breath caught in his throat. If it weren’t for the familiar voice, he might not have recognised her. She looked like a completely different person. It wasn’t as if she was done up to the nines or anything. She was wearing boots, jeans and a jumper, much like she had been the last time they were together. But something was definitely different. The pink hair was gone! In fact, a lot of her hair was gone. It was now a deep red and cut in a very short style. The result was mesmerising.

  ‘Stay there, if you like,’ she said. ‘I’ll just grab my coat and beanie. I’ll be there in a flash.’

  Bloody hell. He blew out a deep breath and tried to pull himself together. He hadn’t anticipated this sort of reaction to seeing her again. On Sunday, when they’d made the agreement to be friends, he’d had no qualms about sticking to that arrangement. Bea was great. Easy to talk to and good company, but not his type. Now suddenly he was reassessing his judgement.

  Before he’d had time to pull himself together she was opening the ute door and, after allowing Rosie to jump in first, taking her place beside him. ‘What do you think?’ she asked, waving a navy and white woollen scarf in his direction.

  What did he think? He coughed to clear his throat. He was in trouble, that’s what he thought. ‘Wrong colours,’ he managed.

  ‘Hmmm, I thought that might be the case. I guess it would be too much to expect the team … what’s their name again?’