Home For June

by Juliet Madison

  ‘I’ll have to hire you at the agency, Hannah,’ said Lily. ‘Doing too good a job here.’ Lily stepped onto the verandah, and pointed out some of the property’s other features to Luca.

  They all walked around the yard, to the shed, the paddocks, the large chicken coop. ‘It’s all mobile,’ Hannah said. ‘So they can be moved to the other paddock every now and again to give the land a rest and time to regenerate, and give them a healthier supply of food and bugs to graze on.’

  ‘That’s such a great idea. This wasn’t here back then, was it? I think I remember a barn of some kind.’

  ‘That’s right, Dad brought in the chicken tractor around ten years ago.’

  Luca nodded with interest. And he was interested. Though it would be a big change, as he’d told her, he was a fast learner, always had been. And being busy was exactly what he needed right now. But the right kind of busy. Busy with a purpose, an aim, a promise. Busy to achieve results instead of working aimlessly without any long-lasting reward. And this place could be a perfect complement to his business.

  After forty-five minutes, he had seen all he needed to see of the place for the time being, but he was nowhere near finished with seeing Hannah. The past echoed every time he looked at her, and knowing he never got to say goodbye, not to her or anyone else from town, left a feeling of unfinished business somewhere inside him. He didn’t know what, if anything, needed to be finished, only that his departure back then had felt premature... then again, so had his father’s.

  He thanked the agent (who not so casually mentioned she had a couple of other people looking for this type of property who she was going to get in contact with today), and stepped off the front verandah.

  ‘I’ll be in touch soon, Hannah,’ said Lily before getting into her car, and Hannah thanked her and waved.

  ‘I’m seeing a couple of other places soon, but I always liked your place. I’ll have a think about things,’ he said.

  ‘No problem Luca. It was, ah, nice to see you again.’

  ‘You too. Been so long, and we never really got to...’

  ‘Say goodbye,’ she completed the sentence for him.

  Luca nodded, but what he’d been going to say was that they never really got to get to know each other more, outside of school. At least not without a group of people. She’d always intrigued him, and conversation was never difficult, but she’d never seemed interested in him in any other way. They say that boys, or men, liked women who played hard to get, but he’d always liked the ones who were clearly interested in him. And many had been. It took away the guessing games. But she was different and never put on a show for anyone. Not even Matthew, who he’d seen kiss her suddenly next to the school canteen, right on the one day, at the exact time that he’d finally decided to break from habit and an assured outcome, and ask her to the school formal. But seeing her with Matthew made him step back, and the next day he asked Tracy instead, who he’d known was interested in him, and she’d said yes. Funnily enough, right after he’d asked her and she’d put an arm casually around his waist to say ‘I can’t wait’, he’d noticed Hannah glancing towards him. But as quick as their eyes had caught each other’s in that moment, they had diverted, and when he glanced back in her direction after answering Tracy’s question about what colour dress to wear, she was gone.

  He didn’t want the same thing to happen now.

  ‘We should meet up sometime,’ he said. ‘Catch up on the latest gossip, you know, just the last two decades or so.’

  ‘Oh,’ she said, sheltering her face from the sun with her hand. ‘Yeah. I’d, ah, make you a cup of coffee, but today is full-on and I actually have to collect all the eggs and do a few extra duties because I’ll be in Sydney all tomorrow, and then Wednesday I have the markets on, and...’

  ‘It’s okay, no rush,’ he said. ‘And don’t worry about things getting awkward with the house, if I’m interested I’ll put in a decent offer, I won’t go back and forth forever and ever. If it’s meant to be it’s meant to be. And either way, I’d love to catch up. If you’d like to.’

  He watched her facial expression soften slightly and wondered if she was going to explain her next fortnight’s To-Do List to him, kindly telling him that he didn’t factor into any of her tightly scheduled plans. But she simply said. ‘Sure.’

  ‘I’ll give you my number, and you can get in contact whenever it suits you, no rush, and you can let me know a day and time that suits you. No rush. Did I already say that?’ He scratched his temple.

  The corner of her mouth lifted into a half-smile. ‘You did.’

  ‘Sorry. Anyway I’ll leave it with you, see how you go.’ He took out his phone, but she was already halfway inside. He stepped onto the verandah and peered inside.

  ‘Here, write it down.’ She handed him a pen and a post-it note.

  ‘Oh, okay. I was going to text it to you, but paper works too.’ He jotted it down and added a smiley face.

  She stuck it on the fridge. ‘Thanks.’

  He gave a nod, and shook her hand again, which seemed strange, yet he thought it would also seem strange to give her a hug at this point, so a handshake it was for now. She stayed on the verandah as he stepped off and got into his car. She gave a quick wave, then the engine rumbled and the car reversed, before turning towards the road. When he glanced in the rear-view mirror, about to offer another wave, the verandah was empty.

  She would have had to give him her number to receive his via text. Why had she not wanted to? Though Hannah had been a calm and practical ‘what you see is what you get’ girl, he wondered if over the years a few sneaky defences had worked their way into her persona. She’d seemed genuinely surprised and pleased to see him again, but also restrained.

  Now he wanted to find out her story even more. But he would have to either keep communicating to her through the real-estate agent, or wait for her to get in contact in a more personal way. Whether she actually would or not, he did not have a clue.

  Chapter 4

  Hannah sat at the dining table and exhaled. Long-buried emotions and desires swirled within, looking for an outlet but not knowing where to go.

  So that’s what he was doing here, looking for a place to buy. She stood, twisted side to side, then sat again. She had things to do, but her mind was scattered, which was unlike her. And she just realised that she still didn’t know what he was doing back in town, apart from house hunting. It obviously wasn’t for an investment, since he’d asked about looking after the chickens. Maybe he had a wife and kids and was checking out a few places first before showing them. Surely he wouldn’t want to take over this place on his own? And what did he do for work? She’d heard muffled conversation between Luca and Lily while they were in the kitchen and she was on the verandah armchair but couldn’t hear details.

  Maybe she should meet up with him, if only to settle her curiosity. If they were going to catch up, she wanted it to be her decision, she didn’t want to get caught up in past emotions and unresolved desire, which was why she didn’t give him her number. Though he knew where she lived, and she was in the phone book, so it wouldn’t take much to get in touch anyway, but that would look desperate, and Luca was never desperate. Never needed to be. He’d had no shortage of admirers at school. But right now, she was preparing to move away and start fresh, not get to know someone she’d always liked and been truly comfortable with all over again and risk rejection. She’d been so proud of herself, mustering up the courage that day at school to ask him to the formal, and also because she wanted to have an excuse to say no to Matthew before he asked her... he was okay but she hadn’t been ready for that kiss the day before, which is why a few seconds into it she’d pushed him away and told him to slow down. But just when she’d been about to approach Luca, there he was with Tracy’s arm around him. And a few weeks later, there they were at the formal together, while she’d accepted Matthew’s invitation. And that was that.

  She had to keep moving. She got up and went outside, giving Sca
rlett a quick pat, then went to the shed to get the egg trolley. She opened the gate and wheeled it into the paddock towards the chicken coop. Luke the courier would be coming this afternoon, as he did every Monday and Thursday, to pick up the cartons for local deliveries. The pungent scent of feathers, hay, and chook feed that was as familiar to her as Scarlett’s doggy smell comforted her as she worked on autopilot, collecting the eggs and checking for any cracks or imperfections. She placed them into the custom-made egg trolley her father had built, which had layers of trays for cartons to sit securely, allowing the eggs to be transported back to the house easily without breakages. She worked quickly, some of the chickens coming in from outside and weaving around her legs and between each other. Their food was half gone, she’d noticed on the way in, and as usual, she would refill the trough before sundown this evening.

  The cartons filled up bit by bit, and as she worked she wondered more about Luca. Remembered more about Luca. He had always left that ‘what if?’ feeling inside her, like an unopened letter waiting to be read.

  ‘Gah!’ she said as she dropped an egg onto her foot. She cleaned it up then finished working, the trolley three-quarters full. In summer she’d usually fill it twice, or at least one and a half times. As a child she had happily collected the eggs dozen by dozen, bringing them back to the house, a carton at a time, until her dad had built the trolley when their chicken numbers had grown.

  She closed the gate behind her and wheeled it to the front verandah, placing the required number of cartons in the wooden chest by the front door, then running inside to get the order and delivery list for Luke, placing that inside the chest too. Then if she wasn’t home, he was able to pick up the contents and deliver them to the buyers.

  There was always something to do here on the farm, it was hard to take time off but at times she had, paying for help to come and do all the daily tasks. Tomorrow would be an early start and a late night, and then the next day was market day, so despite her curiosity, she would have to see how the next couple of days panned out before deciding whether to contact Luca.

  ***

  ‘Gah!’ she said the next day, as the train started moving before she’d had a chance to get onto the platform at the station. Luckily she had planned for such a contingency and allowed extra time before her interview. With trains only running every hour from Tarrin’s Bay, she would have to wait another forty-five minutes or so in town. ‘Coffee time,’ she said to herself, walking down the road towards the end of the main street near the harbour.

  She stopped at a cafe, not her usual one, and ordered a takeaway mocha. The warm cardboard cup welcomed by her hands, she walked back down the street and looked up towards Lookout Point. Cold, and a bit windy, but the walk and ocean air would do her good.

  She walked up the slight incline of the main street, past the bank, and then where the old beauty salon used to be, which was now empty with windows taped up with newspaper, and... she did a double take, as someone exited the premises. Luca?

  Okay, so maybe he was taking over the beauty salon. Nothing wrong with that. She stayed put and watched as he locked the door, then turned and walked down the street in her direction.

  ‘Hannah.’ His eyes brightened, connecting with hers. Then they scanned the length of her body. She had put on a flattering grey trouser suit that hid her knobbly knees. ‘You look nice.’

  ‘Hello again,’ she said. ‘And thanks.’ She was about to mention where she was going when he spoke again.

  ‘You could have just called, no need to come all the way in here to meet up with me.’ He winked.

  She smiled. ‘I had no idea, I mean, wow, so you’re opening up this place?’

  ‘Sure am. Tarrin’s Bay will never be the same again once I’ve made my mark here.’

  ‘For sure. A male beauty therapist, in a small town, that’s really cool. Well done.’

  He laughed. ‘Beauty?’ He tipped his head back in another laugh. The only pampering I’ll be doing for people is for their tastebuds. I’m a chef. I’m opening a restaurant.’

  ‘Ahh.’ It all fell into place. His parents had been preparing to open a family restaurant in town twenty years ago, but just when they had begun to get it ready, well, that’s when his father had died the night of the formal. ‘How exciting,’ she replied. ‘I hope it all goes well!’

  ‘You’ll have to come to the opening night. Once it’s all set up. I have a lot to organise.’

  ‘Hmm. I could. But it depends when it is. I’m moving to Sydney.’

  His eyes blinked and his mouth opened. ‘Oh, right. Thought you might be downsizing or something.’

  She shook her head. ‘I’m going for an interview today. And Karen, actually, is letting me rent a room at her place.’

  He nodded. ‘Sounds like you and I are doing a swap... I come here and you go there. Either that or you heard I was coming and decided to get out of town while the going was good.’ He grinned.

  She chuckled. ‘Of course not, just time for a change.’ She took a sip of her coffee.

  If only he’d come a year ago...

  She pushed away thoughts of ‘what if?’. She’d made her decision. And it had been a long time ago. People change, so who was to say they would even get along now? But sometimes people didn’t change, and if that was the case then things wouldn’t be any different, he would always have a girl, or now, a woman, available to him, and it was never ever Hannah.

  ‘I was going to get a coffee myself actually, do you have to rush off to the train?’ He gestured in the direction of the station.

  ‘Just missed it actually, but I can get the next one, I have time.’

  ‘Fancy a walk and a talk? And you can tell me all about this job you’re going for.’

  She couldn’t really back out now. She didn’t have an excuse. She couldn’t say sorry, I just can’t handle the idea of dredging up old memories and feelings and risk feeling them again and being disappointed once more. ‘Um, sure.’

  They went to the same cafe Hannah had just come from.

  ‘Need another so soon?’ asked the barista, eyeing Hannah.

  She shook her head and gestured to Luca.

  ‘Large mocha please.’ He turned to Hannah. ‘Do you want anything extra, a muffin, a cupcake?’

  ‘No thanks. I’m good with my mocha.’

  ‘Oh, you too? Great minds.’ He smiled and so did she. He used to say that to her at school whenever they would come up with the same idea or way of doing something. ‘Coffee and chocolate together, it’s genius really,’ he added as he turned back to the counter.

  ‘I agree,’ she said softly, but the coffee machine got noisy and she wasn’t sure if he heard her.

  And by the time they were at the lookout, she could barely make sense of her own thoughts as they jumped around her head all at once like bouncy balls... Forty minutes till the train... Interview answers all prepped... House on the market... Luca’s back in town...

  She was so used to consistency and routine, being in control, and knowing what was going to happen next. But like the turbulent water lapping below the rocks where they stood near the railing, things had suddenly becoming more free-flowing. As they sipped their coffees walking up the hill to the lookout, Hannah had updated him on how the town had changed since he’d been here before.

  ‘Mrs May’s Bookstore is still open, that’s so cool,’ he said. ‘My mum used to buy books from there when we lived here, she loved Mrs May.’ Luca’s eyes lowered.

  ‘Yes, it was sad to see her go, such a special soul. It’s great that her daughter and granddaughter were able to continue the family business.’ Unlike me, a hint of guilt said from somewhere deep inside.

  Luca nodded slowly, his eyes still low and gloomy.

  Somehow it came to her, and she realised. ‘Luca, is your mother still...’

  He shook his head. ‘It’s been just over a month now.’ He took a gulp of his coffee and looked far out to the ocean, drawing a long breath. ‘Complications from
a heart condition she’d developed.’

  ‘Oh my God, I’m so sorry.’ She placed her hand gently on his forearm where his left hand rested on the railing.

  ‘We had a bit of warning at least. Gave us time to sort out legal matters and finances, and also...’

  Say goodbye.

  ‘I’m sorry.’ She pressed her hand more firmly against his arm, like it was the most natural thing in the world to be touching him and comforting him.

  He twisted slightly to look at her, and had it not been for the coffee cup in his hand she thought he may put his hand on top of hers, but he looked at her with genuine appreciation instead. ‘Thanks, Hannah.’ He drank the rest of his coffee and chucked it in a nearby garbage bin. ‘So, your interview,’ he said, and Hannah checked her watch.

  ‘Oh yes. It’s for an events company in the city where Karen works as a personal assistant. I do event planning and management, both business and personal.’

  Luca’s solemn expression dissolved and his face lit up. ‘You’ve been doing that in Tarrin’s Bay?’

  ‘Yep. And surrounding areas. Weddings, business functions, product launches, corporate retreats, you name it.’

  ‘So you help people organise things and make a detailed plan?’

  ‘Yep.’

  ‘And make everything run smoothly and successfully?’

  ‘Yep.’

  ‘And you’re leaving town?’

  ‘Yep.’

  He shook his head and grabbed the railing. ‘Oh man, bad timing. You sound like the exact person I need right now.’

  How she’d longed to hear those words before, in a different context.

  ‘You need some help with your restaurant?’

  He nodded. ‘I guess so. I’ve been figuring things out myself, but the sooner I get things happening the better, so I might need professional input to help me with the branding and launch of the restaurant.’