by Wendy Smith
Whatever happened.
After dinner Owen and Corey pick up all the plates from the table and start the dishes before I have a chance to protest. Instead, I sit at the table, Adam and Max disappearing into the living room with Drew and James.
“Earth to Lily.” Owen waves his hand in front of my face.
“What?”
“You’re miles away. Corey and I were just speculating on what Mum told Adam that has him so rattled.”
I shrug. “I’m sure he’ll tell us all when he’s ready.”
When I sigh, Corey walks around the table, squatting in front of me. “You okay?”
“Do you think Adam’s going to stay? He’s in the army, Corey. What if he leaves again?” Saying it out loud helps me let go of so much tension.
“He loves you. Have you asked him about it?”
I shake my head. “I’m almost afraid to. I don’t want to know if he’s just going to leave again.”
Corey places his hand over mine. “Do it, Lily. After what’s happened, I’d be surprised if he leaves again. Hell, I’m surprised he’s left you in another room.”
I reach over and put my hand to his beard.
“Careful, he’ll growl at me next.”
Laughing, I wrap my arms around his neck. “You guys are all like brothers to me. I don’t know how I could have got through the last twelve years without you.”
“We all love you. It’s been easy. Max is pretty epic, too. That’s one good kid you’ve got there.”
I lean over, hugging him tight.
“You better let him go before Adam throws us all out,” Owen said.
I chuckle, releasing Corey.
“Go talk to Adam,” he says.
Nodding, I stand and walk to the doorway. Max sits on the couch, Drew and James on either side. The three of them are engrossed in cartoons and I smile, shaking my head at the sight. “Do you guys know where Adam went?”
Drew shakes his head. “He headed that way.” He points out the door and into the hallway.
“Thanks.”
As I walk out and into the entranceway of the house, I turn my head and find him on the deck, sitting on the steps and looking out at the yard. The sun’s low in the sky, almost ready to give way to the night. “You okay?”
He turns his head and smiles at me, raising his hand to take mine. “Just thinking.”
“About your mum?” I sit on the step beside him and rest my head on his shoulder.
“She told me why she doesn’t like you.”
It should come as no surprise, but the words still make my stomach clench. I always knew it, but could never work out what I’d done to cause it.
“It’s not you, Lil. It’s not your fault.” He swallows. “She’s been keeping more than one secret.”
I lift my head. He has worry etched across his face, and my stomach sinks.
“Do you ever remember my dad visiting your mother?”
I nod. “She did some repairs for him. He said he couldn’t work out the machine, and your mother’s sewing wasn’t that great.”
He snorts. “Yeah, she had a few failures, but that’s not why he saw her.”
“What?”
“Mum says after they got here, my dad had an affair with your mum. She held it against you. It was never about anything you did—it all came down to her own hurt feelings.”
My mind reels. There were a couple of times I’d been sick and stayed home from school when Adam’s father turned up. It hadn’t seemed out of the ordinary, Mum had people drop off little repair jobs all the time. “How could we not know?”
“I think we had other distractions, and I don’t know how long it lasted.”
Adam was right. We were so preoccupied with each other, the world could have ended and we would have barely noticed. We loved so much in those four short years we had, and if anyone ever asked me about anything else that had happened during that time, I’d barely have had a clue. “There’s something else.”
What else could there possibly be?
“Those parcels you were getting, the ones with clothing? It was my dad.”
“I know.”
His eyebrows shoot up at my casual response.
“Max told me today. He saw him delivering one once, but I don’t think he said anything because he knew he’d be in trouble for opening the door without checking who it was first.”
Adam’s lips curl into a lopsided smile. “Max knew? That kid of ours.”
“So now what?” I ask.
Adam takes my hand in his, threading his fingers through mine, and raises it to his lips. “We make our own future. You, me, and Max. We’re enough. He’ll have his uncles. That’s all the family we need.”
I sigh. “I guess it’s more than we had before.”
“Plus, one day we’ll grow our family. At least I hope we will.”
I raise my head. “Do you want to know what I want?”
“Of course.”
“This is probably gonna sound a little silly, since you basically just moved in, but I want to date. I want us to really get to know each other again. It still feels like we’re scratching the surface at times.”
Adam presses his nose against mine. “Anything you want.”
“What I want is for you to stay.”
He pulls away, his eyebrows knitted as he frowns. “Why wouldn’t I?”
“Your job. What happens if they send you away again? I lost you once—I don’t want to lose you again.”
A smile creeps across his face, and in an instant his lips are on mine, his tongue pressing into my mouth with urgency. This is comforting and scary. Is he trying to distract me or reassure me?
“You’ll never lose me. I’m not going back. Ever.”
Tears roll down my cheeks. My biggest fear finally evaporates as he holds me tight, lodging his fingers in my hair and pulling me close.
“I love you. I’ll spend the rest of my life trying to make up for the years we were apart. If you’ll have me.”
I sniff. “Did you just propose?”
He laughs into my hair. “I promise I’ll do it properly after we’ve spent more time. Once we’ve broken through that surface.”
“Mum?” Max is right behind us.
“Hey, baby,” I say.
Adam lets go of me, and I reach up to grab Max’s hand. He steps down and sits between Adam and I. “Are you crying?”
I nod, wiping my eyes with my fingers. “Because I’m so happy. I have you and Dad. We’re a family, Max.”
He rolls his eyes. “You cry when you’re happy, too? I’ll never understand girls.”
Despite myself, I laugh, and Adam does too. Max squawks as we both hug him tight.
My whole world on this doorstep.
29
Adam
From the outside, the old garage has seen better days. A big, old concrete building, the windows are boarded up with odd-sized blocks of wood, and it looks as if it’s been untouched in years. In truth, it’s been less than a year, but in this town, it fades into the background. To me, it represents the future.
I learned so much in the army, and my mechanical skills will come in handy in this rural community. There have been so many times I’ve had to improvise to repair vehicles, which fit so well with the ol’ Kiwi number eight wire mentality. I might not be MacGyver, but I have a knack for pulling things together when I need to.
Here, I’ll have a proper garage and be able to buy real parts for vehicles. When this workshop closed, the nearest place to get any mechanical repairs done was more than fifty kilometres away. I want to reverse that.
I haven’t told Lily about my plans yet, I want it to be a surprise. She’s been through enough pain for a lifetime, and all I want is to give her the future she doesn’t dare to dream of. The best part of the whole deal is the house.
Behind the garage is a three-bedroom home, complete with a separate sleep-out. The backyard opens up into bushland, and I’ll have to fence it to stop Max from
wandering in after any animals. There are plenty of those about. He’ll love it.
“What on earth are we doing here?” Lily asks as we pull up outside.
“This is our new home. If you want it to be,” I say as I take her hand. Her brow wrinkles in confusion, but she smiles as I squeeze her fingers, giving me a little bit of sorely needed sunshine. I’m prepared to do whatever it takes to make her happy.
“Yay!” Max yells from the back seat, I grin at his enthusiasm. My son. The house they’re in has been their home for so long, but it doesn’t belong to them. This will.
Lily shoots me a sideways glance, and no wonder. All she sees is the garage, the house behind still hidden from our sight. A million thoughts must be running through her head. This has to be one of the greatest gifts I could ever give her.
I tousle Max’s hair as he unlatches his seat belt and sticks his head between the two front seats. “You like it, buddy?”
Max is happy, nodding with so much enthusiasm I think his head might just fall off. Lily’s more reserved.
“Come and have a look. I promise you’ll love it.”
She lets out a sigh. I grasp her hand tight.
“Come on, Mum,” Max moans. His constant thirst to keep moving isn’t quenched by sitting in the car.
Lily laughs. “Fine.”
She’s still scared. I see it in her eyes, and I understand it. This is so new yet familiar, and I sense her fear whenever I leave.
“Trust me?” I murmur.
Lily licks her lips and slowly nods.
I let go of her hand and open the car door, Max leaping over into the front seat and following behind me. He’s so excited. It’s like bringing a puppy to a new home, and I already love how happy it’ll make him to see what I have in store.
Lily’s opened the car door, and I hold it for her while she steps out.
“This is the garage. James will help me sort it out, take the boards off the windows. We’ll tidy it up,” I say as I close the car door.
She nods.
“But this is what I need to show you.” I take her by the hand, and lead her and Max through a side gate and down a driveway leading behind the building.
Her gasp is audible as we turn the corner and she lays eyes on a house that’s been maintained despite the state of the garage.
“Mum, look.” Max squeals as he sees it, and I wrap my other arm around his shoulders and pull him toward me. “Get off, Dad.”
It’s beautiful, the verandah running around the outside, the wooden steps leading up to the decking edged by intricately carved hand railings. I let Max go and turn my focus to Lily. Her face is full of awe and longing.
“Like I said. This is our new home,” I whisper. “If it’s okay with you. It comes with the garage, so we don’t have to live here.”
Her smile spreads into a grin. “Are you kidding me? If the inside is as beautiful as the outside …”
“It is.”
Max tugs at my shirt. “Can I look around?”
I grin at my overexcited son. “Of course you can. I even have the keys so you can pick which room you want.”
His eyes widen. “Really?”
“There are three bedrooms. Mum and I get one, and you can choose out of the other two.”
He jumps up and down, grabbing Lily’s other hand. “Come on, Mum. Let’s check it out.”
Lily laughs, and turns her head to peck me on the lips before she lets go of my hand and runs toward the house hand in hand with Max.
“Come on, Dad.”
My heart swells when he calls me that. All the years I never knew he existed evaporate at the sound of those words. We’re close despite the previous distance. When Max loves, he loves big.
“On my way.” I breathe deep. This is perfect.
I follow them up the verandah and unlock the door, pushing it open. Max runs past, but I scoop Lily into my arms and carry her over the threshold. Peals of laughter echo through the empty house, and she has so much love in her eyes as she presses her nose to mine before I set her down on the floor. “What do you think?”
“I love it,” she whispers, clinging to my arm. “I had no idea this place was here.”
“Jack Kirby built it, but he prefers living at the cove. I asked him about the garage and when we came to take a look, I realised there was so much more. As soon as I saw it, I knew this place was you.”
Max screams past, sliding in his socks on the polished wooden floor. “Zoom, zoom.”
“Max, be careful.” Lily’s laughter captivates me. I never thought it would be possible to be so in love again, but here I am, a little battered, but back with the love of my life. I slide my arms around her waist.
“It’s all ours, Lily. All ours. We can move in straight away.”
Her smile grows, and I let go of her waist, grasping one of her hands. “Want to explore?”
Max has already checked out every room, and by the time we get down the hallway he runs along behind us, panting, explaining what each room is.
“We’ll need furniture. Our house is a mix of the old stuff from Mum’s place and what was already there. Some of it doesn’t belong to me.”
“I already thought about that. We’ll go for a drive to the city and shop.” I lower my voice. “Just imagine. A new bed for a new start.”
She flings her arms around my neck.
“We’re finally going to get our happy ending, sweetheart.”
Her eyes shine. “This is exciting. More than I ever thought possible. It’s beautiful, Adam.”
I drop my head to kiss her, and Max runs circles around us as we embrace.
Lily laughs. “This is perfect.”
After an afternoon of checking out the new property, I drop Lily and Max at home with a promise of a takeaway dinner, but I’ve got unfinished business elsewhere.
As I head down the long and twisted driveway toward Eric’s place, all I can think about is Lily, and how she told me of the nights when she hid in her bed while he hammered on the door, trying to get her to let him in. Of his hounding her to marry him. Of his harsh words where Max was concerned.
He answers the front door, beer in hand, sighing at the sight of me.
“Eric.”
“Adam. To what do I owe the pleasure?” He takes a sip of his beer, narrowing his eyes.
“I’m just here to let you know that Lily and Max will be moving out in a couple of weeks. You can have your land back.”
One of his eyebrows creeps up. “She’s leaving?”
“I just bought a house. She’ll be moving in with me.”
He smirks, and for the first time it registers just how glazed over his eyes are. That’s not his first beer. Is this one of those nights when he’d likely end up at her place, begging to be let in? “How long is that gonna last?”
I bite down my temper. Before I came, I knew I might have trouble keeping my cool. But he’s not worth it. Being with my family is. “I’m going to marry her, Eric.”
He sneers. “You’ll play happy families for a while, then disappear and leave her struggling again. I’m the one who’s been there for her, the one who wanted her when you didn’t.”
“You wanted her but without any strings attached. I want her, strings and all. Because her strings are my strings.”
Eric takes a step forward, but I stand my ground as we eye each other, Eric taking a swig from his beer.
“She’s mine. Always has been. Now she always will be.”
He shakes his head and takes a step back. “Whatever. You’re welcome to her. Her and that idiot kid of yours.”
I grit my teeth, fisting my hands, and it takes all my willpower to resist punching him. Instead, I turn and walk back toward the car.
Opening the door, I lean on it. “You know, Eric, the way I see it, Max is a hell of a lot smarter than you are.”
He rolls his eyes. “Why’s that?”
“He knew his mother wasn’t interested in you. It’s a shame you still don’t get i
t.”
At that, I get into the car, start it, and back down the driveway. Eric stands motionless. I smile at getting that last jibe in. Once we sort out the furniture, I’ll get Lily and Max out of that damn house and away from him.
In the morning, I go out to get supplies and return to find Lily on the deck with her arms crossed. She’s stone-faced as I exit the car and walk toward her.
“You okay?” I ask.
“What did you say to Eric?”
Damn. Caught.
“I told him you were coming with me. That’s all. Why?”
“He’s offered to buy the sheep.” The look in her eyes softens. I know how much all of this means to her, and I don’t want her to have to give up everything she’s worked for. Whatever it took, I’d have found some way for her to keep the flock if she wanted it.
“We’ll find somewhere else for them if that’s what you want. Maybe clear some of that bush behind the house.”
“Don’t you dare.”
I drop the grocery bags on the deck and hold my hands out, grasping her arms. “Then tell me what you want.”
“He offered me a really good price for them. More than I ever thought I’d get.” She’s torn. It’s written all over her face.
“Lily, you’ve worked so hard for everything. I’ll do whatever it takes to make you happy. If you want to sell the sheep, do it. If you want to keep them, we’ll find a way. All I want is to give our family a home. You, me, and Max.”
Lily sighs and wraps her arms around my waist. “I sold them.”
“You mean you made me go through that for nothing?”
She shrugs. “It was worth seeing you wriggle.” The smile on her lips as she raises her head is worth my previous discomfort.
“I’m sure it was. I’ll get you back tonight.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
I run my hands down her back until I reach her waist, and I grip her as she holds me. “It means I’ll make you wriggle in return.”
The flush that hits her cheeks is sweet and sexy. She has no idea what she does to me, never did.
“Where’s Max?”
“In the kitchen having a snack. Why?”