Birthright

by Fiona Lowe

  This time he was the one to drop his gaze and jiggle his tea bag. ‘Actually, I’m single.’

  Unforeseen delight collided with very predictable dread, causing her hand to shake. She steadied it by gripping the mug with both hands. ‘If you’re single, why did you risk all the heckling?’

  The tips of his ears glowed red and he took a moment to reply. ‘You know that movie where a guy builds a baseball diamond in his corn field?’

  ‘Build it and they will come?’

  ‘Yeah.’ He grinned. ‘I’m a born optimist.’

  She envied that life hadn’t stolen that from him. ‘But don’t those deals normally come with an expiry date?’

  He shrugged. ‘I’ve got a few months left and, worst case scenario, I can always mind Izzy for the weekend and give the voucher to Max and Claire.’

  This time she choked on her tea. ‘Are you sure you’re actually real? Next you’ll be telling me you like cooking, snuggling on the couch and watching BBC period dramas.’

  ‘I love to cook but I hate cleaning up. I’ve been told more than once that makes my cooking less of an endearing skill.’ His eyes twinkled. ‘As for BBC dramas, can you keep a secret?’

  You have no idea. ‘That depends,’ she said coolly, trying to douse the definite skitters of attraction spinning through her. It had been a very long time since they’d woven their magic and not only did she distrust them and their delicious feelings, she feared the chaos they brought.

  He pulled some rye bread sandwiches from his lunch box and offered them to her. ‘Cheese or corned beef?’ She accepted the cheese. ‘Once, I tried watching Pride and Prejudice to impress Brianna Thornton.’

  ‘Crikey? All five hours? I’m surprised you’re not still together.’

  ‘I lasted twenty-five minutes and got kicked off the couch for taking a crack at Mr Darcy.’

  She didn’t want to smile but she lacked the ability to keep her mouth in a firm line, especially when his baby-blue eyes twinkled with impish glee. ‘A wise man never trashes a woman’s book boyfriend.’

  ‘So I learned. I’ve avoided BBC dramas ever since.’ He bit into his sandwich and chewed thoughtfully. ‘What about you?’

  ‘Do I like a BBC drama?’

  ‘Are you single?’

  After all the banter, the direct question took her by surprise. ‘Ah. Yes.’

  ‘You don’t sound very certain. Are you and Noah’s father …?’

  ‘God, no. We were never together.’

  Luke’s brows shot to his hairline.

  ‘Okay, obviously, we came together once. It was—’ TMI! TMI! What are you doing?

  ‘You don’t have to tell me.’ Except the words were at odds with the curiosity on his handsome face.

  ‘I’m quite aware of that.’ She heard the cutting tone she’d perfected over the years waft into the air and join the tumbling yellow poplar leaves.

  ‘Right. Good to know.’ He pressed the lid back on the sandwich container with a brisk snap.

  The sound carried his pique and disappointment, and regret slapped her hard. Normally, she didn’t care if she was brusque and rude to a guy—it was her modus operandi to keep men at bay and it worked like a charm—but Luke had only ever been casually considerate. His solicitousness unnerved the hell out of her. Besides, the story of how Noah came to be was hardly a state secret. Lots of people knew it; just no one in her family. They’d never asked and she’d never offered.

  ‘I’m happy to tell you,’ she amended, a tad too late. The set of his mouth said, Don’t do me any favours, and she hurried on. ‘I’m sorry I sounded prickly, especially as you’ve shared this amazing sandwich—’

  ‘It’s the quince paste.’

  ‘What?’

  ‘The secret ingredient that lifts it out of the ordinary and puts it squarely into the realm of spectacular.’

  ‘Okay.’ Her heart picked up at his random chit-chat, flustering her. ‘Are you deliberately changing the topic?’

  ‘No.’ He shot her a wry smile. ‘Maybe. You know you can be a little bit scary sometimes, Ellie Jamieson.’

  Squads of butterflies swooped and tumbled in her stomach and she was back to being twelve again and watching Luke running backwards. You know I’m faster than you, Ellie Jamieson. ‘Are you sure you’re not just a little bit of a wimp, Luke Sorenson?’

  He sat up straight, his shoulders rolling back fast. ‘Hey, I’m the one who risked a bit of biffo confessing to knowing Disney lyrics in a town where sport rules, men are men and the arts are for city wankers.’

  ‘I take it back. You’re very brave.’

  ‘Damn straight.’ He refilled her mug. ‘So, Noah’s father?’

  ‘Is Dev Vichitrananda. He’s Thai.’ She settled into the story. ‘We worked in the same team for an NGO and we did a lot of work in the refugee camps close to the Thai/Myanmar border. Dev’s a friendly guy and was slightly bemused by my decision to work so far from home. He and his wife, Mali, adopted me, insisting I join them for any and all of their family celebrations. They’ve got three gorgeous daughters and I become an honorary aunt. We were nothing more than colleagues and friends but there was one occasion …’ She shivered as she always did when she talked about it. ‘We were on our way to visit a camp when floodwaters swept our four-wheel drive off a bridge.’

  ‘Shit.’ A deep V carved itself between Luke’s brows and his hand rose and hovered as if he was going to reach out and touch her. It fell back to his workwear-clad thigh.

  ‘Oh yeah.’ She sipped her tea, welcoming the warmth and staving off the thoughts of muddy, swirling water sucking at her and filling her mouth. ‘I still don’t know how we survived it. I guess the universe must have decided our time wasn’t up that day.’

  ‘I’m glad about that,’ Luke said softly.

  There was something more than just automatic sincerity in his words and with deadly stealth, they tried to wrap around her heart. She blocked them like she always did and focused on her story.

  ‘Somehow, we managed to get out of the car and out of the rapids. We grabbed overhanging tree branches, vines and each other. We slipped and slid our way to safety and hauled each other up the muddy bank. We were stranded, shocked and traumatised. We’d lost the vehicle and everything in it. Our shoes and hats were gone, Dev lost his shirt and my pants were shredded. By sheer luck we found a village and the headman put us up. It sounds clichéd but that night, the sex just happened. Some survival instinct, I s’pose. Neither of us was thinking straight and we didn’t have contraception but to be honest, it didn’t even cross my mind. That alone tells me how traumatised I was. We clung to each other to prove we’d fought death and won. Some sort of primal drive. I dunno, really.’

  An agonised look crossed his face. ‘I get it. It must have been terrifying.’

  She nodded slowly, appreciating his lack of judgement. ‘Of course, once we were safe and sound and back in Chiang Mai, I regretted it. Dev didn’t. He was keen to have an affair but I didn’t love him and I adored Mali. She’d only ever been kind to me and I didn’t want to do anything that would hurt her. Working with Dev got tricky but I could handle things in the office. When he started visiting my apartment with the expectation of sex, I knew what I had to do. The day after I resigned, I discovered I was pregnant with Noah.’

  ‘But you don’t regret him.’

  ‘God, no. He was an unexpected gift.’

  ‘So does Dev know about him?’

  ‘Yes. I send a yearly photo and letter via the office, which is all the contact he wants. It suits me.’

  ‘What about Noah?’

  She heard the jangle of judgement in his voice. ‘Noah knows he’s a special gift to me and that his father lives in Thailand with his family.’

  ‘Won’t that come back to bite you in the bum? The kid with the dad who doesn’t want him?’

  She crossed her arms defensively, glad to finally find a chink in Luke Sorenson’s apparently perfect armour and get her wayward body back
under control. ‘It’s not ideal, but even if I’d stayed in Thailand there was no guarantee of Dev being involved. If Noah gets to the point of asking to meet him, then we’ll cross that bridge. Meanwhile, Noah is growing up with plenty of love from me, thank you very much. Not everyone grows up with two parents. My father died when I was young and I—’ Her throat unexpectedly thickened, blocking the words, turned out all right. Not for the first time, she wondered if things would have been different had her father lived. She knew the statistics proved there were no guarantees.

  ‘Sorry, Ellie. That was out of line.’ He linked his fingers and stared down at them. ‘It’s just I’m a big brother and—’

  ‘Are you?’ She thought about what Graeme said to her. ‘I thought you were the youngest.’

  ‘I’m the middle kid. What I meant was, for the last few years I’ve volunteered in the Big Brother program.’

  ‘Of course you have,’ she muttered, concentrating on reining in the traitorous bubbling attraction that fizzed seductively inside her. Reminding herself sternly of the times she’d given in to lust and how it never ended well. Fighting the voice in her head that was gleefully singing, It’s okay to like him. This guy’s different.

  Only they were never different.

  ‘Anyway,’ Luke continued, ‘it’s made me overly sensitive for kids who have parents who don’t want to know them.’

  ‘Yes, well, you don’t need to worry about Noah. He and I are just fine.’

  ‘Having extended family helps. I loved growing up with my cousins, and my bachelor uncle used to let me get away with stuff Mum and Dad never allowed.’

  ‘Hmm,’ she responded neutrally, not wanting the conversation to head down the path of the joys of family. She jumped to her feet. ‘Thanks for the tea and lunch, but I better get going. Work waits for no woman and all that.’

  Have you lost your mind? What are you saying?

  But Luke wasn’t looking at her as if she was crazy—he was just giving her his usual friendly smile. ‘Do you need a hand moving?’

  ‘I haven’t found a place yet.’ She read surprise and concern on his face and pre-empted him. ‘Please don’t tell me I’m cutting things fine.’

  He held up his hands in a gesture of surrender. ‘I wouldn’t dare but when you find somewhere, give me a shout. I can borrow Max’s van and save you some bucks.’

  It will put you in his debt. Ellie didn’t want to take him up on the offer but she thought about her meagre savings; money she’d earmarked for a promised theme-park holiday for Noah. Professional removalists would decimate the tiny nest egg and those plans, and she didn’t want to disappoint her little boy. Perhaps she could counter the debt with one of her own. But what? She wracked her brains. Build it and they will come. The voucher for the B&B in Rutherglen represented the relationship Luke was seeking.

  There was a new English language teacher at the neighbourhood house who was single, actively looking for the man of her dreams and getting RSI from swiping left on her phone. Luke ticked most boxes on Cassie’s wish list; they’d be a perfect match. When moving time came, she’d invite Cassie to help. There was nothing like bonding over lugging boxes and wrangling a fridge.

  And when Luke’s no longer single, you won’t have to worry about those zips of attraction that terrify you so much.

  She didn’t realise she was grinning widely until Luke said, ‘Is that a yes to helping you move?’

  ‘It is.’

  ‘Good.’ He gathered the picnic gear, walked to his ute and stowed it away. ‘See ya around, Ellie Jamieson.’

  ‘See ya.’ As she watched him drive away, she couldn’t help wondering what deeply hidden character flaw kept him single in a district where women lamented the lack of eligible men without ex-wives or children.

  CHAPTER

  10

  ‘Sarah’s a bloody drama queen,’ Cameron grumbled as he stomped through the back door.

  ‘Hello, darling.’ Anita jumped up and kissed him. She’d been surfing through photos of decadent and indulgent high teas, gathering ideas for her bookings. The big girls would be home soon on winter school holidays and they were keen to dress up in period black and white maids’ uniforms.

  Just like on Downton Abbey, Mum, Ruby texted.

  ‘I can play my cello,’ Phoebe offered over the phone.

  Anita had accepted, knowing the cello would make the high tea even more appealing. She’d already filled two dates and was hoping to run four during the school holidays when Mingunyah overflowed with tourists.

  ‘According to Sarah,’ Anita said, ‘it’s Ellie’s who’s the drama queen. Apparently, she’s taken self-obsessed to new heights. She bolted from Mill House the moment Sarah arrived, refusing to stay five minutes, let alone lunch.’

  ‘I told Sarah there was no point asking her and I was right. As always, Ellie’s put the wind up Mum and upset her enough to plonk her back in hospital. Talk about the daughter from hell.’ He sat down. ‘Man, I’m starving.’

  Anita pulled Cameron’s dinner from the warming drawer. ‘How’s Margaret?’

  ‘Sitting up like Lady Muck and tucking in to dinner. The hospital’s keeping her in for observation overnight. The doc wants her to have a scan tomorrow and see a specialist. You know doctors. I bet he’s just covering his arse.’

  ‘She’ll have to go to Melbourne for a scan.’ Anita slid the plate onto the cork-backed placemat and poured each of them a glass of wine. ‘I guess Sarah will drive her.’

  ‘I’m going to take her.’

  ‘Are you sure you can spare the time?’

  ‘It will kill two birds with one stone. I need to see Rupert about that tax issue anyway, and Mum’s not happy with Dan Horton. I’ve made her an appointment to talk to Rupert before the scan so she can get an unbiased opinion on her finances.’

  ‘Have you seen her will yet?’

  ‘No.’ He grimaced. ‘The other day she got so cross with bland Dan, she left before I could broach the topic.’

  ‘But you’ve got power of attorney. Can’t you just demand Dan show it to you?’

  ‘Maybe. But I know Dan and he’s just as likely to tell Sarah.’

  ‘Why would that be a problem?’

  Cameron gave her an indulgent look. ‘Because Sarah’s got a bee in her bonnet about wills and personal finances being private. I know she’s my sister and your friend but I can live without the inevitable rant that will come my way if she finds out I want to look at it.’

  ‘Sarah’s forgotten what it’s like to live on a budget.’ Anita took a sip of her wine. ‘We’ve got the girls’ education to think about. We deserve to make some plans for our future. I know it’s totally Margaret’s right to leave Mill House to whoever she wishes, but I don’t want to build the business around it only to discover it’s not going to be ours. That would be soul destroying.’ She sighed. ‘I’d really like to know her plans for the house.’

  ‘Exactly. I’m pretty certain it’s all going to work in our favour, because she’s letting you use the house for the business.’

  ‘I hope so.’ But Anita had learned the hard way that nothing in life was guaranteed. ‘I’d still like to know either way. Are you certain your mother doesn’t have a copy of her will in one of those filing cabinets in the office? I could look through them tomorrow when you and Margaret are in Melbourne.’

  He kissed her. ‘I like the way you think.’

  * * *

  After Alex’s bombshell, Sarah should have known that life can change direction without notice and been prepared. Perhaps, she reflected, it was the human condition not to dwell on possible disasters but to face the day with the belief that all would be well, otherwise no one would get up in the morning. Today had put paid to that ideology. First there was her mother’s accident and then Ellie’s bizarre behaviour at Mill House. Despite her aggravated disappointment in her sister, she had reluctantly heeded Ellie’s text and returned their mother to hospital. The staff didn’t seem unduly concerned and Mar
garet was lapping up all the attention, but given Sarah’s recent experiences, she was struggling to feel positive about much at all. She’d rung Edmund from the hospital to cancel dinner.

  ‘Your mother’s in good hands, yes?’

  ‘Yes, the staff are great and her doctor’s running every test under the sun.’

  ‘Surely, then, you are allowed a couple of hours off? I think you need to forget about everyone. Come to dinner and just be yourself.’

  She’d caved to the care in his voice and driven to Protea. Strung out and anxious, she’d stepped into the beautifully appointed restaurant, accepted a glass of Mt Morag Chardonnay and a Freycinet oyster with finger lime roe and lemon foam, and immediately relaxed.

  ‘You have the best staff, Edmund,’ she told him as they ate, seated at the end of the long table with a view out onto the street. ‘They’re fun, entertaining and passionate about food.’

  ‘Being passionate about food is my one non-negotiable when hiring. They can learn the finer art of waiting on the job.’

  ‘It’s paid off. It’s obvious they adore you.’

  ‘I learned from the best.’

  ‘Stefan?’ Before opening Protea, Edmund spent a summer working with the famous chef.

  Edmund shot her a rueful smile. ‘Stefan is brilliant with food but not so brilliant with staff. I was talking about you.’

  ‘Me?’ Pleasure fluttered in her chest.

  ‘Why so surprised? I had no cheese-making skills and you took me on when I needed a job.’

  She laughed lightly, remembering those heady days when sheer exhilaration mixed with gut-churning dread. ‘When you turned up looking for work, we were so tired and desperate I probably would have hired you even if you’d said you hated cheese.’

  ‘I doubt that. You have great people skills. You find their passion and match it to the job.’

  ‘It’s a shame I didn’t know Kelly’s passion was Alex.’

  Edmund’s fingertips brushed the back of her hand. ‘Tonight is about taking a break from all of that.’