Two cows headed into the round pen but at the last minute Hercules baulked. He threw himself at the side fence in an attempt to jump over. Steel rattled and dust tainted the air. Saul’s chest pounded. Logic told him that he’d planned the yards with the utmost detail. Hercules would not breach the fence. But his fear argued if he did, he’d be in the same yard as Ella. He hadn’t processed that he’d moved to the fence ready to scale the steel until he felt the solidity of metal beneath his hand.
The cows behind Hercules moved forwards, encouraging the bull to walk through with them. Saul followed and slid the race doors shut at regular intervals to prevent the bison from moving backwards. He then walked along the chute opening the side panels to let the bison cows out. There was no mistaking which portion of the race Hercules occupied. Metal rattled as he bucked and kicked. Saul opened the sliding gates to allow the bull to charge forwards. When the bull’s feet scuffed the rubber floor of the end chute he caught the bison’s head in the headgate and body in the hydraulic squeeze.
Saul moved to swing open the crash gate to allow Ella access to Hercules’s head. The harsh rasp of Hercules’s breathing was the only sound as Ella joined him. She gave Saul the briefest of glances before opening the drop-down side panel to administer a sedative into the bison bull’s tail.
She’d just finished when Hercules shifted and went to kick out. Even though Ella’s hand was halfway out of the chute, the bull trapped her fingers between his bulk and the metal. Saul moved quickly. He used his body weight to push against the bison so Ella could slip her fingers free.
He spun around, his hand reaching for her waist while his other one cupped her elbow as she held her fingers flat. For a moment her pain-darkened eyes met this and she swayed towards him. Then she stiffened, took a step back and shook her fingers.
‘I haven’t jammed my fingers since I was a kid. That will teach me to be so slow.’
Saul didn’t reply, just studied her. There was a tightness to her mouth that if he was a betting man he’d say wasn’t caused by pain.
She bent to collect the syringe that had fallen at her feet and he lost sight of her expression. ‘Let’s get Hercules sorted and out of here. Did you notice anything wrong with him before he had trouble breathing?’
‘Nothing. The drooling and coughing started no more than an hour ago.’
Ella bent to examine the bison’s mouth and nose. The sedative had quietened Hercules’s agitation, but Ella’s movements remained efficient and methodical.
She opened the bison’s mouth. ‘Okay, Hercules, let’s see if you’ve got anything stuck in here. Fingers crossed if you have, it’s in your throat and not your oesophagus.’
Saul folded his arms to hide the unsteadiness of his hands. Ella appeared to not have suffered any serious harm but he hadn’t recovered so quickly. His temples hammered as his blood pressure refused to subside. He’d seen enough ranch hands with digits missing thanks to farm accidents. Seeing Ella’s fingers caught in the chute reawakened the cold fear he’d felt the day the young bison had attempted to kick her.
He uncrossed his arm to ruffle Duke’s head as he leaned against his legs.
Ella carefully pulled her gloved hand from out of Hercules’s mouth and held up a dark chunk of wood. The bull now breathed normally. ‘As far as foreign objects go, this would never have fit down Hercules’s throat.’
She checked inside Hercules’s mouth again before straightening to remove her glove. ‘As soon as the sedative wears off he’ll be back to his usual charming self.’
Saul released Hercules. The bull charged out of the chute and then, movements stiff and slow, made his way over to where the cows stood in the adjacent yard.
When Saul turned, Ella had already collected the items she’d used.
‘How’s the hand?’ he asked, wishing her cap brim wasn’t quite so low so he could see her eyes.
‘All good.’ She gave Duke a pat. ‘I’d better head back. I think every dog in Woodlea has been booked in to see me today.’
He slid his hands deep into his jeans pockets. He had to respect she had a busy day even if he wanted to keep her talking. He accompanied her over to the vet ute.
After she’d closed the back canopy she looked across at him. ‘See you Saturday?’
‘You will.’
He hoped his reply didn’t sound hoarse. She might be standing beside him but she suddenly seemed so far away. His fingers ached to slide through the heavy silk of her hair and his skin yearned for the warmth of her touch.
He glanced at her hand. ‘Stay away from cranky bison for the rest of the day.’
‘That’s a given.’
Long after the dust had settled he stared down the driveway. Duke sat silent beside him, also looking in the direction Ella had taken. Today she’d been in professional mode. He wouldn’t have expected anything less. Yet again she’d dealt with a bison emergency with a competence and expertise that he was grateful for. Hercules had been an intimidating and unpredictable patient and even after her hand had been trapped, she hadn’t lost her composure.
His jaw locked. But he had. There was no reason why Ella treating him as a client and as a friend should leave him feeling uneasy and hollow. There was no justification for the restlessness that left him feeling as though something he didn’t even know he was searching for had slipped out of reach.
CHAPTER
14
‘To past memories and the creation of new ones,’ Fliss said, making a toast with her champagne flute filled with sparkling water.
As glasses clinked, contentment relaxed Ella far more than any bottle of bubbly. She’d missed the feeling of female camaraderie. In the bedrooms of her small house in town they’d donned ball gowns and race-day outfits, drunk champagne and dipped strawberries in chocolate. Now her friends were in her new home and dressed in western shirts, jeans and their best boots for the beer night and bush dance.
She touched glasses with Cressy who too was drinking sparkling water. For the next charity ball in spring there would be a tiny addition to their close-knit group.
Ella turned to clink glasses with Neve and Sibylla and then with Freya and Bethany. The past year had brought precious new friendships and already new memories were being made. She pushed aside the thought that apart from Taylor, who technically wasn’t single, she was the only one there tonight who remained on her own.
Taylor raised her crystal flute filled with champagne. She wasn’t on designated driver duty. ‘To Ella having many more get-togethers here.’
Glasses again clinked and smiles shared.
‘Does anyone know what time the boys are supposed to be getting there?’ Neve asked as she dipped a cracker in homemade pesto. ‘Tanner was very vague.’
The boys were all at the Royal Arms and those not driving were catching a shuttle bus to the showground.
Sibylla smiled. ‘I bet he was. They make me laugh. As if we don’t know they think dancing ranks right up there with trying on wedding suits.’
Freya, the teacher from the Reedy Creek school, nodded. ‘Drew wouldn’t give me a time, either. I’m sure they think they can quietly slip into the crowd and we won’t know they’re there.’
‘Don’t worry,’ Bethany said, words merry. ‘I have a plan that will guarantee the boys will get on the dancefloor.’
Ella smiled. ‘I wonder who that sounds like?’
‘My mother … but she actually is my plan.’
Fliss laughed. ‘I like it already.’
‘Whatever it is, it’s brilliant.’ Taylor lifted her glass in a salute to Bethany.
‘It’s simple really,’ Bethany said, looking around the room. ‘The boys can either dance with us … or my mother.’
Cressy’s eyes rounded. ‘Edna dances?’
Bethany nodded. ‘That’s how she met my dad.’
Taylor shook her head. ‘You learn something new every day.’
Bethany’s smile widened. ‘The boys are all too well-mannered to say no when
Mum asks them to dance.’
Fliss refilled her sparkling water. ‘I’d love to see their faces.’
Sibylla giggled. ‘Tanner will be beside himself. He still swears Edna has a GPS tracker on his ute as she always knows when he’s in town.’
Ella took a sip of her sparkling water and checked the phone sitting on the arm of her red chair. There would be no champagne for her even if she wasn’t anyone’s designated driver. She was the on-call weekend vet.
Her attention lingered on the blank screen as laughter swirled around her. She could add to the conversation about the boys all secretly being a little terrified of Edna. Saul also would be too polite to refuse Edna’s request to dance even if he felt that she scrutinised his every move. A tug of loneliness detracted from her happiness. Even though she’d seen him when she’d treated Hercules, the depth with which she missed him had intensified this past week.
As much as her self-preservation argued she was doing the right thing by keeping things low-key between them, she hadn’t been able to stop staring at his farmhouse when she switched on the veranda light or avoid the memory of Saul holding her like she belonged in his arms. She might now be free from Charles, but she was far from at peace. As illogical as it seemed, the only time she truly felt whole was when around Saul.
Feeling eyes on her, she looked up and caught both Fliss and Cressy studying her. She gave her best smile before she came to her feet and reached for the cheese platter to pass around. ‘Eat up. We’d better get going otherwise the boys will beat us there.’
When she took the empty glasses into the kitchen, she didn’t miss Fliss and Cressy sharing a look before Cressy followed her. Ella mentally braced herself. She was now comfortable talking about Charles but when she did she wanted to have her feelings for Saul under control as otherwise Cressy would sense she wasn’t as settled as she should be.
Except as Cressy busied herself with wiping down the kitchen bench their chatter revolved around nursery colour schemes. It wasn’t until Cressy turned to face her that Ella knew their conversation was about to turn serious.
‘You look beautiful tonight and it’s not just the way you’ve blow-dried your hair.’ Cressy blinked as she paused. ‘I’ll keep this short as these pregnancy hormones make me so emotional I’ll only end up crying. Something’s changed with you and Fliss and I were worried it wasn’t for the better, but now we hope it is.’
Ella concentrated on nodding and not glancing out the kitchen window in the direction of the boundary fence. ‘Yes, something’s changed. The jury’s still out though on whether it’s for the better.’
‘If this helps, I was going to tell you when you were over for lunch, but a certain person passed the Reggie test. In fact it wasn’t even a test. Reggie walked over to Saul even when he didn’t have any carrots. Denham’s still shaking his head that Reggie never accepted him so readily. As for how long Reggie took to accept carrots from Tanner …’
Cressy’s message was clear that not only did Saul have Reggie’s approval, he also had hers and Fliss’s. ‘A certain person … inspires trust. It’s just that while things may have changed for me … they haven’t for him.’
A smile brought out the green in Cressy’s hazel eyes. ‘Denham suspects they have.’
Ella couldn’t stem the telltale heat flooding her cheeks. The urgency and possessiveness in Saul’s touch had communicated he hadn’t exactly been thinking about his ex-wife when kissing Ella. ‘Suspecting is good … but to be honest it’s not really enough … for both of us.’
‘It wouldn’t be.’ Cressy moved forward to give her a hug. ‘But it’s a start.’
Cressy’s words echoed in Ella’s head as the group drove in convoy to the showground on the other side of town. As much as a part of her wished Saul might see her as something more than a friend, the pain that continued to etch grooves beside his mouth said he was still a long way off being ready for anything more than what they had.
Ahead of her the brake lights on Fliss’s four-wheel drive flashed red as she slowed to enter the venue for the beer night and bush dance. Once through the showground gates, Ella turned to her right to park near the exit so she would have no trouble leaving should there be an animal emergency. Here in town, she’d be closer to the vet surgery than if she’d been at home.
By the time she’d walked through the car park to join the others, red dust coated her boots and the overhead sky appeared as though it had been painted in pinks and gold by a gentle hand. It wouldn’t be long before the outdoor lights draped between the gum trees emitted a cheerful glow.
To the left of the corrugated iron show pavilion the flags and banners of independent breweries and cider makers flapped in the breeze. So far the only noise was of the crowd but soon the bush band would crank up in the pavilion. Her gaze swept over the clusters of men holding their plastic cups filled with beer or cider. Not that much of the male-dominated crowd would be keen to head inside.
She waved as she caught sight of Sophie with a group of other teenage cowgirls who hovered outside the pavilion entrance. All held water bottles while they ate small tubs of ice cream. Sophie cast her a bright grin. At least someone had come for the bush dance.
Ella scanned the crowd. She was almost certain Saul and the others weren’t there. Then, she caught sight of a familiar dark head and pair of broad shoulders. The boys had arrived and had tucked themselves away at the far corner of the beer stalls.
Ella met up with Fliss, Cressy and Bethany outside a food van that filled the air with the aroma of spiced meat. Taylor and Neve were already in the line queuing for nachos and burritos. When a fiddle sounded from within the pavilion, cheers sounded. All around Ella men remained silent and seemed to stand in a closer huddle.
‘Girls … there you are.’ Edna’s exuberant voice called above the music.
She bustled over from where she’d been talking to Mrs Knox. Instead of her usual tailored town clothes, Edna wore a long denim skirt, a white linen shirt with her pearls and a fancy pair of hand-stitched red boots.
Bethany whispered to Ella. ‘I didn’t know Mum owned a pair of boots.’
Edna air-kissed everyone and when it was Ella’s turn she also squeezed her arm. ‘I know you’re working but remember to have some fun.’
The older woman surveyed the group. ‘Right. Let’s get these men of yours onto the dancefloor. Once they go, others will follow.’
She marched through the crowd.
Cressy grinned. ‘I’ve got to see this.’
They followed Edna and then stopped a discreet distance away, keeping a group of men between them and where Denham, Tanner, Finn and Saul stood. Except when Ella glanced across at Saul he’d half turned and looked straight at her. For a moment their eyes held. When he smiled Ella couldn’t stop a flare of happiness or her own smile.
By now Edna had reached the boys. Neve laughed as they exchanged alarmed looks. Edna’s exact words were indistinguishable but when she spoke to Denham his expression of horror caused Cressy to grin. ‘This is priceless. Look … he’s looking around so he can say he’s about to head inside with me.’
Cressy walked over and the relief on Denham’s face as he put his arm around her shoulders and headed to the pavilion was indeed priceless.
Edna only had to turn to Tanner and he strode away in search of Neve. The group quickly disbanded as the others followed to find partners so they wouldn’t have to dance with Edna.
With a satisfied smile, Edna went to stand beside Noel as he talked to Clive and old Will.
Ella didn’t realise Saul stood behind her until she heard his amused words. ‘Well played.’
Ella turned, her heart light. Saul seeking her out shouldn’t make her feel so happy. ‘Who knew that dancing with Edna would prove so terrifying?’
‘For the record, I would have danced with her.’
The laughter in Saul’s eyes made it hard to keep her breathing even. ‘That’s what they’ll all be saying tomorrow to save face.’
Without hesitation, she curled her hand around the muscled strength of his forearm. Tonight he wore a crisp blue-and-white checked shirt she hadn’t seen before. She breathed in his fresh woody scent as she strolled beside him. She kept her hand in place until they neared the historic pavilion. When she lowered her arm she didn’t miss Saul’s sideways glance.
The once quiet pavilion pulsed with energy and life. Round white lanterns hung from wooden beams, casting light over the musicians who filled the makeshift stage and the groups of dancers. Boots thumped on the wooden floor and hands clapped as couples wove in and out amongst each other.
Ella swallowed as her feet dragged. The reality was that in avoiding Joe she had literally put herself in Saul’s hands. It had been years since she’d been bush dancing and she’d forgotten how tactile it was. Penny gave her a broad smile from where she linked arms with a young man Ella didn’t recognise.
Fliss and Hewitt moved to create a space between them and Cressy and Denham. Ella had no choice but to follow Saul and to take her place next to him. To her relief the music stopped. Keeping her head high, she told herself to smile and that she’d only be in his arms for a few minutes before she moved on to her next partner.
Then the bush band started to play again and she realised it was a swing waltz that was a set dance and didn’t require any partner swapping. If Saul was uncomfortable at their close proximity, it didn’t show as he took her hands and guided her through the directions called over the microphone. He caught her eye and when he gave her a quick smile, she forced herself to relax.
The joy on the faces around her proved infectious. The stress associated with the lack of rain seemed to have lifted, giving people a brief respite. Laughter merged with the upbeat tempo of the music. Even the boys, as much as they’d resisted the idea of dancing, were enjoying themselves. Hewitt grinned while whatever Denham said to Cressy caused her to laugh so much she missed a step.
The Boundary Fence (A Woodlea Novel, #7) Page 21