Second Chance Family, page 15
‘You can’t really go wrong with jeans and a casual T-shirt or blouse,’ Callie suggested, hoping they wouldn’t opt for their frayed denim shorts that showed rather a lot of thigh.
Fortunately, the girls took her advice, although their favourite jeans were so fashionably distressed with rips and tears, there was still plenty of bare leg showing.
Callie decided to drive to the Ashtons’ place even though it was within easy walking distance. The girls had taken so long getting ready, they were in danger of being late. But having the vehicle would also facilitate a hasty exit, if necessary. Of course, Callie knew she was being overly cautious, like a protective mother hen. The Ashtons were almost certainly perfectly nice, friendly neighbours, but she was still feeling her way in this new territory.
Their house was a similar age to the Hawkridge home, although bigger and in better condition, with a freshly painted exterior and a well-tended garden.
Rose greeted them warmly at the front door and River was close behind in the hallway, smiling at them over his mother’s shoulder. He was dressed in typical farm-boy jeans and a chequered shirt. He was also rather good looking, tall and broad shouldered, with dark, curly hair like his mother’s and a disarming smile.
Hmmm. Callie deliberately avoided checking her daughters’ initial reactions, but they were shy as the introductions were made, which no doubt meant they were super impressed. Joey, however, was his usual innocent, outgoing self.
‘Are you a real cowboy?’ he asked River, straight off the bat.
Callie winced, while the girls groaned.
Fortunately, River merely laughed. ‘I suspect I’d only qualify as a part-time cowboy. It’s school holidays now, so I’ve been helping my dad with fencing and shifting cattle around.’
The response earned him a mental tick of approval from Callie, and she decided to consciously relax.
Rose led them to a back verandah that offered stunning views similar to those at Hawkridge.
‘Take a seat,’ she said, indicating a long table covered with a pretty floral cloth and set with cups, saucers and tumblers, as well as small plates and a jug of fruit juice. ‘And I’ll be back in a moment. Do you prefer tea or coffee, Callie?’
‘Tea, please. Can we help with anything?’
Rose seemed to consider this for a moment, but then thanked Callie and added, ‘There are only a couple of plates to come out and River will help.’
In no time they were enjoying the simple, old-fashioned style of afternoon tea that Nora liked to serve, but which Callie never usually had time for. Cups of piping hot tea for the adults, poured from a teapot complete with a cosy. Sparkling apple juice for the youngsters. Delicious scones, which Rose confessed were not homemade, but came from the bakery in Burralea, as well as a lovely blueberry and lemon cake that she had made herself.
The conversation was easy and comfortable. Rose asked them about their impressions of Hawkridge so far and how long they planned to stay. The girls mentioned the work they’d started on their bedrooms and answered politely interested questions about their colour schemes. Rose commented on the great job Ben was doing on the farm and what a wonderful support he’d been for Sandy.
They learned that River was one year ahead of the girls at school, so he was heading into Year Eleven at the end of these holidays. His favourite subjects were maths and science, which impressed Jenna and Grace, who both found maths a challenge, as had Callie, so she hadn’t been much help to them.
‘Ben’s really good at maths,’ River commented. ‘And it makes sense seeing as he worked in a bank.’
‘In a bank?’ asked Jenna. ‘We didn’t know that about Ben, did we, Mum?’
Gulp. Callie knew very little about Ben’s background. They’d kept their conversations focused squarely on Hawkridge, which, for reasons that weren’t easy to explain, had seemed safe and sensible. ‘Well, yes, he’s mentioned the bank in passing,’ she lied.
Luckily, River promptly changed the subject. ‘We have a new baby calf just born this morning. Would you like to see him?’
Joey, who was just finishing his third massive helping of scone piled with strawberry jam and cream, yelled with his mouth full, ‘Yes, please!’
The girls were just as eager with cries of ‘Absolutely!’ and ‘Yay!’
Callie would have been more than happy to have accompanied the others to see a newborn calf, but Rose didn’t suggest this. Instead, the two women remained behind and Rose poured them second cups.
‘You have a lovely family,’ she said as she handed Callie her tea.
‘Thank you.’
‘I understand twins can be a handful, so I’d say you’ve done well.’
‘Oh, they have their moments.’ Callie toyed with the idea of telling Rose about the girls’ hair, then decided it was too soon. ‘You must be very proud of River,’ she said.
Rose gave a smiling nod. ‘He’s a good kid.’
‘Is he an only child?’
‘Oh, no. His older brother, Daniel, is away at university in Canberra. He and a mate are on their way home now, actually, driving up the back roads and exploring a bit on the way, but they’ll be home for Christmas.’
‘That sounds like fun. I drove north from Brisbane when I was a similar age.’
Rose smiled.
‘That was also when I met my husband. In Townsville.’
‘How lovely,’ Rose said, but then her expression softened with sympathy. ‘I was very sorry to hear that your husband died.’
‘Yes.’ Callie gave a small nod, but she felt a bit wobbly, as usually happened when Mitch’s death was mentioned.
But then Rose rescued the moment by saying, ‘Looks like you and your children are all settling in rather well at Hawkridge.’
‘We’re certainly enjoying our stay,’ Callie agreed. ‘But I’m not sure that “settling” is quite the right word, seeing we’re only here for a few weeks.’
‘So you’re still planning to sell?’
This question was unexpected and Callie couldn’t help wondering if the Ashtons were potential buyers. Was Rose fishing?
But then, before she could think of an appropriate reply, the other woman said quickly. ‘I’m sorry. That was so rude of me. Your plans are none of my business.’
‘It’s okay,’ Callie assured her, appreciating that this was new ground for both of them. ‘And our plans are no secret. The idea is to sell next July. I’m sure Ben will be keen to have everything sorted then. He’s already had to stay on longer than he’d planned.’
‘You think so?’ Now Rose looked quite noticeably surprised. ‘Ben certainly hasn’t complained about having to stay on, and he’s been doing an amazing job.’
‘Well, yes, we’re so lucky that he’s here. I really appreciate it.’
Rose added in a confiding tone, ‘He put in quite a big effort to learn as much as he could from Sandy. It meant so much to the old fellow that Ben was keen to keep up his regenerative farming practices.’
‘Oh?’ What on earth did regenerative farming involve?
It was such a sobering moment for Callie, to have no idea what Rose was talking about. And now she wondered why she hadn’t asked Ben more questions about his farming responsibilities. Just showed what a self-centred city chick she must be – too busy worrying about the colour of a few walls.
‘That sounds really interesting,’ she said, hoping she didn’t come across as too clueless. ‘So . . . does this regenerative farming involve much extra work?’
‘I’d say it’s different work rather than extra. Mostly it’s about looking after the soil and not relying on pesticides and fertiliser. Mind you, it’s still a fairly new trend, but it’s becoming more widely recognised.’
‘I suppose with all the worry about climate change, anything that helps the planet is important.’
‘Exactly,’ Rose said with a pleased nod. ‘And as far as Hawkridge and our property are concerned, it’s mostly about dividing the land up into smaller paddocks and moving the cattle around more frequently. That way we can let the paddocks rest and recover naturally without having to fertilise or replant pasture.’
‘That makes so much sense. And Sandy was into this too?’
‘He was, yes. A few years back, Doug, my husband, and Sandy went off and did a course together. Now Doug’s totally embraced the whole regenerative mindset.’
‘And Ben’s following this strategy as well?’
‘Yep. Doug and Ben have often helped each other when it’s time to shift cattle.’
‘Right. Sounds like a great plan.’ Sandy had obviously made a wise choice when he’d left Hawkridge to Ben.
Whereas I was a total gamble.
As Callie finished her tea and set the cup back in its saucer, she looked again at the view – at the beauty of a pale sky filled with soft clouds, at velvety hillsides dotted with cattle, at trees where goshawks roosted, and creeks where platypuses swam and found food, at the banks where they built their tunnels and nests.
This place was so rich in natural wonder, and she couldn’t help thinking how very narrow her focus had been when she’d brought her family here. She’d been concentrating on house renovations and encouraging her girls to do the same, while outside there was this beautiful environment waiting to be explored.
Farm life and the stunning outdoors offered so much to learn and enjoy. And now she also couldn’t help wondering if this bigger picture was what Sandy had hoped his grandchildren might discover?
Unfortunately, now that they’d started on the bedrooms, they should keep going. Finishing jobs once started was also an important life lesson for her girls. It was about finding a balance, wasn’t it?
Watching her, Rose asked, ‘So what’s your line of work, Callie?’
‘I’m a photographer.’
‘A professional photographer? Wow. So you use the proper cameras with all those different lenses and settings and everything?’
Callie chuckled. ‘I do, yes. Although I’ll admit the new phones have brilliant cameras.’
‘I’m sure they’ll never be quite the same. Professional photography’s quite a mix of art and science really, isn’t it?’
‘That’s true. With a little psychology thrown in,’ Callie added, thinking of some of her trickier clients. ‘But while I’m up here, I really need to capture more of the beautiful scenery.’
Just then, the four kids came climbing the stairs to the verandah, all bright eyes and wide smiles, as they hurried to tell her about all the wonders they’d discovered.
Grace got in first. ‘The calf’s gorgeous, Mum. You should see him. He was only born this morning and he can already stand up and skip around and drink from his mother.’
‘Wow. How clever is that?’
‘It’s the same milk we drink in bottles,’ said Joey, as if he was quite surprised by this discovery. And then his eyes grew even wider with excitement. ‘And there’s puppies too.’
‘Blue heelers,’ cut in Jenna. ‘Like Bluey’s family on TV.’
‘Except the puppies are only two weeks old,’ added Joey knowledgeably. ‘So they’re still all white with just little marks on their heads and tails.’
‘But then, River says they’ll probably end up being different colours,’ added Grace.
‘Like Bluey and Bingo,’ said Joey.
‘Like me and Grace,’ responded Jenna with a cheeky grin.
‘And River says he’s going to let me name one of the puppies.’ Joey’s eyes were almost popping as he shared this last bit of news.
‘Goodness, you have had an exciting time.’ Callie sent a smiling thumbs up to River, who was standing quietly in the background but clearly delighted that the animal viewings had been such a hit.
And now Callie was pleased she’d brought the car, but for the rather different reason that she might have a difficult time dragging her kids away.
‘I think it’s time we headed back,’ she said. ‘But first, how about you girls help to clear this table?’
‘Sure.’
Rose beamed at them. ‘That would be lovely, thanks. River, show the girls the way to the kitchen.’
It was rather gratifying to watch Jenna and Grace complete this task carefully and efficiently. Then, accompanied by several shouts of ‘Thank you’ and ‘See you later’, Callie somehow shepherded her family out to the car without too many delays.
The talking didn’t stop as they headed back down the track.
‘River was telling us about a lake here,’ said Jenna.
‘Yes, it used to be a volcanic crater,’ added Grace. ‘And he says we have to go swimming there. It’s amazing.’
‘And there’s a little theatre in Burralea,’ Jenna said next. ‘They’re putting on a Christmas pantomime and some of River’s friends are going to be in it. We have to go see it, Mum.’
‘And the Ashtons have put up their Christmas tree,’ added Joey.
‘Yes,’ replied Callie, finally getting a word in. ‘We’ll have to get our Christmas tree up soon too, won’t we?’
‘And they have a dishwasher,’ said Grace.
Callie laughed. ‘Well, I’m afraid we won’t be getting one of those any time soon.’
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
Nora was excited to receive a text message from Callie suggesting they FaceTime, but she was also nervous. While she was used to her grandkids going away at Christmas to stay with Callie’s parents, it was going to be so different seeing them in Sandy Findlay’s home. Would she be able to keep her emotions in check?
The photos of Hawkridge that Callie had sent were breathtakingly beautiful, and no doubt the whole family were falling in love with the place. Lucky them. Come on, chin up, Nora.
For the call, Nora and Keith sat on a sofa in the loungeroom, carefully positioning themselves so their pretty Christmas tree and flashing lights were in view. Nora set her phone elevated on a pile of books on the coffee table, then reached for Keith’s hand.
He gave her a comforting squeeze.
Okay. Deep breath. They were ready.
It was only a matter of seconds later when Callie and her kids appeared on the phone’s screen. They were also in a loungeroom with a Christmas tree in their background – a real tree by the looks of it – and all of them were grinning and waving and calling, ‘Hey, Grandma. Hey, Grandpa.’
Bless them.
And so a happy exchange began. Nora waved and sent kisses, and thanked Callie for the amazing photos she’d sent, and Grace asked Nora if she could send her special potato salad recipe, as she wanted to impress Ben with it next time he came to dinner.
Then there was a rather shambolic period with different kids grabbing the phone to excitedly take Nora and Keith on a visual tour. They were shown slightly lopsided views of Jenna’s newly painted bedroom and Grace’s partially painted one, then the Christmas tree, with Joey taking the phone in close to the trunk and upside down to show them that the tree definitely was real.
‘Ben cut a branch off this ginormous pine tree with his chainsaw,’ he said, as he managed to get his face back into a corner of the screen. ‘He didn’t want to cut down a whole tree, but look how big this branch is. Oh, and Mummy, can I show Grandma and Grandpa my ant farm?’
Somewhere in the background, Callie could be heard saying, ‘I guess so, but then you’d better come back and sit here, or you’ll make poor Grandma and Grandpa giddy.’
So now there were visuals of old-fashioned linoleum and a small boy’s running feet, followed by a close-up of an ant farm very similar to one Mitch had loved when he’d been Joey’s age.
Oh, dear. Nora had to reach for a tissue and dab at her eyes, but luckily, she got that job done before Joey was back in the loungeroom with Callie and the girls, and she managed to dredge up a smile again by the time they said their goodbyes.
Too soon the call was over. Nora let out a heavy sigh, and Keith slipped his arm around her shoulders.
‘They’re having a wonderful time,’ she said, stating the obvious.
‘Callie must be relieved,’ suggested Keith.
‘Yes, I daresay.’ And Nora knew she should be happy for the little family. But knowing this wonderful time was all happening in Sandy Findlay’s house was hard, so hard.
And surely poor Keith must feel hurt. Not only had he lived for decades with the difficult knowledge that Mitch hadn’t been his biological son, but now he had to see his beloved grandchildren falling in love with this other man’s legacy.
‘I’m scared they’ll want to live there, Keith.’
How would she cope? Amelia was still giving her the silent treatment. Was she going to lose her whole family?
‘It’s all a bit of a novelty for them at the moment, but they’ll come back,’ said Keith. ‘For starters, they only own half the property and this Ben guy is Scottish, isn’t he? He probably won’t want to hang around, so they’ll have to sell.’
‘I guess.’
‘And Callie has put a ton of effort into setting up her photography business here.’
‘That’s true.’
‘And the kids won’t want to give up everything they have here – their schools and soccer and youth orchestra, and those dances the girls sometimes go to on Friday nights. All the friends they’ve known since they started kindy.’
Nora couldn’t help smiling at her lovely man. Leaning in, she kissed his cheek. ‘You’ve already given this quite a bit of thought, haven’t you?’
His shoulders lifted in a shrug. ‘I haven’t been dwelling on it.’
Now Nora was hugging him. ‘You know I love you, don’t you?’
‘And that means more than anything.’
Dearest Keith. The kiss they shared now was loving and deep, with shimmering echoes of the passion of their past.
When Keith released her, he dropped another kiss on her forehead. ‘Now stop fretting,’ he said gently. ‘You know they’ll be singing a different tune just as soon as it starts raining up there.’
