Chapter Twenty
Once you made a decision, there was no point hanging around. Lucy looked around the room as she shoved her clothes into her bag. In the time she’d been here, she’d settled in, and it was going to be lonely going back to her apartment in Newtown, but it wouldn’t take long to get back into her old routine. And the bonus was that Seb and Jemmy were in town until they came back here, so she would still have family around her.
“Lucy, telephone!” Gran called down the hallway as Lucy was in the bathroom getting her toiletries.
Her stomach tightened, and nausea actually skittered up into her throat.
Garth.
She didn’t want to leave on bad terms, but she wasn’t ready to talk to him yet. She’d prepare what she was going to say and find him in the paddocks before she left.
“Tell Garth I’ll call in and see him later, please, Gran.”
“It’s not Garth. It’s Rod from the vet in Spring Downs.”
Lucy hurried down the hallway, worried that Jack had had a relapse after his snake bite. She took the phone from Gran. “Hi, Rod. Is everything okay? I was going to call you later.” She crossed her fingers behind her back; she’d totally forgotten about having dinner with him on Saturday night.
“Yes, all good here, Lucy. Listen, something’s come up on the weekend and I can’t make dinner. We’re having a quiet day on the surgery because of the agricultural show up in Coonamble. Half the town’s gone up there. I was wondering if you were coming into town at all through the week? I have some news for you, and wanted to catch up.”
“I’m actually going back to Sydney today, but I could call in and see you on the way.” Lucy turned away, aware that Gran was standing next to her, her ears flapping and her lips pursed.
“What time are you leaving?” Rod asked.
“I’ll be getting away in the next couple of hours, so I’ll be in town around lunchtime.”
“How about I meet you at the RSL club for lunch. It’s cool there, and they don’t do a bad meal. You have to eat if you’ve got that long trip ahead of you.”
“Sounds good. See you then.”
Lucy walked past Gran without satisfying her obvious curiosity.
The farewell with Gran and Pop a little while later was a happy one.
Pop whispered into her hair as he held her close. “Love you, Lucy. And promise you’ll be back soon, okay?”
“I promise. And you can come to the city and visit me, too, you know.” Lucy held out her arms to Gran and hugged her. “Love you, too, Gran.”
Gran reached up and wiped away a tear, but it was a happy one. “Get away with you. Enough of this lovey-dovey talk.” But she held Lucy close for a minute before she let her go.
Liam was out in the hay shed as Lucy carried her bags to the car. Gran and Pop stood on the top step.
“I’m going now,” she said.
“I can see that.” Liam’s gaze dropped to her bag. Lucy had loaded the rest of her stuff, including her computer, into the car earlier.
“You’re going to see Garth, I hope?” he said quietly as he lifted a load of hay onto the back of the truck next to the cattle salt blocks.
Lucy bit back on the retort that sprang to her lips and huffed a patient sigh. “Yes, Liam. I’m going to see him on the way out.”
She leaned over and kissed his cheek, but before she could step back, he held her arm.
“Lucy, be very, very sure you are doing the right thing. I would hate to see you hurt.”
“I will. I haven’t made any decisions. I’m going back to the city to think about it.” Her words surprised her. But it was the truth.
Not that there was anything to make a decision about. They’d had a relationship, but there’d been no talk of commitment. Just realization that she was city, he was country.
“I have to get going; I’m meeting someone in town for lunch.”
Liam nodded and turned back to the truck. “Make sure you ring us when you get home.”
“I will.” Lucy smiled at him. “And thanks, Liam. It’s good to have you back in my life.”
She opened the car door and started the engine, then waved to Gran and Pop as she drove slowly past the house. The road out to Spring Downs was dry, and red dust flew behind her as she accelerated towards the turn-off. As the gate of the Mackenzie farm appeared in the distance, Garth’s Land Cruiser turned onto the Spring Downs road ahead of her.
Damn, I should have called before I left. She tried to keep up with him to see where he turned off, so she could follow him and stop and say good-bye, but his ute roared ahead and she couldn’t keep up. Gradually, the white ute disappeared over the crest of a hill, and by the time she reached it there was no sign of him ahead. There were a couple of tracks leading to the back of the large Mackenzie property, and Lucy slowed her car. There was no dust hanging in the air. Garth must be heading into town. She’d try to track him down there. It wouldn’t be hard. A bank, a newsagent, a garage, a produce store, the milk bar, and the RSL comprised the whole business area. There wouldn’t be many places to look.
By the time she approached the fifty-kilometre per hour zone at the edge of Spring Downs, it was almost noon. She drove slowly down the main street, looking for Garth’s ute, but there was no sign of it. Guilt trickled though her. She hated leaving without saying good-bye. There was only one thing for it; she would call him from Sydney and have a good frank talk about how she felt. And maybe about what they could do about it.
Lucy shook her head as she parked. Maybe if she waited for half an hour or so, Garth would turn up in town.
Rod was waiting for her in the bistro, a huge jug of iced water in the middle of the table. He stood as she crossed the empty restaurant to join him. He took her hand and leaned over and kissed her cheek.
“I’m so pleased you had time to stop on your way to Sydney.” He pulled out her chair for her and she sat down. “A shopping trip?”
“No, I’m going home.”
“Home? I thought you’d moved out here.” Rod frowned as he poured a glass of water, and the ice cubes tinkled as they filled her glass. “I thought you and Garth were together?”
“No. Just a visit.” Lucy surprised herself with her calm response. “I’m going back to Sydney to my job.”
As they chatted over lunch, Lucy kept a close eye on the car park. But there was no sign of Garth. Her heart closed down more as every minute passed.
“It was great to catch up, Rod, even briefly,” she said as she stood to leave.
“Make sure you keep in touch when you come back again. I’d love you to meet Laura, my fiancée.”
“I won’t be back for a while.” Even to her own ears, her voice was flat. Lucy walked slowly across the hot bitumen to her car. It was time to leave. Far away from the flies, and the dust and the prickles…and Garth Mackenzie and the attraction that had settled into her heart.