Cassie gulped back the laughter and the awareness of that moment when the connection with Shayne had clicked in. These were his parents, and they would not be impressed with her arrival in their son’s life.
She would have recognised his father anywhere, an older version of Shayne with a shock of still thick white hair. She wished they’d finished his rundown of his family before they arrived. Francis Smith looked younger than she expected, considering his health.
His wife was the indeterminate age of a woman who looked after herself. Her shoulder-length bob echoed Shayne’s colouring, a dark blonde underlay with professionally added platinum streaks. There was no guessing what her original colour might have been, but blonde was likely from the colour of her skin and her pale eyes. She was a good bit shorter than her husband, with womanly curves kept under control by the elegant three-piece Chanel-style suit in a pale rose pink. There were even pearls at her throat. Classic.
Behind them was a woman who must be the grandmother, as tall as Cassie herself and as lean as Cassie had been before the pregnancy. A woman used to an active life, wearing well-cut emerald trousers and a neat long-sleeved blouse in a lighter shade of green that looked good with her silvery white hair.
Shayne came to life, stepping between the two groups. ‘This is Cassie Long. Cassie, I’d like you to meet my mother, Dawn, and father, Francis. Nana is usually Dot.’
Francis took her hand and smiled at her, so reminiscent of his son. ‘Welcome. It’s good to meet you.’
The women made no attempt to shake her hand. Dawn was trying not to look at her stomach and Dot was openly staring.
‘Are you pregnant?’ The blunt question came from the grandmother.
Cassie sought Shayne’s reaction. He smiled reassuringly and took her hand. ‘Cassie is pregnant with my babies. She’s come to get to know the family and the town before they’re born.’
Dawn raised her eyebrows and Cassie saw a resemblance to Kimberley for a brief moment. ‘Babies? More than one?’ She made it sound like poor planning.
‘I’m afraid so, Mrs Smith. Twin’s run in my family, so I’m happy to take the blame.’
Shayne tightened his grip on her hand. ‘I failed to mention they run in our family as well.’
She looked at him curiously, wondering why he hadn’t mentioned it. So far, she hadn’t learned enough about his family to know about any twins.
It shut Dawn up. Her lips compressed, and she shifted closer to her husband. ‘Why are we standing around in the hall? Aren’t you going to offer us a drink before lunch?’
It seemed that there were definite rituals involved with dining at Maidens Hill. Cassie had no time to ponder as she was placed in a Sheraton style chair with green and cream striped upholstery beside a marble fireplace at one end of the formal dining room and given a cool drink by Ben. Cassie had a strange feeling she’d been swept into a Regency fantasy. The long table was set much as the other table had been, but with more bling with a damask cloth and serviettes in silver rings matching ornate cutlery and Georgian candelabra. Parker must have been in his element.
The other women were seated as well, the men standing around with bottles of boutique beer talking sheep. Dawn had sherry, but Cassie was pretty sure Dot was sipping at a highball. Her own drink was something fruity with soda water and ice. Delicious on such a warm day, though the house was pleasantly cool.
The sherry must have reinvigorated Dawn because she leaned forward, placing her half empty glass on a piecrust side table.
‘What do you do for a living, Cassie? Is that short for Cassandra, by the way?’
‘It’s short for Cassia, like the tree. I’m a music teacher.’ She was conscious of Shayne unobtrusively listening.
‘Oh.’ Dawn shifted forward in her seat, creating an atmosphere of intimacy between them. ‘How did you meet Shayne?’
Cassie was tempted to laugh. She could almost hear the sub-question that linked her with Courtney as a vile seducer of innocent men for the sake of filthy lucre. ‘At a fashion show at the Ekka last year.’
The woman’s gaze lingered on Cassie’s stomach. ‘That’s when you …’
‘Yes. Not planned, but I’m thrilled about it.’
‘I suppose you are.’ The sneer was clear in both tone and expression.
Cassie wasn’t prepared to take the innuendo. ‘I’m wealthy in my own right, Mrs Smith. I don’t need your son’s money. I only came because I thought Shayne had a right to know he was going to be a father.’
A large hand came to rest on her shoulder. ‘I’m glad she did, Mum, so you can back off.’
The woman gave a little huff, but subsided, picking up her sherry and taking a sip. ‘I was only enquiring.’ She smiled then, a genuine smile. ‘I’m sorry, Cassie. Mothers can be overprotective, as you’ll find out soon, I’m sure.’
Cassie hid her surprise at the sudden backdown. ‘It was a shock for you, I imagine.’
Dawn shot a glance up at her son and her face softened. ‘I did feel twice in one lifetime was a little farfetched, but I can see I was making assumptions.’
What she said didn’t really make sense, unless she’d cleared Cassie of fortune hunting in her mind, but Cassie was prepared to take the olive branch. ‘I think we all have adjustments to make.’
‘You’re from the city, I take it. How do you like the country?’
‘It’s full of sheep, but Maidens Hill is lovely. I understand you did the renovations. They’re magnificent.’
The conversation shifted from the personal to Cassie’s relief. Dawn really had an encyclopaedic knowledge of the history of the house, and she expounded happily throughout dinner, seated opposite Cassie at the long table.
Kimberley had ducked into the room as they were all being seated and was fully involved with her grandmother, who shared her interest in horseflesh from the snippets of conversation coming along the table. Shayne spent most of the meal in intense conversation with his father and Ben.
Parker and another man, who must be Jim, brought out the cold soup and then lamb and roast vegetables for the main course.
‘We always have mutton for Sunday luncheon,’ Dawn explained. ‘Jim keeps a few hoggets in the home paddock for killing. Does that offend you, being used to buying your meat at the supermarket?’
‘Not at all. I’m not totally ignorant about country living.’ She was tempted to say more, but Shayne deserved her confidences, rather than learning about her history second hand or casually at the dinner table.
Dessert was the famous cheesecake. Cassie was glad she’d eaten frugally in the previous courses. She didn’t have the room to overindulge with two babies displacing her organs, but the cheesecake was too good to miss.
She said so when Parker and his companion came to clear the plates and he beamed at her. ‘It’s good to know, miss.’
After lunch was easy. Shayne murmured in passing that she could retire to the annex for a rest if she wished. He said it with a sympathetic grin that told her he was aware of the strain of conversing with his mother.
Dot went out with Jim to inspect the gardens while Francis and his sons retired to somewhere to keep talking farm stuff. Dawn vanished with Kimberley to the kitchens, supposedly to discuss the barbeque menu with Parker. Cassie suspected it was to check things were still being done according to her own preferences. The woman oddly combined autocrat with touches of softness at unexpected moments. Perhaps that was where Shayne got it from. If she was going to stay in the district, Cassie would have to learn to get along with her.
Left alone, Cassie debated taking Shayne’s advice to rest, but she needed exercise after the enormous meal. It would sit uneasily in her stomach if she lay down immediately. Instead, she strolled around the room, admiring the sideboard and silverware on display. All of it was the genuine article, brought to the property by brides who’d travelled from England to the colonies. Shayne’s mother had mentioned some of those brides in her sketching of the entire one-hundred-and-seventy-year history of the property. They had run the full gamut of aristocracy through to serving maids.
If Dawn had hoped to intimidate her with the rich history and strong roots of the Smiths and Maidens, she hadn’t succeeded. Cassie had her own history. In some ways, it was as significant as this. Her original Long ancestor had come to Australia for the gold rush and stayed on, eventually buying property in the far west. Not as old as Maidens Hill, but as large as the original property would have been before it was broken up. They’d run sheep, of course. Stupid things.
Parker bustled into the room with a tray and picked up the last few items left behind after the plates were cleared. He noticed her and gave her a broad smile. ‘They’ve all abandoned you.’
‘I’m heading back to the annex, but I thought I’d have a look at some of the treasures. It must be a lot of work, maintaining it.’
‘We have a couple of the men’s wives come in during the week to help with basic things. Shayne also gets some casuals in, now and then, to give the place a good polish up. Usually when there’s something on, like a historical society meeting or display or an agricultural day. There’s usually a couple of those most years because of the breeding program.’
‘You sound like you know about sheep.’
‘I can cook them. Jim and the rest manage them. You can’t help picking up bits and pieces when you live on the place.’ He hesitated. ‘Shayne’s a good employer. A good man.’
She wondered why he felt the need to emphasise it. ‘I know. I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t think so.’
With a brisk nod, he returned to his task and headed off.
Looking around, she couldn’t help noticing the difference between the living areas and the show areas. There was a slight shabbiness in the family’s everyday rooms. Not that they weren’t well kept, but the effort of maintaining the historical features of the house took a lot of effort. Maybe without Dawn here, the boys weren’t so concerned about looks, preferring comfort in their daily lives.
Her legs were tired from standing, so she made a move to return to the annex, almost running into Shayne, covering the ground in long strides. He gripped her upper arms to steady her.
‘I thought you would have your feet up by now.’
‘That’s where I’m heading. I needed to let my lunch settle before I lie down. It’s too crowded in there.’
His gaze dropped to the mound of her stomach. ‘I noticed you weren’t eating much. Is it uncomfortable?’
‘Eat little and often is my motto at the moment.’
His hands on her arms were warm through the light fabric. Unconsciously, she leaned into him, inhaling the scent of skin and light perspiration from the heat of the day. She recovered herself the moment she realised and jerked back, and they dropped away.
‘Sorry.’ He stepped out of her way. ‘I shouldn’t keep you talking.’
Reluctant to let him go, Cassie delved back into the conversation with his mother. ‘Who was the twin?’
She saw him stiffen and hastily burst into speech. ‘That was rude. I’ve no right to ask those sorts of questions. Besides, you’ll need to get back to your guests.’
‘I was waving them off before I bumped into you. If I’d known you were still up, I would have asked you to come and say goodbye. As it was, I gave your apologies. They were happy with that.’
‘I’ll go then.’
‘Cassie.’ His brow was creased as he studied her face. ‘May I come with you? I think I should explain a few things. It’s probably a good idea for you to be resting while I do it.’
She nodded, and they walked together to the corridor leading to the annex. Shayne was silent, deep in thought, but it wasn’t an uncomfortable silence.
He paused at one of the closed rooms with the old-fashioned homemade doors and brass doorknobs she assumed were storage or similar. ‘I need to grab something. You go ahead and make yourself comfortable and I’ll join you.’
It was clear he didn’t want her coming into the room, so she made her way to her bedroom and kicked off her sandals and got comfortable on the bed.
Considering how intimate they’d been in the past, it seemed funny to be shy about having him in her room. Maybe because it was in the past and there was no chance of renewing that intimacy at present. Without it, she doubted if he would want to deepen their connection. Except, of course, as co-parents. She was beginning to hate that term.
Maybe it was the hormones, but her emotions were all over the place. Wanting more, afraid of more. She’d had enough pain in her life. Not even for great sex was she going to open herself up to risk. For a father for her children, she was tempted. Shayne tempted her. But he wasn’t likely to consider marriage for the sake of the children. He’d showed clearly in his own life that he wouldn’t compromise about marriage. What was he looking for in a life partner? If she’d had any hope of being considered, he’d made it clear she wasn’t on the list by walking away six months ago.
* * *
Shayne closed the door to the annex behind him with a bump of the elbow, grateful Cassie left it open for him, so he didn’t have to put anything down.
She was propped up on the bed, using all the pillows and a couple of cushions, looking surprised, as she might well be.
‘I found this in the storeroom and wondered if it might be useful.’ He lay the long pillow across the bottom of the bed, and she nudged it with one toe.
‘It looks very useful. I planned to get one in Brisbane, but random shopping was one thing I had to give up and I wasn’t sure if it would arrive in time if I ordered it online. Where did you get it?’
‘I have a cousin in the UK who was visiting us while she was pregnant a couple of years ago and bought it locally. She left it behind because of luggage restrictions. It was cleaned at the time and properly stored so it should be alright to use.’
Her eyes shifted to take in his other item. ‘Is that a photo album?’
‘You asked about the family. I thought it might be simpler to show you.’ He held out the leather-bound album and she took it, her hand stroking the leather in an almost erotic sensuality. She’d stroked his body in the same way.
He coughed to clear the tightness in his throat. This was going to be hard enough. ‘Most of the recent family photos are digital, but Mum made this one when we were kids.’
‘I noticed there were no family photos in any of the rooms I’ve been in so far. Is that because of opening the place to the public?’
‘I’ll explain while you look at the photos.’
She patted the bed beside her. ‘You might as well join me. It will be like story time.’
Not like story time. He used to read to Kimberley, and perching on his daughter’s bed was nothing like the tumult of feelings that swept him at the thought of sharing Cassie’s, even platonically. ‘I’ll grab a couple of cushions from the lounge.’
‘Use this.’ She prodded the pregnancy pillow with her foot again and he folded it into place beside her pillows and settled into place.
‘Where would you like to start?’
She nibbled her bottom lip. ‘I think I’m happy with the information your mother gave me at lunch about your ancestors. I’m more interested in the secret twins.’
He reached over to flick open the album propped on her knees. ‘Is it uncomfortable there?’
‘A bit. The bump makes it awkward.’
He snuggled closer, so their thighs touched and took the album.
She moved partly onto one hip, and he braced himself for the brush of her breasts and belly against his side. If they were a couple, he would have this contact as a normal part of the relationship.
‘Who’s that? Your parents?’
He shook off the sensory overload and nodded. ‘Where everything started. This was their engagement photo.’ The next page was the formal wedding photo.
‘Wow.’
‘Yeah. Mum’s family were beef cattle royalty from the eastern side of town. The wedding was massive. If the Taites could have turned the church into a full-blown cathedral, they would have. As it was, it was presided over by a bishop and there were over four hundred guests.’
‘Not my idea of a good time.’
He paused with his hand on the next page. ‘Out of curiosity, what kind of wedding would you have?’
Her hand clenched, and she stretched it out, smoothing her fingers over her belly. ‘Something small. Family mostly, and a few friends. A finger food party afterwards with minimal speeches and lots of opportunities to chat.’
‘Maybe a DJ and a little dance floor. Something all my girlfriends would use for the macarena.’
‘Please don’t tell me you’re a fan.’
‘I was a toddler. Of course, I was a fan. My cousin is older than me and was incredibly shy. The moment that song came on, she was ripping up the dancefloor and I would join her.’
He couldn’t help a chuckle. ‘Okay, you can have the macarena at the wedding. I must see this.’
Cassie gave him a funny look and reached for the next page. ‘Who’s the baby?’
‘Me, of course. Wasn’t I cute?’
Snub nosed with a quiff of hair that made him look like one of those kewpie dolls he remembered seeing at the show when he was a small child.
One corner of her mouth twisted up. ‘Yeah. A real cutey. You haven’t changed a bit.’
He looked again at the snapshot of him lying on a crocheted shawl in a christening dress. ‘I hope not.’
She leaned over and used her fingers to muss with his hair. ‘Yup. Still the same.’
Smoothing it down, he suppressed the warmth in his gut. The next few minutes were likely to be tough. He needed to be in control, not all mushy because a woman made him feel good in the moment. He flicked over a couple of pages of him as a toddler, pausing briefly at her request at a page showing him in his school uniform over his first couple of school years.
He shut his eyes briefly when the next pages were spread open. His mother had removed every photo of Brittany from the house when she’d done the renovation. His sister’s bedroom had been gutted and turned into a sitting room for Kimberley, eventually.
‘These are the twins? How old are they?’ She brushed a finger over the corner of the page and looked up at him. ‘Where are they?’
‘Cecily and Brittany. They were born when I was ten and Ben was a toddler. Mum lost a couple of pregnancies in between us. Then she had the twins. Identical like yours … ours, but not as high risk. Cecily died in a horse-riding accident when she was four. Brittany was killed in a car accident around thirteen years ago.’
Her attention was still on him. ‘Thirteen years. Was that in the same one that Ben was injured?’
‘Yes.’
‘That must have been tough on the whole family. Especially after losing her sister.’
‘Worse for Ben. They were very close. After Cecily died, he seemed to realise Brittany needed a companion. He became very protective.’ He flicked through another few pages. His mother had added no others after Brittany died, so the rest of the pages after Brittany’s graduation portrait were blank. ‘She was prettier than us.’
Cassie studied the photo. ‘Is she more like your mother?’
‘A natural platinum blonde and big blue eyes. Not sandy and indecisive greeny-blue like Ben and me. She was pretty and popular and outgoing. It broke my parents’ hearts.’
‘And yours?’
‘She was my kid sister. Brothers are supposed to protect them.’ In the end he’d failed, too taken up with his own problems to realise the danger. ‘I should have been there. Maybe if I’d been driving. Ben had only got his licence the day before and he was distracted by the other people in the car. It wasn’t his fault. There was another car involved. I just wish …’ He blinked away unwelcome moisture and shut the album. ‘I’ll leave these here and you can study them at your leisure. Most of the pages are labelled.’
He closed it up, ready to leave before he started blubbering.
‘Wait.’
She pushed the album onto the bed. ‘Would you like a hug? Just a friendly hug.’
The rush of emotion was almost too much for him. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d had a hug from anyone apart from his daughter, and they were few and far between in recent years. Another sign of his girl growing up. His parents were not huggers, and Ben was untouchable with his pain. Brittany had been the hugger of the family.
‘I’ll take it.’
Cassie’s smile was tender as she twined her arms around his middle. It was awkward, and he shifted to align their bodies, wrapping his arms around her shoulders. Her belly was a problem, but it worked for him with her draped half across his chest so she could reach around him, a herbal, florally kind of scent rising from where her head rested against his collarbone. It felt good. Healing. Who knew a hug would be what he needed? Craved. Manly men didn’t do hugs. They buffeted their mates but didn’t linger over the touching.
His chest rose and fell, and he sensed Cassie’s breathing changing, easing into the softer rhythms of sleep. She was exhausted, and he’d kept her up with his trip down memory lane. All the same, he was glad of it. Now she knew maybe she could understand his family better. They’d all been impacted. Perhaps Kimberley the least. She’d been only four and Brittany had rarely been willing to spend time with her niece during that last year. She and her best friend had been partying constantly when they weren’t hitting the books. Sometimes here, sometimes at Brittany’s boyfriend’s place.
Now they were all gone, dead or elsewhere in the world. Only he and Ben staying still, trying to make sense of a world that had changed forever. Would he feel guilty about moving on if anything came out of his relationship with Cassie while Ben was still emotionally frozen? As far as Shayne knew, his brother had stayed isolated for all these years. After what he’d been through, it would be hard to trust anyone. Impossible to let them get close, although his physical injuries had improved over recent years.
He craned his neck to check his watch and grimaced. He needed to help set up for the pool party. Parker was competent enough to do it all with Jim’s help. All the salads had been made and put into the big cold room behind the kitchen, but it was a tradition for Shayne to get the barbeque going before discreetly backing off to let the kids party without obvious supervision. He could see the pool area from his office if he spun around at his desk.
Trying not to disturb Cassie, he slid across the bed, placing the long pillow under her seeking arms. He smiled as she snuggled into it with a contented sigh. She looked younger with her hair tousled and her face half buried in the soft linen, a half-smile curling her delicious mouth. He leaned over and pressed a light kiss to her cheek. He hadn’t realised how much he’d missed her until she’d turned up on his doorstep.
Two weeks with her and everything had changed. He shouldn’t have fought the attraction so hard in the beginning. Now it would be so much harder to convince her to give them a try.
Dragging himself away, he went out through the glass door in the corridor straight across to the covered deck area. Netting covered the table with the salads, so Parker had been busy once he’d cleared up after lunch. The man had been a lifesaver since arriving at Maidens Hill not long after Brittany’s death. His mother had barely functioned at the time and meals were scratch affairs, preparation shared between his father and himself, aided by Jim with his vegetable patch. In those first months, Ben was still back and forth to hospital and in rehab in the city and when he was home, he was still struggling to walk.
Things had been better once Parker took over the household reins. He’d encouraged Dawn Smith to take up her art again, something her family had been unable to do. That had led to the renovation and while she still struggled emotionally, she had emerged a fully competent member of society. He sighed and then steadied his breathing. Cassie had to know these things if she was to be a part of the family, even at the distance of parent to his children. He hadn’t expected it to bring back all the memories. If anyone asked, he would have said he was over it, but maybe he’d been hiding from some things. Why else would revisiting the past still affect him?
‘Hey, Dad. Are you going to stand and stare at the potato salad all night?’
He forced a smile for his daughter. ‘Just checking everything is there.’
‘Parker would be insulted if he heard you say that.’
‘I better get on with my job before he comes back.’
She danced off to plug her phone into the music system and the latest pop music blared from the speakers.
‘Hey, not so loud.’
The sound reduced a tiny amount, and he grinned.
The barbeque was already lit, and he lifted the sheet of alfoil covering the meat on the large tray beside it. The guests would be here soon, and he needed to put his dad hat on and help make the afternoon a success. Kimberley had to be his priority. But that didn’t mean he couldn’t pursue something for himself. He smiled at the burgers. It was good to have something to believe in. A future beyond the day-to-day life of running the farm and worrying about his daughter.