Matt was lost – but not in a bad way. He’d spent the last hour driving along the narrow dirt tracks that veered off into the bush around Moonlight Plateau. He had thought he was getting the hang of the general area around White Gum Creek, but today proved him wrong.
Earlier that morning, his leg had been playing up, and as he’d sat at his kitchen table he figured he could do one of two things – either take a handful of painkillers and slump down in front of the TV, or go for a drive and try to forget about the pain. He chose the latter, admittedly with a couple of paracetamols washed down with a cup of tea. He wasn’t going to let his leg get the better of him again. Besides, maybe the fresh air would do him good.
Anyway, that had been the plan when he climbed into his car after lunch and headed off in no particular direction. He’d remembered to grab a bottle of water and his camera – with any luck he’d manage to get some good footage for his next vlog.
He drove out of town past the goat farm and towards Moonlight Plateau. Matt had been out this way a couple of times but only as far as Freddy’s farm for poker night. The plateau jutted out of the bush and ran for about a kilometre, and from what Matt could see it was flat on top and acted as a natural boundary for Freddy’s place. Across to the right a large hill was nestled among the eucalypts. It was thickly covered with trees, which made it look dark, and though Matt couldn’t have said why, he thought it had a dismal sort of feeling about it. According to Davey, it was called Winter’s Hill on account of a story that a century or so ago, some guy called Winter had had his farm there. Matt shook his head and smiled – maybe his imagination was just getting the better of him.
Matt followed a small track which veered off from Freddy’s place and headed along the base line of the plateau. Maybe he’d find the road that led to the top. He imagined that the views would be pretty amazing and maybe something he could use for his vlog.
The road to the summit was signposted, and within ten minutes, Matt was parking in a cleared area. As he got out of the car a cramp caught hold of his leg, and the pain that seemed to shoot out from his knee was strong enough to take his breath away for a second. He leant against the car, his hand clutching his knee, closed his eyes and willed it to pass. Matt doubted that his ‘willing’ had much to do with it but slowly the pain eased and after a minute or two he straightened up and blew out a breath.
He reached into the car and picked up his camera and then, leaning heavily on his walking stick, he began to walk towards the edge of the plateau. The plateau was flat and covered with grass and sprinkled with weeds. It was colder up here, with no shelter from any trees. The wind whipped against Matt as he walked towards the perimeter, and with it came a fine mist of rain – barely there but unmistakeable.
He’d been right, the views up here were worth the time and effort. The overcast sky appeared never-ending as it stretched from far beyond Winter’s Hill to the horizon. Matt turned the camera on and aimed it at himself.
‘Hi everyone. So today I thought I’d give you a glimpse of some of the local area. I’m standing on top of Moonlight Plateau, and the view is pretty phenomenal.’ Matt panned the camera away to take in the countryside before turning it back to himself.
‘See, I told you it was amazing. I’m not so sure if it’s this place or the fact we’ve got a damp sort of day but it feels isolated up here. I swear I haven’t seen another living soul since I drove out this way.’ He gave his viewers a smile before pointing the camera towards the hill. ‘That’s Winter’s Hill, named after a guy who was called – you guessed it, Winter. When I was driving up I thought the whole hill was just covered in bush, but from here I can see that part of it is cleared. I guess someone, maybe old man Winter, must have had a farm up there at some point. Anyway, the wind seems to be getting colder – so I’m getting off this damn rock and back to the car. Catch you at the next place of interest,’ Matt said before he clicked the camera off.
He stared back towards the hill. Maybe he could find a track to take him up there, so he could check it out. Matt walked back to the car and drove back down to the old signpost at the bottom of the plateau. He was sure that he’d passed another dirt road that looked as if it headed towards the hill. Unfortunately it seemed he’d been wrong. The road looped its way through the dense bushland but he never seemed to get any closer to the hill. Several skinny tracks forked off the dirt road, and as he passed one Matt noticed that it appeared to be running uphill. Without any hesitation he turned the car around, although he was glad that there wasn’t anybody else about as it took him more than a three-point turn to manoeuvre his car on the narrow road.
The new track snaked through the trees and at times doubled back on itself. Even though he drove for what seemed like ages, he was still no closer to the crest of the hill.
He was about to turn back and try another path when the track turned sharply to the left. The gums thinned and before him was a brown paddock with a handful of sheep staring back at him.
Matt slowed the car but kept going. The track was climbing and he figured that this time it might eventually take him to the top.
A few minutes later Matt finally made it to the top of the hill. He pulled the car off to one side of the track and got out. As he walked past an old twisted woodbine and began trudging up the last few metres to the summit, he expected that the view would be almost as breathtaking as that from the plateau. What he didn’t expect to see was a house nestled in a copse of trees. For a second he wondered if he should get the hell out of there, as he was obviously trespassing. He frowned and wondered how he could have missed that this was a private road. Matt was about to head back to the car when he noticed that there was something wrong about the house; it was off somehow, although at first Matt couldn’t put his finger on it.
Against his better judgement he walked forward to investigate. The house had an unkempt feel to it but it wasn’t until he walked past the half-dozen forgotten rosebushes that he realised what was wrong. Half the roof was missing, and as he neared he saw that the majority of windows were paneless.
He peered in and saw that nature had begun to reclaim the building. Weeds and straggly bits of grass were making a valiant attempt to cover part of what Matt thought would have been the lounge room. A large stone fireplace stood on one side of the room, but it was easy to see that the house wasn’t anywhere near finished. It was as if the builders had walked off mid-job and never came back. Some of the interior walls were covered in plasterboard, while others were still bare stud.
Matt stepped away from the window and took a good look at the exterior. The house was made of a combination of wood and stone. It had a tall pitched roof and by the looks of it, an attic. There was a rustic charm about it; it could almost have been a house from a fairy tale. The craftsmanship was evident in the work that had been done, and Matt had to wonder why anyone would walk away from a house like this.
Matt turned his camera on and began filming. He’d add dialogue later; for now he just wanted to capture the feel of the derelict building. He documented the different aspects of the house and paused on a large web that some industrious spider had woven from one corner of one of the empty windows to another. He zoomed in and caught the fine misty rain droplets which bejewelled the web.
Around the back was a pile of wooden planks, half-covered by a tarp which had been shredded by the elements and now offered little protection. As he slowly walked back towards the front of the house a speck of red caught his eye. Lying discarded on its side was a small plastic watering can at the base of one of the rosebushes. It was a testament to the fact that someone had loved this place once, but not anymore. Matt imagined that whatever dreams had been woven here had been shattered.
He turned the camera around.
‘Hey everyone. Well, as you can see, our adventure continues. I’m now standing at the top of Winter’s Hill and you won’t believe what I’ve found. Okay, that’s not fair – you won’t have a clue.’ Matt moved the camera again and pointed it at the house. ‘See, I’ve found a deserted house and, as crazy as this sounds – it kind of makes me feel sad. I don’t know what future the owners were building, but it’s pretty certain that it didn’t work out. It’s just as isolated up here as it was on top of the plateau. Maybe I’m letting my writer’s imagination get the better of me but I have to admit I’m a little creeped out.’
Matt tried to keep the camera as steady as possible as made his way over towards the front door. The whole task was made more difficult by the uneven ground and his damn walking stick. He just hoped that he hadn’t given half his audience motion sickness.
‘I don’t know how long it’s been deserted but I reckon it must be years if you go by the state of the place. I’m not sure where or how but I think I could use this for some inspiration in my next book. Hey, let me know in the comments what you think. I guess as there’s no one home we could have a peek through the windows. So if we just go this way you’ll be able to see—’
‘What the bloody hell do you think you’re doing?’
Matt jerked around and saw a tall man with dark hair striding towards him. The man’s mouth was set in a grim line and instinctively Matt knew this wasn’t going to end well.
‘Hi, I’m new to the area and was sight-seeing.’
‘Sight-seeing? Are you serious?’ The word seemed to infuriate the man, and the grim line turned into a snarl. ‘You’re trespassing – so get in your car and get the hell off my land.’
Matt held up a hand as if to create a barrier between him and the angry man. ‘Okay, like I said, I’m sorry. I’m going, alright?’ For a second Matt thought that would be the end of it, but as he glanced at the guy’s face he realised that he was staring at the camera.
‘What were you filming?’
‘The house. As I said, I just came across it. I was drawn to it; there’s something about it that’s fascinating. Perhaps it was the promise of a future that didn’t happen mixed up with sadness – all I know is that I found it hard to walk away. I really didn’t mean to piss you off.’
There was a bleakness in the man’s eyes as he looked back at Matt.
‘Well, you got that right,’ he said bitterly. ‘That was my future and now there’s nothing.’
‘I’m sorry – for what it’s worth, I know how that feels.’
The scowl returned to the man’s face. ‘How could you – you don’t know anything about me. I lost my wife and my unborn child. Don’t you dare stand there and tell me you know what it’s like.’
Matt stuffed the camera into his pocket and then, still leaning heavily on his walking stick, stepped closer to the stranger.
‘You’re right, I don’t know you. I don’t know what pain you’ve gone through or what it’s like to lose a child. But I can tell you that I once lost my future too. I haven’t forgotten about it and in some ways I’m still dealing with that loss – maybe I always will. I was in a car accident which took away my fiancée and left me with this,’ Matt said as he gestured down to his leg. ‘I cut myself off from everyone who cared about me and relived the accident over and over again, tormenting myself with the question what if? Would the accident have happened if I’d been driving? Why didn’t we stay home that day? Why did I agree to look at wedding venues up the mountain? What if it hadn’t been raining? The list goes on and on until it screws with your mind and sends you crazy.’
The man looked at Matt for a long time in silence, but the anger seemed to have drained out of him. ‘I’m sorry about your accident but you should go – no one ever comes up here,’ he said finally.
Matt saw that as the man began to withdraw back into himself his eyes looked overbright. He decided to take a risk.
‘I get it – but maybe that isn’t what you need anymore. I’m Matt, by the way – I’ve got the cottage over by Bluestone Ridge.’
The man hesitated for a second. ‘Nicholas Langtree.’
Matt began to back away towards his car. ‘My door’s always open – if you ever need a bit of company.’
Nicholas didn’t say a word but he gave Matt a curt nod before turning around and walking back down the hill.
Matt stood by the car for a moment and watched him go. Nicholas hadn’t said anything but he hoped that maybe, just maybe, he’d take him up on the offer.
***
There’s an old saying that things always happen in threes. Bec had never believed it until this week. She’d been thinking about Matt probably more than she should have. It had been all his fault, of course; she wouldn’t have thought about him at all if it hadn’t been for how he’d opened up to her the day she had given him a lift back home. It wasn’t that she felt sorry for him but she could understand how he’d felt as if he was trapped. Not that her life was anything like his, but in some ways maybe she could recognise a kindred spirit. Everything had been okay until she had made the mistake of taking his hand. She had meant it as a gesture of compassion, a sort of non-verbal It’s all going to be okay and I understand you’ve been doing it tough. What she never expected was the frisson of excitement she’d felt when she touched his skin. It was like a zap that seemed to buzz all the way up her arm. They’d stared at each other, and it was as if they were on the edge of something. For an instant Bec had felt like she was suspended in time, not really knowing what to do but being drawn towards Matt regardless.
Bec did the only thing she could do, which was to get the hell out of there as quickly as possible. Disaster averted, she decided that there was something potentially dangerous about Matt Harvey and for her own sake she should stay away from him.
And that’s when fate stepped in – the meddling bitch.
One Monday she ran into him in the general store. It was nothing dreadful, a couple of smiles, small talk and an awkward silence. Bec managed to extract herself without too much trouble. The problem was that Matt was different from most of the men she knew. The majority of the male population of White Gum Creek, including her dad, were basically cut from the same cloth. Their lives were dictated by the seasons, the rainfall and the land itself. They had an inherent strength and a realisation of who they were and what they had to do to live off the land.
Matt was different, and not because Bec believed him to be weak – that wasn’t the case at all. But he looked at things in a different way and she thought that was where the danger lay. He seemed comfortable in his own skin and brave enough not only to leave a well-paying job to follow his creative passion, but also to move to a small town in the middle of nowhere. That took guts. He was different, but more than that, he looked at her in a way that no one had before. That was the scary bit, because she wasn’t sure she wanted him to stop.
On Thursday evening, just as Bec had come home after carting bales of hay, she found him sitting in the kitchen with her mother. It was totally random and for a second Bec was at a loss to know what to say. It was a shock to see someone out of context and that was what it was – Matt had no business being in her kitchen. As far as she knew, Maggie and Matt hadn’t met, but there they were laughing like they’d been friends for years. Apparently her mum’s tyre had blown just as she was almost home. Matt had been on his verandah and had offered to help change it for her. Maggie Duprey was more than capable of changing her own damn tyre but she had agreed, and all of a sudden they’d found that they shared an undying passion for suspense novels and pavlova . . . the fruit-topped dessert, that was, not the ballerina. Bec walked into the kitchen as they were swapping recipes and Maggie was promising that next time she made one, he’d have to come up. Just perfect.
Bec and her friends decided to take in a movie on Saturday night. Two cars drove the forty minutes to Bendigo, and whether or not it was by accident or design, she found herself next to Matt during dinner and the film.
She tried to concentrate on the movie, but Matt’s close proximity made it difficult. The more she was with him, the more drawn to him she felt – it was disconcerting and Bec knew in her heart she was heading for trouble. She had spent the last few years licking her wounds and vowing that she would never let a man use her like Zane had, but there was something about Matt that made her want to throw caution to the wind.
They shared popcorn and laughed at the movie. She was conscious of how his leg would accidentally brush against hers. As the lights of the theatre came up, Matt smiled at her as he handed over her jacket. It was a small smile and there was a softness in his eyes that she hadn’t seen before. It made her pause and take a breath. His smile stayed with her long after she had said goodnight to everyone.
When she got home, Bec stood by the open window of her bedroom. The autumn breeze was welcome as it gently blew into the room, catching the old curtains. The air was cool and calming, and Bec breathed it in deeply, hoping to clear her head. The problem was that she knew that it would take more than that. Looking out into the night, the almost full moon illuminated the ridge and the place she loved so much, the stone formation at the top. It was the place she’d played around as a child, where she’d dreamed about adventure and true love when she was fourteen and where she’d cried when Zane betrayed her. Since then she’d been living a half-life, and she knew it. Immersing herself in work had been the only way she’d managed to get through the break-up. It had hurt more than she thought possible – not just that she and Zane had broken up but the way it happened. It had shaken her belief in herself to the core, because it was clear that if she could get things so wrong with Zane, how could she ever trust her own judgement again?
But maybe she should try again. Not that she had any illusions about true love – it didn’t exist. But after shutting herself off for so long, perhaps it was time to give life and dating another go. This time, however, it was going to be on her terms – nothing deep and meaningful and absolutely no ties. That way she could enjoy the whole physical aspect of a relationship without the tears, tantrums and jealousy.
As she closed the window and began to get ready for bed, Matt’s smile crept back into her mind. Maybe Matt Harvey was the man she was looking for after all?
***
Matt filmed as the galvanised steel rainwater tank was put in place. The men from the tank company had placed it down the side of the house, towards the back to get the optimal run-off from the roof.
‘That looks great, guys – thanks so much.’ Matt turned the camera back on himself. ‘Doesn’t it look great? Another goal in my rural living slash take over the world plan has been realised.’
One of the men installing the tank let out a laugh and shook his head.
‘Ah, another critic,’ Matt said with a grin before he turned off the camera. ‘So do you guys want a drink? I’ve got soft drinks, tea or coffee.’
‘Nah, we’re right, mate, but thanks. This won’t take long and we’ll be out of here soon.’
‘Okay, just give me a shout if you need anything,’ Matt said before he headed back inside.
He felt lucky, even though some wouldn’t see it. His old life had bankrolled this new one. He’d been able to buy the cottage outright with some savings left over to make improvements to it and to live off. Add to that the money coming in from his books, and things were pretty good. Okay, maybe he wasn’t rolling in cash, but he had enough to support this quiet life he was carving out for himself – and he was grateful.
Well, he would be grateful if he could just get this damn scene done.
With a sigh he walked into his office, slumped down into the chair and turned on the computer. Unfortunately the cursor was still blinking on the empty page – taunting him. He ran his hand through his hair and stared at the screen. There had been three and a half pages this morning, but after he’d read them through he realised that they were complete and utter crap. Alistair Tremayne was coming off as a jerk and the normally clever and feisty Tansy sounded like a brat. Just before the water tank guys arrived he’d deleted the whole thing.
It was meant to be the scene where the two characters came together and realised that there was something solid under all the passion. The problem was, no matter how hard he tried, Matt just couldn’t get the damn thing to work.
He rolled up his shirtsleeves, took a breath and tried again.
Tansy ran her hand slowly across Alistair’s shoulder. There was a buzz, a tingle that Alistair felt all the way done to his cock/manhood/penis/cock.
Matt growled and hit the delete button again.
The image of Bec touching his hand ran through his mind, and he recalled the way his leg had brushed against hers at the movies. Her touch affected him more than he wanted to admit. Each time they came into contact, he felt that jolt travel through him.
He wanted Bec Duprey. Lord, that was probably a terrible idea, because deep within him he knew that she had the capacity to turn his new life upside down.
As the realisation sank in, Matt sat back in his chair and stared blankly at the screen.
Damn – how the hell did that happen?
***
Bec had fallen for Zane while they were still at school. It had happened in the summer just before they entered their final year. She had been up in the high paddock, the one that bordered Cara Downs, when Zane had walked through the little wooden gate. It was mid-morning and Bec was reading under the shade of a couple of ghost gums. The heat of the day was beginning to build, but under the trees Bec could still feel a hint of a breeze. The air had the scent of eucalyptus and the quiet was punctuated by the occasional drone of a blowfly that seemed intent on landing on the book Bec was trying to read.
She and Zane had been circling each other since Christmas. Bec was pretty sure that he liked her as much as she did him but neither of them had acted on it. She had been pondering what to do next while tackling one of the novels she had to read before school started when Zane appeared at the boundary gate. He strode up to her, pulled her to her feet and kissed her. He made her feel warm all over. In an instant her heart beat faster and she fell halfway in love with him.
They became the perfect, golden couple at school and Bec could hardly believe that she could be so happy. There were whispers, but Bec put them down to petty jealousies. Both families seemed happy at the idea their kids were together. Her mother told her to take it as it was, enjoy her first love and not to put too much stress on the future – that would take care of itself. Thinking back, Bec realised that her mother had never thought it was going to last. If she hadn’t been so wrapped up in Zane maybe she would have caught on to what Maggie was thinking. But she couldn’t, because everything was so bright, so new, and so brimming with possibilities that she thought would last a lifetime.
For her father and Mick Turner, their kids’ relationship was the potential melding of not only two of the oldest families in the district but also the two most successful farms. Mick kept congratulating Jack on how fantastic the future of both properties would be. Jack seemed pleased, but maybe not as euphoric as Mick.
So from the time Bec was seventeen to four months after her twenty-first birthday, she’d been in love with Zane Turner. It was bright-burning, hot and the type of feeling she believed would last forever. He couldn’t get enough of her, nor she of him. All he had to do was look at her with his blue eyes and she was gone. She remembered the times when she would come home during her breaks from Uni, and he would sweep her into his arms, and tell her how much he missed her.
As those years passed, Bec was able to see a future – one that was rosy and filled with laughter, love and eventually children. More than once she’d pictured them: grey eyed, blond and beautiful – just like their father.
On the night of her twenty-first birthday, in a room filled with their friends and family, he’d dropped to one knee and proposed. Bec had always tried to keep her emotions in check, especially when she was around other people, but Zane’s proposal was too much for her. With a happy smile and tears running down her face, she had said yes. Zane had let out a whoop as he picked her up, spun her around and kissed her and the room erupted into applause. It had been the brightest and most perfect day of her life.
But now, she could barely bring herself to think about it.
For almost four months Bec had floated – yeah, that was the only way she could describe it. She’d spent her days working alongside her father and her nights kissing Zane. Her father had been happy, even buoyant about the upcoming marriage. He thought that his legacy would be safe in Bec and Zane’s hands – Bluestone Ridge and Cara Downs would both continue. Bec and her mother started looking at wedding things – venues, designs and above all, dresses. It was all so girly and seductive, in a way. Bec had always been more comfortable in jeans and work boots, but there was something about a wedding, her wedding, that made her want to embrace the joy of the right dress. She had never thought she would, but for the ceremony she realised that she really did want to be that princess. Well, maybe not an over-the-top, flashy, meringue-type princess, but a princess nonetheless.
With Maggie’s help, they put together a little engagement party. Had it been sophisticated and slick? Not by any stretch of the imagination. The party was a barbecue with the local country band, the Black Creek Wranglers, and a few beers shared with their closest friends. And as the cool night had worn on and Bec had kissed Zane in front of the bonfire she’d known, deep down inside, that everything was perfect. The night was cold and the air held the scent of eucalyptus and wood smoke. As the heat of Zane’s body and the flames warmed her, Bec had found a peace that she had never experienced before. She had known, in that moment, where she was meant to be and what the rest of her life looked like.
The week that followed had been busy, with sheep drenching happening at the farm and Bec’s attempts to squeeze in some wedding preparation around it. Bec hadn’t seen Zane for most of that time, and late one night she headed off across the ridge to the short cut to Zane’s place. She hurried over the paddock that adjoined Cara Downs and through the old wooden gate that had stood for longer than a century. She’d planned to surprise him, but as it turned out the joke was on her.
Bec was walking to the back door but saw that a soft light spilled out of Zane’s window. On impulse she changed direction and went to the window instead. Maybe she’d do that thing she had seen in the movies and toss a couple of pebbles at the pane to get his attention. She peeked in the slightly open window, just to make sure he was still awake, and that was when the world tilted off its axis.
Zane was naked in bed, kissing someone who wasn’t her. Bec stood still as if she’d been turned to stone, not wanting to believe her eyes. She wanted to cry out, This can’t be real. Surely it was some sick joke or misunderstanding? But she knew it wasn’t. She grasped at nothingness, trying desperately to hold on to anything that would prove that her future wasn’t lying in shattered shards at her feet.
The couple broke apart.
‘But why did you have to go and get engaged?’
‘You know the answer to that, Tanya. We’ve been over it enough times.’
‘Yeah, well the way I look at it, it’s me doing all the compromising.’
‘Aw, come on, baby – you know how I feel about you. I’m marrying Bec because it’s the smart thing to do. It doesn’t change anything between us,’ he said as he pulled her tight and dropped a series of kisses along her neck.
Tanya had squirmed against him. ‘Hmmm. How can it not change this thing we’ve got going on? I thought we’d get married and have a couple of kids. I want a wedding, Zane – I’ve been dreaming of it since I was a little girl.’
‘Can’t you see what this will do for us? With Cara Downs and Bluestone Ridge merged together, we’ll be the most successful farm in the entire district.’
‘Oh, come on – Cara Downs already has a great reputation. You’re doing fine without having to get Bec’s place.’
‘You’re right, but the Duprey place has a history and brand to it. You can’t buy provenance like that. Besides, once I’ve married her, I’ll control one of the best sheep runs in the entire state.’
A cold wave of anger had washed over Bec as she listened to Zane. Everything he’d said to her had been a lie. God, she’d been ten times a fool believing that he loved her.
Bec sucked in a breath as she stepped back into the shadows and scraped her foot against the old stone planter under the plum tree.
Tanya sat up in bed and ran a hand through her dark, tangled hair. ‘Did you hear that?’
Zane shrugged. ‘I didn’t hear anything.’
‘It sounded small, you know, soft like a sigh. Oh, I probably imagined it.’ Tanya ran her hand down the side of his face and across his shoulder. ‘I know you’ve explained it before, but I’m getting worried about this thing with you and Bec.’
‘What do you mean?’
‘You know – everything. Where do I stand in this?’
‘Don’t worry, nothing’s changed.
‘But I still don’t understand why you have to do this. We’re happy now – why do you have to ruin it by marrying Bec?’
‘My dad and I had a talk while I was still back in school. I was a bit sceptical at first but the more I thought about what he said about getting the two farms together, the more it made sense.’
‘So you don’t love her?’
‘’Course not. Bec’s alright, I suppose, but she’s all dedication and work boots. She knows her way around the farm and I have to say the woman knows how to work. But there’s something hard about her, you know – it’s like she’s trying to prove something.’ Zane ran his hands over Tanya’s ample breasts. ‘You, on the other hand, are all soft and sweet and edible.’
Bec’s stomach had pitched and she turned away from the scene that would be forever burned into her memory. She slapped her hand over her mouth and stood still. Closing her eyes for a moment she let the cool wind blow over her – calming and bolstering her. She needed to get some distance between her and Zane. What Zane had said had hit her just as powerfully as if someone had physically struck her. Bec stopped and glanced back to the open window. She would run away to the ridge and try to gather the pieces of her heart back together – but not yet. The anger and the hurt twirled and matted into a tight ball inside her stomach. She wasn’t going to slink off into the night without letting Zane Turner know exactly how she felt. Hard, was she? Well, he had no idea just how hard she could be.
She took a step forward and pulled back the window. The movement made the couple jump and stare with dawning horror back at her. She pulled off the small diamond that had glittered so prettily in the moonlight as she’d walked over here and threw it with all her might at Zane’s head. Unfortunately her aim was a little too wide and the ring smacked against the wall near the bedhead.
‘Bec . . . I . . . I . . .’ he stammered as he sat transfixed.
‘You can take this ring and stick it. I wouldn’t marry you if you were the last bloody man on earth. You’re nothing but scum, Zane Turner! And Hell would have to freeze over before you ever lay a finger on me or Bluestone Ridge again.’
Zane jumped out of bed and grabbed his jeans. ‘Bec, wait, this isn’t—’
‘What, Zane? This isn’t what it looks like? Oh, you’re pathetic.’ Bec swung away and ran as fast as she could all the way home.