Mountain Ash (36 page)

‘How about we leave it to Mue to arrange, then? It might help her get through this in some way.'

Clem gave a small smile. ‘You'd do that for Mum?'

Nate nodded. He couldn't say anything. Just thinking of Mue's reaction to his father's death choked him up.

He felt Jodie's arm come around his waist. A support. He could feel his shoulders start to shake, but he sucked it up. Crying was not for a man like him. Not twice in one evening anyway.

Clem was struggling too. Nate could see it in his eyes – they were glassy. ‘I'll go check on Mum,' he said, then disappeared.

‘You okay?' asked the woman at his side, landing a kiss on his cheek.

He wanted more. Much, much more, but now was neither the time nor the place. He sighed, gave her a sad smile. ‘Yeah. But life's never going to be the same again.'

From the
Narree Times

Alex McGregor, high-country grazier late of Glenevelyn Station and a Narree Shire councillor, was farewelled last Friday in a service held at the Narree Memorial Hall. It was standing room only at the ceremony, a fitting assemblage for a dedicated man who held many positions over the years on myriad agricultural associated boards and committees at both district and state levels.

Mr McGregor was tragically killed fighting the recent bushfires at his historic grazing property above Lake Grace. His ashes will be spread by family members across the station that meant so much to him, at a later date. While his wife Elizabeth has predeceased him, he leaves two children, Nathaniel McGregor and Clem Bailey. He will be sadly missed.

‘The fucking
bastard!
He can't
do
this!' roared Clem, pacing the living room of Glenevelyn.

It was the Tuesday after the funeral, three weeks since Alex's death. A pompous solicitor, Mr Morelli, had come from Melbourne to read the will. The man tore off his glasses. ‘He can, and he has done.'

‘But I don't want it! Nate should have it. By rights it should be his.'

‘Not according to Mr McGregor's wishes. Nathaniel has been bequeathed,' the solicitor put his glasses back on and read from the paper in his hands, ‘Grumley's Block. Whatever that is.'

Mum's family property, thought Nate. Perfect. That's more than he could have wished for.

But Clem was still going. ‘I don't care what Alex McGregor wanted. He was an old prick –'

‘Clem!' said Mue. She was sitting stiff in her place, barely acknowledging the hand Jodie had on her knee. ‘Do
not
speak ill of the dead.'

‘I'll speak ill of him all right. I don't want this place,' said Clem with vehemence.

‘To you, Mrs Bailey, the late Mr McGregor has bequeathed shares; I am not entirely sure of their value at present, but they are by no means inconsiderable.'

Mue clapped a hand over her mouth. ‘I don't need anything more from Alex.'

The solicitor gave a long-suffering sigh. ‘Doesn't anybody in this room want something from the deceased?'

Wal, sitting on the other side of Mue, put up his hand. ‘Well, I wouldn't mind a handout, but seeing I only knew him for five minutes I guess that's out of the question?'

The solicitor didn't reply. Maybe it was time for a cup of tea to let everyone settle down, Jodie thought. She got up, glanced around. ‘How about a cup of tea? Mr Morelli?'

The solicitor looked up from his papers. ‘Black coffee. No sugar.'

Milly piped up from her place behind the couch. ‘You should say
please
.'

‘Milly!' said Jodie.

‘Well, that's what you say to me, Mum.'

‘Mr Morelli's different. He's … um … he's grown up.' The solicitor glared at her over his glasses. ‘Are you Jodie Ashton?'

‘Yes, I am.' She expected him to dress her down over her child's cheeky mouth.

‘Mr McGregor has bequeathed to you a box. A wooden box which can apparently be found in his office.'

Jodie blinked. A box? What the –?

Milly was jumping up and down. ‘It's the chess set, Mum. The chess set Mr McGregor and Grandpa played with.'

Oh God, she'd forgotten about that. Alex had always brought his own hand-carved set when he came to visit her father. Jodie wanted to cry.

The solicitor hadn't finished. ‘And I believe you are having the late Mr McGregor's child?'

‘No, she's having my child,' said Nate, coming over from the couch to stand by Jodie.

Morelli frowned. ‘I thought it was Alex's child, but never mind. He recently changed his will and the child you are having has been left shares. You will need to decide if you wish them to be realised or not.'

Jodie stared up at Nate. ‘I can't take them.'

It was Clem who answered her. ‘You mightn't want to but that baby in there,' he pointed to Jodie's belly, ‘sure as hell will be grateful.'

Jodie glanced wildly around. She couldn't do it. She just couldn't. But Nate was nodding in agreement. ‘At the very least the baby
is
his step-grandchild. What else will happen to them if you don't take them? Clem doesn't want them, I don't, and I suspect neither does Mue. They're yours for the baby. Or you could divvy them up between both of the kids, if you like.'

Mr Morelli was shuffling papers, stuffing them into his briefcase. ‘I won't stay for that coffee.' He glanced at his watch. ‘I need to be on the road back to Melbourne before one o'clock. I'll find a latte between Hicksville and town, won't I?'

They all stared at the pompous man, even Jodie amid her turmoil. Did he just call their valley
Hicksville?

‘Yes. I suspect you will …' Mue was the first to respond. ‘And I hope you choke on it,' she muttered under her breath.

Morelli didn't hear her. He was too busy putting on his suit jacket even though it was at least thirty degrees in the shade outside. The man shook hands with Clem and Nate. Nodded to the rest of them in one go. They'd been dismissed. ‘I'll let myself out.' Then he stopped, said, ‘Oh and by the way, Mr Bailey or Mr McGregor. If you choose to sell a place you have inherited, seeing as
you don't want it
,' here he glared at Clem like he was an ungrateful child, ‘I'm sure I have a client or two who'd be interested in buying a blue-chip property even though it
is
so far from the city.'

Clem frowned. As did Nate. Nate spoke for both of them. ‘We won't be selling either place, Mr Morelli. Thanks all the same.'

The solicitor raised his eyebrows imperiously and left.

Once they heard the front door click shut, Wal said, ‘What a dickhead, and that's being nice because there's ladies present.'

Even Milly nodded in agreement.

‘So, Mum, seeing that job in Windorah's gone, where are we going to live?' asked Milly, ever pragmatic, an hour later. ‘I've found a new frog and he's wondering where his pond's going to be.'

Jodie shuddered. She'd thought they were done with slimy amphibians.

‘I'm pretty sure he's a boy frog, so when the time's right and I need a prince, I can kiss him,' continued the little girl. ‘But I'm going to wash him first. Make sure he's nice and clean.'

‘Clean is good,' said Jodie.

‘Alternatively I guess I could kiss Billy.' Milly pursed her lips in contemplation, then shook her head. ‘Nah, I think the frog might be best.'

‘Do you think that solicitor might've found his latte yet?' asked Nate, walking over to the pair of them and sitting down beside Jodie. The two Ashtons were perched on the edge of Glenevelyn's verandah, waiting for Mue to finish in the kitchen. The older woman hadn't wanted any help, preferring to be on her own in the big old house with her memories of Alex.

Jodie chuckled softly. ‘Like Mue said, if he has, I hope he chokes on it.'

‘I sure wouldn't want to kiss a man like that,' said Milly solemnly.

Nate glanced at her with a quizzical look.

‘Milly's got a new frog,' explained Jodie. ‘She's thinking of kissing it one day but not until she's bigger.'

‘And you?'

‘I'm having a hiatus from kissing.'

Nate grimaced. ‘What a shame. I thought I might've got lucky.'

‘I'll kiss you, Nathaniel,' said Milly. And she promptly did, jumping up, winding her arms around his neck and planting her lips on his cheek.

Jodie smiled. She only wished she could be as impetuous as her daughter. She and Nate hadn't been able to snatch time to themselves since the day of the fire. There had been too much mopping up to do on Glenevelyn, neighbouring properties and down at Montmorency. Volunteer fire crews helped them, but blacking out burning fence posts, smouldering logs and cowpats took time. The cow-poo was the worst. As Wal had said to Travis, ‘Those piles of shit burn and smoulder like a bastard.'

They had all tried to do their bit to help the shattered community.

Out on the lawn in front of Jodie, Nate grabbed hold of her little girl and tipped her up, tickling her belly. Milly's laughter rang out across the garden, causing Clem to come wandering over from where he was fiddling with his ute. ‘What's going on? You being attacked by a hairy monster, Milly?'

‘Nope,' said Jodie. ‘Just a big pussy cat.'

‘Generally big cats are secretive, elusive and agile,' said Clem, kicking out at Nate, who had collapsed to lie on his back in the grass. ‘This lump is as open as a book, always around and clumsy.'

‘That's me,' said Nate, laughing. Milly was sitting on top of his belly, tickling
him
now. ‘I'm a regular pain in the arse.'

‘I don't know,' said Jodie. ‘You're pretty good.'

‘Pretty good at playing the fool,' commented Mue, finally coming out of the house. ‘You want me to lock the front door, Nathaniel?'

‘Ask Clem, he owns it.'

Clem scowled. ‘I don't want it, I said.'

‘Too bad, so sad,' said Nate. ‘For better or worse, it's yours.' He tipped Milly gently off his belly and got to his feet. ‘I'll miss the old place but them's the breaks.'

‘So haven't you got a home either?' asked Milly. ‘Maybe you and my mum can find a house and live in it together?'

Jodie groaned inwardly. The innocence of youth. She daren't look at Nate. They hadn't discussed anything about their future together.

‘Maybe we should,' said a deep voice somewhere above her head. ‘What do you think, Jodie? You, me and Milly here?'

Jodie didn't know where to look. What to say. Was he
serious?
They had only just farewelled Alex.
As if that matters
, said a little voice inside her head.
You love him
.
You're having his baby. He came back for you and your children. He said he' d never leave you. Isn't that enough?

Maybe. But she needed to hear him say it all over again.

Needed him to show her with his body how much he meant it.

‘Don't you like living with me, Milly?' said Mue. ‘I'll be lonely if you, your mum and Floss leave.'

Milly squinted her eyes. ‘I do, but I don't think you'll like my new pet. He's a frog, you see. I'll need to kiss him sometime and he's the cleanest one I've been able to find.'

‘How about I take your frog and look after him until Mum gets a new house?' said Clem. ‘He can camp out with Parnie and Buggsy.'

Milly looked doubtful. ‘You won't double cross me and kiss him, will you? It's taken me a while to find him.'

Clem stood with his fingers over his heart. ‘I, Clem Bailey, do solemnly promise I will not kiss Milly Ashton's frog.'

Nate jumped down beside them. ‘But I, Nathaniel McGregor, might kiss your mum. Is that all right?'

‘Perfectly,' said Milly, smiling.

A few nights later and finally they were alone, sitting side by side out on Clem's porch, taking in the last good weather of the summer. Jodie was five or so months pregnant and, judging by the dewy mornings now settling onto the valley, autumn was on its way. Jodie wouldn't be sorry. Even though she'd had most of her belongings in storage by the time the fire had come through, she'd still lost her car and horse float. The Hunters, a house and other farm stuff. And Alex …

In reality, the last six months had been hellish and cooler weather would suit them all. It might even help them start afresh, because the fires had affected more than a few lives. An experience like that was life-changing. It made you realise just how the little things that previously had pissed you off were nothing. Family and friends were what mattered the most.

To give them this time to themselves, Mue was supervising Milly's cooking practice down at her place and Clem had gone
bush, although Jodie was sure Clem's was a trumped-up excursion. That or the fact he was a loner and things had got too much for him. The last they'd seen of the new heir to Glenevelyn was the taillights of his old ute heading up into the mountains. Dogs, a swag and an Esky had cluttered the back of the tray.

‘We won't see him for a few days,' said Nate with a sigh. ‘The poor bloke's got a lot to take in.'

‘You don't feel resentful he got Glenevelyn and you didn't?' asked Jodie. She'd been wondering. Nate had taken the whole reading of the will so well.

‘To be honest, I'm more peeved he's got the machinery. I could've done with a tractor and the dozer up on Mum's place.'

‘I'm sure he'll lend them to you,' said Jodie. ‘He loves you. He'd give you the shirt off his back if he could.'

Nate smiled a beautiful grin that made his eyes light up. ‘I know. That's why I can't ever be pissed off he got Glenevelyn. I much prefer Mum's place anyway. It's got the best pick of the river flats and the hill country is warm for cattle. There's a terrific site for a house too, near where the old folks used to have theirs. It burned down in the '68 fires but some of the garden trees are still there. You'll love it.'

She believed him, although it sounded almost too wonderful to be true.

Nate was still talking. ‘Clem thinks he might turn Glenevelyn into a brumby camp. Run programs for troubled youth from the cities, like my mate Dan Caldwell up in the Snowy Mountains.'

Jodie smiled. She could just imagine Clem working with the kids. He'd treat them like he did animals, beings whose trust had to be won, who needed to be nurtured.

‘He's going up to see Dan in a few weeks. Work out how he runs the show. Have a chat and see what they can come up with.'

‘And what about you?' she asked, acutely aware she was putting it all on the line. ‘What are you going to do?'

‘Well, that depends on you,' said the man beside her. His voice was tentative, like he wasn't sure where to go, what to say.

Jodie wasn't sure either but decided to just let her instincts guide her. She turned and faced Nate, took his hand and placed it on her tummy. ‘Do you feel that?' The baby was moving. Indiscriminate and swishy thumps and bumps, which she knew would only get stronger in the coming months. She watched as he squinted his beautiful eyes in concentration. She loved it when he did that, for when Nate was solely focused he was right there in the moment.

He shook his head. ‘I can't.' He sounded so disappointed.

She laughed, took up his hand and kissed it. Clasped it tight. ‘You will. Soon.'

‘I can't wait.'

‘Are you sure?' The question was loaded and she could see by his expression Nate knew it.

‘I've never been sure of anything so much in my entire life.' He stood up. Pulled her to her feet. Solemnly gazed down into her eyes. ‘I want to marry you, Jodie, and I will love you all the days of my life.'

His answer was music to her ears, her mind, her heart. Most of her adult life she had seemed like drift-wood floating down river rapids, bouncing off one rock only to slam against another. Since Rhys had ridden out of her life nothing had ever seemed certain. Until now. This man was her security, her strength. He was the one who would always be there for her.

‘Prove it,' she whispered. ‘Show me with your body.'

Nate's eyes darkened. He clasped her close. Turned to lead her inside.

‘And just where do you think you two are going?' Wallace Price walked onto the verandah, toting a gun. ‘I knew he'd done his nuts over you, Jodie, but I thought he'd at least wait until we were all safely out of the way before he bedded you again.'

‘Piss off, Wal,' said Nate.

‘Now that's no way to be speaking to your mates. If it hadn't been for me you'd never have met her in the first place.'

‘That is the biggest load of shit I've ever heard.'

‘'Tis not. Tell him, Jodes, you were taken in by my stunning sewing machine. The very one this young buck tried to dump on the streets in Longreach.'

‘I threatened to dump
you
in Longreach.'

‘And then you'd never have met the best sheila this side of the Snowy Mountains – besides Muey, of course. Now there's a woman after a man's heart. She cooks like a dream, doesn't nag or fart. I have no idea why your old man didn't marry her –' Wal broke off, turned beet-red. ‘Begging your pardon, Jodie. Of course he wanted to marry
you
, it's just you can't cook –'

‘Wallace Price. Leave. Now,' said Nate. ‘That's if you want a job in the morning.'

‘I've got a job, cutting up the fine sambar deer I've just shot.'

‘Well, go cut it up!'

Wal sniffed. ‘I know when I'm not wanted. But I still say you owe me, young McGregor.'

‘He owes you, Wal,' agreed Jodie, smiling. ‘As does this little person.' She tapped her belly. ‘If it's a boy we could call him Wallace.'

‘Like hell,' said Nate.

‘Young ones. Never grateful. Next thing he'll be calling it Ferris, or maybe if it's a girl …
Danielle
. I'd best be going. Ta-ta,' he said, smirking and sauntering off.

‘Danielle?' said Jodie.

Nate's eyes were closed and he appeared to be counting to ten. ‘I'll give him bloody Danielle.'

‘How about I give you Eileen?' Jodie's grin was wicked. ‘
I-lean
over and do delicious things to your body.'

Nate laughed. Grabbed hold of her hand and drew her inside, making sure to lock the door as he went. ‘Done. Come here, you wanton woman. Let me ravish you until you scream for mercy.'

A long time later, Jodie lay cushioned by Nate's arms. They were both sated and dozy. The clock on the bedside table showed midday or midnight depending on which way you looked at it. The lack of light sneaking around the blind made the latter the more likely.

‘Are you awake?' rumbled a voice near her ear.

Jodie rolled over and peered up at the man staring down at her. His face was rumpled and soft, like a well-worn and comfortable blanket. She knew hers was rosy and looked like she'd been tumbled around a bed half a dozen times, which would be the truth of it.

‘I am. Are you?'

‘More awake than I've ever been in my life,' he said, guiding her hand down to his groin.

‘You're insatiable,' she said, laughing at the evidence.

‘For you, yes, that's about the way of it.'

She was silent for a few beats, then asked again, just to be positively sure, ‘Will it always be like this, Nate? Will you want me in your life forever?'

His look was measured with all the sincerity and levity he sensed she needed. ‘Until the end of time, my beautiful Mountain Ash.'