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He suddenly didn’t care. Today was a good day. The sun was shining; the sky was blue. A kookaburra began its throaty, laughing call from somewhere high in the branches above. He began to whistle.
“What’s that song?” Benni asked excitedly. “Will you teach it to me?”
“What? Do you mean you’ve never heard ‘Kookaburra Sits in the Old Gumtree’ before?” he asked. Most Aussie kids knew that song, it was sung around campfires, at pre-school, at Girl Guides and in most homes across the country.
“No. Sing it. Sing it,” Benni said, swinging on his hand and looking up into his face.
“You forgot to say please,” Kee admonished. “And perhaps Wazza doesn’t want to sing right now.”
“Not a problem,” he answered. And then he began to sing the children’s song he’d learned so long ago. After a while, Benni joined in with the chorus, adding a little giggle when she got the words wrong.
They arrived at the edge of the billabong, breathless from singing. Wazza hoped Daniella didn’t come charging out onto the veranda to find out what all the noise was about, who was disturbing the peace and quiet of this adult retreat. But no such apparition appeared.
“Such a pretty pond,” Benni exclaimed.
“Out here, we call it a billabong,” Wazza corrected gently. “There’s lots of fish swimming in there. If you watch closely, you might see one jump out of the water to catch an insect.”
“Really?” Benni breathed in disbelief.
“Really.” Wazza kept his face solemn. “Steve, the boss, he grows barramundi in here. They can get really big, and they’re delicious to eat.”
“I don’t like fish.” Benni screwed up her nose.
“Oh, look at that beautiful bird, Benni,” Kee called. “It’s got metallic feathers.” She hunkered down on the grass next to her daughter and pointed to a kingfisher skimming along the surface of the water, chasing down insects. “Don’t go too near the water,” Kee admonished as she let go of Benni’s hand. “It looks deep,” she said, eyeing the water warily.
“It can be deep in the middle, but it’s really shallow around the edges,” Wazza replied. Of course, she was probably worried about Benni falling in. The kid was only four, she probably couldn’t swim well. “She’s quite safe,” he said, hoping to calm her fears. “The water only goes up to my knees for a long way out. I’ll keep an eagle eye on her.”
“Oh, okay.” Kee seemed to accept his explanation.
They both stood back and watched Benni hunt around at the edge of the tall sedge grass, exclaiming in delight as she discovered a slimy snail, or a bit of bright-green algae. Wazza made sure he kept an eye on Benni, not letting her go into the high grass farther around the slope. He didn’t want to scare Benni, she was having so much fun. But later, Wazza would have a conversation with Kee about the danger of snakes, even this close to the lodge.
“I never realized there were so many creatures out in the desert,” Kee said.
“Yeah, the diversity is amazing.”
They stood close, but not quite touching. Then, he made the mistake of looking directly into her dark, fathomless eyes, and for uncounted seconds he was lost.
Like she’d said last night, they’d only known each other for a few days, but he felt as if it’d been much longer. There was a connection between them that couldn’t be explained. Couldn’t be denied. But his connection to this woman was complicated. Because it was mixed in with his connection with Benni. You couldn’t have one without the other. And he had growing feelings for both. The feelings were different, but entwined, nonetheless.
What the hell was he getting himself into?
“Show me the thing?” Benni interrupted his thoughts and broke his contact with Kee. “You know, the thing you were going to show me.”
“Right. This way.” Wazza started back up the grassy hill, taking them past the infinity swimming pool—which had no one in it this morning—and around the side of the lodge. On the way he pointed out Skylar’s kitchen garden, which Kee was most impressed by, gave them a quick run-down of the history of the resort, and how it’d grown, showing them some cabins that could be seen peeking through the trees, explaining that there were now twenty cabins, Steve having added an extra couple last year to keep up with demand. Kee made all the right noises of appreciation in all the right places. But he could see she didn’t really understand just how hard Steve and Daniella had had to work to make this place what it was today.
The machinery shed was up the hill, beyond the lodge and behind the stables. Benni wanted to go and see the horses, but Wazza said they’d save that for another day, as he had something really special to show her. It was a huge, square building made from corrugated iron sheets, with a high roof, and a concrete floor. It wasn’t too hot in here yet, but during the middle of the day the iron walls concentrated the heat and it became like an oven. Which was why he was hoping to get his job done by smoko time. The tractor needed all the fluids and oils checked, along with the belts and hoses. Not a complicated job. Steve always made sure maintenance was a priority with his vehicles, but he needed it done by this afternoon, so he could grade the dirt driveway; the potholes were becoming a menace.
“Over here.” Wazza beckoned them toward a dark corner at the back. A pair of bright eyes regarded them from out of the gloom.
“What is it?” Benni whispered.
“A mummy dog and her babies,” answered Wazza, and right on cue, they all heard the distinctive yipping of young dogs.
Benni’s eyes went round, and she gasped, “Puppies?”
“Is she friendly?” Kee hung back, gaze wary, tugging on Benni’s hand.
“Yes. Of course.”
