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One strong black tea coming up for him. One—she examined the offerings on the counter—ginger and lemongrass for her.
The kettle boiled and the mugs filled, she sat herself down at the table with Ken. Her patio faced east, but the sun was barely up and the garden lights were still glowing dimly in among the ixoras and agapanthus.
‘Thought you were all settled up at the cottages with our Farmer Joe,’ said Ken. ‘Bit surprised when you turned up wanting your old room back.’
‘Sudden change of plan,’ she said.
‘Uhuh. Pity.’
She eyed him through the steam curling up off her mug. She may not have known Ken long, but it hadn’t taken more than a conversation or two to work out the hotel-motel manager had a heart of gold, a soft spot for gossip, and the chatty disposition of a morning talk-show host. He’d also lived in Clarence a long time, which made him likely to know a whole lot more about the Miles family—specifically Joe Miles—than she did.
Ifshe was interested in finding out more, which yesterday she may have been, but today she absolutely was not.
She caved about twenty seconds later. ‘Why is that a pity?’
‘I don’t like to gossip, love.’
‘Um, Ken. I think your nose just grew two inches.’
He chuckled. ‘Got me there. Okay, since you’re so insistent, I’ll tell you. Lovely lad, that Joey Miles, but he got his heart broken bad. Real bad. Us old timers here in Clarence feel real sorry for the way it changed him.’
This was the first she’d heard of a broken heart. ‘Do you mean Kim? Because I’ve heard him talk about his ex-girlfriend, and I didn’t get the broken heart vibe.’ Far from it.
‘What, that piece of fairy floss?’ Ken snorted so hard the ends of his moustache flew upwards. ‘Hell, no. His heart was broken when he was a boy.’
She didn’t need to know this. Joey was into gambling, she’d got that news from the piece of fairy floss herself, and she had damage enough already by someone addicted to gambling. She didn’t need to know, and yet …
‘When he was a boy,’ she prompted.
Ken rested his hand on his heart and gave a sigh. ‘Nearly broke his mother’s heart seeing him so sad. She’s got a soft spot for Joey, has Patty. We’re all so pleased he’s come back to Clarence at last. Mind you, we don’t see him in town much. Working his arse off making a go of this new venture, I hear.’
Working his arse off to get out of his debt more like, thought Kirsty darkly. But that was the problem, wasn’t it? Gamblers got themselves into trouble. Then maybe they’d dig themselves out and you’d think everything was going to be okay, and you’d get all optimistic and happy, but then they’d lose everything again. It was a rollercoaster of hope and disappointment.
‘What was her name?’
‘Natalie. Family didn’t live here long.’
Natalie. Joe had mentioned that name. ‘I thought that was just a high-school romance,’ she said. ‘She must have broken up with him pretty badly for the whole town to still be feeling sorry for him.’
‘Oh, she didn’t break it off, pet. She died.’
Kirsty put her mug down on the tile-topped table with a thunk. ‘What? But that’s terrible! How?’
‘Cancer. I don’t know the details.’
She didn’t want to feel sorry for Joe Miles. She was upset, and bitter, and she had no right to be. He could live his life any way he chose, and if she were a nicer person she’d let him know why she had left, but that would mean admitting that how he lived his lifedidmatter to her.
Damn it. Why did it all have to be so complicated?
‘So then, tell Uncle Ken. What are your plans now, lovey? You don’t want to be living in my hotel motel forever, even though my towels are the fluffiest you’ll ever use.’
‘I can’t head off quite yet. You know I’m here researching the Bluetts?’
‘May have heard that, yes.’
She grinned. ‘I’ll bet you’ve heard everything that’s going down in this town.’
He tapped a finger to his nose and had a final slurp out of his mug. ‘I know you’ve found the old plane.’
